RO Water Storage Reservoir

[SquareHead]

Hi Folks,

I have an RO System in my house. I have made a separate reservoir to use for my indoor grow tent. My question is whether I should add any type of air pump to the reservoir to keep the water oxygenated. I am thinking of an aquarium pump. The reservoir is a 30 gallon plastic garbage can with a lid.

Will it be beneficial to the plants to oxygenate the water, or doesn't it matter?

What about a circulating pump to keep the water moving?

Or am I thinking too much!?!

Thanks in advance for you help...

 

[DRM Ranch]

The grow I help at uses a slightly larger reservoir; the pump that draws water from the reservoir is on a switch allowing it to be turned on or off; the hose running from this pump is used to extract water from the reservoir and to circulate the reservoir water when not used otherwise.

Need water, flip off the pump, pull the hose, flip on the switch, fill your buckets, flip off the switch, return hose to reservoir, flip on the switch....

An air stone might accomplish the same thing without much need for lots of on and off switching (especially if the reservoir is gravity draining).

Both an air stone and/or a water pump that recirculates the water will effectively keep O2 saturation in the reservoir as high as the water temperature allows. You aren't going to add more with either method, how much O2 saturation is possible is more a function of water temperature than anything else.

DRM Ranch

 

[iwltfum]

I have never put an air stone in my RO storage. One time I had someone watching my grow and they put one in there and I spent the next 3 months fighting growth in that tank. It's better to just keep it clean and bubble your feed water for an hour after you mix the nutrients. I don't even bubble my water when I feed my coco plants, but I always use h2o2.

EDIT: If it's just h2o (what your RO machine should be putting out) then it shouldn't even need to be circulated.

 

[DRM Ranch]

As for the question about a bubbler being good for the plants; not really in the RO storage tank.

You should be storing your nutrient mixture prior to use anyway which will oxygenate the mix as well as can be done by any method.

As for growth of anything in the tank, nothing grows in just water, however I doubt your tank is air tight so depending on use and how often you clean the system something will eventually take hold in there.

DRM Ranch

 

[zakey]

I have a air stone in my ro tank and don't have any growth.

 

[iwltfum]

I have a air stone in my ro tank and don't have any growth.

Over about 6 months to a year, it'll start to slime up if you don't clean it every once in a while. Sometimes you can't see the growth either. Feel the sides of the tank near the bottom and any water lines sitting in the tank. If they are slimy, it means there is growth and it will start to affect your pH and ppm after a while.