tap water

[e46er]

I use tap water but the lower mainland has really good tap water under 10 tds

[Reef-Geek]

I use tap water too, it fine for my sps but i have algaes

[Money pit]

I always had an algae problem when I used tap water. There used to be a guy on here who lived in the N part of Calgary ( different water source ) who used tap water and prime. He had a nice little mixed reef.

[Aquattro]

Here's the thing. Yes, you can use tap water. Especially in Van, the water is very soft and pretty good quality. You may get nutrients going into the tank to cause algae, you may not.
But with a water distribution system so large, the room for something going wrong, like introduced contaminates, is fairly possible. You wouldn't know it unless it was really bad (I remember Kelowna in 97 had to boil water for a few months) and there was a public announcement. But a mild issue, coming from a broken main near a gas station, could wipe out your whole reef. If' you've got a little nano with 2 corals, maybe you want to take that risk.
For me, I've got thousands of dollars worth of SPS. I'm not going to risk losing it all by using an unknown factor. Our water is really good here too, almost all of the time. But what if?
A RO unit is a couple hundred bucks, tops. Half that for used. I think that's a pretty good insurance policy.
In emergencies, I've used tap water for a water change. Nothing bad happened. No algae. But....what if just once there was a contaminant in the public water that was toxic to corals? That's not something I want to encounter!
Lots of people do it, and I guess it's personal choice based on what your corals are worth and the level of risk you're comfortable taking.
Also, keep in mind that household plumbing does contain copper, and can leech it slowly into your system.

[Proteus]

+100

I have only been in the hobby for a year and just in the last few months have aquired Sps. And now that the tank is worth as much as it is I will be getting ro. My worry isn't everyday water but during spring breakup when water quality goes down. I would cry if I lost my reef.

[paddyob]

Originally Posted by Titus99

+100

I have only been in the hobby for a year and just in the last few months have aquired Sps. And now that the tank is worth as much as it is I will be getting ro. My worry isn't everyday water but during spring breakup when water quality goes down. I would cry if I lost my reef.

This is something I don't believe.

I have never had issues with spring run off dooming a tank. Who is spreading this crud around????

You wont lose your reef. I never have.

Geez.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by paddyob

You wont lose your reef. I never have.

Geez.

That's quite the bold statement! You're right, spring runoff likely won't cause any issues other than increased tannins in the water. And maybe lots of animal droppings. And the oil hillbilly Bob dumped upstream from the reservoir. But you're probably ok. So far you haven't lost your reef, so the chances it would ever happen to anyone on the planet are pretty slim. almost zip, I'd say. But.....for a little bit more money on top of everything you've spent, you could guarantee nothing bad would come from the water.

[Proteus]

Originally Posted by paddyob

This is something I don't believe.

I have never had issues with spring run off dooming a tank. Who is spreading this crud around????

You wont lose your reef. I never have.

Geez.

K thanks.
I'll keep a eye on water. I haven't had issue yet.

[sphelps]

My tap water has been yellow numerous times, I don't think my tank could survive without RO. Not having to treat the water prior and add things like prime, which I find disturbs skimming, is also a bonus. I also enjoy the clean drinking water, drinking tap water has now become a difficult task.

If I lived in ultra low TDS areas I'd probably not worry too much about an RO and stick with a basic sediment filter back.

While I realize beauty is in the eye of the beholder I personally haven't been overly impressed with tanks running tap water long term in areas with high TDS (while I have to admit I have seen one or two). So I think when we speak about success regarding what's needed and what's not it's a very opinionated subject. So to state you don't need something may be true but to state you'll have success depends on how one defines it.

[Reef Pilot]

I check my tap water in Langley every once in while, and most times it is near 50. I know here they also use ground water, so maybe our water isn't quite as good as elsewhere in Metro Vancouver.

But what really surprised me just recently, is when I changed my 10 micron sediment filter (1st filter). It is usually brown, but this time (after about 4 months use) it was also covered with a brown/reddish slime. My flow had suddenly slowed, which is the usual clue to change that filter, but I have never seen it this bad.

So my guess is that sometimes the water quality may vary, for some reason, maybe because of construction in the area. But at least my RO/DI filter always does the job, where the final water is 0 or 1 at worst.

I have a before and after TDS meter on my filter system to measure RO output and DI separately. Usually my RO water is 0 or 1, but it does rise to 4 or 5 sometimes (DI still mostly 0). Then I open my RO flush and DI bypass valves for about 10 minutes or so, and the RO goes back to 0 or 1 after that.