DIY RO system

[a.person61]

Hey guys,
Im wanting to make my own RO system for my future discus and shrimp tanks but don't know the 1st thing about them. I can buy a premaid one for 300 however i do not know if thats to much and i can make one much cheaper and i don't know if I need to do any work on it to keep it running. I heard that it lowers ph aswell is that true?
Thanks Austin

[Altum Nut]

Hello Austin...You should really do some research on R/O units and how they work to benefit your needs in this hobby.
You will find that they consist and plastic canister tubes and lines that run in into each other but the true guts and most important are the filters.
$300 is a reasonable price and can get a complete unit for less if you shop around.
Depending on your application, you will have to determine how much r/o you will need which is measured in GPD (gallons per day)
As for lowering ph...don't worry about that as heard many times here on SD. Keep it stable which is recommended.

...Ralph

[Pardal]

+1
Also Austin read about water chemistry understand what is TDS etc. Your RO should give you a pure water with TDS "0" and then you should adjust to your discus needs by either adding a little bit of tap water or salt/minerals like RO right trade mark.
if you have domestic you can use straight aged tap water only soft water for breeding purposes.
For wilds read Pat's parameters for wild on her Homestead section .I keep mine to around 70- 80 and then go to the 60s when I want to breed.
understand that ph is actually secondary and GH general hardness . again read "water works section".
for RO unless you have a connection to get the parts, is better to buy from the plethora of brands on the market basically for any budget you still need to know how to put it together though.
Julian

[DJW]

Austin, the last RO filter I bought was about $225 and makes 200 gallons per day. If you have city water then your pressure is probably good enough, but wells often run at lower pressure resulting in less output. With well or gravity house pressure under about 25-30 psi you will probably have to buy the booster pump if you want more than 50 or 75 gallons a day.

These filters reduce the dissolved solids by about 95%, so that if you have very hard water like mine, which is TDS=400ppm, you will end up with RO water having +/- 20 ppm of TDS. This is fine as you have less mixing to worry about.

Initially the pH of RO water will be something like 6.3 but let the water age for a day or two and measure pH again. The pH of RO water is ephemeral, it can go way up or down easily.

I am a DIY type myself, and I would just not attempt to make one of these things.

[dpboyer]

The RO Buddie ones are great ones for getting started and pretty cheap ($70 on amazon for a 50 GPD unit)... I have one and it works just great. http://amzn.com/B00DOG63OY

[a.person61]

Thanks guys, i will do a bucket load of research before i go ahead. The reason im wanting to get one is because of the ph, I do wish to breed discus and fish with similar ph.

[rickztahone]

Thanks guys, i will do a bucket load of research before i go ahead. The reason im wanting to get one is because of the ph, I do wish to breed discus and fish with similar ph.

pH isn't a huge issue, it is the TDS and a few other factors that matter more.