Tap water
- Thread starter Jack1235
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GatorGreg
Well-Known Member
do you want to have a nice reef?
Then don’t use tap water.
How big is the tank? Distilled water is an option for 10g and under. I’d say 20g would be the max size tank I’d run on distilled……it’d become cumbersome any bigger than that. The deskmate in my tank journal was started on and ran on distilled water until last week.
Then don’t use tap water.
How big is the tank? Distilled water is an option for 10g and under. I’d say 20g would be the max size tank I’d run on distilled……it’d become cumbersome any bigger than that. The deskmate in my tank journal was started on and ran on distilled water until last week.
It depends on the quality of your tap water; some people can get away with it, others wouldn't be able to keep any inverts or corals. The quality varies greatly depending on the location, the source, even the pipes of your home.
For why I would suggest RO/DI to anyone interested, see my comment in the thread below:
my boiled tap water has no chlorine so…??
I have a Britta filter and i poured a bunch into a kettle and boiled it. Then I tested it for chlorine and there's zero chlorine in it. The non boiled Britta water does test positive chlorine . So what's the deal? Why can't we use boiled Britta tap-water for our reef tanks?
www.reef2reef.com
NonstopSoda
Well-Known Member
If you’re trying to keep coral or just have saltwater in general, tap water is a no no.
Aquariumaddictuk
Discus Sensei, Reefing Padawan
I wouldn't advise it.
Tap water is subject to change as the water companies see fit.
There's a lot of quirks, potholes & sudden changes of camber in the reefing road as it is.
Water isn't the area to save money on
Tap water is subject to change as the water companies see fit.
There's a lot of quirks, potholes & sudden changes of camber in the reefing road as it is.
Water isn't the area to save money on
NonstopSoda
Well-Known Member
Rodi shouldn’t be too expensive at all also.
VintageReefer
10K Club member
You may have algae or diatoms with tap water even with just fish. So the tank may stay in the ugly stage.
It’s not likely to be harmful to fish if treated with prime but…
It may be harmful to the cleaner shrimp and such that you want.
It is not ideal.
Since your tank is only 5 gallons, just buy some distilled water at Walmart. It’s $1.37 a gallon. You probably only need to change 1 gallon a week.
You could add a glass cover to keep evaporation low so you won’t need a lot for topping off freshwater.
It’s not likely to be harmful to fish if treated with prime but…
It may be harmful to the cleaner shrimp and such that you want.
It is not ideal.
Since your tank is only 5 gallons, just buy some distilled water at Walmart. It’s $1.37 a gallon. You probably only need to change 1 gallon a week.
You could add a glass cover to keep evaporation low so you won’t need a lot for topping off freshwater.
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SueAubu
There's always room on the sand!
If I lived anywhere by the woods of Maine with a truly deep artesian well that does the filtering for me, I'd use RODI. No question. But, yes, I use tap water (that's I've already tested for baseline parameters.)
OP
OP
Jack1235
Community Member
Tazawa tank said that you can use tap water for mixing saltwater if you start out with live rock and live sand to start for first saltwater tank and he’s said that reef tank need RO/DI water
SueAubu
There's always room on the sand!
I'm not sure who you are referring to. I could find anyone who agrees with what I want to do and follow "their advice". If you are talking about public water, you're talking about chlorine in it, flouride and possibly metals from the town pipes. No amount of live rock or sand will help with chemicals. Chemicals will kill both fish and corals. There's no difference.
VintageReefer
10K Club member
I don’t know who this is but it sounds like bad advice. If you want to add coral later on then your tank is filled with unfiltered water. This hobby isn’t cheap no matter what size tank. You can get bottled filtered water for 1$ a gallon and then mix in salt and avoid issues.
tyreefkeeper
Community Member
Agreed Today I got 5 gallons of RO/DI water for 6 dollars at my lfs.
