RO water.

I highly reccomend the 75gpd one from brs and its only $160 comes complete with everything you need.

 

Okay I'll check it out! I have time to do all the research I need, I get paid next friday so I gotta wait!

 

10% waterchange a week is only 4 gallons.. i do 5 gallons a week just cuz a have a five gallon bucket filled up and i know exactly how much salt i need to get 1.026 and its easier for me to do 5 than 4

 

I'll probably do that too since I have a 5 gal bucket as well to mix all my stuff in. sounds easy enough. I need to buy more salt. :/

 

Also keep in mind that 6-12 months down the road you will need to change the filters, which cost $$. The most expensive one is the DI filter, which comes in around $30-40 per.

 

Yea I noticed that.

 

It's a good thing I didn't discover this hobby while in college... I'd be going broke faster than I am now. LOL

 

Ahhaha yes.. I sadly can't spend more than I get paid. but its summer so I can work a lot more now. no more school YAY plus I still gotta sell my txt books back. This should all help until fall semester ! I need to save up

 

I wouldn't worry about the DI too much, you shouldn't need to change it too often if your RO membrane is running right and you don't have seriously dirty water.

I recommend the following, instead of the standard $160 unit from them. Go to their "build your own RODI", and get the following:

Stage One: 1 Micron Sediment Filter
Stage Two: 1 Micron Carbon Block
Stage Three: Leave blank
Stage Four: 75 GPD RO Membrane (98% rejection)
Stage Five: Single DI

Accessories:
Dual TDS Meter
Pressure Gauge

Water and Drain Supply:
Laundry Tub and Garden Hose Adapter

This comes out to $149.94, and actually has everything you need instead of leaving you without a couple important things and giving you some stuff you just don't need. The pressure gauge doesn't come on the $160 unit, and is pretty important, as you'll be able to troubleshoot it easier if your pressure is too low. The TDS meter is vital, and will tell you when you need to change the RO membrane and DI resin - color changing isn't accurate. The Laundry Tub and Garden Adapter is going to be how you're hooking it up (AFAIK). Lastly, it removes the stage 3 second carbon from that $160 unit, which is outright a waste of money - you only need one carbon stage.

 

I would trust this 1000x more than RO/DI water from a store or LFS. The stores and LFS tend not to change their filters nearly often enough and really don't tend to have good water. This DI filter will give you water essentially as good as RO/Di, although, in the long run, it will cost more. However, for a smaller tank, it shouldn't be too much more.
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