Ro/di?

[sohal1025]

Do I need to use ro water or will treated water be alright if I use something like slime coat/tap water conditioner?

[aquawolf]

What do you mean by treated water?

[Dtip]

Be careful with the conditioners that talk about creating slime. If they are formalin based, what they are really doing is messing with your fish instead of treating your water.

A good tap water treatment product to deal with chlorine and heavy metals can work (Amquel is pretty good I think), but keep in mind that it will never be able to keep nutrients as low as RO/DI water: treatments do not remove compounds from your water, they simply make them less dangerous.

Chloramines are a bigger problem since dealing with them is chemically a two stage process (you've got to break the molecule down, and then deal with the ammonia and chlorine that result.

What you should do is call the water company in your area and ask to speak to the water chemist. They'll be able to tell you what's in the water (both naturally and what they put in) and perhaps suggest what needs to be done to neutralize it (they hear from aquarists a lot, so they may have some experience/interest in the issue). It's better to play it safe, but you also can't spend zillions on water treatments for substances that aren't actually in your water in the first place.

[Acillaton]

Best way to get clear and safe water is by purchasing of good ro/di unit. In long run it pay for itself.

[mg426]

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