Holy crap! I have been using 170ppm TDS water!
 

So got my TDS meter since I was very curious about what TDS water I have been using for the past year. Turns out to be 170ppm! Holy crap! No algae issue or anything till now with this water. My 20 gallon was literally algae free and I used to do 50% weekly water change. My new tank is having diatom on the sand but not sure whether it is contributed by the tapwater or not since my 20 gallon just had an initial bloom and that's it.

Sheer luck or TDS is just over-rated concern.....I wonder.

TING TING TING! Start the debate!

IMO, TDS isn't the debate. After you add salt, your TDS is through the roof. The concern, at least for me, is that with tap water, you don't know when it changes or potentially becomes contaminated in some form. The key to a successful reef is consistency, and RO water adds to this consistency. On a typical day, all things appeasing the reef gods, tap water is perfectly safe. Just not the best. There's really no debate here, just preferences on tank stability and willingness to take risks, however small.

I've had bad luck with conditioned tap water generally. However the biggest thing is your maintenance schedule. I have no doubts whatsoever that you had no algae problems with a water change schedule like 50% a week. Thats crazy! lol.

On my very first reef tank ever, I had color and algae issues even with a 2 X monthly water change schedule. When I changed to RO water, my softies colored up and algae went away. Call it luck? Timing? No idea lol. But I always like to use a good old RO just in case.

I also noticed on my brothers tank (he is using tap water with big als tap water conditioner) that when I switched his brand to my good old 'prime' it made a difference on regular glass cleaning.

I live on okanagan lake and use water right out of the lake with a tds of 125 and and ph of 8 and have for years and have had 1 algae bloom over that time but i am in to deep this time so i am going to put in an ro unit with no di for the spring and summer months and not in the winter because in the winter water is crystal clear same as summer but spring with run off causes some cloudiness but i think maybe the mineral in the lake also helps and 1 example is that red pipe coral grows like rats

Usually when I talk about water contamination, I'm referring to a year I lived in Kelowna and the entire drinking water distribution circuit was shut down due to toxins in the water. If someone had done a water change that day before the emergency was declared, I'd guess they'd lose their whole tank. It doesn't happen often, but it does happen. The Kelowna sewage treatment plant discharges directly into the lake, and while the water coming out is top quality, if there were an accident, the lake would be contaminated. The cost of RO is small compared to replacing everything in the tank :)

So true lol.

Theres no words more true than "be safe or be sorry" in this hobby.

I am up stream of kelowna and in the deepest part of the lake and all the water sample people from the government that i talk to says it is the best right there are very few homes and all of Vernon sewage gets treated then irrigated onto the hills then ran though mother natures giant biological filter unlike Victoria's

The Kelowna plant is one of the best in the world, and I've drank water out of the outflow. In fact, they were breeding trout in it last time I was there. But...what if something went horribly wrong?? :razz:

The water intake has a 6" grate filtering it before the chlorination stage, keeping out larger ducks -lol

So basically, RODI is mostly like an insurance and just making sure all the contamination are taken out (if any) before they get into the tank. So, if my understanding is right, RODI is "highly recommended" rather than a "necessity". ;) Some reefers need to change their perspective :razz:

RODI unit is definitely not expensive compared to the cost of this hobby. But what intimidates me is the amount of water wastage. I don't have gardening or anything where I can use the waste water. Plus since its a rented house, wasting water is restricted in the contract. I was actually thinking of starting to by water from stores. Anyone knows where I can find "RODI" instead of just "RO" water?

I get 7-9 TDS out of my kitchen sink and don't use any kind of conditioner and let the water sit overnight with a powerhead and heater. I've yet to have algae - except in my planted tanks, it was a battle I suffered for a long time despite every effort and made me shut it down, afterwords I realized that I should of probably be using RO water.

So far in the marine tank, I haven't had any algae issues - but I do have an rodi system, that I don't use, but have some ro water stored in case of an emergency. I don't know, it's a fail safe thing for me.

Right. Only thing you absolutely need is salt. Everything else just makes it easier :)

I feel the same way about the waste water with an ro unit. I ran ro/di for years but when I moved I got lazy and didn't set it back up and used conditioned tap water.

Mind you my tds out the tap is around 8, but like Brad mentioned, it's an insurance policy.

I know a lot of people in BC with small to medium tanks use the aquarium pharmaceuticals tap water filters. For many out here this is enough to get their tds down to zero.

Not really cost effective if you are running larger systems though as the cartridges can get pricey.

yike! This is bad and a good reason to use RODI water. I know someone who lost about 30 large discus fish to some chimical in tap water many years ago. It does happen.

I tested my tap water and the TDS is 120, but there is no trace of nitrates or phosphates in it so I am guessing that it would not fuel algae, but I still use RO water.

That is why i am adding the ro at least i will have a bench mark like you said because i hope as we all know this hobby is great and the last thing anyone wants to do is hurt livestock if maybe we could have done something just a bit different :-)

What people need to understand is that TDS doesn't equal bad. It's just a measure of total dissolved solids. Of course those DS's could be bad, we have no (easy) way to tell. Calgary for example, has very high TDS. But much of that is mineral content from the water source. Not a bad thing at all. Areas near agricultural areas might be a bit more concerned, as run off also measures as TDS, which can be N or P compounds, and/or toxic compounds. Again, risk is low, but cost of RO to offset that risk seems negligible, at least for medium to larger tanks.

I've used tap water with saltwater tanks that were just fine. However, in my current reef I like to have a little bit more control over what actually goes into the tank because I'm a control freak like that. Using RO/DI helps to give me that control. Again, tap water is fine if you don't really care what goes into your tank. TDS of anything above 0 means there's stuff in there. What that "stuff" happens to be is anybody's guess. Will that stuff hurt your tank? Probably not, but it's a variable that is unknown. A lot of people use tap water with their reefs, this isn't anything revolutionary or revealing :-)

If you really want to know call public works and get a copy of the analytical.

I did check their online report. No trace of copper or silicate (I always look for those two components in particular). But since luck isn't favoring me much recently, I was thinking of starting RODI water but don't want to purchase the unit and don't really know where I can get reliable RODI.

Consider all the money you spent on livestock. And equip. Another 200 bucks is money well spent. Once you purchase the unit filters are cheap and myself at most replace 2x a year and that's water with 120 ppm. Usually at spring when runoff and maybe fall with heavy rains

Its not about the money. Its about the waste water. Landlord have it written in the contract that "no water wastage is allowed". He complains about 10 gallon water change, think what he will do with 50gallon water expense per water change :P That's why I was thinking of commercial water.

Since you moving out since he's a d**k. Who cares. Lol

Does he pay water bill or you?

:lol:

No one should waste water needlessly. However, are you on a water meter? How would he know how much you are using?

High water bill: landlords blames me (found out later than washing machine was pulling more water)
High electricity bill: landlord blames me (hint: the people living in upstairs keeps their windows open during winter!)

Whatever happens, the blame comes on me. :twised:

Bring over a bucket. I'll make you some.

The TDS in Calgary water is mostly inorganic calcium a magnesium and will just precipitate out.This time of year Alum is present and of course high Chlorine.Metals may be an issue depending if the city is disturbing old water mains.

Tap water
 

It's funny because though our tapwater is never over 10ppm it seems everytime I use it my tank grows all sorts of algaes.

Unfortunately a tds meter wont register Phosphates,nitrates and organics.Any municipal water treatment facility must post a water analysis,or you can request one(full matrix)and you can see what's actually in your water.:smile:

Thank you so much for the offer but I would like to get a permanent source since I really don't want to keep on bugging someone for the weekly water changing water :razz:

Tap water in North Van yesterday was 11 TDS :) I only use RO. Still, making the water is probably the biggest PITA about owning a reef tank.

I used to live in Hawaii and used tap water... my tank basically was a diatom tank due to high Si in Hawaii's tap water.