LESS ALGAE AND BETTER PLANT GROWTH WITH REVERSE OSMOSIS WATER? 

That's not the real reason why people use RO water. Some countries or regions have really hard water, 25ª dGh plus, some can be even higher than 35º dGh and some plants above 15º dGH can start to struggle. Then we have regions with high levels of silicates, lots of chloramines and chloride because of high temperatures, they use it to kill bacterias. Netherlands has really good water and in general is medium hard 8-10 dGh, perfect for growing all aquatic plants. Just be careful when you use limestone rocks, they will increase the hardness and close to 15º dGH things start to get a bit problematic. Luckily for me in the north of Portugal the water is very soft, sometimes even too much and close to RO water; but it's better soft water than really hard (+15dGH).

It is not good for "better plant growth and less algae". It gives the aquarist more control over ALL the parameters of the water chemistry. If you use tap water, you rely on your water supply company to keep their parameters steady. In Greece for example, suddenly our water supply company decided to increase the silicates. No wonder all aquarists in Athens suddenly had to struggle and fight with UV filters the brown slime algae that appeared at the same time everywhere...

Nice. Can't wait to see the results.

Exvellent experimental design and control, great video!!!

Beautiful! Expecting for the progress.

I have watched all of your videos and enjoy your content. Keep up the good work

Great video love the side by side comparison

Great plant growth experiment 👍🏻

very importan and very truthfull THNX

Awesome!! Love it!!!!!

Thank you, it will be very interesting. Nice cat! All the best. Thierry.

Nice! I recommended this experiment when you first started your experimental videos. I'm very excited to see what happens! Keep up the great content!

Very interesting experiment! I have access to both tap water and RO, so this helps me, as I will use whichever one grows plants best. Also BTW my tap water where I live is extremely similar to yours, so that makes the experiment even more relevant. Loved the video by the way!

loved the cat antics

Hey MJ! I started using RO like 2 weeks ago and I definitely see my tank becoming way better than before. My buces suffer less from algae and grow faster than before, when I used Dutch tapwater (Brabantwater). As a person that prefers control, I really dig the RO/remineralizing method to even control the water parameters this way.

What a pro, keep it up👏🏽

This is a pretty interesting experiment. I love the small attention to details you have used while making the video. I'm sure you're gonna love the results from RO water. Tap water is not only about GH/KH but also certain heavy metals and organics which we can't measure with our basic kits. I used to have kh/gh of 4dkh and 7dGH respectively. I hope it is 'soft' on papers. But I had issues always with this water. Needless to say, there are others stuff in the water which were causing algae. Softness is one part, but we need to consider the purity of the water, the piplines through which it came in, the place where it was stored, whether it brings in some algae spores after treatment. Loads of factors which we have no control over. After switching to RO, most of the problems disappeared in 2-3 days. I definitely recommend using RO for planted tanks. I see a distinct shine on the leaves as well. Most of the times we keep doing the right practices but forget that water could also be a reason. Invisible stuff in there which can't be measured. More water changes actually can do more harm in those cases. So definitely RO is the best for plant health...albeit mineralised with KH/GH products. Else lack of magnesium and calcium can cause the leaves to curl and become odd shaped

Perhaps your RO setup will show better results because you are able to control the hardness of the water and will be better for plants. Good idea for an experiment nice to see an update in the future.

My hardness is double digits. Been using RO since I went high tech. Found this video very interesting.

So excited about this experiment. I also have the same osmosis system from ARKA. I`ve been using it on and off, depending on how lazy i am. Meaning that if i`m in a rush, i use KH Minus from Masterline for a lower KH2. Watching!

Sar i love your aquarium plantation

I want to build one of these now.

I was using tap water in my tank and i had so many water parameter fluctuations... Started using R/O water and adding minerals myself. And man it has been so much better

In Almere we have SiO2 with a unmeasureable high number (using JBL testkit) it causes some brown residue on the stones and lilly pipes. That's why I'm using RO atm too lazy to clean the pipes 😊

Tip to determine whether you want to put a rock into your tank or not: drip some vinegar onto the rock. If it fizzles and sizzles you do NOT put it into the tank. If it does not, it's fine. If the rock sizzles when you pour vinegar on it, it will for certain increase the hardness of your water and it will continue doing that until there's no rock anymore. This tip has saved me from a lot of trouble. But pay close attention when you do so: sometimes the fizzle is tiny and you can hardly see it. But every reaction is a big no-no and either return the stones or throw them out.

Good luck ✌️

I think you can grow nice plants in hard water if you use CO2 injection, as it actually lowers pH. I've been having so much trouble with my plants as my water is even harder than yours (gH 13-15, kH 11-13, pH 8.0) and I don't use any co2. However, I've recently started using RO water and my plants have never looked better! I saw results from first week already.

My tap water is identical and my plants do very well

you are dutch dear. It is only now that I knew you are indeed Dutch. I am Dutch too though I was not born in the Netherlands.

That is very hard water! (compared to us Victorians in Australia!) We have a KH of 2 with a GH of 2 and a pH of 7.2-7.4

My tapwater has Gh 23. That means I have to use RO water to keep most plants(and fish). Only Crypts, Vallisneria and Anubias seem to do good.

interessant 👍

In Poland my tapwater is: pH 8, KH 15, GH over 20, so as I aim for Amazon fish and plants, using RO is essential. Of course I also use mineralizer.

I’m really curious to see how this experiment goes. I have pretty hard water here in Arizona and my plants grow great and look very healthy! I will say though certain species like the rotala macrandra melted away immediately in my tank with high light and co2. I just stick with what I know I can grow well and every once in a while I’ll pick up something new to try out

Hi! I recently bought the same Oase filter, where can I find those lilypipes and clear hoses ? I think is 10 mm width, I've only found 12-16 and 16-22 mm. You’re doing a great job with this videos!

Good video, I have the same doubt with ro water but I guess it just help to take more control of the aquarium parameters and nothing will change with the plants, I have a suggestion to you for an experiment and its something with co2 , we all know that the most important thing with co2 is to disolved completely in the water, so I always wonder why dont we all put the difuser below the inlet of the canister, because in that way the co2 will travel all the way in the filter for more time, but I asked this question to many people and the answer always is different, some say it could broke the filter, others it could damage the bacteria and etc, but I keep wondering why dont we all do it? Is it thuth all the different issues that the people are saying ?

The Netherlands everywhere has extremely hard water - quite the opposite of where I am living now: for some reason my area of Dublin has the softest water of the country. Chockfull of chlorines - so much you can smell the clorine when opening the tap and you can't drink a glass of water directly out of the tap without getting a belly ache after. The water is so extremely soft here that I have to use nearly a full pot of JBL's Aquadur to get a 140 liter tank within acceptable kH range, while the gH range funnily enough is in acceptable ranges. Low, but acceptable. I just need a LOT of stuff to throw in the water to get it right. Once I've moved back to the Netherlands this will require some adjustments and getting used to as it's nearly the opposite of this here. Have you ever tried using a UV sterilizer to get rid of algae and evil bacteria? I do and it does work really well - the trick is to let the water flow through it as slow as possible at sth like 300-600 liters per hour. Get a tiny pump, connect it to the UV unit and you will be fine.

My tap water has excessive amounts of silicates, diatom algae was blooming every water change. Spent far to much time fighting algae. Bought a simple RO unit and a 120 litre barrel. Best thing I've done for my tank. tap water is around 340 TDS.. RO plant turns it in 0 TDS. I add additives to balance my tank at about 3-4 Gh and Kh. I use about 80 litres a week tops. The waste water for RO is horrendous amount though. I make sure my RO waste line is out in the garden.

What kind of nutrient capsules do you use?

Interesting experimentation! I was just wondering how do you keep your fishes needing an acidic and soft water whereas your using tap water hard and basic water). They can tolerate this water or you're using something to make it more acceptable. Thanks

Hey great video. What is the tds of your tap water?

That eriocaulon cinereum is such a pain to plant. I had to order a second pot, because two of the three clumps died. I think it's because I damaged them trying to plant them. I felt a little pop with the tweezers. So, I got more.

One thing about kerala is i can pump the water straight out of my well and it always stays within the same parameters

can I use distilled water?

Tap water team 👍

What glass intake and outlet are you using with that filter?

Hi Mj what would you recommend as a good midrange light. That is not to crazy strong but also good to grow most plants? For a 60p tank with co2

Since your tap water is sp high in gh and kh there will surely be a difference

I have these oase filters, and had the same problem! But figured out I needed to prime it. Removed the blue cap for the heater and topped with water till all the air was gone. Then it fired right up, did you try to prime it this way?

What is the tds of your tap water?

Pero has añadido sales a los dos tanques? La idea no era que uno fuera de agua pura? No entendí ese paso si los pones igual de tds. Un saludo!

For your larger aquariums do you use RO and then remineralize?

Dragon rocks geven wel wat calcium vrij want als je 100 to gebruikt stijgt je GH als je deze stenen gebruikt

Nice video 😊. what about acid baffer is there wrong with that. When we r using CO2 injection the ph will be up and down. Plz tell us about acid baffer.

Did you get the TDS reading from your tap water? Mine is 400+ (South East UK), we are only slightly separated by the channel. I wonder how different our water is? The UK does typically have copper pipes and cholrinates the water. RO water isnt necessary but it does make the hobby easier (and more expensive!). It also makes the tank look nicer, no more evaporation/water marks :)

Hey MJ, do you use fertilizer in the no filter setup (yellow shrimp one)? I'm thinking of doing one myself.

How is your plant grow so good as u don't use cO2 in the yellow shrimp tank ?

MJ, quick question. I have been using ADA soil with RO water and it’s honestly a hassle to do all the time. Looking at our water parameters they are about the same with GH 8 KH4 and PH8. So using tap water will removing the buffering from ADA soil quickly. Switching to tap, does neo Soil have that same effect? Looking to have a soil with a more balanced KH then it always reading 0 with ADA soil.

Hi MJ what kind of tubing and lily pipes did you use for the filter? I have always used a HOB filter and was thinking of switching to that Oase that you shown in the video.

What is the TDS range of your stablished tanks?

Hi MJ, i just start on this hobby and found out that my tap water pH is 7.6 reading. Even mineral water same result. idk if the landlord will allow me to install RO system Do you have any idea how can i reduce my tap water reading? Or do i need to use water conditioner? Thanks in advance

Do you use a pre-filter sponge for your shrimp tanks

I’m considering RO water because my GH is 19+ and killed off most of my cherry shrimp smh

Can I use purified water from water refilling station for my aquarium?

Weer een goeie! Benieuwd naar het resultaat ☺️ mijn water is even hard dacht ik. Klopt het dat je dan meer co2 moet toevoegen voor hetzelfde resultaat?

Can we crush normal aqual soil and make powder of it ? or we need to buy powder soil seperate? btw my tap water ph is also around 7.8..like your most tanks?? and they doing pretty well ,without RO!! i dont wanna use RO.. maybe use peat moss?

In my experience, ro water does cause less algae than tap water

nitrates are high in my tap sadly.

Interesting, but there is one thing I do not really understand: Why use RO water if you will mineralize it yourself? Does the benefit come from your ability to mineralize it to the parameters you want, rather than having it below 10? Please note that I am an absolute noob at this and never even dipped my hands in this RO stuff, but your answer will determine if I finally understand it. Why 120 TDS for the RO water? What is the TDS for the tap water? Thanks!

What is RO water?

What is the TDS of the other tank ?! I have hard water my tap water TDS is 120 already and with fertilizers and everything it jumps to 230-250 is that okay for the plants?!

Interesting Mark as usual. Your water is nowhere near as hard as parts of the south of England and we have some Chlorine as well in the water supply and sometimes far more Nitrate than is compatible with algae control. I find that I have to soften my water to some degree - I use a water filter for top-ups and use the water from my condensing tumble drier when doing water changes to try to keep the total KH of my main tank to about 8 (my tap water is above 14) but sometimes I wonder why I just don't grow plants like Swords, many Crypts, and Vallisneria which thrive in hard water. Obviously, and you pointed out RO has to be partially re-minerialised, pure RO water is potentially deadly to fish especially if CO2 injection is in use and also I find rain water, which is of course soft, if collected from my roof, is full of Phosphate, thanks I think to pigeon poop. Ref. easy, medium and advanced plants, in my experience given good water parameters the difference boils down to light intensity, many advanced need in my experience 1 watt of LED per litre in tanks of medium depth (between 45 and 60 cm in height) and that means the CO2 needs to be turned up to maintain 20-30 ppm. Hope that contributes usefully.

what was the tank size??

Hi! May i know is it fine to remineralize just using gh+ only for planted tank instead of gh/kh+ with caridina shrimps?

Can I leave my DIY CO2 overnight? I have a fan blowing on the surface of the water, is it enough to counteract with my DIY CO2 at night?

Dunno why my plants gettin yellow... Light 8hrs aday, co2, fertilizer,soil,i did all the things that planted aquarium need,but plants gettin yellow and black spot..

Really cool your experimentation, congrats! You could bit better explain how RO works. Do you plan water change as well? Don't you think what is important could be the GH/KH ratio? You give your tap water one, great. With RO water, why this salt? You do it until 120ms but that which GH/KH? You know that with plant fertilizer addition you move the conductivity not the same way GH/KH actually change..? Curious to see output ;-)

Do you think you could do a video on the nitrogen cycle?

I have to be the one to say something!😅 I enjoy your videos so don't take this as a dig! But wouldn't using tap water to plant the plants by getting the soil wet technically ruin the experiment 🤔 You are basing the result of plant growth from the water used but added tap straight to the root system of the RO plants. (77) TDS is pretty high already. which could technically give you a different outcome. Either way im just making your job difficult. Great video non the less and I'm sure it'll be fine. Looking forward to see the updates.

Am I blind or is the reverse osmosis link not in the description

Somehow my reactions disappear :/ Is there a way to get in contact with you? I want to ask for some feedback on an aquascape and permission to make a post on a social site mentioning your channel.

What’s the point of the video if you’re gonna use a buffering soil? Ph will end up being the same

Crap, was hoping you wouldn't add co2. Oh well

Wait...wait...wait... 😱 Why indonesian language are in the TC cup "gratis / for free"

Middag mj, virstan jy my moeder taal. What i said is in my mother tongue and want to know if you understand mj

You call that hard water..? I got gh 20 and 17 kh 😰

Wow. That monte carlo with GRATIS word. It's Indonesian language 😭

Lol....spent over a fortune at that place over a cpl month but never got a freeby from aq.sabi....

Your tap water quality is equal to the RO water bcz you live in a European country

You should stop promoting that neo diffuser. It's an awful product. The bubble size is nice but it's made by a company that doesn't understand co2. There is no nipped at the top to seal the tubing to the diffuser. I like to buy back ups of things when I get them so I got 4 smalls at once. Every single one leaked from the connection point. I've tried glue, silicone, tape around the diffuser to thicken it, and acrylic and the ONLY thing that stopped the leaking was acrylic. Even in their promotional videos and pictures it shows them all leaking from the connection point. And they refuse to accept responsibility for their defective product so good luck getting a refund. What they are doing is technically criminal.

Hi, my tap water is gh 25, kh5-8 , tds 700-950 (this is variable). I have a RO system too, but by simplicity i prefer use tap water and RO only for evaporation. My tanks and plants are healthy and not algae (you can see my tanks in my channel). But i only keep easy fish like albonubes and barbs and avoid some species of plants like difficult toninas, ludwigia inclinata and others few species. I have planted aquariums since 1998 with tap water and i think there is a lot of fears and mithology about this topic, sadly. In my experience is much more important good flow, co2 and nutrition than hardness. Some fertilization tips are usefull with hard water, for example more potassium 🤫 (i use 3:1 K:NO3). With this way the hobby is more simple and happy to me. Regards!