ibebian Posted April 8, 2016 Report Share Posted April 8, 2016 I'm wondering if there's a limit to how long I should keep RO water. Because I have a smaller tank and it's a hassle to set it up, I make 7.5 gallons worth of it at a time, which for me, lasts about 5-6 water changes of 20%. If I do a WC weekly, this would last me as much as 6 weeks! So my question is there a point at which the RO water just sitting there becomes stagnant and begins to deteriorate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted April 8, 2016 Report Share Posted April 8, 2016 It would be dependent upon how you store your RO...... Dust and other contaminants - store in a clean, covered container Light exposure - preferably opaque storage/out of direct sunlight Aeration and water movement - prevent water from going "stale" with an airstone I use a clean BRUTE container with lid to store my RO, in a cool dark corner of my basement. I don't have an airstone in my RO storage tank, however I do aerate my water after remineralization for 24 hours prior to water changes. I believe aeration is an important step, as shrimp will "run" to the top of the tank if this process is omitted. I check periodically and (knock on wood) still have never seen even >0 TDS. Vpier 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibebian Posted April 8, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2016 Hm, okay this is good advice Shrimple. I use a cleaned and repurposed marine salt 5gal bucket with a cover, and it's black. Makes sense that eliminating light is important to inhibit algae or other bacterial growth. I don't actually aerate, which I suspected is the step I'm missing. I'll get one of those low wattage nano aerators and just keep it running inside. The only time the cover is not secured (I crack several inches of space) is when I'm degassing it for the first 48 hours. What was the longest you've been able to confidently keep RO water for using these steps? Also, what is the reasoning why shrimp will run to the top of the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. F Posted April 8, 2016 Report Share Posted April 8, 2016 ...Also, what is the reasoning why shrimp will run to the top of the tank? Low DO (dissolved oxygen). They need to breathe! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted April 8, 2016 Report Share Posted April 8, 2016 Months.....I often just top off my RO reserve so there old water in there all the time. Oh, I would add that I never access my reserve with "dirty" equipment, only clean containers/pumps that are reserve-specific Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zodiac Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 5 hours ago, ibebian said: Also, what is the reasoning why shrimp will run to the top of the tank? if they just swim to the top,may be nothing. if a lot of them stay at the top,it can be a oxygen problem. not long ago i had an air pump fail on a tank with a couple hundred shrimp. they either stayed at top or on the guppy grass. none were on the substrate except 4 dead shrimp. i hooked up my other air pump,in a few minutes all went back to normal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DETAquarium Posted April 11, 2016 Report Share Posted April 11, 2016 I also use a 20g Brute Trash Can for storing my RODI water. Not to say it isn't a wise practice which I should be doing, but I don't aerate my reserve RODI water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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