RO/DI Unit. 4,5, 6 statge?

[jbozarth78]

Good morning everyone. Happy Friday! I am looking to get a RO/DI system and was wondering if I can get by with a 4 stage unit? Reading about the different units, my understanding is that the 5 and 6 stage units will remove chloramines from water. Does this matter? I mean the 5th and 6th stage units are fairly new right? What were we doing prior to this to remove chloramines. I was hoping, I can get a 4 stage unit (for cost savings) and supplement with something else to remove the chloramines. Is this possible? As always thank you for the help! Have a great weekend.

Tanks I have (all saltwater):
75 gallon long
Waterbox Mini Peninsula 25
Waterbox Marine X 90.3

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

I think it depends on the initial quality of your water. I am well water with low tds. I get by fine one a 5 stage (1 di). Prior to my dedicated unit I had a 4 stage and had no problems with my water quality. But again, depends on the initial quality of water coming in.

 

[Fatmike92]

Same I have well water with a decent TDS so I run a 5 stage

 

[LeftyReefer]

Agree with the BroccoliFarmer, it really depends on your source water. If it isn't too bad, you can probably get by with a 4 stage. RO/DI are easy to add/reconfigure/expand so you would probably be safe getting a 4 stage and then going from there. Adding a 5 or possibly 6th stage if necessary.

I started with a 4 stage and just recently added another stage, a second carbon block to my stystem.
but saying that, I would have been fine staying with just 4 stages too.

 

[TLO45]

Best thing to do is see what your source water holds? City water? Well water? High tds? Chloramines? Yes chloramines matter if you have those from the source. Personally I’d contact a reputable water company that deals with ro units ( there are a number of them as sponsors here) and go with their recommendation. It’s easier to start with a larger (more stages) unit than add on later although it’s possible. Many water companies have a detailed account of how they treat city/town water and what is added. It will save you many heartaches down the road to do a little legwork initially!

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Best thing to do is see what your source water holds? City water? Well water? High tds? Chloramines? Yes chloramines matter if you have those from the source. Personally I’d contact a reputable water company that deals with ro units ( there are a number of them as sponsors here) and go with their recommendation. It’s easier to start with a larger (more stages) unit than add on later although it’s possible. Many water companies have a detailed account of how they treat city/town water and what is added. It will save you many heartaches down the road to do a little legwork initially!

Although I agree with you, reputable water companies right now are price gouging the heck out of people. I was quoted 1,600 for a rodi install. Spent 40’minutes and did it myself.

 

[Koh23]

Maybe i'm on wrong side of opinions, but.....

I ran 3 stage for years, sediment-carbon-membrane, city water, from app. 800tds to 3 tds, and i used 3tds water for salt mixing and top of for years, no problems at all.....

Now i run 4stage sediment-carbon-membrane-di resin.... Output tds is 0, and again, no problems that i can associate with rodi water....

So, where is point in adding another stages of filtration, when basic "hobby" grade unit can produce nearly 0tds water with such high numbers from tap water...... Some units come with insane prices, but, does it really produce 10 times more quality water than 50$ hobby unit?

 

[LeftyReefer]

a good .5 micron carbon block will also remove some chloramines.
I'd start with a 4 stage with a good .5 micron carbon block and see how far that gets you.

I added a 5th stage just because it was cheap and easy to do and figured it would make all my filters last longer. It certainly wasn't necessary. if your city water isn't bad I'm sure a 4 stage would be fine too.

Right now, with my source water being so cold in the winter, I'm actually getting 0 TDS right out of my RO membrane... I'm still running it through my DI stage, but really 3 stages is enough to get me 0 TDS water.

 

[TLO45]

Although I agree with you, reputable water companies right now are price gouging the heck out of people. I was quoted 1,600 for a rodi install. Spent 40’minutes and did it myself.

Should have clarified. I meant ro manufactures. I would not recommend “regular “ water companies. Most do not deal with aquarium grade units. I still would recommend a water source breakdown or test to determine what your source water holds.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Maybe i'm on wrong side of opinions, but.....

I ran 3 stage for years, sediment-carbon-membrane, city water, from app. 800tds to 3 tds, and i used 3tds water for salt mixing and top of for years, no problems at all.....

Now i run 4stage sediment-carbon-membrane-di resin.... Output tds is 0, and again, no problems that i can associate with rodi water....

So, where is point in adding another stages of filtration, when basic "hobby" grade unit can produce nearly 0tds water with such high numbers from tap water...... Some units come with insane prices, but, does it really produce 10 times more quality water than 50$ hobby unit?

I think the issue comes down to the build up of tds. Based on your evaporation rate and water change schedule, the more tds you put in your system the faster it will build up. You limit the tds input would help you control the build up.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Should have clarified. I meant ro manufactures. I would not recommend “regular “ water companies. Most do not deal with aquarium grade units. I still would recommend a water source breakdown or test to determine what your source water holds.

Was just an install of a 4 stage ro system for drinking water with a reservoir. I was floored.

 

[Koh23]

Agreed, i simply asked, if tds of output water is 0, and that is our goal.....

If we can achieve that with 50$ unit, where is the point and need for 200-300$ unit.... Of course, not bringing "how much gpd unit can produce" into argument.....

 

[jbozarth78]

You guys are awesome. I really appreciate all the posters that took the time to reply. Hope you guys have a great weekend! I think I am going to at least speak with some ro companies to see what they have to say. I have no problem installing myself, but would be nice to see what they have to say.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

You guys are awesome. I really appreciate all the posters that took the time to reply. Hope you guys have a great weekend! I think I am going to at least speak with some ro companies to see what they have to say. I have no problem installing myself, but would be nice to see what they have to say.

You probably could just do the mail in water tests from home depot. Save your some money and not need to have a stranger in your house during covid.

 

[jbozarth78]

Although I agree with you, reputable water companies right now are price gouging the heck out of people. I was quoted 1,600 for a rodi install. Spent 40’minutes and did it myself.

So was the $1600 the set up for converting your whole house to RO? Or is this just a quote to tap your RO/DI system into your water line and run a hose from there like normal?

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

So was the $1600 the set up for converting your whole house to RO? Or is this just a quote to tap your RO/DI system into your water line and run a hose from there like normal?

Nope. the 1,600 was to install a NEW RO system to replace my old one which was just a 5 gallon drinking water system. He wasnt willing to service my old one. 250 unit so had to be 1,350 to install.

 

[V A R I A N T]

Achieving the best 0 tds water isn’t a cost decision. It’s about filtering out what is contained in the source water. Get a report from your water provider and make the decision based on that report. It will provide you with information if you require a 4 stage or 7 stage. Don’t rely on anecdotal “this worked for me” stories.

 

[BroccoliFarmer]

Achieving the best 0 tds water isn’t a cost decision. It’s about filtering out what is contained in the source water. Get a report from your water provider and make the decision based on that report. It will provide you with information if you require a 4 stage or 7 stage. Don’t rely on anecdotal “this worked for me” stories.

Couldnt you say the same thing when people ask for advice about how to grow corals, set up aquariums, feed their fish, water parameters etc? One of the big benefits of r2r is the sharing of anecdotal stories for people to gleam from them what they will. It is always caveat emptor with advice.

 

[jbozarth78]

So went on my utilities website and they have a report. That was easy. Posting here to see if you guys think anything stands out. Is that normal for Nitrates to be that high? I don't see anything about chloramines, but not familiar with all these terms.

 

[Koh23]

Of course, on this crazy planet theres still a countries where u cant simply get "report from water provider"....