Need a small water mixing/storage station

PugsAndFish · May 30, 2019

Does anyone have a water making/mixing station that looks clean and doesn't take up much space?

I live in a small apartment, so when making water, I drag my RODI unit and the filled five gallon bucket that is attached to the sink. Then I wait and wait and wait until water is slowly made. I usually always two five gallon buckets ready for use. The filled one attached to the RODI unit is dumped into the ten gallon ATO reservoir. The other bucket is mixed for a water change.

Then I spend multiple hours making some more water. The first five gallons of newly made water goes into the ATO reservoir to fill it up entirely. Then the next two buckets are made so they can be ready for use the next time I do maintenance.

This is probably the only thing that sucks the joy out of the hobby because of the time and mess. I usually start during the day and finish up at night just waiting for water.

I'd like to have my RODI unit on my counter, possibly hidden away and have 5 gallons always on standby that can easily be drained into another bucket.

Does anyone have pics of smaller water making/mixing stations? The only ones I see are massive jugs in basements and garages.

ReefQueen · May 30, 2019

Could you attach the rodi under the sink and keep a 5 gallon bucket in the cabinet next to it?

LiveWire · May 30, 2019

I have a larger setup but what about maybe setting up a large container (35 gallon) in the kitchen somewhere out of the way and filling it up and then using that container to fill smaller 5 gallon containers that you can just store in a closet? An auto shutoff would be ideal also and you could run it overnight. Then you could take the large container and set it in the garage and store your RO system under the sink. It would save you a bunch of time and effort and you may only have to do it every 4-6 weeks. Just one option.

Back when I had a town house and a 180 gallon I set up a fresh/mixing station under my steps and it worked well. So that may be an option as well.

Scurvy · May 30, 2019

I don't have one but am also space limited and have considered using two 10g brute cans stacked in a closet. Im picturing a mini version of some of the larger setups we see with one for RODI and the other for mixing salt water.

TheLost · May 30, 2019

A brute 20g trash can on wheels doesn't take much space and can be moved around. If you invest in a booster pump for your RODI unit you'll probably cut your water production time in half (or more).

RJinPV · May 30, 2019

How about an under sink storage reservoir?: http://www.bigbrandwater.com/rotank5g.html. This is a 5 gallon one, and they make bigger ones. It goes under the sink and stores the RO/DI water under pressure. When you need the water you can drain it. This way the whole RO/DI system is under the sink

Taxus812 · May 30, 2019

Petco makes a great 17g square tank (tall and thin). You can also buy the matching stand. Then you can have your RODI unit fill it and you can put a XPAqua marriage saver shutoff on it so it shuts the RODI off when it’s full. Mixing would be in 5 gal buckets unless you get two tanks. One negative on the mixing bucket is it stinks if you don’t clean it.

Calpoly2103 · May 30, 2019

I would get a brute container on wheels and install a float valve on the brute. You can get a 20 gallon brute which really isn't that huge, and put a float valve on it which would always give you 15 gallons or so of available water at all times. You can just turn it on and go to sleep and it wont over flow. In the morning its full of RODI and you dont have to wait all day. To move water easily from the brute to 5G jugs or ATO reservoir, just get a small pump off amazon for $15 . To move the brute itself they have wheel attachments for like $30 at Home Depot or Lowes.

For my station I have 2 buckets, one for Mixing, and one for getting old water out of my tank. My mixing brute is 32 Gallon. I fill it up to 20 Gallons RODI, take 10 gallons out for RO/DI top off, then I make salt with the remaining 10 gallons remaining in the Brute. Then I Io a 5 gallon water change, and have 5 gallons salt water in case I need it and for acclimating / introducing new coral.

PugsAndFish · May 30, 2019

Thanks for the suggestions. For the brutes, are any of the brute trash cans or containers ok or is there a specific material i should look for? I want to be cautious about the brute material leaching stuff I don't want in my water.

caas1496 · May 30, 2019

This is my setup. Not quite what you are looking to build but maybe it will provide some inspiration. I live in an apartment and so I wheel this cart over to the bathroom when I need to make water. The container is my saltwater mixing container and for top off water I just run the long RO/DI output over to my top off container to fill it. This eliminates the need to carry top off water or saltwater around. The cart also provides a convenient place to keep all the other things I need for water changes. After I'm done it just gets wheeled out of sight.

Calpoly2103 · May 31, 2019

PugsAndFish said:
Thanks for the suggestions. For the brutes, are any of the brute trash cans or containers ok or is there a specific material i should look for? I want to be cautious about the brute material leaching stuff I don't want in my water.

Brute is a type of rubbermaid container which is food grade.

Scurvy · Jun 17, 2019

caas1496 said:
This is my setup. Not quite what you are looking to build but maybe it will provide some inspiration. I live in an apartment and so I wheel this cart over to the bathroom when I need to make water. The container is my saltwater mixing container and for top off water I just run the long RO/DI output over to my top off container to fill it. This eliminates the need to carry top off water or saltwater around. The cart also provides a convenient place to keep all the other things I need for water changes. After I'm done it just gets wheeled out of sight.

Thats a nifty setup you've got! How many gallons does the container hold?

caas1496 · Jun 17, 2019

I'm not sure exactly what the volume is but its somewhere between 5 and 7 gallons I think. I like that its a food grade plastic. There are a bunch of different sizes of these containers. Below is the link to the one I am using.

https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petco...-storage/gamma-vittles-vault-stackable-40-lbs

infinite0180 · Jun 17, 2019

caas1496 said:
I'm not sure exactly what the volume is but its somewhere between 5 and 7 gallons I think. I like that its a food grade plastic. There are a bunch of different sizes of these containers. Below is the link to the one I am using.

https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petco...-storage/gamma-vittles-vault-stackable-40-lbs

Love mine! I use it as an ato container!

Pauliex77x · Jan 2, 2020

caas1496 said:
This is my setup. Not quite what you are looking to build but maybe it will provide some inspiration. I live in an apartment and so I wheel this cart over to the bathroom when I need to make water. The container is my saltwater mixing container and for top off water I just run the long RO/DI output over to my top off container to fill it. This eliminates the need to carry top off water or saltwater around. The cart also provides a convenient place to keep all the other things I need for water changes. After I'm done it just gets wheeled out of sight.

Im fully stealing this setup and building it for myself.

caas1496 · Jan 3, 2020

Pauliex77x said:
Im fully stealing this setup and building it for myself.

Glad you like it! If you have any questions about the details shoot me a message. Id be more than happy to share any other info about how I put it together.

JeffLED · Dec 30, 2022

RJinPV said:
How about an under sink storage reservoir?: http://www.bigbrandwater.com/rotank5g.html. This is a 5 gallon one, and they make bigger ones. It goes under the sink and stores the RO/DI water under pressure. When you need the water you can drain it. This way the whole RO/DI system is under the sink

Just an FYI, I know this is years later but in case someone else sees this...
Pressure tanks are NOT for RODI water. They are only suitable to hold RO water. RODI water is simply too reactive for the rubber bladder used in the pressure tanks and will eventually cause it to fail...ask me how I know.

SteveMM62Reef · Dec 30, 2022

What is Your Tap Water Pressure? How many Stages? You may need a Booster Pump, and an Inlet strainer to speed things up. I added the Booster Pump and BRS Second RO Membrane for 150 GPD. I keep RO/DI Water Rotated in Five Gallon Carboys, so if we loose our Well, we’ll have drinking Water. Got tired of Babysitting the Carboys as they filled.

nuxx · Dec 30, 2022

Was lucky my tank backed up to the laundry room. Had two 55 gallon drums for fresh salt water and topoff rodi. Also close to a drain, which really helped.

SteveMM62Reef · Dec 30, 2022

Calpoly2103 said:
Brute is a type of rubbermaid container which is food grade.

Don’t spend the Extra Money for a White Brute. They let light through the sides, and will grow algae. BTW, they make RO/DI Bladder Tanks, the Lab at work had them, for their super purified water.