# Whats better, distilled water or spring water



## 125 (Jun 22, 2011)

I have been wanting to use distilled water in my terrarium so i dont leave mineral build up but i heard spring water is better though. So which one should i use?


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## ZookeeperDoug (Jun 5, 2011)

Mist with distilled. Spring water contains minerals which will leave mineral buildup.


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## VenomR00 (Apr 23, 2010)

Only use spring/RO with tadpoles. Distilled is best for glass tanks. I have acrylic so I don't honestly care about my mineral buildup on the sides.


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## 125 (Jun 22, 2011)

Ok, I was thinking mist with distilled and for the waterfall use spring water, is that ok?


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## MrFusion (Jul 18, 2011)

Spring water is going to leave deposits in your tank. Especially if you have a water feature. Let me tell you, getting mineral deposits off is a nightmare. It also looks horrible. Like everyone else said, R/O water or distilled. You can get R/O water outside of most grocery stores at those automated dispensers. According to my TDS pen, it's always better than the R/O water they sell at pet stores. Go figure!


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

VenomR00 said:


> Only use spring/RO with tadpoles. Distilled is best for glass tanks. I have acrylic so I don't honestly care about my mineral buildup on the sides.


 
RO and distilled are equivalent.. see http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/beginner-discussion/70300-water-discussion.html


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## charlesbrooks (Oct 18, 2009)

You can save money in the long run by investing in a R.O. filter.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Ed is right RO and Distilled are equivalent....

Watch out tho cause some of these jugs say distilled when they aren't really distilled water. I always call the company to make sure but some of the bottlers are idiots and just say on the jug that it is filtered using carbon filtration lol.

Distilled water is filtered water that is vaporised and the steam/water droplets are collected. It is pretty much pure water. The minerals are to heavy to be carries by the steam.
Most distilled water is actually ran through RO filters then distilled.
I use Walmarts or Kroger's brand.
Distilling works like a moonshine stil lol.....the ingredients are boiled and the steam is collected wich is pure alcohol. 

I wouldn't use spring water at all when it comes to frogging


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## ConFuCiuZ (Jul 13, 2011)

I Just use Poland Spring... The other day i bought "10" 1 gallon jugs for 10 bucks. I havent seen any spots on my tank from misting .


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## JimO (May 14, 2010)

Some brands are also labeled "Purified Water" which could simply mean that the water was passed through activated carbon, which won't remove inorganic minerals.

I do use spring water to make my tadpole tea. For terrestrial species that deposit their tadpoles in streams or pools of water, I assume that there is some calcium and other minerals in that water. Obligates, however, are reared essentially in rainwater that is flushed regularly, so that is another good reason to mist with distilled/RO water.


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## charlesbrooks (Oct 18, 2009)

DragonSpirit1185 said:


> Ed is right RO and Distilled are equivalent....
> 
> Watch out tho cause some of these jugs say distilled when they aren't really distilled water. I always call the company to make sure but some of the bottlers are idiots and just say on the jug that it is filtered using carbon filtration lol.
> 
> ...


I agree with you and Ed somewhat. It depends on what process the water co. is using to distilled their water. using copper piping for distilling isn't great at all, especially for the reef hobbyists. Also I remember a news show not to long ago, doing an under cover story about bottle water companies. How some company was selling plain tap water.
That's how come I prefer to use a, R.O. filter unit. I know how my water is being filtered. Besides that, it's cheaper in the long run. (pennies on the gallon)


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## WendySHall (Aug 31, 2010)

ConFuCiuZ said:


> I Just use Poland Spring... The other day i bought "10" 1 gallon jugs for 10 bucks. I havent seen any spots on my tank from misting .


The mineral deposits will build up over time on the glass. 

I use distilled for misting, spring for tads.


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## Chunky (Aug 1, 2011)

I'd used distilled. I used to mist/etc with tap water (where I live, my tap is spring water, nothing else in it) and after a few weeks I got a crusty coat on the glass. It's very hard to clean. As for the safety of your frogs, both are fine. There are many debates on using Tap, RO, and distilled.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

ConFuCiuZ said:


> I Just use Poland Spring... The other day i bought "10" 1 gallon jugs for 10 bucks. I havent seen any spots on my tank from misting .


Look down to controversies Poland Spring - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 


Ed


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

JimO said:


> Some brands are also labeled "Purified Water" which could simply mean that the water was passed through activated carbon, which won't remove inorganic minerals.
> 
> I do use spring water to make my tadpole tea. For terrestrial species that deposit their tadpoles in streams or pools of water, I assume that there is some calcium and other minerals in that water. Obligates, however, are reared essentially in rainwater that is flushed regularly, so that is another good reason to mist with distilled/RO water.


Technically there isn't any requirement that "spring" water come from a spring. It can be from a municple water source and bottled straight from the tap (this is done with New York City water as an example). 

Ed


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

charlesbrooks said:


> I agree with you and Ed somewhat. It depends on what process the water co. is using to distilled their water. using copper piping for distilling isn't great at all, especially for the reef hobbyists. Also I remember a news show not to long ago, doing an under cover story about bottle water companies. How some company was selling plain tap water.
> That's how come I prefer to use a, R.O. filter unit. I know how my water is being filtered. Besides that, it's cheaper in the long run. (pennies on the gallon)


 
How many commercially available water distillation units are still using copper? From when I when I worked in pharmaceutical and manufacturing labs in the late 1980s, virtually all were done with non-reactive materials. 

I do prefer using an RO as I can then modify it as I want. 

Ed


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## WendySHall (Aug 31, 2010)

"The suit also states, hydro-geologists hired by Nestlé found that another current source for Poland Spring water near the original site stands over a former trash and refuse dump, and below an illegal disposal site where human sewage was sprayed as fertilizer for many years."

Oh, yuck! And to think of how many people have DRANK it!


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## Feelin Froggy (May 12, 2011)

Thats really disgusting!! I dont really remember drinking that stuff. Thank god.


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## Feelin Froggy (May 12, 2011)

Quick question... we have natural springs all over around here... how would using that work out? I can literally walk to a natural spring. People dont generally go to that one as you cant reach it by boat. There are several others that you can reach by boat that tons of people go to.

They are crystal clear and water temps are always in the 70's... any thoughts?


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Feelin Froggy said:


> Quick question... we have natural springs all over around here... how would using that work out? I can literally walk to a natural spring. People dont generally go to that one as you cant reach it by boat. There are several others that you can reach by boat that tons of people go to.
> 
> They are crystal clear and water temps are always in the 70's... any thoughts?


Like Ed said in the other thread you posted there could be pathogens in the water or herbacides and other chemicals that can cause problems.
I wouldn't chance it at all.


@Wendy.....wow that is gross....


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## PBM3000 (Oct 4, 2019)

If I were to use R.O. exclusively, from my local pet store, should I get pure or remineralised?


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## MasterOogway (Mar 22, 2011)

PBM3000 said:


> If I were to use R.O. exclusively, from my local pet store, should I get pure or remineralised?


We need to talk about this thread rez'ng thing you've got going on here (8 year old thread!, but kudos at least for using the search feature).  It entirely depends on what you're using water for; misting water you should use pure RO. For tads and water that frogs have access to you should use a reconstituted water not pure RO.


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## PBM3000 (Oct 4, 2019)

Roger that. Thanks.


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