Culligan water (store bought 5gallon jugs) good for hydro or no?

[Guest]

After all I am what, 97% water? That leaves 3% for Bullshit

Sorry but you underestimated your Bullshit content by about 10 fold:
Body water…from Wikipedia
A significant fraction of the human body is water. This body water is distributed in different compartments in the body. Lean muscle tissue contains about 75% water. Blood contains 83% water, body fat contains 25% water and bone has 22% water. In diseased states where body water is affected, the compartment or compartments that have changed can give clues to the nature of the problem. Body water is regulated by hormones, including anti-diuretic hormone (ADH), aldosterone and atrial natriuretic peptide. There are many methods that can be used to determine body water. One way to get a simple estimate is by calculation.
Calculation of body water
In individuals of normal weight, water is abundant in most parts of the body, except in adipose tissue (fat). These calculations are for adults of average build, and are inappropriate for obese or overly muscular people. These proportions are very simplified and use round numbers for quick calculation. In men about 69% of the body mass is water. This value is about 55% in women due to a higher proportion of body fat. This is the total body water.

Costco has a nice RO system for about $140. That's the cheapest good quality unit that I've seen. At 25 cents a gallon, it seems like it'd take a while in comparison to justify an RO system being able to pay for itself.

Absolutely. It all depends on how much you need and also the quality out of a machine is very inconsistent. I paid like $130 for my RO unit from www.aquaticeco.com so you can also check it out.

 

[zoolander]

the ease of your own ro system is worth every cent luggin 30 + gallons home a week no thanks

 

[Crashin']

I have an R/O unit already. It's a four stage with a 96% discharge rate. The chloramine kills the membranes in about 4 months and need to be replaced. I got in a group order from our reef club for $120 + free fittings.

I used to get my water from one of our local saltwater aquarium shops but they aren't open 24/7 like Wally World. Plus I've been going to Wally World so long they know me and know it's for my "reef tanks".

I feel ya on not wanting to lug around 30 gallons a week but I don't mind. Also, since all my neighbors know I have reef tanks it doesn't look suspicious.

 

[Frozen Bacon]

Hey all, I have one of these...
http://www.livsure.com/water/ce2_reverse_osmosis.htm

Its able to make all the water I need for my 40 gal res. Just went home depot and got some 5 gals/w water in them..(I bought 6@13$ each) the water is 010ppm and is useable, then use the RO (above link)filter to fill 1 every day. By the time you need a res change, youll have 6 5 gals ready to pour. I only run 30 gals in my 40 gal res..Ive grown 5 full crops (1 yr 2mos) without changing any filters. I DO need to replace 4 of the 5 costing about 90 bucks.. So its a trade off... Lugging those 5 gals to the Glacier water machine or making them yourself, its about the same price... BUT your neighbors wont trip if you make your own water...... They may otherwise. Unless you got Reef tanks..

 

[Happyflolucky]

You can get ro units off ebay all day for 65 bucks, and 0 ppm units at 150 gpd for 100. Most of them come with a hose faucet option if you want over the the under the sink hook up. The replacement filter packs there are pretty cheap as well.

.25 a gal is pretty cheap for knowing you have good water to start with. Crazy is people that buy bottled quarts of spring water for 2 bucks. - I have a friend that will complain about the cost of gas, but buys the big bottles daily. He is paying like 8 bucks a gal for water and cringes at the cost of gas.

 

[Guest]

.25 a gal is pretty cheap for knowing you have good water to start with.

Problem there is water quality is dependent somewhat on how well the machines are serviced. I've seen people test water from different machines and quality varied.

 

[Guest]

Nondual...........30%???????? as I gaze at the diplomas hanging on the wall in front of me, B.S., M.S. and a Phd., I reckon 30% would be appropriate. (graduated with a 3.8 BPA) majoring in Bovine and Equine Scathology.

If this lad is going to be living at or near the home he is in for some time then an RO unit would be a damned good idea, he will have the water when he needs it, not when he can get to the store with a trunk load of water jugs.

 

[Crashin']

I would absolutely agree with Ty. If you live far from a store in which to purchase water it would be in your best interest to invest in a RO unit. In my case it's too easy to just buy it.

Nondual, the water quality does vary slightly from trip to trip but it's not much. The highest TDS reading I've had was about 22ppm and the lowest was 7ppm with the average being in the 12-15ppm range. My Culligan water machine has a little "scheduled maintenance" chart where it states the date it was serviced, the TDS reading, and the signature of the person who tested it. I was a bit sceptical if it was accurate and if the maintenance was actually done but I test my water before adding nutes and it's usually +/-2ppm of what the chart stated and it's always has a pH value of 7.

But to answer the original question, yes you can use Culligan water.

 

[Guest]

Nondual...........30%???????? as I gaze at the diplomas hanging on the wall in front of me, B.S., M.S. and a Phd., I reckon 30% would be appropriate. (graduated with a 3.8 BPA) majoring in Bovine and Equine Scathology.

So you agree with me about this particular point and I don't have pieces of paper on the wall? Cool. Glad I didn't spend all that time and money to figure that one out.

Nondual, the water quality does vary slightly from trip to trip but it's not much.

I wasn't talking trip-to-trip...I was talking about machine-to-machine.

If you live far from a store in which to purchase water it would be in your best interest to invest in a RO unit.

What if you're running 1 5 gallon DWC bucket and only top off over the course of the grow? Sure...eventually the cost of the RO equipment will be covered. What's the cost-to-benefit ratio there? Maybe I need to go get a Phd to figure that one out?

 

[Crashin']

Machine-to-machine would definitely vary but I think they do have some standards for quality. I can look at the chart and see when they have done maintenance just by looking at the TDS readings. PPM works its way up and then it's suddenly back down so I can only conclude that they have changed membranes or carbon.

If you were running one grow in a 5 gallon DWC I don't think it would be cost effective. Maybe in the long run (3-4 grows) the unit would pay for itself if you factor in gas, time, cost of containers, and of course the cost of the water.

 

[Green Force]

k well i have bin Reading up on Water Chem. and i am no so sure now i am thinking i should put half tap water half R/o? Do you guys have any problems balanceing PH with R/o water?

 

[Green Force]

kk well i can finaly test my water with my hong kong tri meterthe ppm of my tap water is 830 ppm 1.20 EC with a PH of 7.4