tap water

[jc]

Does anyone here use tap water for top-off or water changes? The reason I am asking is because despite using r/o water, carbon, skimming, and gfo I still have problem algae. I have been fighting cyano for several months now. I also have a patch of hair algae that grows on the return tubes. As long as it stays there I will leave it alone. My sand has some diatoms growing on it. The snails seem to keep it in check by turning the sand over.
So if I have these nuisance algaes what was the benefit of using R/O? Before someone answers "It could have been worse" I have noticed that some of the best hobbyist here have been struggling with their tanks lately. It seems like no matter what once an unwanted critter makes its way into our tanks it is there to stay. Every post I have read on the subject of nuisance algae has contradictory advice. I want know if anyone has used r/o and switched back to tap. Did you notice any big differences?
When I started in this hobby an r/o machine was the last piece of equipment I bought. I think that is the case with most everyone else. I don't remember having any worse algae back then than I do today.

[justahobby]

Couldnt see the forrest for the trees.....You couldn't see my tank for the algae, and then I made the swap to rodi water. I do occasionally have to use tap water and I see algae spring up pretty quickly. My copepod/ amphipod population diminished when I lost my algae. Sometimes I wish I had the algae back.

[tropheusmaster]

if you use tap water for top off,,, your whole tank will have hair alge. no matter what you do you will always have forms of alge cause it is a natural thing in saltwater tanks created by god to feed the fish in the wild. I clean my front glass daily and try to only run lights for a less amount of time as possible. i only feed my fish once a week and my alge is there but it is in check.

BUT TO ANSWER THE QUESTION NEVER EVER USE TAP WATER IN YOUR SALTWATER AQUARIUM. ALGE WILL DOUBLE AND LIVESTOCK WILL DISAPPEAR!!

[tropheusmaster]

thats just my opinion, everyone has a different opinion when it comes to saltwater. a guy told me once i just do what works for me. but what works for me dont always work for others

[DrMark]

I know of people using tap water for fish only tanks, but not Reef.
Many factors are involved regarding algae besides the water (flow, light, tank parameters, livestock, feeding, etc.). I never use tap water and wouldnt if I had a fish only.
mark

[mercedesvaughn]

We bought a RO/DI system almost a year ago. We stopped topping off with that water about 3 months ago just because our filters ran out and we had planned on buying more, but in fact have been quit lazy about getting new media for it. We have topped off our tank with tap water (its well water not city water, doesn't make any difference though) and we haven't had ANY problem with algae. Who knows...its only been three months but our water still tests just fine.

[mercedesvaughn]

BTW, we have a 135gallon 6 foot tank with both fish and reef system (many, many corals) and no hair algae at all.

To each their own I guess...

[Rychek]

I started off with tap water, switched to RO/DI, started to switch back to using some tap water, then switched back to only RO/DI after an increase in algae and decrease in coral health. Everything has run smoother since I started using RO/DI. However, this is a hobby that is much more an art than a science. Your mileage WILL vary. :)

I've got a 90 gal mixed reef.

[jc]

Just what is in tap water that makes it so bad? I've read that it has silicates and phosphates. Yet don't salt mixes have nitrates and phosphates also? Wouldn't using phosban takes care of the phosphates? My tank has almost zero nitrates so I think any in tap water would be consumed quick enough.

[brewercm]

Phosphates are what algae feeds off of and there's no real way to test for it.

[jc]

So if I use phosban anyway wouldn't that take care of the phosphate along with my cheato.

[sharkboy]

The way I see things is that water changes whether it be with RO water or not is still the best and cheapest way to maintain good water quality...if ro/di water is cleaner or purer than I am gonna use it...we spend enough money as it is on our corals/fish so i feel it is a sound investment...just my 2cents

[Rychek]

Phosphates are what algae feeds off of and there's no real way to test for it.

Would you expand on this statement? I'm genuinely curious about it. Are you telling me my test kit isn't really testing for phosphates? If so, what is it testing for? :confused:

[Jeff]

there are many different types of phosphates and the test kits only check a few. i ran a 100gl soft coral tank on tap water for over a year and it was heavily stocked and no skimmer and i didn't have an algea problem. as soon as i put ro/di i started having problems and then i added a skimmer and it never got any better. i am now going back to a no skimmer, tap water, low bioload, soft coral tank. i'll tell you how it turns out as soon as i get live stock in it.

[ErikH]

I never had an algae problem until I made the switch to RO/DI as well. I really don't want to be the devil's advocate here, but I had 0 algae problems AND had SPS. The elevated levels of metal in the water are probably the reason I couldn't grow nuisance algae to save my life. HOWEVER... Our apartments were brand new when we moved in, so all of our plumbing is new. Also, I always let the water run for about 2 minutes before I started to bucket it, as to clean out the plumbing so no stale water was being used. I also ran the gambit with my test kit, and there were no nitrates/trites or ammonia in the water. After having my RO/DI unit for six months and finding out that I already need to replace filters on it is not making me happy either. Ace made a very valid point to me one time that always stuck with me. He said that it is best to have as large a buffer possible in this hobby, and using RO/DI should only help that.

Hope that confused you some more, it sure did me, reading all of my contradictory statements.

[jc]

Would this be a bad time to ask if skimmers are necessary? :)

I'm just getting sick of hauling trash cans full of water to do changes. Not to mention buckets of water to refill the top-off reservoir.

[mercedesvaughn]

Don't get me wrong, once I buy some more media for the RO/DI system we have, I will use that to top off, but using regular tap water has not caused any problems for us the last 3 months. We have SPS and they are doing great as well. No nuisance algae, no dying corals or fish. All is fine.

However, we do have a refugium, a sump with bioballs & live rock, a protein skimmer, and a uv sterilzer, as well as carbon filter pads...kindof a filter system overdose, but we have never had any problems with ammonia, nitrates, etc. All untraceable every time we test the water, even with tap water top-offs.

In my opinion, RO/DI is great and I would use it, but using tap water to top-off every once in a while won't kill your tank as long as you make sure you test your tank water for proper water parameters. If it starts to get out of whack, just use RO/DI water.

Like I said before, to each their own. What works for one person may not work for another. Everyone as their own opinion and some things may work in some tanks and not for others. I believe that for everything in saltwater. :)

[apedroza]

The problem with using tap water is that your replacing nutrients from your tank with nutrients from your tap water. You may not see the results right from the start but over time those nutrients will build up as you are only replacing them with more nutrients. In smaller tank (biocube, aquapods) the effects are much faster. While using it as a quick fix top off til you get more RO/DI is fine I certainly would not do it long term. Tap water not only carries nitrates and phosphates but also many heavy metals that are not filtered out unless your house has a water filter. Just my 2cents.

[ErikH]

I would say skimmers are necessary for oxygenation, but you can overdo a light bioload system with enough LR and LS and negate the real need for a skimmer. If you have SPS though, the excess proteins could cause some slow but steady browning of your corals. Dosing kalk has been found to be helpful in making skimmers more efficient but the exact reason escapes my brain at the moment.

[brewercm]

Would you expand on this statement? I'm genuinely curious about it. Are you telling me my test kit isn't really testing for phosphates? If so, what is it testing for? :confused:


Sorry, not ignoring you just haven't been back on but Jeff basically gave you the answer.

[Rychek]

Thanks for following up on it. :)