TropicalGrimmish

i seen a reverse osmosis kit for tanks do anyone have one, and if so do it help with nitrogin cycle and keep water clean

Angela_96

The reverse osmosis water units remove heavy metals, cholrine, etc from the water. They are wonderful! However, they will not have an effect on the cycle, the tank will have to go through the cycle by itself either w/ r/o water or tap. It does remove bacteria, etc from tap water as well.

dvc_r

I have the Pure-Flo II 50 GPD RO unit. It has nothing to do with the cycling process, but it makes a huge difference in the long run. I live in Florida and the tap water is "substandard"! It tastes (and smells) horrible, and it’s loaded with all sorts of chemicals. After using RO water for water changes I do not have any of that calcium buildup along the tops of all my tanks (8 of them). Obviously the pros are healthier fish but some of the cons that I have come across (and may not be for others) are:
When buying new fish at LFS, their pH is 8.2-8.4 and their water is very hard, which leads to difficulty acclimating the fish into your tank. RO water comes out very soft and a PH of about 6.2 you need to use the slow drip (“VERY” slow drip) method usually taking 1 1/2 -2 hours to do.
My PH Crashed in two of my tanks going down to 4.8! I them found out you need to put minerals back into the RO water (especially if you have live plants) and also to maintain your PH buffers.
And on a lighter note I was able to install my unit after I told my wife she would never have to buy water at the grocery store again and how much better our morning coffee would be. Now that we’ve had it for about 6 months, she would not do without it ever again!
…Back the fish… the pros definitely outweigh the cons!