Instant Ocean

[timrandlerv10]

so i'm moving my tank from one office to another, and when it gets in place, i am going to do a 25 gallon (20%?) water change. i put 20g's of water in a tank with 12.5 cups of salt (which should get me pretty close to 1.025 with another 5 gallons of water)...it dissolved very quickly, i guess due to room temp and powerhead in the tank!

except...there is about a tablespoon of a very heavy white precipitate--it looks like very large pieces, like you would expect of a grain of sand. seems very large to me, and isnt dissolving even after 36 hours. i can blow it around the tank with the PH and it settles quite quickly.


a) what is it?
b) can i use the rest of the water?

thanks!

 

[Tomoko Schum]

If you don't get all the salt dissolved right away, a small amount of undissolved salt that sits on the bottom can turn into a hard piece. If the ph, alkalinity, and calcium levels of the water are good, I won't worry about it too much. The rest is pretty much trace elements. Do you really need 12.5 cups to make 20 gallons of salt water? I use 1/2 cup to a gallon and it usually it turns out right around 1.025 at probably about 78 degree RODI water.

 

[timrandlerv10]

25 gallons--there's another 5 of RO water to add to that. i'll test it all now.

can't get my quiet one return pump to go...it just sort of vibrates, and doesnt suck or push water...help?

 

[Tomoko Schum]

Too much calcium build up inside the well for the impeller?

 

[timrandlerv10]

yup. pulled it out (painful!) and took it apart--too much some type of precipitate inside the impeller and impeller cavity...3 minutes of knife scraping and it was noticably smoother, smaller. put it back in, works like it was new--i didnt notice it getting worse or louder because it happened so slowly

EVERYONE CLEAN YOUR PUMPS!!

thanks Tomoko.

so far everyone/thing is back in the tank in its new spot, but nothing is arranged. heater and pumps are on, so we're calling it a night.

 

[Tomoko Schum]

I usually use either vinegar or diluted HCl to clean pumps and powerheads including their impeller cavities. Diluted HCl is very quick to dissolve any salt buildup. Scraping by a knife can scar up surfaces. Once I tried to smooth the impeller surface with a ultra fine steel wool [00 grade] and came to regret it . What was I thinking...:crazy1:

 

[sedor]

+1 on vinegar. Every couple of months I just mix a bucket of vinegar and water and rotate my pumps through it over the course of the day. Keeps everything nice and clean.

 

[mshelton]

I have also experienced the participate in the mixing barrel with no ill effect.

Tomoko, what to what degree do you dilute HCl for cleaning?

 

[Tomoko Schum]

10% - I use 1 part of muriatic acid from Lowe's to 9 part of tap water. You may already know this, but please be sure to pour acid into water and not the other way around.