top up water

[gaz]

hi
it is better to age your top up water rather than being fresh, how old does water have to be before adding to the topup tank
thanks gary

[chip721]

I would consider the "condition" of the "top-up-water" as much importance as age. Are you topping up your tank with R.O. water or kalk? If you're mixing kalk, then you need to let it settle for at least 24 hrs. If you have to add more saltwater, then it should be thoroughly mixed and SG tested 24 to 48 hrs prior to use. But ...start with R.O.

[meco65]

that sounds good to me.

[gaz]

thanx
i use ro water with no kalk but i add reef calcium once a wk, so how old should the water be before i use it to top up

[mikeatjac]

RO water should be aerated 24 hours before use.

[gaz]

thanx

[mikeatjac]

Don't forget to buffer it before you put it in the tank or it will drive your PH down.

[gaz]

what u mean mike

[mikeatjac]

RO water has or should have very little minerals in it. The PH of RO water should be close to 7.0. In most cases it is a little higher. Anyway, by buffering the RO water with ALK you raise the PH of the RO water. Buffer it to match your tank.
You want to aerate RO first to drive off the CO2 (it depresses PH) and then buffer it to match the PH in your tank.

This how I do my water make up.
I have a 3 gallon container under my tank with an airstone it. I add Buffered RO water to the container container and then I have a medical pump pump the water into the return on my refug.

Look on Ebay for a medical pumps. You can adjust the flow from 1 to 300 ml an hour. I see flexiflow pumbs all the time for 50$ and others that will do more then 300ML an hour.