RO water ?

[vince]

I have been seeing a lot of pond keepers are using R.O set ups for better water for the fish but is it worth doing or just a new fad? I am all for helping the fish so if it is needed then I will get a R.O set up but what do I need ?

[Duncan]

Vince hi mate

I ran RO for more years than I care to remember I had circa 400 gallons per day going into an 4 k pond

I bought into it hook line and sinker, I had a GH of zero a KH of 2gdh a pH of around 6-8-7 and a TDS of no more than 100 PPM

did I see any benefits, thinking back now no not a jot no better koi health no remarkable growth and no better colours

thinking back now it was not only a waste of money but it really kept you on your toes monitoring all the pH dependant parameters

dunc

[Manky Sanke]

I have to sit firmly on the fence where the benefits of RO are concerned because I have no experience in growing on big, good quality koi. Some people I respect for their experience in this area say that very soft water is a great benefit others, such as Duncan who doesn't enter into projects lightly and has the experience to judge a situation properly, say it isn't.

For those considering using RO, I urge caution. pH is the most important parameter in a koi pond since a seriously wrong pH will kill fish very quickly if it goes unnoticed and uncorrected. The KH parameter is also very important because it stabilises the pH and helps prevent unacceptable variations. Also, and most importantly, it prevents the possibility of a pH crash. No one should use RO water unless they fully understand pH and KH and are prepared to monitor those values and maintain them at their preferred values.

[vince]

thank you both for your answers ...

I did like the idea of giving the koi a better water to live in but as you said if I was to miss just one thing when running the RO it could wipe out the fish by making a huge Ph crash. I would think getting it set up is not only down to adding the RO set up but all kinds of readings you need would work out very costly. first the meters then the regents to use the meters. but as you say is it needed ? does if help? think I will leave that until I find it is worth the costs. thank you

[axolo]

I was wondering, do you guys use a reverse osmosis machine to take the anions-kations out of the water, you do you guys use a demi installaion ( ion exchange with cation and anion resins), because with high volumes, the 2e option seems cheaper.

[Manky Sanke]

Sorry, I can't help with that one, I don't use RO. Can anyone else who uses it describe their RO filter?