Water used within the aquariums is generally tap water, which contains a lot of undesirable ingredients such as nitrates, phosphates, silicates and even chlorine and copper. Nitrates, phosphates and silicates are directly responsible for the promotion of algal growth in the reef tanks. Hence it becomes very important to reduce their concentration in the reef tank. The method used by most aquarium hobbyists for purifying the water in their reef tank and making it resemble seawater is to use a combination of reverse osmosis along with another method known as deionization.
In the deionization process, water is purified from all ions present in it, except the ions that are naturally present in water, such as the hydronium and the hydroxyl ions. All other radicals are removed. The reverse osmosis ensures that the solute molecules in the water are retained back, and the deionization extracts all the impurity ions. Hence, when the two methods are used in conjunction, all the solid impurities within the water are eliminated and the water becomes pure to the greatest extent. In addition, the water could be made to pass through a carbon filter, which will further remove all the organic impurities from the water.
One of the biggest advantages of the reverse osmosis and deionization conjunction is that it brings water to such a pure level that desired levels of nutrients can then be added. Water is made totally neutral when the two filtering processes are carried out, so that the pH can then be adjusted to the desired level by adding the requisite amount of minerals.
Why does reverse osmosis become necessary in a reef aquarium? The organisms of the reef aquarium, including the corals, can exude a lot of ions and solid ejaculates into the water environment during their various metabolic processes. These impurities actually move out from their bodies to the water through osmosis, because their skins are akin to semipermeable membranes. Due to the addition of so many ions and compounds into the water, the pH of the water shows an appreciable increase. This could be actually harmful for the life of the organisms within the reef tank. Most of these impurities contain carbon, which can affect the pH value of the tank environment vastly. Hence, it becomes necessary to bring the pH to an optimum level. Reverse osmosis and deionization in combination can perform this task to a very good level.
At the same time, reverse osmosis and deionization are popular among professional reef keepers and hobby reef keepers alike because of the low cost of the process. Using a reverse osmosis and deionization unit in a fair sized tank will cost about 18 to 20 cents per gallon, which is far better than any other filtration system for reef tanks.
However, there is some criticism against the reverse osmosis and deionization systems, such as they remove vital trace elements like calcium, magnesium and potassium from the water. These minerals are essential for the well-being of the reef tank inhabitants. Another criticism is that these units require the most maintenance. Yet, they do remain the most popular choice for aquarium owners due to the cheap cost of the mechanism and the quick, assured results they show in cleaning the water ecosystem well enough for the inhabitants to thrive.
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