# RO Water at home and a question about pumps.



## startsmall (Oct 17, 2012)

Can anyone recommend a good RO filter? I change at most 25 gallons at any one water change. I would be pleased to find a unit that is around (or under) $200 and can produce that 25 gallons of water in about 1-2 hours. Obviously with this kind of output I do not want to sacrifice water quality, better to take more time and get perfect water than to get fast dirty water. 

Also...could I use the Hydor Pico 800 water pump in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket to pump water up into the tank during water changes? '

I am preparing for a trip overseas with the Army and I want to make it as easy as possible for my wife to take care of my fish while I am away...I don't want her killing off my $40-$50 dollar fish...lol. *r2


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Aquarium Water | Reverse Osmosis | RODI Water | ReefKeeper Water | Mighty Mite 50GPD with DI Added

I've heard good things about this one.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

check into Bulk Reef Supply(BRS). You can up to 75 gallons a day(for your price range),you will not get any unit to produce more than 3 gallons per hour(for that price or even double).Their units come with EVERYTHING you need to hook up(including 3 plumbing connection and an automatic shutoff{float valve),except storage container.The replacement filters are good priced also.


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## startsmall (Oct 17, 2012)

So I think the 25 gallons in a couple hours is a pipe dream at my price point...thats ok, I have buckets for a reason. Thanks for the links peoples!


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## startsmall (Oct 17, 2012)

BRS 5 Stage Chloramines RO/DI System - 75GPD - Bulk Reef Supply

or

Aquarium Water | Reverse Osmosis | RODI Water | ReefKeeper Water | Dual Home Reef with Tank & Faucet for under the sink

About the same price, one comes with storage and faucet, is there somehting I am missing from the first one that makes it a better system?


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## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

I picked up a 25 gallon storage tank, wall mount, for my ro works like a charm.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

no way to tell when second ones DI is expired as it is in white housing.Also only going to make enough water to fill storage vessel(2 gallons an hour).
BRS 5 Stage PLUS RO/DI System - 75GPD - Bulk Reef Supply
This one has TDS meter built in to di unit and clear housing to watch color change so you'll know when di is exhausted.Also pricereplacement filters for both .The BRS also can have another meter to keep track of all stages and count gallon usage.What makes RO units efficent also is it's waste to good ratio.BRS is about 2:1(2 gallons waste for every good 1).Water pressure is also factor in effeciency and most want pressure over 40psi/prefering 50+.My 6 stage runs very well with 33psi and no extra pump.I don't think your first BRS or this one comes with the float though.the one I linked is even cheaper.
Spectrapure is known to be very good quality also and is sponsor of this form so possibly they give member discount?
The BRS also has flush valve built in (keeps filters clean longer if you flush them every 1000g or so).


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I use systems from airwaterice.com systems and have been pleased with it. I have the NEPTUNE system.

Its rated for 200gpd....I wished it would do 25 gal in 2hrs.


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Its the filters and DI resin that each is using that sets them apart. But once they've been used up, there is no difference in the units, you will be buying the filters you want.
Aquarium II Ro Di Reverse Osmosis Water Filter Aquasafe | eBay
Aquarium Reef Reverse Osmosis Di Water System 50 GPD Made in USA | eBay
Reef Home Drinking Ro Di Dual Output Reverse Osmosis Pure Water Filter System | eBay
Max Water 5 Stage 125GP Reef Aquarium Ro Di Reverse Osmosis Water Filter System | eBay

Anyway, you get my point here. I use one from E-Bay on my 240g Reef tank and have no problems with it. Your choice.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Madness; where do you get filters/DI from?


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Spectrapure. It lasts way longer than the other junk I've tried to use.


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## nate2005 (Apr 24, 2013)

I'm also in the market for a RO filter. 

startsmall, which one did you get and how is it working? 

I'm looking to lower the GH in my freshwater tanks(30g and 75g). I have been using tap water that has a GH of ~232 ppm and KH of ~143ppm and I've always had a hard time acclimating new fish. I'm a complete novice when its comes to r/o so I need some help. From the research I've done already I feel an ro system is the best option for me since buying distilled/ro water to mix would get expensive over time and I don't think the softening pillows would work well for my bigger thank. My goal is to get my GH down to around 100 ppm(possibly less in the 30g). 
First of all, am I on the right path? Any other suggestions are welcome. I want to make sure I fully understand before I make this investment. 

Are the TDS and GH ppm figure describing the same thing?

When I've been looking at ro units I have only found one description that mentioned what % of total dissolved solids will be removed(its said up to 90%). I'm assuming the exact filters used is the variable there but what can I expect?

Assuming the ro would remove 90% of the TDS, would I end up with water that would be 23ppm GH and 14ppm KH that I could add tap water to to get to my desired hardness? 

I was thinking of hooking up my RO to a garden hose size fixture I have in my basement and let the filtered water run into a tank. Then siphon the water into buckets to complete my water changes. Anyone think I will run into any issues setting it up that way? If so, suggestions are welcome. 

Considering how I plan to set it up what features should I be looking for in the ro unit?


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

You don't want to directly feed RO to your tank.You want to have a vessel(I use a 44 gallon rubbermaid garbage can) to store your water in.You will need a float valve to stop the flow from filter to vessel when it is full.The system I got from BRS(bulk reef supply) came with; float valve($44.00 at my lfs),monitors (digital HM) for volume and true gallons passed through,and TDS meter(digital HM) that reads tds coming into the DI resins and also the tds comming out(always 0),along with 3 different plumbing options for installing.To remove TDS you have to have DI as the RO filters don't remove them.
I have the 6 stage dual DI filter from BRS.Maybe cost more than some others,but add in the meters,float valve andd plumbing options the other DON'T include and I got a deal.I have even added another canister to this "elaborate" filter to prefilter before going through the system.LOVE MY BRS 6+ STAGE!


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## nate2005 (Apr 24, 2013)

I was just going to use a spare tank that I have for my vessel until I can get the water bucketed into my tanks. 

am I correct in assuming that if I got something like the BRS 5 stage deluxe I would end up with water that has a lower GH?


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

It should remove a great % of everything;0kh,0gh,pH of 6.2 aprox.You then need to mix with tap to get desired levels.Straight RO is generally not good for many fish.Unless you monitor and manually shut off supply to a RO unit it will run non stop and over flow the vessel.There are some sites that sell "clamp on" float valves.The one that comes with the BRS needs to have a hole drilled through vessel to be mounted.


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## nate2005 (Apr 24, 2013)

I bought the brs 5 stage plus and a float valve. Should be here today.


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