R/O vs Distilled

[brownie64]

IMO tap water does just fine if your city has decent waters. Rain water in their natural habitats picks up toxins and pollution in the air. I also see people shower their chams frequently and showers typically don't have filtered or R/O water. Another thing many people use hot water to mist their chams and I'm going to guess they don't boil purified water to achieve this. It most likely comes from a faucet. I do so and don't have any problems.

I don't think we are saying tap water as long as it's not got too much chlorine in it is harmful. It's the water with the hard solids, and minerals that clog the misting systems.

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

I don't think we are saying tap water as long as it's not got too much chlorine in it is harmful. It's the water with the hard solids, and minerals that clog the misting systems.

I got ya. I've drank and been to some houses with well water even that's just awful and has crazy amounts of sulfur and mineral deposits in it. So I guess I can see why these are necessary if you own a Mistking or anything alike!

 

[Pap]

@brownie64 you bring up a good point and I guess I had never considered that... I know after coming out of the RO/DI the water has nothing in it... And is too pure for a freshwater tank... Basically being a clean slate to add salt mix to replenish minerals and make a perfect ocean water... I've had my guy now for 3 going on 4 months (still need to make an introduction to the forum thread ) and that is all I have been using... I'm by no means an expert on this but can't say I have noticed anything abnormal to date... The plants and everything else are growing (but I guess they take minerals from their soil) It would be nice for someone to chime in on either side of this that has had experience good or bad... And I guess I'll be looking into a way to add some kind of splitter before the DI stage so I can have RO for the chameleon and RO/DI for the reef...

@Carlton . I see your side of this too... And hands down fallow supplementation and gutloading to a T. I breed my own dubia roaches and have cricket bins as my staple feeders... Using 3 feeding dishes in each... cricket crack/roach chow as dry gutloads.. Fresh mixes of fruits and vegetables found on the forum as best/good ingredients... And RO/DI water crystals ... On top of Hornworms Silkworms Superworms as treats throughout the week... Open to other options of feeders to add in there...

 

[brownie64]

@brownie64 you bring up a good point and I guess I had never considered that... I know after coming out of the RO/DI the water has nothing in it... And is too pure for a freshwater tank... Basically being a clean slate to add salt mix to replenish minerals and make a perfect ocean water... I've had my guy now for 3 going on 4 months (still need to make an introduction to the forum thread ) and that is all I have been using... I'm by no means an expert on this but can't say I have noticed anything abnormal to date... The plants and everything else are growing (but I guess they take minerals from their soil) It would be nice for someone to chime in on either side of this that has had experience good or bad... And I guess I'll be looking into a way to add some kind of splitter before the DI stage so I can have RO for the chameleon and RO/DI for the reef...





I'm no expert on R.O. systems either just going by some research I did online. Like I told Carlton Some say it takes minerals out of the body, and about just as many say it don't so why take the chance. I do think the general consensus is not to drink it that's why the sell the R.O. systems as duel use "drinking and aquarium use"

 

[brownie64]

I'm no expert on R.O. systems either just going by some research I did online. Like I told Carlton some say it takes minerals out of the body, and about just as many say it don't so why take the chance. I do think the general consensus is not to drink it that's why they sell the R.O. system as duel use "drinking and aquarium use" Still trying to fully figure out this new site set-up

 

[gotwqqd]

Chlorine in tap water is easily removed by simply leaving the water in a wide brimmed container for a bit of time

 

[FlChamMom]

IMO tap water does just fine if your city has decent waters. Rain water in their natural habitats picks up toxins and pollution in the air. I also see people shower their chams frequently and showers typically don't have filtered or R/O water. Another thing many people use hot water to mist their chams and I'm going to guess they don't boil purified water to achieve this. It most likely comes from a faucet. I do so and don't have any problems.

I agree with you. I used distilled water when I first got into chameleons, then I read an article on how quickly chlorine dissipates when exposed to oxygen, especially when the water is turned into a fine mist as my MistKing does. Someone with well water or someone in a city that is known to have sub-par water systems may need to use distilled or R/O water but mine do fine with plain old H2O from the tap. My nozzles and tubes get a soak in vinegar periodically anyway to keep them clean and bacteria free, which also dissolves calcium deposits.

 

[brownie64]

I'll be perfectly honest with you after taking and filling a glass with the waste water coming from the R.O. I don't think I'll ever drink water from the tap again. Ask the folks from Sebring Ohio, or Flint Michigan how they feel about their water. This may be an extreme example, but It happened there It can happen to us just saying.

 

[Carlton]

Chlorine in tap water is easily removed by simply leaving the water in a wide brimmed container for a bit of time

Yes, chlorine can be removed easily, but remember that many municipal water utilities use chloramines which do NOT dissipate in air. To neutralize these additives you will need to use a herp or aquarium water treatment. Call your city water utility to find out which they use. Of course if you have your own well and you don't treat it with anything this isn't an issue.

 

[Blang]

Yes, chlorine can be removed easily, but remember that many municipal water utilities use chloramines which do NOT dissipate in air. To neutralize these additives you will need to use a herp or aquarium water treatment. Call your city water utility to find out which they use. Of course if you have your own well and you don't treat it with anything this isn't an issue.

Chlorine & fluorine/fluoride in our municipal water!

 

[gotwqqd]

Yes, chlorine can be removed easily, but remember that many municipal water utilities use chloramines which do NOT dissipate in air. To neutralize these additives you will need to use a herp or aquarium water treatment. Call your city water utility to find out which they use. Of course if you have your own well and you don't treat it with anything this isn't an issue.

Wells come with their own issues..... Mineral deposits, which is why I use store bought treated. My glass enclosure had no water marks and many nozzles are not clogged.

 

[Carlton]

Wells come with their own issues..... Mineral deposits, which is why I use store bought treated. My glass enclosure had no water marks and many nozzles are not clogged.

Its a safe bet you have hard water if you normally get mineral deposits or rust on sinks, bathtub, shower doors, faucets. Any simple aquarium water test kit can give you some idea of how hard it is, the pH, nitrates, etc. High iron content can contribute to that rotten egg smell. There's "clear water iron" that is different than rust. Its not toxic, just unpleasant. I'm lucky enough to have all of the above in my well water.

 

[Blang]

Its a safe bet you have hard water if you normally get mineral deposits or rust on sinks, bathtub, shower doors, faucets. Any simple aquarium water test kit can give you some idea of how hard it is, the pH, nitrates, etc. High iron content can contribute to that rotten egg smell. There's "clear water iron" that is different than rust. Its not toxic, just unpleasant. I'm lucky enough to have all of the above in my well water.

I thought the egg smell was caused by sulphur in the water! At the cottage up in northern Wisconsin the well water had a lot of iron in it to the point you could see it on the bottom of the pail once it settled! Hand pumped water & it was some of the best water I ever drank! 75' deep well and ice cold!

 

[Carlton]

Yes, there is often sulphur as well as iron.

 

[NERVOUS]

Just stumbled across this in the MistKing owner's manual:

12. Which water to use?
We always recommend using demineralized water for use in our systems. Reverse Osmosis (RO) is ideal and is commonly used and sold as filtered drinking water. Using tap, well, spring or water treated by pitcher or faucet filters won't prevent the minerals from depositing in the nozzles and aside from improving the taste do nothing else. A misting system is a convenience tool, so remember RO water doesn't clog your nozzles, dries perfectly clear with no water spots and is ideal for your daily misting. Make sure you don't subscribe to the bogus chain letters or urban legends that relate to RO water. Entire industries rely on RO with no ill effects!
​

Maybe I will add an RO system to my whole home water filtration system after all.

 

[gotwqqd]

I thought the egg smell was caused by sulphur in the water! At the cottage up in northern Wisconsin the well water had a lot of iron in it to the point you could see it on the bottom of the pail once it settled! Hand pumped water & it was some of the best water I ever drank! 75' deep well and ice cold!

Yup.... Iron sulphide or sulphate one of those compounds

 

[trickedoutbiker]

As far as the nozzles getting plugged.... Do ya'll still add ReptiSafe to your distilled / RO water in your misting systems? Or will reptisafe add residue that will clog your nozzles over time too? I know that it adds a bit of calcium back into the water, and also de-chlorinates it.... So that is for sure some minerals of some sort. But will it added to the misting water, clog the nozzles?

 

[jcarlsen]

As far as the nozzles getting plugged.... Do ya'll still add ReptiSafe to your distilled / RO water in your misting systems? Or will reptisafe add residue that will clog your nozzles over time too? I know that it adds a bit of calcium back into the water, and also de-chlorinates it.... So that is for sure some minerals of some sort. But will it added to the misting water, clog the nozzles?

I just put distilled in and that's it.

 

[brownie64]

Wrong thread LOL

 

[trickedoutbiker]

Wrong thread LOL

Didn't wanna make a thread and ask that, when the topic of clogged nozzles was already on hand in this thread. May have been an off-topic question though.... My apologies