Natural sea water?

[letoan]

Any successful reefers here using natural sea water for their reef tank? I'm interested in doing it, just see if I can get some inputs before heading to the beach and steal water from mother nature.

 

[bearwithfish]

FWIW from all i have read its not a good idea.. with natural water from the coast you can not control for contamination or pests etc.. not to mention that if you are keeping a tropical (warm) tank all the micro life in the cold waters around the north east will likely not adapt to the temp change generating more waist in the water..

i hope that makes sense..

 

[mchartier]

You would need to find a clean collection site as mentioned above. I have paid attention to someone on another forum from Long Island that uses NSW on a NPS tank so not sure about the warm micro life issue. He has been doing this for 2 years now and the tank is doing well. The key is finding that collection site.

 

[jazzsam]

So if you can get tropical water shipped to you then go for it!

 

[letoan]

I'm setting up a small test system using nsw to see if it's going to work.

Nsw collected will run through filters, uv, carbon, bio pellets, and gfo.

 

[nicks387]

If I am not mistaken, I believe Dave (Mcreeferson) used NSW to fill his 560 + gallon reef tank and he lived somewhere on the North shore. I forget where they collected the water but I am sure if you do a search on his tank build you will find it. Very nice reef tank that started up using NSW local. I think he used regular old salt mix after the first fill but still, he had no issues with the initial 560 gallons he used from the area.

 

[beckbrass]

I believe the McReeferson tank is no more though, the big one that is.

 

[pvh]

Contact Reefermedic, Don. I remember his name now. He told me he used NSW before.

 

[letoan]

If I am not mistaken, I believe Dave (Mcreeferson) used NSW to fill his 560 + gallon reef tank and he lived somewhere on the North shore. I forget where they collected the water but I am sure if you do a search on his tank build you will find it. Very nice reef tank that started up using NSW local. I think he used regular old salt mix after the first fill but still, he had no issues with the initial 560 gallons he used from the area.

Thanks Nick, I'll read on his 560 later today..

 

[Cjtabares]

I know saltyolddog used NSW for some time. Im not sure for how long or if he still dose but I know he said he liked it.

 

[ava420]

I've used it before to fill my tank when I upgraded and once for a water change.. Didn't see any Ill effects. The fish loved it they devoured all the little micro stuff as I was dumping it in... I wouldn't take the water from any kinda mouth to a river or the like the run-off is very bad. Most I've read collect it from a boat out in the ocean...

 

[Skeeter7424]

i've taken a sample from the NEAQ to check on it. I know a couple of the guys who work behind the scenes there use the water that they filter on their own tanks. The thing you will find up this far north is our water is low on calc and mag. Other than that the guys that use it haven't said anything about ill effects. I had planned on taking 20 gallons from them and using it during a WC, but I'm too lazy to drive that far for water!

 

[delta]

If I am not mistaken, I believe Dave (Mcreeferson) used NSW to fill his 560 + gallon reef tank and he lived somewhere on the North shore. I forget where they collected the water but I am sure if you do a search on his tank build you will find it. Very nice reef tank that started up using NSW local. I think he used regular old salt mix after the first fill but still, he had no issues with the initial 560 gallons he used from the area.

The thread is called Gina's worste nightmare in DIY http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums...worst-nightmare...&highlight=Gina's+nightmare

I know Marc from Marco rocks collects NSW and has for many years without issue. there are guidleines to follow especially with rains fall and tides. A search should show a bunch of threads.
for the most part people usually give it up as it is just a ton of work or they ended up with issues from die off if things that cannot survive in our tanks.

But there are enough threads you can probably find one based around your area, so it could point you in the right direction as far as collection site.

Start here with the useful threads links kn NSW http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums/showthread.php?6090-nsw

 

[Aquaman_68]

i used it 8 plus years ago...first time it was great...huge polyp extension....after that first time I noticed the polyp extension was not as wide as the first time & less noticable the time after....Then I experienced a downgrade to my system. caps with polyp shutdown etc....Sent my water out to a brine lab & spent close to 2 grand to do so.... U know what I found out? The organic level in my system was 3.8 PPM where optimum levels in an sps closed system should b 1.8 PPM max...turns out...the organic level that elevated in my system was due to micro organism die off from the use of nsw...The water local has cold water micro organisms...They can not live in our warmer systems...hence the organic level increase from their die off!!! If ur going to use GFO or any other means of stripping the water where have u saved? Just not worth it.....If we lived in a warmer climate then fine...but our local water hosts cold water species most of the year until the gulf strem kicks it up in august!!! but that is short lived!! & u have to get it just right between run off etc.....threadin the needle....


bad idea all the way around!!!! u can listen or u can learn......ur choice!!

 

[thomb]

I've got a bilge pump setup to collect water on incoming high tide at Hampton harbor - offseason, no boat traffic/boats tied to the docks. One day there was a tanker truck from boston aquarium doing the exact same thing - pretty cool to see.

If there are boats, I'll swim out into the surf with buckets - again incoming tide, after days of offshore wind. I'm a surfer so I'm equipped to do such things - and don't mind it either.
+1 on what folks above have said regarding quality of the water, experiences and labor involved.