How long is RO water good to use?

tax lady

tax lady

Member
How long is RO water good to use?
I get my RO water from my lfs and sometimes it sits for a week or two before I use it. Please tell me that it is good. The reason I am asking is that I read on a forum that salt water should be used no longer than 1 or 2 days old.
Thanks for any reply to this.
 
t316

t316

Active Member
RO water will last for many weeks, possibly months, so long as it is sealed off so that dust doesn't settle on the surface. If it's going to sit for more than a couple of days, you need to shake it up, or put it in a bucket with a power head, so that it's moving and you don't get slime/scum buildup, but there is nothing wrong with the RO water.
As far as the advice you got on the salt water, that is incorrect. Salt water will last just as long as described above. As a matter of fact, it is better to wait 24-48 hours before you use it. Again, if you are bringing it straight home from the store, it's a good idea to put a ph in the bucket and keep it mixing/moving. This will prevent anything from settling on the bottom, or as with RO, any scum from building up on the surface. But if you have it covered and sealed off, you shouldn't have any dust or trash debris getting in it in the first place.
 
domsbuddy

domsbuddy

Member
Why does the salt water have to be used within 1 - 2 days? If I have a powerhead circulating my salt water that I prepare for a water change, why can't I use it any time I want as long as I check the salinity prior to doing the water change?
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by domsbuddy
http:///forum/post/2970901
Why does the salt water have to be used within 1 - 2 days? If I have a powerhead circulating my salt water that I prepare for a water change, why can't I use it any time I want as long as I check the salinity prior to doing the water change?
I recommend the opposite for mixed saltwater, I would NOT use saltwater unless it was at least 1 or 2 days old.
If you are referring to natural unfiltered saltwater collected from the ocean it would need to be used as soon as possible because of die-off of the organisms in the water.
 
tax lady

tax lady

Member
Don't have a good camera, but will try anyway. Also need to learn how to upload the pic. Wish me luck.
 
t316

t316

Active Member
Where are you getting the pics from, your camera, computer? I upload them to photobucket.com (it's free), then copy/paste the URL.
 
tax lady

tax lady

Member
Please let me know if I did it right. I don't see where my pics came out on the message here.
Also I have a bad camera, so pics are not too good.
And, to boot, just started aquariam recently so need to fill out with stuff when I can afford it. Those corals are expensive., but I don't intend to get any more fishes. I want to wait for these beauties to breed.
 
t316

t316

Active Member
Go back to photobucket. Hover your mouse over the pic. You will see four choices down below. Go to the bottom one, I think it says "IMG Code" or something. Anyway, left click on that choice one time to highlight it, then right click and choose "copy". Then go to the thread here and in your response somewhere, right click and "paste". The code will only show until you submit the thread, but it should come up as the actual pic when you go to the thread and look at it.
I know this is confusing...but it's really simple. It took me forever too, that's the only reason I'm trying to help, because someone helped me. Give it a try and let's see what happens.
 
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