UV Sterilizers and R/O Units....

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
T

thatoldguy

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 17, 2007
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Michigan, USA
Okay....so I'm taking apart my 600 gallon tank. It's all glass....leaked really bad when I went to fill it. After monkeying with it for a few months more, I decided to take it all apart, clean the edges of the glass really well, and start again.

I have three Fluval FX5s for the filtration. I know I want a uv sterilizer for it....but what about a reverse osmosis/deionizer? I know these RO/DI units are meant to tap into your main water line. However, I'm cheap. Would this work if I ran the RO/DI after the UV Sterilizer?

Ofcourse I would still plan to do bi weekly water changes....but I was also thinking about the cost of doing so. Help?:confused:
 
Wait, you want to put the RO unit on your aquarium? First thing that comes to mind is that RO units make waste water so for every 4 gallons you run through the RO, only 1 gallon will make it back to the tank and eventually, you will drain your tank (those aren't exact numbers, just using them as an example). The RO membrane would probably need to be replaced frequently too.

I don't really understand why you want to put one on the tank though...
 
A few problems. First and foremost was mentioned, with loss of water, generally 5:1. Next would be that the nutrients in the tank would be 0, and you would have to add RO right constantly, which would cost hundreds a month. Third, the flow of the ro would be too slow for your tank. Finally, your membranes wouldn't last more than a month, and are not cheap.
 
DialySeas might do what you want but they start at around $1000 and still consume water.
 
The membrane situation wouldnt be all that bad with a good multi stage prefilter.
I also have to question the 4 to 1 and 5 to 1 figures I'm hearing.

I know on my system it's much closer to a 1 to 1 relationship...Filling a single 5 gallon plant (waste) water bucket while also filling a 5 gallon RO/DI water container.

I run a 6 stage pre-filter...dual 150 GPD membraines and then 5 DI stages for an output of 250 GPD...

All of this asside...You really can't attach a system like this to your aquarium. You CAN use it to privide top off water and then match the RO systems output with a slow drain for a continious drip system but you'll still need a fresh water supply other than the tank...
 
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