Dumb Question: OK to drink RO/DI water?

disccollector

disccollector

Member
I just hooked up a brand new RO/DI unit that brought my replacement water's TDS level to 0 :) My fish and corals should be thanking me now ;)
My wife asked if we and our one year old son could drink the "ultra pure" water and everywhere I look it says that RO water is ok to drink but that RO/DI water is ONLY for reef tanks. I don't understand why though...it would seem to me pure water is pure water.
Anyone know??
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
I would try to page Elfdoctors. I think he would know for sure.
I don't think it would taste good but I don't see how it could be a problem.
Wait for the final answer though.
 
lestregus

lestregus

Member
hardware stores sell ro units for that purpose but they don't have the di. i have no idea how the di would effect the taste of the water..
 
broncofish

broncofish

Active Member
It has been said that if you drink dI water it would have the opposite effect of a vitamin, drawing out the minerals and vitamins in your body. Because Water actually is a very aggressive solvent. In our normal contact with water, it already has a lot of things dissolved in it, and is pretty tame. Deionized water is so aggressive that it will begin to attack metal, plastic, or even stainless steel. but.......it's ot true that it will do any damge to you, and it is a wives tale so to speak on reef boards not to drink it. Deionized water is harmless. Drink all you want. The water will quickly dissolve some sugars and electrolytes from your mouth and especiall from your digestive system, and will become just plain water. I have been drinking it for over a year, and have had no ill effect. Just IMO.
 
fishman830

fishman830

Active Member
From WebMD.com
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems have been recommended by the CDC as one of the most effective ways to protect drinking water. RO systems are under-sink devices that use a semi-permeable membrane to reduce contaminants. The water is forced through the membrane, leaving the impurities behind to be carried away.
RO is effective against dissolved salts, suspended solids, dissolved chemicals, and many other contaminants that are not visible to the

[hr]
eye. The systems cannot, however, reliably remove bacteria or viruses from water. Because they deliver water very slowly -- about 50 minutes per half gallon -- RO systems are more frequently used in businesses than in homes.
but doesn't say anything about DI
 
bededog

bededog

Member

Originally posted by JVance
Do Not drink RO/DI water....it sucks the nutrients and minerals out of your body, DO NOT DRINK
This is a load of crap. You can drink it and it won't hurt you. While it is somewhat true that it will suck nutrients and minerals out of your body, it's nothing to be alarmed about because the water just gets absorbed into your body through your digestive system anyway. Sure, some of the water is lost from the body through urine and sweat, but it is processed so many times before that happens that most of the nutrients and minerals that it absorbed are reabsorbed by the body.
 
saltfin

saltfin

Member
Holly Smoke my Culligan water Says RO/DI on the bottle and we've probably drain 10,000 Gallons. I guess were Dead:D
 
T

thomas712

Guest
Use it all the time for coffee, makes it smooth, less bitter and the tase is awesome.
Thomas
 
saltwaterdave

saltwaterdave

Member
From what I have read the di resin's we typically use in our ro/di units are what are harmful for us.My ro/di unit came with seperate fittings so I could t-off at the ro part of my filter for drinking water and use the ro/di part for my reef. I will see if I can find that article and post it here.But like I said it has to do with the resin's in the typical home ro/di filter that make drinking the water bad for you.
 
ldc3000

ldc3000

New Member
If your unit has dual outputs, then drink from the RO output, if it only has one output contact manufacturer to find if your unit is safe to drink from.
 
footbag

footbag

Active Member
I drink it, and many of you probably drink it too without knowing. There are three types of drinking water (Mineral, Spring, and filtered) If a bottle of water isn't labled spring or mineral, then it is RO water.(not necessarily DI) This is a law in UK. Theres actually a lawsuit filed against either Coke or Pepsi. (They sold "Pure" water which wasn't really pure) In US they just have to list ingredients. If the ingrediants are "water" then it is likely RO. Spring will be labled "Spring Water" Mineral will have ingrediants.
As far as the water taking the vitamins out of your body, untrue. That would be up to your kidneys. IF this were true then any and all water would remove these vitamins until it hit the saturation point. When someone gets gaul-stones they are told to drink RO so as to not allow calcium buildup. We were never intended to get our vitamins from water.
 
saltfin

saltfin

Member
Your question doesn't seem so dumb. I just talked to someone at my lfs Iknow Iknow But he stated the RO/DI he sells people could not drink due to so much removal of chem. While he decided he was no chemist he though the Culligan RO/DI everyone drinks must have correct chemicals added back in for juman consumption. Now I'm really curious as well. Good question!:)
 
xtant

xtant

Member
What exactly is the DI in RO/DI. I know RO is the use of semipermiable membrane water is passed through to collect the "bad stuff" basicly right? Thanks to anyone who knows.
 
K

kistheeze

Guest
c'mon people. Those of you sitting there telling us not to drink RO/DI water should put down your beer and cigar, stop chewing on your McDonalds french fries, quit taking your prozac, get out of your tanning bed and give it a rest....
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator

Originally posted by Xtant
What exactly is the DI in RO/DI.
De-Ionized. RO only filters out about 70% of PO4 and Silicate. The DI beads get the rest.
 
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