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my incoming water's TDS is 847 !!!

malulu

malulu

NJRC Member
My TDS was always high 500+ two years back... but it suddenly down 200+ last year... it still high, but bearable...

right now after the hurricane Irene, i noticed my input TDS is 800+ !!!

i now need to recharge my Kati-Ani unit 5 every 3 weeks!!! what a pain!!


- is there anyway that i can do to reduce it?
- did anyone have similar problem?
- should i call the water company to complain? and complain on what ground? just tell them TDS too high?

thx
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Not sure what you can do as far as complaining to the water company. I'm sure whatever they are giving you has passed "acceptable" parameters for potable water. They're not obligated to provide you with water suitable for aquariums.

What I would suggest though is to maybe install a simple RO unit inline before your kati ani. Just get a basic 3-stage with sediment filter, carbon block, and RO membrane. That should reduce the TDS significantly before it hits the Kati Ani. You might have to change the carbon/sediment filters every 6 months or so, but they're around $6 - $8 each, so not a big deal.

It would definitely save you from recharging the Kati Ani as much.
 
malulu

malulu

NJRC Member
than what is the point to use Kati-Ani ??
;)

i want Kati-Ani cause i can;t stand to waste water...

note:
i have a post somewhere that suggested:
for $ wise, it did save $ to go for Kati-Ani over RO/DI... but the headeche/trouble of recharging may not be worth to do so.
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Ah yes. I recall that thread from before.

And yes, it would defeat the purpose of the Kati Ani since you would now have waste water. That was the only way I could think of to reduce your recharges though.

I suppose it couldn't hurt to contact the water company and tell them you noticed a substantial increase in TDS in the water since the hurricane... and explain to them you know because you test the water for your fish tank. Maybe there's something they can do to help you, or maybe you found an issue they aren't even aware of. Either way, doesn't cost you anything but your time on the phone.
 
trivan

trivan

I have a sediment filter prior to my RO/DI unit. If one recalls, I had problem getting 0 tds from my old unit, so I purchased a new one, used the old sediment filter which uses very cheap filters to feed my newer RO/DI unit. I can say that my new units prefilters are still clean as a whistle and I do believe helps prolong the life of the more expensive filters in my main unit.
 
malulu

malulu

NJRC Member
why don't you all tell me BEFORE the group buy??

oh.. i forgot, i did not bring this up earlier...
:D

ok, i will try to get one to see!
thx for the great advise!
 
S

SHLUZER

I believe legally water company should not supply water over 200 TDS, as it is not suitable for human consumption.
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

SHLUZER said:
I believe legally water company should not supply water over 200 TDS, as it is not suitable for human consumption.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what the TDS number is that they have to hit, but I do know they test the water at the supply, not at each delivery. God only knows what it goes through by the time it gets there. I know I have city water now and I hate it, the chlorine is killing my RO/DI filters. I miss my well water. The TDS at my faucet is 247.
 
downbeach

downbeach

mfisher2112 said:
I'm not sure what the TDS number is that they have to hit, but I do know they test the water at the supply, not at each delivery. God only knows what it goes through by the time it gets there. I know I have city water now and I hate it, the chlorine is killing my RO/DI filters. I miss my well water. The TDS at my faucet is 247.
Click to expand...

Make sure they're not using cloramines instead of chlorine in your water, if so, you should be getting a chloramine specific filter. Check with the MUA.
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

downbeach said:
Make sure they're not using cloramines instead of chlorine in your water, if so, you should be getting a chloramine specific filter. Check with the MUA.
Click to expand...

Good point! I need to replace my filters anyway and I see that AirWaterIce has specific filter packs for my unit to handle treated city water as opposed to untreated well water.
 
downbeach

downbeach

Every community must do an annual water quality report, and is public information. If you google it you should be able to see what they're using in your water.
 
steamman

steamman

I would think the water company would be liable for poor water quality at your house. What would they say to you "Oh well the water was good when it left our facility. I don't know what happened to it from there." You know that you are responsible for the water pipe from the curb to your house. So it would make sense that they are responsible for the pipe that supplies water to that point.

Maybe you should get your water tested to see what it is that is in your water. Then compare it to what the water company says is in your water.

If by some chance they are not required to fix your problem. A whole house water filter may be in order.

Over the summer there was a water main break a couple houses from me on my street. It shut the water down at my house for a whole day while they repaired it. My tds was around 140 before the break. After the break it was 350. I was going to call the water company but it slowly cleared up over the next couple of weeks. It has been back to normal now for some time. The reason I mention this is to show that contamination can come from conditions in the distribution piping.
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Good idea Jim. I never thought to check whether my water was treated with chlorine or chloramines. After finding my water quality report for 2010 (latest they have available) I found out they use chlorine.
 
malulu

malulu

NJRC Member
i have a whole house water softener ... also water filters for the drinking water to the sink and to the frig.

long time back, i tried to compare with getting the Kati-Ani inlet from water source directly vs after softener, and it seems the softener add more stuff (TDS) to it afterward, hence i now by pass it for my kati-ani unit.
 
Tazmaniancowboy

Tazmaniancowboy

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
malulu said:
haha... like i would know ??!
i just paid, and never questioned...
:p

i will check later... why, do you know someone in the high place and can push the right kind of buttons?
:encouragement:
Click to expand...
I do believe you have New Jersey American water. Here are 2 reports for 2010. I do not know how to translate them and I do not have time right now. I was talking to someone who doesn't work for them , but does have contact with them. Apparently their system is so big(from what I understand) that the chlorine loses it's effectiveness before it reaches outer limits of their system. This could be part of your issue. The other issue will soon become another probably even bigger problem. They ARE going to start using hydro chloromines as of Jan 1 2012. The chloromines will not dissipate as fast as chlorine. ALL residents that use NJ American water in the somerset area will be receiving a letter about this and it actually mentions fish and aquarium use. I am trying to get my hands on this letter.

I am not trying to scare anybody, but my info is from a reliable source and does sound scary to me. I am no expert nor have I had to deal with this, but I do think it is something very important that everybody in the area needs to plan for.
 
steamman

steamman

malulu said:
i have a whole house water softener ... also water filters for the drinking water to the sink and to the frig.

long time back, i tried to compare with getting the Kati-Ani inlet from water source directly vs after softener, and it seems the softener add more stuff (TDS) to it afterward, hence i now by pass it for my kati-ani unit.
Click to expand...
I do believe you need to start from the source (the water company). Having your water tested to see what it is you need to remove would be a good next step. Then go from there. There are different types of whole house water treatments. Salt based water softeners remove mostly calcium and magnesium from your water. Removing those elements is good for your pipes, hot water heater, appliances, and more.
 
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