Reefs and well water/septic tanks

[road8514]

Hey guys,

Got a couple of questions been a city boy all my life and my wife and I just bought a house with well and septic?
I have been able to find info on septic. What I am looking for is some info on well.
Does a a regular rodi unit work?
Do the filters last as long?
If I have a fish only system can I use the well water with out running an rodi system?
I know there is a lot more info needed like what is the water quality of the well but right now aim just looking for some more general information.
Any help would be great!

 

[AZDesertRat]

It all depends on the calcium carbonate hardness and the TDS of the water. RO membranes last much longer with soft water. Another possible issue is most standard well pump pressure switches are set at around 30 psi which is sufficient for most household needs but not really enough for a RO membrane to operate with any level of efficiency. The minimum pressure for a RI is around 40 psi and the higher the pressure, the more efficient they become and the longer the DI resin will last. Many domestic well owners buy a small RO booster pump to boost the RO to say 60-80 psi without having to raise the well pressure which is usually not advised since not every thing needs higher pressure and the higher electricity it would require since the pump will cycle more frequently. As far as septic tanks, salt water is not really an issue, in fact often it impoves the performance since the salt helps break up clay soils.

 

[Russellaqua]

There's no reason you can't use a regular RODI system. Many municipalities get at least some of their water from wells too. It's impossible to say how long your filters will last without knowing more about the water itself. It may be as good, or better than any water you've ever had. It could be worse too. As far as the fish only system, it also depends on what's in your well water. If you're in an area with lots of naturally-occurring phosphates and nitrates you could be in trouble. You'd really need to do some basic water quality tests to know one way or the other.

 

[redfishbluefish]

The problem with wells in our area of the country is that they tend to be high in CO2. This causes you to eat up you DI resin real quick. The inexpensive fix is to run your water through your RO unit, bubble it overnight, and then pump it through the DI.

 

[Velodog2]

I have all those problems with well water from limestone-rich Maryland, surrounded by farmland. My water is off the charts in terms of hardness and alkalinity. So much so that I cannot water plants or bonsai trees with it - it will kill them if not supplemented by sufficient rainwater. CO2 is probably high as well as I go through DI resin like mad. The water also has significant phosphates and nitrates - I caused a partial tank meltdown a couple of times I had to do a water change with non-treated water.

I increased my holding tank pressure to minimum of 50 psi and get about 6 ppm TDS going into my resin bed from the RO unit.

It's always seemed crazy that I have mad calcium and alkalinity that I have to remove in order to get the other stuff out, only to struggle to replace it once the water is in the tank.

At least the water is nearly free.

 

[backpack]

yeah I go through a lot of filters. My alk Is 13 and calcium Is 380 out of my well. So my RO system does a lot to the water.
But in the end its realy worth it. running a .5 sediment after a 1 helped with my carbon filters lasting longer.

 

[Velodog2]

Forgot that you asked if you could keep a fish only system without treating the well water. For me the answer was no. The nitrates in my untreated water were in the 40-50 ppm range. If I didn't reduce that the colors would drain right out of the more sensitive fish. I ran a lot of live rock in the fish only which helped, but doing water changes would actually increase my nitrates if I didn't filter them out.

 

[GHill762]

The problem with wells in our area of the country is that they tend to be high in CO2. This causes you to eat up you DI resin real quick. The inexpensive fix is to run your water through your RO unit, bubble it overnight, and then pump it through the DI.

Maybe this is why my di resin changes color in only a few uses.. I maintain 0/very low tds but my resin changes in 2-3 uses.

 

[Gundo]

How many gallons total through the 2-3 uses do you estimate?

 

[GHill762]

How many gallons total through the 2-3 uses do you estimate?

Less than 30.. But I can go a long time with tds under 5..

 

[cginter]

i have well water as well, and i highly advise you to use a ro/di filter or at least a RO unit. I Replace the filters about 3 times a year, and the DI needs to be changed about after 3 uses/120 gal. And like AZdesertRat said.... the water pressure is sometimes an issue for me if im running water elsewhere in the house.

IMO you should always use a RO unit for fish tanks.