question for experts.

[cross]

:help: I have a 65 gallon tank and a refugium underneath with a skimmer and uv. Im loseing like a gallon of water a day. How is this possible? I leave my ref lights on at night while the top lights are off. Could it be my pump is too big for my set up? Or im leaveing the ref lights on too long (like 12 hours) not sure what to do, its really frustrateing me..I'd appreciate all advice..Thanks.. :help:

 

[viper_930]

Where is the water going? Evaporation?

 

[nm reef]

A gal of evaporation a day with decent circulation isn't uncommon at all...I evaporate maybe 5 gal per day easy.

 

[robchuck]

If there's no water on the floor, it's definately evaporation! When I had my 65g w/ 20g sump setup, it would evaporate a good 3 gallons per day.

 

[ophiura]

I basically lose about a gallon a day from my tank. Sometimes it shocks me and then I just have to remembed its normal. It went up with the addition of an eggcrate top instead of glass tops. That shocked me for a few days but now I see its pretty normal.

 

[cross]

wow, ok, guess its normal.. i just thought it wasnt..the water is evaporating from the area whare the pump is.thats alot bof water to evaporate though isnt it? Ro water gets pretty pricey..lol..Im not sure how to install a Ro system, thats why I havent got one yet.Would any filter not evaporate so much water?

 

[bang guy]

A gallon a day with a 65 + refugium is actually on the low side.

 

[weazil]

Originally Posted by cross
wow, ok, guess its normal.. i just thought it wasnt..the water is evaporating from the area whare the pump is.thats alot bof water to evaporate though isnt it? Ro water gets pretty pricey..lol..Im not sure how to install a Ro system, thats why I havent got one yet.Would any filter not evaporate so much water?

i got a small 100g a day RO/DI from the famous auction site from a filtersdirect and it was fairly simple to install except i have quest piping in my house so i had to buy an adapter the setup he sent me would have worked if I would have had 1/2 inch plumbing. I have 3/8 under my facet. but other than that it was easy took like 30 minutes to disconnect and reconnect with ro/di in line only because i took my time and made sure all my connections were extra tight
Originally Posted by Bang Guy
A gallon a day with a 65 + refugium is actually on the low side.
I have a 92G corner bow with a custom built canopy (very limited circulation) with my tank on 79 degrees I bet I only loose approx 5G a week to evap possibly more or less.

 

[ctgretzky9]

I have a 60 hex, so it has a small "open" area at top, no sump or anything else open, and I still lose a gallon a day. I think it is quite normal.
Before I had MH light, id only lose a gallon every few days!

 

[fishfanny79]

How do you all replace the evaporated water? RO? RO mixed with salt? Tap water? Tap mixed with salt?
Thanks!

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by FishFanNY79
How do you all replace the evaporated water? RO? RO mixed with salt? Tap water? Tap mixed with salt?
Thanks!
Most people use pure RO/DI. I mix my RO water with Calcium hydroxide befoe adding it.

 

[ophiura]

YOu definitely DO NOT top off the tank after evaporation with any salt water. When water evaporates, the salt is left behind. If you added saltwater, your tank would end up VERY salty, so you only TOP OFF with fresh water

 

[cross]

i always use publix RO water to top my refugium off..

 

[cross]

hey guys, thanks for all the info..anyone know what kind of RO/DI system works good? theres alot on ---- for 150-250 just didnt know if those were good kinds.

 

[weazil]

Originally Posted by cross
hey guys, thanks for all the info..anyone know what kind of RO/DI system works good? theres alot on ---- for 150-250 just didnt know if those were good kinds.

I need to get a TDS meter but on ---- from the seller filtersdirect it was about 100 - 110 and seems to do a great job. its rated for 100G a day i Filled a gal jug in just under 20 minutes. But your milage may vary depends on your water pressure since it has no mechanical parts.
https://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=163860
that link there has various pics of my tank if you scroll down. Thats roughly a 2 month period of me changing out water give or take 5G a week. You can see some heavy changes Algea is for the most part completely gone now i just have to get my phosphates and calcium right.
I upgraded recently from PC to MH and the increased light caused a huge algea bloom, I've been meaning to upgrade for a long time and now that I have and I can actually support some corals I'm loving it. Also since going to the RO/DI My polyps and other corals I first bought have recovered and are now looking better.

 

[cross]

thank you for the info..its appreciated..