High Tide Aquatics

Anyone TDS Mountain View Tap Water?

NanoCrazed

NanoCrazed

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Contemplating on using tap (dechlorinated) on a few large tank builds for first fill.

I'm I the Monta Loma area in Mountain View, and supposedly we get our water here from Hetch Hetchy...same as SF, which reportedly had low TDS. Water reports show 65ppm. But wondering if anyone has actually tested TDS in the area?

Would like to validate this before taking the plunge. I've been meaning to experiment with tap in a smaller tank but never found the time -- too easy to just buy filtered NSW from Neptune... :)
 
Thanks for the suggestion, Bruce!

Ordering today. Hopefully, the tap quality is good and I won't have to make 3 - 4 trips to Neptune per tank. Getting 2, maybe 3, going...hopefully my home office won't collapse!
 
We probably use the same water. If I remember correctly my tds was around 50-70. Yeah tds meters are cheap, and I would say that a home Rodi system is a great investment. Just gotta setup a mixing station (which is a fun project in and of itself).


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I'm typically pretty lazy to mix. :)

Just buy and use on days that I want to do a water change... unfortunately, I also decided to go and setup some larger systems.

Gotta use the rocks I got from you somehow! Lol. I saw a 65G acrylic for a decent price but passed on it cuz I can't fit the large 28lb piece through the top easily. So will probably need to go with glass rimless only.
 
Been meaning to sign up... :)

I was saw on another forum someone using nothing but tap in SF with beautiful results, so debating on the possibility.

I hate mixing my own SW so hence can't bring myself to a RODI. Just need enough water to start two 100G systems and then will switch to doing changes using filtered NSW. Hence, the pondering...

I suppose, I could buy a few more 5G containers and schlep it back and forth to Neptune a few times...
 
you can get 300 gal nsw delivered. Fill me up and have 100 gal on hand for later. Tap water can Be used, just doesn't make sense (to me) to start with it if that's not what you're going to use going forward.
 
My only challenge on delivery is I am starting up only one system at a time since I have to move tanks along the way... so 300G all at once will be problematic too. :/
 
NanoCrazed said:
I'm typically pretty lazy to mix. :)

Just buy and use on days that I want to do a water change... unfortunately, I also decided to go and setup some larger systems.

Gotta use the rocks I got from you somehow! Lol. I saw a 65G acrylic for a decent price but passed on it cuz I can't fit the large 28lb piece through the top easily. So will probably need to go with glass rimless only.
Click to expand...
Rimless glass looks better anyways :D

The bigger the systems get, the more making your own SW makes sense. But if you hate it that much, maybe get a large holding container from tractor supply co, and have someone deliver periodically?

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/water-storage-tank-550-gal?cm_vc=-10005

Just a thought...



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Not a bad idea... trick will be to sneak this past the wife...

Tank? What storage tank in the front yard are you talking about? Lol
 
Yep. That's a very fair point.

My thought was to do copper test or run chemipure to remove copper and what not, if I go the tap route.

Though I might just shuttle NSW back and forth from Neptune... :/
 
How hard is it to make salt water? Personally for me, it would be more of an inconvenience to go out to get water. I just get my bucket or trash can, pour in my RO water, drop in a powerhead, heater, dump in salt, come back later and test, dump in more salt. Pretty automated in my opinion
 
Lol. Mixing salt was the thing that probably drove me outta the hobby in the early 2000s.
And when i started again, was one thing that i disliked again.

For $1.25 / G at Neptune, the NSW is fairly affordable... buffered, and Ca+ dosed, and ready whenever a water change strikes me. Except for a significant change or first fill of course. :)

I might go with gablami's suggestion and get a tank with water delivery.
 
NanoCrazed said:
Yep. That's a very fair point.

My thought was to do copper test or run chemipure to remove copper and what not, if I go the tap route.

Though I might just shuttle NSW back and forth from Neptune... :/
Click to expand...

The problem with the tap water route is the source and quality of water can change without you knowing it. EBMUD was forced to change the source because of low levels on the normal reservoir sources during the drought. They ended up buying water and shipping it in from Sacramento River. They also started using warmer water from the upper portion of reservoirs to preserve the colder water levels below. Upper waters have more algae and they warned that water would taste different than previously, so who knows what else might have been in there.

https://www.ebmud.com/about-us/news/press-releases/drought-causes-changes-taste-and-smell-tap-water/
 
Lol, no I mix my own, so I don’t need a 500g storage tank. I have two 65g tanks:

d8c8db7aa16ed369998156184503e080.jpg



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