Reef Central Online Community

Go Back   Reef Central Online Community > General Interest Forums > The Reef Chemistry Forum
Blogs FAQ Calendar Mark Forums Read

Notices

User Tag List

Reply
Thread Tools
Unread 02/21/2011, 09:39 PM   #1
timi hendrix
Registered Member
 
timi hendrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 339
Cool tds reading on distilled water?

i was just wondering if distilled water has a reading of zero using distilled.i am asking because i think my tds meter is flawed or something because my reading is like 20 with a new di resin and carbon and sedimen filters.the membrane is only a year old and i dont have a hugh demand on it,thank you for your replys.


__________________
105 Gallon AGA
30 Gallon Sump
Euro-Reef ES5-3
2- 175 W 10K MH
3- 110 vho Actinics
quiet one pump
timi hendrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/21/2011, 10:17 PM   #2
bertoni
RC Mod
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
How much water has been run through it? You could try calibrating the meter or testing it with a calibration solution. 20 ppm seems fairly high for fresh RO/DI water. What is the TDS of the tap water?

Distilled water is hard to judge. I don't think it'll make a useful standard.


__________________
Jonathan Bertoni
bertoni is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 09:40 AM   #3
timi hendrix
Registered Member
 
timi hendrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 339
maybe im sticking the unit down too far in the water or something.lets say i put the meter down a 1/4 inch it says 7 to 8,when i push it down further it ll say something like 20,my tap water is 160 ish thank you for ur time.its weird because most of my filters are new,all i use it for is a 10% weekly water change and top off thats not too much demand i dont think.my system is about 150 gal total.


__________________
105 Gallon AGA
30 Gallon Sump
Euro-Reef ES5-3
2- 175 W 10K MH
3- 110 vho Actinics
quiet one pump
timi hendrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 10:16 AM   #4
timi hendrix
Registered Member
 
timi hendrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 339
just finished testing again.my readings are 13 on the r.o. and 140 on the tap water ,what do ya think.if i need to calibrate does anyone have a homemade solution or can i buy it.from what i hear its sodium cloride.


__________________
105 Gallon AGA
30 Gallon Sump
Euro-Reef ES5-3
2- 175 W 10K MH
3- 110 vho Actinics
quiet one pump
timi hendrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:03 PM   #5
chuckreef
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Davis, Ca.
Posts: 816
what does a sample of the RO ouput (before the DI resing) read?


chuckreef is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:07 PM   #6
redfishblewfish
Registered Member
 
redfishblewfish's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Central New Jersey
Posts: 716
Your RO unit should drop your TDS by at least 98%. If it is not doing that, then it's time for a new membrane. The DI resin should then take it to zero. If you are putting out 13 TDS on your RO unit, you're going to burn through the DI resin pretty quick. If that meter is right, your membrane is shot.


redfishblewfish is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:09 PM   #7
jeff@zina.com
Registered Member
 
jeff@zina.com's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Naples, FL
Posts: 3,345
Quote:
Originally Posted by timi hendrix View Post
i was just wondering if distilled water has a reading of zero using distilled.
Distilled water, by definition, will always be 0 TDS. Distillation involves taking a liquid (water) and converting it to a gas (water vapor) then condensing it back to liquid (water again). You can't dissolve a solid in a gas, so there are no dissolved solids remaining after distillation.

Quote:
Originally Posted by timi hendrix View Post
i am asking because i think my tds meter is flawed or something because my reading is like 20 with a new di resin and carbon and sedimen filters.
There are no carbon or sediment filters or DI resin involved in distilled water. If you really mean to ask about RO/DI water, then you may very well read some TDS for the first few minutes of operation or the first hour or so after replacing the membranes.

Jeff


jeff@zina.com is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:31 PM   #8
HighlandReefer
Team RC Member
 
HighlandReefer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Highland, Maryland Entomologist
Posts: 14,591
A statement by Randy regarding distilled water from this thread:

Distilled Water
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...istilled+water

Randy's statement:

"One cannot give a blanket OK to distilled water.

The answer is going to be related to the exact nature of the metal cooling coils used, and whether they contain substantial copper. There can be too much copper from distilled water."

I would suggest using certified pure water or perhaps the pure water sold for calibrating refractometers for checking the calibration of your TDS meter.


__________________
Cliff Babcock

Intestests: Digital Microscopy; Marine Pest Control; Marine Plants & Macroalgae

Current Tank Info: 180 g. mixed reef system
HighlandReefer is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:50 PM   #9
Sawen
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Montreal
Posts: 172
Would a test kit for copper sold for the aquarium hobbyists be a valide tool to detect if the distilled water is free from copper?


Sawen is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:54 PM   #10
tmz
ReefKeeping Mag staff

 
tmz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: West Seneca NY
Posts: 27,691
Not for very small amounts. A few parts per billion of free copper can be harmful to invertebrates.


__________________
Tom

Current Tank Info: Tank of the Month , November 2011 : 600gal integrated system: 3 display tanks (120 g, 90g, 89g),several frag/grow out tanks, macroalgae refugia, cryptic zones. 40+ fish, seahorses, sps,lps,leathers, zoanthidae and non photosynthetic corals.
tmz is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 12:56 PM   #11
HighlandReefer
Team RC Member
 
HighlandReefer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Highland, Maryland Entomologist
Posts: 14,591
The recommend high concentration in reef water for copper is only 30 parts per billion. That's not much. The hobby grade test kits can't detect copper much below 100 ppb. For some coral and reef occupants, copper causes problems as low as 10 ppb (& some research is finding levels lower than this can be a problem for certain coral). The form that copper takes in the reef tank makes a big difference. When copper is tied with dissolved orgnanics it is much less toxic than when in the ionic form which is what you find in salt mixes and many chemicals used to add copper for treatments of parasites....etc.


__________________
Cliff Babcock

Intestests: Digital Microscopy; Marine Pest Control; Marine Plants & Macroalgae

Current Tank Info: 180 g. mixed reef system
HighlandReefer is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/22/2011, 04:37 PM   #12
bertoni
RC Mod
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
Your filter is not working. The output from the RO phase should be more like 3 ppm, assuming the meter is correct. I'd calibrate the meter or get a second opinion to be sure, and then work on the filter. The membrane might not be seated properly, for example. To be sure, you should produce about a gallon, at least, of RO water, and throw away the first half gallon. The membranes often leak while sitting idle. You could try the water after the DI phase, too, but I think that the cartridge is shot.

Distilled water isn't necessarily 0 TDS, for a number of reasons. In addition to contaminants from the coils and after the fact, carbon dioxide can raise the TDS, and distilling will leave some other contaminants in the water as well.


__________________
Jonathan Bertoni
bertoni is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/23/2011, 08:57 AM   #13
timi hendrix
Registered Member
 
timi hendrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 339
thanks for everyones replys ,i wasnt gonna use distilled on my tank,i just wanted to see if my tds meter was reading correctly,and im not too sure of what calibration solution to use.my reading could be alot lower if i can confirm that my meter is accurate.i just need to calibrate my meter for peace of mind. thank you.


__________________
105 Gallon AGA
30 Gallon Sump
Euro-Reef ES5-3
2- 175 W 10K MH
3- 110 vho Actinics
quiet one pump
timi hendrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/23/2011, 11:15 AM   #14
timi hendrix
Registered Member
 
timi hendrix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 339
what do u people use.do u buy it or make it.thank u.


__________________
105 Gallon AGA
30 Gallon Sump
Euro-Reef ES5-3
2- 175 W 10K MH
3- 110 vho Actinics
quiet one pump
timi hendrix is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/23/2011, 11:45 AM   #15
chuckreef
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Davis, Ca.
Posts: 816
You want the 342 solution.

Try Buckeye Field Supply
From a previous post:
" We have 342 ppm, 800 ppm, and 1382 ppm calibration fluid.
Russ @ BFS "


chuckreef is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/23/2011, 03:04 PM   #16
bertoni
RC Mod
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
342 should be okay. You could also try a lower ppm solution if there's one available. It might give more accuracy.


__________________
Jonathan Bertoni
bertoni is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/23/2011, 09:51 PM   #17
wmdick_2007
Registered Member
 
wmdick_2007's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Idaho
Posts: 191
I agree with redfishblewfish and would check the output before the DI unit. I just do a quick PH test on mine.


__________________
Enjoy!

Current Tank Info: 13 mixed tanks
wmdick_2007 is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/24/2011, 01:15 PM   #18
karsseboom
Registered Member
 
karsseboom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,183
Quote:
Originally Posted by bertoni View Post
your filter is not working. The output from the ro phase should be more like 3 ppm, assuming the meter is correct. I'd calibrate the meter or get a second opinion to be sure, and then work on the filter. The membrane might not be seated properly, for example. To be sure, you should produce about a gallon, at least, of ro water, and throw away the first half gallon. The membranes often leak while sitting idle. You could try the water after the di phase, too, but i think that the cartridge is shot.

Distilled water isn't necessarily 0 tds, for a number of reasons. In addition to contaminants from the coils and after the fact, carbon dioxide can raise the tds, and distilling will leave some other contaminants in the water as well.
i tested about 25 gal of distilled water from different source and they all read zero...


karsseboom is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/24/2011, 01:18 PM   #19
karsseboom
Registered Member
 
karsseboom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,183
Quote:
Originally Posted by timi hendrix View Post
thanks for everyones replys ,i wasnt gonna use distilled on my tank,i just wanted to see if my tds meter was reading correctly,and im not too sure of what calibration solution to use.my reading could be alot lower if i can confirm that my meter is accurate.i just need to calibrate my meter for peace of mind. thank you.
Your disstilled water is fine they dont use copper pipes anymore, that old info from about 20 years ago. I have tested so many gallons of distilled water and was all zero on the tds meter


karsseboom is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/24/2011, 01:49 PM   #20
bertoni
RC Mod
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Mountain View, CA, USA
Posts: 88,616
I agree that copper is very unlikely, and that distilled water is fine to use in a tank.


__________________
Jonathan Bertoni
bertoni is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 02/24/2011, 04:02 PM   #21
elijaher
Registered Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Kansas City,Missouri
Posts: 1,188
Good to hear that distilled water ok to use. Cause I had use it before I got mine rodi unit.


elijaher is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
What is an acceptable PPM TDS reading for RODI water? SPSFiend Southern California Reefers 16 12/03/2017 04:07 PM
TDS Reading - Top Off Water FranktheTankTx Reef Discussion 14 10/31/2008 06:14 PM
distilled water - TDS meter - copper readings??? sikpupy Reef Discussion 9 08/23/2008 03:56 PM
TDS in store bought distilled water. Saiyan The Reef Chemistry Forum 2 01/15/2008 10:58 PM
TDS reading of Walmart Distilled h2o ol'saltybastage Saint Louis Area Saltwater Hobbyists (SLASH) 13 04/24/2006 06:34 PM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 08:23 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Powered by Searchlight © 2024 Axivo Inc.
Use of this web site is subject to the terms and conditions described in the user agreement.
Reef CentralTM Reef Central, LLC. Copyright ©1999-2022
User Alert System provided by Advanced User Tagging v3.3.0 (Pro) - vBulletin Mods & Addons Copyright © 2024 DragonByte Technologies Ltd.