New Tank, bought RODI System, wrong order

[Drumstin]

Okay, so I just setup a new tank (75 gallon with 30 gallon sump) that has been cycling for a month now. Today I finally decided to get an RODI system (wish I would have done that first). So, do I need to 100% replace my water with RODI or just perform monthly water changes to replace it over time? Worried about algae going crazy with my 200+ TDS tap water...

Thanks!

 

[P-Dub]

Just do the water changes over time. TDS is not necessarily the problem leading to algae issues rather, what kind of TDS's are there. Depending on the lights you have I would limit the time you have any algae producing light on and stick with blues for the first couple of months. IMHO.

 

[GoVols]

Dustin,
First off:
Welcome to Reef 2 Reef

If I were in your shoes, I would not do the change, all at one time.

It would strip away your nutrients and could start a new mini cycle.

I'd do about a 20% water change once a week.

Either way, you will most likely hit the algae (ugly's) stage.

 

[Pntbll687]

I ran my first tanks on just tap water that was conditioned, and was city water. Had some algae for a little bit but nothing terrible.

Just do regular water changes, 10-20% a week and you should be good. I agree with the above post on not stripping out all the nutrients and bacteria you have going in the cycle.

 

[Drumstin]

Thanks for the quick replies! Added live sand to the display tank yesterday. Still waiting for it to clear up.. but found some interesting corals on the live rock I bought... I will post them in the ID section to see if anyone knows what they might be..

Unidentified Coral

• Drumstin
• Mar 20, 2018

Unidentified Coral

• Drumstin
• Mar 20, 2018

 

[Drumstin]

Foggy

 

[Jack22]

I did the same thing. RO/DI units have about a 3/1 waste to product ratio, and I didn’t want to watch 450 gallons of water go down the drain. I used conditioned tap water to initially fill the tank. I’ve been doing 15% water changes weekly with RO water. My phosphate is still a little high, I had some trouble getting some macro for my fuge, but otherwise everything is good. I added a good size clean up crew right after cycling just to keep algea in check.

Your tank looks great. Good luck.