RO/DI units vs TAP water.

hi, im on the process of setting up my 150G.
I dont have an RO/DI unit, and i was wondering if i could just use tap water for a reef tank.

Im planning on getting an unit, but that will take me like 2 months... of empty tank.. i cant add anything without water lol.

so i was wondering if i should wait two months empty, or just start my cycle and after its done, Get the unit and do partial water changes daily,(or recommended).

the reason to this is also money.. is either get the unit and wait two months to buy rock plus cycling or get the rock and wait 2 weeks to get the unit plus cycling. ( unit is about 250dollars, while rock is almost 500.)

what should i do? open for suggestions. also name some good units for me to check with my lfs.

 

ive never used ro water. tap can be used but it all depends on the tap water. i have softies/lps in my tank. sps i would use ro for sure.

 

well, im planning to have both, but can i do what i said earlier? have tap, and then when i get my unit just do water changes?

 

Yes you can start with tap and slowly add ro, thats not a big deal, i have also never used anything but tap water

 

alright... im relieved i dont have to wait that long to even start.
i think ill do that. im still open for more suggestions.

 

Buuuump

 

another buuuuuump

 

Just keep in mind.. there's some "what if I had it to do over " threads around here. ... and one of the bullet points you hear a lot is "I wish I had used RO water".
There's a lot of metals and crap in tap water... but some people do use it.

 

im not planning to have it when animals are there. its mainly just for the cycle, and then by then ill probably have my unit and do water changes. IYO will this work?

 

I wouldnt touch tap water....If you want get a TDS meter ($20 and youll need it anyways when you get a RODI unit) and check you tap water...Tap water in most cases=lots of algae!!! I started with tap water and my TDS was 143ppm and I regret it....I cant wait to move to my 150gallon and start over again bc i have this stupid algae prob...ITs going away slowly since i have a RODI unit now but man it sucksss