Mr. Saltwater Tank TV Friday Am Quick Tip #104: Beer + DI Resin = Clean Tank
Saltwater tanks that use RODI water very likely look great. And when it comes time to replace your deionization (DI) resin, here’s how to get the most bang for your buck by using your favorite long neck bottle of beer.Saltwater tanks that use RODI water very likely look great. And when it comes time to replace your deionization (DI) resin, here’s how to get the most bang for your buck by using your favorite long neck bottle of beer.
Browse the Store! Questions?
Hey Mark,
What if I don’t drink?
Friggen awesome! Thanks!
-Mike
Kenn…any bottled drink will likely work. I actually used a root beer bottle in this video!
Great tip…I’ll change my DI resin this weekend. Is it better if the bottle is full or empty? Oh, why am I asking….full bottles don’t survive long! 🙂
That’s a bloody genius idea! No more messy tamping down for me! I’m off to the shops with a valid excuse … need a few in case of breakages … there could be regular breakages … 😀
What the heck is root beer? Sounds terrible!
lol @ Bob
I live in a rural area and my well water is high in C02, and thus i was replacing DI resin every 20 gallons or so. Then I got smart, and instead of throwing away the resin, I put it in a tupperware bin and let it air dry. it will turn from brown back to green, and is ready to be put back into the canister. TDS readings are back to 0ppm as well!
This works for me, as my tap water is (pretty much) clean, just high in C02. My TDS coming in is only ~30ppm.
i just knew there was a benifit to drinking lol
woah, I had no idea you should pack it, I’ve always just poured it in and went on my merry way! the more you know…;)
Love how you call them long necks 🙂
Ok, so I have been a enthusiast for a long time mark and have a few question that I should have brought to someone more knowledgable a long time ago…. First, my bio load is low, 3 wrasse, multiple types of snails and crabs, but I can’t get my phos levels to drop! Display tank is 100g and the sump is a 120g. I have like 200 lbs of rock, oversized in sump skimmer, use Rodi water and bio pellets. Cheeto won’t grow but I get green hair alge all the time and its a constant battle. I’m running low on space here but I have question about upgrading my lights and power heads to ecotech if u have time. Also I’m not seeing the growth on my coral that I’d like to… I just have a bunch of diff questions if like to bounce off you if you have a few….
Awesome tip!! Changed mine about 2 months ago and had a lot of leftover resin. Is it okay to add the resin after I pack it down?
I use a old Glade freshener can to tap it down. Make sure clean the can good.
@brent: you actually take your old resin and “air” dry it and it turns back to a blue? i have never heard of that. i have the same problem i make 40-50 gal of ro and my numbers start going up around 35 gal’s or so but the new resin will be mostly brown after one use. do you keep it stirred that only makes sence but i have NEVER heard of drying it out and re-using it! how do you “clean” it after use? i would like to know it will save me $$ thanks
Tom…I always have left over resin too. Once I can’t pack the resin down anymore, I add more resin, then repack. After I can’t pack anymore resin in, I put the cap on the bottom of the cartridge and call it good.
When the tds starts rising, is it the di resin that gets changed first?
Mark,
What do you have on top of your tank to keep fish from jumping out? I a sheet of eggcrate on top of mine but my midas blenny can still manage to jump straight out. Any suggestions?
Renard, I have a screen top on the top of my tank. Here’s where you can get one just like it
Hi Mark,
I finally got around to building a screen top for my tank like you recommended but I have one question. My light fixture has 4 legs which mounts on top of my rimless tank so I decided to go with a flush mounted screen using the rubber bumpers you mentioned in your video. Have you had any issues with these falling off and into your tank? I’ve had 3 fall off already. It seems that if the water line gets close to the rubber, the adhesive starts to weaken. Just wondering if you ran into this problem and if so, what did you do to solve it?