OK I guess you made some point or points, and I concede that you have the right to believe whatever version of reality you wish. So Mozeltoff! (take it and wear it in good health).:grinyes:
DIY passive RO generator
- Thread starter CWO4GUNNER
- Start date
My TDS is sky high so I'm interested in anything that will help reduce it, short of buying and installing an expensive RO unit. I've used heavy plastic on a couple of tank tops during the colder months, but never thought about any advantage other than heat retention. Here's one I just put on my 10 gallon fry tank, with a flap cut for the filter and held taut with clips. They do get a lot of condensation, so you may be on to something, Gunner.
Wouldn't the condensation be pure? It's probably a small amount, determined by collecting before it drops back into the tank, but can we say with certainty that there's no benefit whatsoever? I just tested the tank's TDS @ 724 ppm, and will test it again in a day or two.
Wouldn't the condensation be pure? It's probably a small amount, determined by collecting before it drops back into the tank, but can we say with certainty that there's no benefit whatsoever? I just tested the tank's TDS @ 724 ppm, and will test it again in a day or two.
the water evaportaes but the disolved solids dont , therefore u will not drop ur tds as when the water returns to the tank it just starts the process over again . and if u wanna argue this fact dont try and argue is with marine keepers as we deal with this very issue every day . thats why u top off with pure RO as the salt stays in the tank when water evaporates
it isnt reverse osmosis as there isnt a reverse osmosis membrane involved . plain and simple
the title to the thread should be ' how to limit evaporation' , and as that title , yeah it works great , just be carefull u dont get any polutants off that visquene
it isnt reverse osmosis as there isnt a reverse osmosis membrane involved . plain and simple
the title to the thread should be ' how to limit evaporation' , and as that title , yeah it works great , just be carefull u dont get any polutants off that visquene
^ Basically that. That and the fact that it is impossible to further enclose a system and expect things to be removed from it.
Jannika, the reason many of us say the water shouldn't be called 'pure' at any point is because you judge the end product, not the intermediate steps. While it may be 'pure' in its evaporated form, it needs to be separated before it can be called purified water. You can't call something clean if you wash it, then throw it in the dirt. It may have been clean at some point but the end result is not clean.
The key step that is missing is keep the new water seperate from the old water. That is how the actual systems this is all based off of work. Even if that step were added it wouldn't work all that well though, since the aquarium is the dirty source of water. The aquarium owner would still need to remove water from the tank to lower TDS and would still need to add minerals back in for a healthy tank. You could potential recycle water by building a system based around the water removed in a water change. But even then you'd just be decreasing the amount of tap/RO water used. Their use can't be eliminated entirely. That type of system would probably be more useful on the saltwater side of things, where use of pure water is preferred and salt-mix is used to add the needed minerals to the water.
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^This.
You want to actually have purified water with this system? Buy a 40 Gal tub, set it outside, fill it with 30 gal of water. put a 5 gallon bucket in the middle with enough clean substrate to hold it to the bottom. Seal with clear plastic so the "drip" returns into the bucket. Collect every 24 -48 hours and retop off your tub from the hose. Now you have a basic "pure" water collector. Provided you maintain clean bucket and clear plastic, you should be "purer" than your tap.
The "plastic the tank and return straight to it" only has a benefit if you have high concentrations coming in via your tap. TDS will still build, regular water changes are still needed. But, if you have high tap TDS and or high evaporation rates due to local climate, and you don't mind your fish tank looking like a convience store hoagie in the cooler, it has some benefit.
You want to actually have purified water with this system? Buy a 40 Gal tub, set it outside, fill it with 30 gal of water. put a 5 gallon bucket in the middle with enough clean substrate to hold it to the bottom. Seal with clear plastic so the "drip" returns into the bucket. Collect every 24 -48 hours and retop off your tub from the hose. Now you have a basic "pure" water collector. Provided you maintain clean bucket and clear plastic, you should be "purer" than your tap.
The "plastic the tank and return straight to it" only has a benefit if you have high concentrations coming in via your tap. TDS will still build, regular water changes are still needed. But, if you have high tap TDS and or high evaporation rates due to local climate, and you don't mind your fish tank looking like a convience store hoagie in the cooler, it has some benefit.
Your probubly picking up some contamination becasue as stated water evaporates as a pure gas leaving minerals behined, so rather then loosing that water-vapor to the atmosphere and having to replenish with expensive RO (as i once did), your recapturing the 80-96% of the otherwise lost water vapor as purified water so that replenishment with costly RO is for all practical purposes moot in this application. So simple even a child can understand it.
"tolawdjk&kehmul", you are reading way too much between lines that are not even there. This is a basic fundamental truth that that cannot be changed and has been in working practice since discovered for more then 50 years. I didn't create the laws of physics, so your argument is not with me.
So previous to the saran wrapped tank, you would simply top it off with RO water instead of doing a water change? If thats the case then this is basically the same thing in that the purified/RO water isnt actually helping anything other than low water levels because the TDS doesnt change. What you have invented has been around for decades. Its called a lid/hood/canopy. My glass tops do the same thing that your saran wrap is doing, which is simply limiting evaporation since the purification is nullified once it re-enters the tank.
I applaud you for trying something new, but lets not dress it up as something its not.
I applaud you for trying something new, but lets not dress it up as something its not.
Come to think of it, this forum could use one.
Also needs one of these...
"tolawdjk&kehmul", you are reading way too much between lines that are not even there. This is a basic fundamental truth that that cannot be changed and has been in working practice since discovered for more then 50 years. I didn't create the laws of physics, so your argument is not with me.
Whatever. You obviously can't be reasoned with. Everyone else has presented science/fact/basic logic/experience, and your argument seems to be you believe it works. If the concept worked you could explain your 'science'. If your concept worked you could explain how it works and show the numbers that prove it works. If your concept worked you wouldn't have to use the superior attitude. Religious concepts can't be adapted to all real life situations. Just because you 'believe' it to be true doesn't mean the universe will adapt itself to work around the concept. But arguing about it is pointless. It is obvious at this point that you are incapable of actually rationally discussing the concept. Running around saying "you just don't get it" isn't an argument. It's what people do when they can't come up with a basic argument. Shame everyone doesn't outgrow the concept in early childhood.
As wesleydnunder pointed out, at this point we are beating a dead horse.
