Suggest an RO/DI

If you have a 100 GPD unit and run on well water (like I do), you're probably only going to get like 50 GPD.

Now, you want to make 5 gallons of water in a pinch, and it's going to take FOREVER, or approx. 2 gallons an hour. Or, 2.5 hrs for a 5 gallon bucket.

And that's after it's broken in and a few hundred gallons have gone through the unit. Mine still takes ~ 3.5 hrs to make 5 gallons.

Take a 50 GPD unit and it'd take 10 hours to make a bucket of water.

Might not seem like much time right now, but sometimes when you need water...you NEED water.

:)

Plus I think the smaller units cost about the same.

I bought mine from filters direct on eBay for $99 and it makes 0 TDS every time. ;)
 
I"m slightly confused. How does the GPD amount matter?

Well the GPD isn't the end of the world. It's just that if its rated for 50 GPD it will make a max of 2 gal an hour. The new unit I have is 75GPD, which is nice as it makes water quickly. I'm just impatient and don't like waiting around for it.
 
I do water changes via a 32g garbage can in the living room. I move the makeup line to the garbage can and it takes 8hrs to fill to 30g. Then I add X cups salt mix . Then over the next day I keep adding to get the SG correct. Once it's happy I agitate for 48hrs to get the dissolved gases correct. The 90gpd is a really nice improvement. Like one of those things you keep wondering, "How did I survive with only 25gpd??"
 
I see what you all mean. What about making a small amount of water each day, saving up to make a water change each week?

Also, what do I do when I add salt to mix? How long should I run the powerhead in the bucket? Or how do I get it done.
 
That sounds good then. I will just buy a small heater and pump to keep in the bucket then.
 
I use a 75 watt heater and a MagDrive 3 pump with hose attached to mix up the salt. Once it's dissolved and up to temp I use the MagDrive to pump the water into the tank. When I do water changes I normally change around 30 gals once every month or two.

Although if you were doing a small water change of 5 gal or so then a cheap heater and pump would probably work just as well.
 
Can I attach my current DI to an RO Unit? So I don't have to go through the trouble in buying one already built in.
 
AquariaCentral.com