Didnt use R/O now what?

[rasguedo]

Hey everyone, I started a 28 gallon tank today and was missled by the fish store lady to just use normal water and dechlorinate it. It already has live rocks and crushes coral. I stumbled upon this site and now see I should have used reverse osmosis water..Did I screw up big? Do i need to start again, I would like it to be a Reef Tank with some fish.

 

[catawaba]

Grab some books, read up on TONS of articles on the web, and make informed decisions. While there are a lot of great LFS's, most are just out to make a buck.
To answer your question--it depends on if you care about the fish and corals, whether or not you are serious about this hobby, and if you have the financial means.
Junk in = junk out.
Get the largest tank and best equipment you can afford--including water, and build SLOWLY.
Welcome to SWF

 

[who dey]

well, your LFS lady is nutz. Check ur tap 4 phosphates and you will know y u dont want 2 use it. RO removes 99% of TDS in ur tap water which can cauze hell in ur tank. #1 algae fuel is phos and i know my tap tests upwards of the .3 range. I would start using RO from here on out.

 

[nu2salt]

Originally Posted by rasguedo
Hey everyone, I started a 28 gallon tank today and was missled by the fish store lady to just use normal water and dechlorinate it. It already has live rocks and crushes coral. I stumbled upon this site and now see I should have used reverse osmosis water..Did I screw up big? Do i need to start again, I would like it to be a Reef Tank with some fish.
the best to use is ro water from everything i read on here get rid of the crushed coral and go with live sand cc will trap nitrates in the tank...no expert because im new too but thats what i have read on this site

 

[nu2salt]

oh yeah!!! almost forgot welcome to swf THIS SIGHT IS GREAT!!!!

 

[maeistero]

:thinking: can anyone spell anymore?
my opinion is that it depends on your water. you can pick up a water quality report for your area and go from there. a lot of people in my area use well water which is ok, very similar to mineral water. dirty ro filters can actually contaminate quality well water.
so, based on the info these other people didn't ask for, i would assume that this particular lfs lady may or may not have known. take a tap water sample in and have her specifically test it. then she'll either say sorry or be proven knowledgeable.

 

[joncat24]

Originally Posted by maeistero
:thinking: can anyone spell anymore?
my opinion is that it depends on your water. you can pick up a water quality report for your area and go from there. a lot of people in my area use well water which is ok, very similar to mineral water. dirty ro filters can actually contaminate quality well water.
so, based on the info these other idiots didn't ask for, i would assume that this particular lfs lady may or may not have known. take a tap water sample in and have her specifically test it. then she'll either say sorry or be proven knowledgeable.
I don't think idiots would be an appropriate comment to make to someone who is trying to help someone else out. They may not know everything (who does) but still no reason to be called an idiot

 

[who dey]

Originally Posted by maeistero
:thinking: can anyone spell anymore?
my opinion is that it depends on your water. you can pick up a water quality report for your area and go from there. a lot of people in my area use well water which is ok, very similar to mineral water. dirty ro filters can actually contaminate quality well water.
so, based on the info these other idiots didn't ask for, i would assume that this particular lfs lady may or may not have known. take a tap water sample in and have her specifically test it. then she'll either say sorry or be proven knowledgeable.
other idiots??? would u like to say that again please???

 

[joncat24]

as for the tap water, you can remove it slowly by doing your water changes with RO/DI water from now on and you should be fine.

 

[who dey]

Originally Posted by maeistero
:thinking: can anyone spell anymore?
my opinion is that it depends on your water. you can pick up a water quality report for your area and go from there. a lot of people in my area use well water which is ok, very similar to mineral water. dirty ro filters can actually contaminate quality well water.
so, based on the info these other idiots didn't ask for, i would assume that this particular lfs lady may or may not have known. take a tap water sample in and have her specifically test it. then she'll either say sorry or be proven knowledgeable.
so you're the pro right. From what i thought all opinions were welcome??

 

[maeistero]

revised, sorry.

 

[garnet13aj]

Using tap water isn't the end of you life. I use it right now, but I plan to switch over soon. It could end up being a big hassle and strain on your tank, but it really depends on the water in your area and what other minerals/compounds it contains. I agree that if you haven't already I would do some research. Some good books are The New Marine Aquarium by Michael S. Paletta or The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert M. Fenner.

 

[rasguedo]

Im gonna get a test kit tomorrow and see for myself. I shouldnt have just trusted her, I didnt know this site existed or I would have used r.o. If there are impurities in my tank now, and I use r.o. for any water changes will the filter and skimmer and live rocks take out the impurities through the cycling process and make it safe? Thanks for the Big Welcomes!! Hopefully ill be able to eventually add some experiences to the site!

 

[joncat24]

everyone has to start somewhere....we all did. What limited knowledge I have, I have learned it all on here. There are some great people on here who will bend over backwards to help you out. There are some who won't. It's up to you to read and research all you can to make the final informed decision. best of luck and welcome

 

[1journeyman]

Welcome to the boards.
Do a search on this forum for CC (crushed coral). I really think you'll be happier in the long run taking it out and going with sand instead.
Buy an RO/DI water filter. You'll be glad you did. Quality water is what this hobby is all about. Might as well start with it.

 

[who dey]

your filter, skimmer, and cycle will do nothing for TDS. Skimmers will eliminate Organic material ie... fish poop but the only true way to get clean water is to test ur source and compare it to RO/DI but i would just buckle down and either buy it from walmart or ur LFS or buy a unit.

 

[garnet13aj]

I'm just a beginner so don't trust everything I say, but cc can be managed by vacuuming. Cleaner clams from the grocery store also help to stir it up. The downside, beside high trates, which I havent noticed in my tank yet, is that some fish and inverts need the smaller grains to bury themselves and "eat" sand.

 

[zman1]

Welcome
Tap is not an ideal situation. However, as garnet13aj indicated it's not the end of the world. For a 28 gal get RO top off water and change water from Wal-Mart until or if/when you get an RO unit.
I used CC from 86 until 02 when I went reef. I am calling reef - sand, LR and mushrooms in 02 LOL. CC was state-of-art at one time in the past until the new found revelations of tomorrow....

 

[maeistero]

garnet has a few good points. plus, fish with ich will rub themselves against the substrate. sand is a bit lighter on fish scraping off scales. keep the cc, you can make lr out of it later. i would drain as much water as possible now rather than waiting. your lr will absorb the nasties from the water, so you may as well replace the water asap. don't leave your lr high and dry though. only drain as much water as you can replace. packaged gallons of walmart water in kansas is variable and needs to be tested. culligan also.
i forgot to mention that i get my water reports at our local courthouse. there's a new water tower for a new school this month, so i'm keeping a pretty close check on everything. these reports are required by law, you just have to figure out where to get them. talk to a local plumber.

 

[rasguedo]

If im gonna do this I want to do it right! Lets see first I should try and replace the CC with sand, does ***** sell live sand? I should also try and replace as much water soon, or should I wait and see how the water is with the Test Kit? Will the kit show what I need to know, if phosphate levels are bad can I just buy an additive to fix it? You know I wanted sand anyway it looks better, the owner of my LFS said that coral works great in her 60 tanks, furthermore this coral came out of an established tank so I thought it would be good! When I replace the cc do i need to take out the LR's? Or just get as much cc out as possible and not worry about what might be directly under the lr?