anyone using tap for top off and water changes?

Cozen89 · #1 12/05/2007, 03:53 PM

I'm not using tap, but I know quite a few people that are with GREAT success. Just curious on opinions, altho I'm sure most of you will say not to use it. What's is considered high TDS anyway? My tap comes in at around 20 TDS.

Reefer_Addickt · #2 12/05/2007, 03:58 PM

20 is pretty low, but I'm sure it still has the possibility to grow nuisence algae.

0-40 i think is below tap water standards.

I used tap water on my very first tank, and I had algae out the A%%

killagoby · #3 12/05/2007, 03:59 PM

Nope. Only RO/DI. How about heavy metals? Copper?

tacocat · #4 12/05/2007, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cozen89
I'm not using tap, but I know quite a few people that are with GREAT success.

There are some cases of this, but it depends entirely on the tap water.

Kinetic · #5 12/05/2007, 04:19 PM

there's plenty more of great success with RO/DI water, such that I'm not going to go into tap water.

in my opinion, even at 20ppm on the tds meter, I'd still go with 0ppm on the same meter any day.

Bebo77 · #6 12/05/2007, 04:22 PM

i wish my tap was 20TDS... its more like 280 here in Los Angeles

Kinetic · #7 12/05/2007, 04:23 PM

move to norcal gabe. you'd be a great addition to the area

delsol650 · #8 12/05/2007, 04:35 PM

My tap is 50 since I don't have copper piping yet... low flow too in the mountains/

Thales · #9 12/05/2007, 05:06 PM

Alameda has great water, so I switched to DI only and I know 3 great tanks that are done on tap water in the area. I have noticed that the TDS has gone up - it was 36 then 50ish then 60 and now its in the 80'2. Could be my meter, but I don't think so, so I'll be sticking with DI.

delsol650 · #10 12/05/2007, 05:57 PM

RO/DI always Dave, better safe than sorry considering the $$$$ we spend in our tanks.

seminolecpa · #11 12/05/2007, 06:41 PM

Think I am in the low 30's in Burlingame based on the meters I have (a hald held piece of junk and that on my spectrapure RODI unit). I agree though better safe then sorry.

Kinetic · #12 12/05/2007, 06:43 PM

My hand held TDS meter here in Albany says 25 - 28ppm from the tap. I'm getting a dual TDS inline meter soon too, so we'll see what that says too.

Kinetic · #13 12/05/2007, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Thales
Alameda has great water, so I switched to DI only and I know 3 great tanks that are done on tap water in the area. I have noticed that the TDS has gone up - it was 36 then 50ish then 60 and now its in the 80'2. Could be my meter, but I don't think so, so I'll be sticking with DI.

Does running DI only exhaust your DI resin faster, meaning you get more GPD but you have to swap out the DI resin more often? Or is it that since the TDS is so low it's not abnormally often to change it anyway?

Alexis · #14 12/06/2007, 02:56 AM

if you top off with saturated kalk water, then tap water will be fine since saturated kalk will cause other metals like copper to precipitate out.
the tap in the bay area is pretty good as well. i get tds in the 30s

Cozen89 · #15 12/06/2007, 03:09 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Alexis
if you top off with saturated kalk water, then tap water will be fine since saturated kalk will cause other metals like copper to precipitate out.
the tap in the bay area is pretty good as well. i get tds in the 30s

interesting point. I top off with saturated kalk hahaha. Oh well. I'm just angry at my RO unit right now because my RO filters crapped out on me in less than 2 months and it's not like I'm making 75 gallons a day or anything.

KellyPug · #16 12/06/2007, 12:06 PM

We live in El Cerrito and the tds meter reads at most 20. My bf gave me a lecture once upon a time about how the water quality is pretty good here and why and blah blah blah. For his previous tank that was up like 7 years ago for 3 years, he used tap water and it seemed fine. I say seem since I don't remember how it was really, but I recall him being pretty happy with it (until I came along and *caused* the crash) and I don't recall the lecture material very well. I can ask him; he'll be happy to put his environmental scientist skills to work haha.

Malster1 · #17 12/06/2007, 01:44 PM

Anyone near me have a TDS meter I can borrow to test my tap water? I've never tested it. I'm In Pacifica. Charles?

delsol650 · #18 12/06/2007, 03:48 PM

My tds meter's connected to the RO/DI.. I don't have a Handheld.. which is probably what your looking for.

Malster1 · #19 12/06/2007, 03:52 PM

Anyone else.

Kinetic · #20 12/06/2007, 03:53 PM

if you goto the BAR meeting, maybe you can see if someone going can bring their handheld, and you can bring a sample?

Malster1 · #21 12/06/2007, 05:13 PM

So Smart, I just might have to do that. Thanks Kinetic. I will have to wait until the next meeting as I can't make this months though.

CookieJar · #22 12/06/2007, 06:35 PM

I've got a handheld TDS meter I can bring to the BAR meeting if you want to test your water.

zivic2play · #23 12/06/2007, 07:04 PM

I have a handheld TDS meter you can borrow. Located in SF. LMK!

raddogz · #24 12/07/2007, 03:02 PM

I live in SF, and the last TDS reading I took a month ago was around 40 and around 26 at work (also in SF).

I use tap for waterchange, and sometimes for top-off. I get a bit more diatoms but that's it.

corals b 4 bills · #25 12/07/2007, 04:42 PM

I have a handheld TDS meter, I will bring it with me when I come over next week.

Mark