Christian Posted September 27, 2009 Author Share Posted September 27, 2009 Pat Castille can you post some pics of your tank for me too see. thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddybluewater Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 A water softener will remove the calcium but that is about it. Everything else (that you don't want) stays in the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Pat Castille can you post some pics of your tank for me too see. thank you. Sorry, I do not do pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Hey Dodge, You got a great deal on your RO unit. Congradulations. When I first had the aquifier water tested, I could not believe that people actually used this as a source of potable water. After much research, I was ready to gamble with the magnetic coil treatment of hard water. However, I was fast talked into $3500 expense of traditional salt resin exchange for the whole house and a $1500 delux RO unit for ice and drinking. I am happy with the RO unit but ploan to sell on e-bay the sodium resin exchange unit. Common sense says sodium bad and calcium & magnisium are good in most cases. Anyway, I have added at a cost of $500 the magnetic coil upstream of the ion exchange unit. This was done 5 days ago. The jury is still out. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonSequitur Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Ion exchange softened water has it's place, but IMHO it's place isn't in a reef tank, at least without further treatment. As mentioned above, the resin in the system exchanges sodium (or potassium in some systems) for calcium and magnesium. This really cuts down on scale (calcium carbonate and calcium bicarbonate mainly if I recall correctly), which helps appliances (including your water heater) last longer, increases the effectiveness of soaps and detergents, etc. Clothes come clean with less soap, showers stay cleaner, water heater elements don't have to be replaced as often, and RO membranes last longer since since the hardness minerals have already been removed before the water hits the membrane. This is all well and good, but as Muddybluewater and Pat mentioned above, all a softener removes is calcium and magnesium. There are many other things in water (particularly well water) that we don't/can't test for, that aren't removed: chlorine, heavy metals, silicates, phosphates, purification by-products (in municipal water supplies mainly: trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids), herbicides and pesticides, volatile organic compounds, etc. Some of these act as food for undesirables (cyano, hair algae, etc), others are poisonous to fish and inverts. These are almost all removed by a quality multi-stage RO/DI unit. Can you get away with running well water in an aquarium long term? Probably. I'm sure it's been done (seems nearly everything's been tried by someone). Is it ideal? Depends on how you define ideal. You could consider raw well water a purely natural ingredient, and expect and adjust for the impurities Once again IMHO, if you go this route your best bet would be to go with as many natural means of nutrient/contaminant export and detoxification as possible: Macroalgae, DSB, mangroves, seagrasses, liverock, just to name a few. Each has a role in nature that, with proper research and understanding, can be utilized in our captive systems as well. I personally am experimenting with a hybrid natural/technological system: a largeish refugium with an even larger sump containing all of the things I mentioned above, plus a protein skimmer and occasional use of carbon. I expect to rely less and less on the technology as the natural means mature. As above, there are many ways to do it: you can add plenty of gizmos and gadgets: reactors and skimmers and filters of all sizes, or you can do your best to duplicate what nature's been doing pretty successfully for quite a while. The approach you take is up to you.. just do what Brian Boitano'd do: "make a plan and follow through" (South Park movie reference for anyone that didn't catch it) Ack. Now I'm rhyming, and badly. I think the espresso's wearing off, it's time to sleep. Anyway, just my two bits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offroadodge Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 subsea, I also paid around $2800.00 for the IONICS whole house water system, all is true about the above statement from NONSEQUITER about it. I think in general you have to find what works for you and your tank, all the perameters are different in everyones tanks.(lighting,wattage,pwr hds,wavebox,return flow,water temp, KH,PH,MG,NO2,NO3,bioload) theres so much involved that i think you have to work at finding what works for your system. My opinions i hope are just to help add insight for the fellow reefer, while possibly helping stop the amount of loss. I KILLED almost$200 worth of fish(purple tang and pwdr brown) cause i wasnt paying attention to one small detail.OOOOPPPPPSSS.......on my part but I LEARNED REAL QUICK. And now i wont do it again. Time and Experiance with your system is the only thing that works. Some ppl will call you crazy that what your doing doesnt work, what works for one may not work for the other. OK enough of that. In my last tank i had a hair algae problem and tried alot of things, in the end pulling it out and adding 2 big bottles of bacteria(marine TLC) got rid of the HA and bubble algae(all at once) No ill effect on corals or fish. But thats just my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christian Posted September 28, 2009 Author Share Posted September 28, 2009 Sorry, I do not do pictures. why dont you do pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 why dont you do pics? I am not good at it and I have toooo many irons in the fire. Both Cool Breeze and Dena have been to my home. If you want to do a case study and take pictures of my tank, I will grill the burgers and pour the drinks. I have left my contact information and location numerous times on this forum. I am tired of offering my hospitality with so little recriprication. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christian Posted September 28, 2009 Author Share Posted September 28, 2009 Ok Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 Hey Dodge, I love "the little people". At one point, I bought "reef bugs" from Marc Weiss. At about the same time, I was conditioning the bacteria in my septic unit. As things worked out, I had both bacteria cultures in zip lock bags. I really could not see any difference. When I joked with Anthony Calfo about "the bugs", he said "Buyer beware". Don't we all know that truth. I made a mistake with who the author was that said "He didn't believe anything that he heard and only half of what he saw". It was W. C. Fields. Does anybody want to go red fishing in the surf near Goose Bay Island State Park? I am tierd of working and would like to play for one day. Regards, Pat Castille Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NonSequitur Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 That sounds great! I'd love to, but the whole family is down with the flu, so disappearing for a day wouldn't go over well. Does anybody want to go red fishing in the surf near Goose Bay Island State Park? I am tierd of working and would like to play for one day. Regards, Pat Castille Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 That sounds great! I'd love to, but the whole family is down with the flu, so disappearing for a day wouldn't go over well. I plan on either leaving this afternoon and overnighting at the park or leaving early tomorrow morning and come back the same night. Goose Island State Park has a fishing pier and access to wade fishing. No fishing licenses are required for surf or pier fishing. The park loans fishing tackle to guest at the park. I already have one taker. The GMC can carry four adults with comfrot. Rockport is 189 miles from my home. and I think if I go the back way thru Budah, it is 179 miles. I plan on fishing light, with a flyrod and ultra-light spknning tackle. La bnonne temp roulle. Pat Castille 337-401-0416 cell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesL Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 We were just in Rockport/Port A area two weekends ago. Take lots of bug spray, the mosquitoes were so bad they cold almost open the car doors! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subsea Posted September 29, 2009 Share Posted September 29, 2009 I am from Southwest Louisiana and have seen some mositoes and knats. The worst mositoe nuisance I experienced was in Alberta, Canada. When the sun went down they came out with a vengence. I still don't understand how they survive 40' high snow for all winter. In any case, they were hungry when they came out for the knight. Three years ago, my wife and I drove along the coast from Galveston to Corpus. The orchid society had just opened a botanical garden on the west side of Corpus. It was spectacular. However, the mosquitoes were out of control. After speaking with the enviromental grounds manager, I sugested that he use upgraded weapons, "The Mosquitoe Hawk". Both adult and larvae actively hunt down mosquitoes. Without the mosquitoe in the food chain our coastal nursaries would collaspe. Have a bodacious day. Pat C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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