Buying water from lfs not a good idea?

[AzReefn]

So I just got my tds meter today and decided to check my water sources. I've been buying rodi from my lfs the last 3 weeks due to my add on di filter changing color and appearing to be used up.
Also starting around 3 weeks ago I got algae and the fairly big torch I bought from the same place got brown jelly and died. Could the issues I've recently had be due to crappy water from lfs? Also should I still use my di cartridge as it's still producing 1ppm water?

Here's a shot from lfs water.

My ro water (I'm due for membrane and filters)

This is my ro water through a used di cartridge.

This is my di cartridge

 

[Crabs McJones]

So I just got my tds meter today and decided to check my water sources. I've been buying rodi from my lfs the last 3 weeks due to my add on di filter changing color and appearing to be used up.
Also starting around 3 weeks ago I got algae and the fairly big torch I bought from the same place got brown jelly and died. Could the issues I've recently had be due to crappy water from lfs? Also should I still use my di cartridge as it's still producing 1ppm water?

Here's a shot from lfs water.

My ro water (I'm due for membrane and filters)

This is my ro water through a used di cartridge.

This is my di cartridge

What do the tanks at the LFS look like? I'd use that as sort of an indicator to the water quality you're getting from them as I'd believe they would use the same water.

 

[Fudsey]

Get some bulk DI resin form BRS and change it out. It's really easy to do. And if the water your getting is 40tds from LFS, I would stop getting it from them.

 

[AzReefn]

What do the tanks at the LFS look like? I'd use that as sort of an indicator to the water quality you're getting from them as I'd believe they would use the same water.

Their tanks look pretty good actually. Last week one of their new guys accidentally mixed the bulk rodi with the saltwater, or vice versa? Not sure which it was. I waited about 20 min to get 30g of rodi while they made it. I think it's a 1000g a day system. 40ppm is too high though right, Should I not use it?

 

[Fudsey]

I wouldn't, that's about what comes out of my tap and I still use a RO/DI system

You're getting better numbers out of your own RO/DI. I'd use that until you can get some new filters.

Just don't use it if it gets any higher than 3 or 4

 

[Crabs McJones]

Their tanks look pretty good actually. Last week one of their new guys accidentally mixed the bulk rodi with the saltwater, or vice versa? Not sure which it was. I waited about 20 min to get 30g of rodi while they made it. I think it's a 1000g a day system. 40ppm is too high though right, Should I not use it?

Yeah 40 is pretty high. If I start showing even 1tds on my meter I change out my filters

 

[Fudsey]

Can you get a reading before it goes through your DI resin? That will tell you how well the membrane is doing. You might just need to get sediment filters and DI resin and they are pretty cheap.

 

[AzReefn]

Get some bulk DI resin form BRS and change it out. It's really easy to do. And if the water your getting is 40tds from LFS, I would stop getting it from them.

That's what I need to do. Only way to be sure. My cartridge is refillable too [emoji3]
I'm filling 5g buckets tonight with my same di cartridge. Its still putting out 0tds water. This shouldn't be an issue right?

This is what I'm getting

 

[Fudsey]

Nope that's what you really want. Looks like you have a little life left in that resin

 

[roberthu526]

My tap water is at 43 TDS...

 

[AzReefn]

My tap water is at 43 TDS...

Wow! Mine is 390 LOL

 

[AzReefn]

Nope that's what you really want. Looks like you have a little life left in that resin

Little bit of a bummer, was planning on doing my water change tonight.
I'll have to call them tomorrow and let them know. BRS here I come [emoji5]

 

[roberthu526]

Little bit of a bummer, was planning on doing my water change tonight.
I'll have to call them tomorrow and let them know. BRS here I come [emoji5]

They have sale going on right now I think. If not then wait for another two weeks for the Black Friday deals.

 

[AzReefn]

Yeah 40 is pretty high. If I start showing even 1tds on my meter I change out my filters

I'm thinking I should probably do a large water change 50-70% and I can clean the sand while I'm at it. No way to really know how much high tds water I put in at this point.

 

[AzReefn]

These look pretty good. I can put single bed resin in the smaller cartridges and mixed in the larger cartridge. 150gpd for roughly $250

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LK9PE9C/#_swftext_Swf

https://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-D...rd_wg=Fezil&psc=1&refRID=1ZYMQ3GBFF68YH3J6T7G

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/single-deionization-canister.html

 

[Buckeye Hydro Verified Sponsor]

Some things to remember:
NEVER configure your system so that the DI cartridge is horizontal. Think carefully about buying a system with that configuration - it tells you something about the vendor.
ALWAYS configure your DI cartridge vertically, with bottom up flow.
ALWAYS pack the DI resin very tightly in the cartridge - if you see gaps in the resin, its not packed tightly enough.

Consider the TRM1 triple inline TDS meter over the DM1. For an RODI system, you want to know the TDS in at least 3 locations:
tapwater
RO
DI

Russ

 

[Forsaken77]

So I just got my tds meter today and decided to check my water sources. I've been buying rodi from my lfs the last 3 weeks due to my add on di filter changing color and appearing to be used up.
Also starting around 3 weeks ago I got algae and the fairly big torch I bought from the same place got brown jelly and died. Could the issues I've recently had be due to crappy water from lfs? Also should I still use my di cartridge as it's still producing 1ppm water?

Here's a shot from lfs water.

My ro water (I'm due for membrane and filters)

This is my ro water through a used di cartridge.

This is my di cartridge

Did you calibrate your tds meter? And if it's the $20 HM Digital one, it's rarely accurate. I bought & returned 3 of them from Amazon because even after calibration, they would give different readings with the standard calibration fluid (by a wide margin). And none of them were properly calibrated from the factory.

The cheapest handheld tds meter I found, that was accurate, was the COM-100 for around $60, and that wasn't calibrated well either but worked great afterwards. Just something to keep in mind. If it's not accurate, it's worthless, imho.

 

[AzReefn]

Some things to remember:
NEVER configure your system so that the DI cartridge is horizontal. Think carefully about buying a system with that configuration - it tells you something about the vendor.
ALWAYS configure your DI cartridge vertically, with bottom up flow.
ALWAYS pack the DI resin very tightly in the cartridge - if you see gaps in the resin, its not packed tightly enough.

Consider the TRM1 triple inline TDS meter over the DM1. For an RODI system, you want to know the TDS in at least 3 locations:
tapwater
RO
DI

Russ

Did you calibrate your tds meter? And if it's the $20 HM Digital one, it's rarely accurate. I bought & returned 3 of them from Amazon because even after calibration, they would give different readings with the standard calibration fluid (by a wide margin). And none of them were properly calibrated from the factory.

The cheapest handheld tds meter I found, that was accurate, was the COM-100 for around $60, and that wasn't calibrated well either but worked great afterwards. Just something to keep in mind. If it's not accurate, it's worthless, imho.

Thanks guys. I will definitely head the advice.