Rainwater FTW!!

[deeishealthy]

Posted this on FB to a friend after discovering the PH in my rainwater is perfect: Sesame Park needs to have a humidity between 60-90. The monsoon keeps it there automatically, so I don't have to hand mist. I have it connected to my daytime lights timer. I run distilled water through it, so the minerals do not stain the glass (think shower doors). However, to purchase distilled water it is costing me $2 a day. And the containers piling up is really distressing me from an ecological standpoint. So I went hunting for an alternative when it hit me... I have free distilled water falling from the sky ALL THE TIME. I Googled it, and sure enough rainwater is AWESOME in a vivarium as long as it's not acid rain. So I wanted to test the ph to see how acidic the rainwater is. Good news, it's perfect, and now I can use it for the mister!! AND even better, I am picking up a countertop distiller from someone on freecycle (so free) this afternoon. This means I am saving $2 a day rain or shine. Considering how long frogs live (up to 20 years) that's a savings maybe up to $16,000.

But then the best part happened... I went to pick up the distiller and it turned out not to be a $200 countertop one, but an $800 full size one!!! I have to replace a plug on it, but I have already budgeted $200 for a distiller so am way ahead of the game. WOOT!!!!

[deranged chipmunk]

nice find although i still think you should use de-chlor tap in your mister. unless your water is super hard.

[UncleChester]

Great find! A distiller will suck some power though, but definitely cheaper than store bought. Mine is also a full sized home model (and was also free) and it burns about 1 kWh per liter of distilled water it produces. Mine has a large storage tank so I try to do as much of my distilling as I can in the winter months where that power use is enjoyed as 'free' heat, and during the off hours when hydro is cheaper.