Mixing salt

[Dan_P]

The notion that it takes 24 hours to dissolve and equilibrate a fresh batch of saltwater is not because salts take a long time to dissolve. They dissolve quickly.

You do want to equilibrate the new salt water with atmospheric CO2. This takes hours with good aeration not days.

The other thing that happens in 24 hours is that a small amount of insoluble material settles out. This stuff can sometimes be seen sticking to the bottom or sides of the bucket. I would guess the amount varies from batch to batch and from brand to brand. I would also guess this is why aquarists using the 24 hour or longer method never see the cloudiness problem.

 

[Happyreefing11]

I run red sea pro and I mix for 12 hrs with heater and pump with rodi water all salts mix much better with warm water in my opinion and always clear

 

[Viethuenese]

i mix my red sea for 2 hr, no more then 3..

 

[Aquarist007]

I didn't think aquavitro salinity came in boxes with the 225 gallon bucket available. I mainly do it because my lfs has these things sitting for what seems like months. Iv been looking into the 55 gallon barrel they sell to save a little money on the $$ premium price salinity charges but then I couldn't mix it when it came in.

Your paying a lot for that salt and it's really no better then IO or Reef Crystals
Which come in 200 gal cases for the same price of the buckets

 

[wom001]

Iv been trying to find the drum of salt and buy aquavitro in bulk to where's it's substantially cheaper. But in any case for the average bucket of reefcrystals sells for around 59 bucks for a 200 gallon case, while salnity runs around 75 to 80 (where I'm at atleast). With salinity you get 225 gallons of saltwater at 1.026 instead of the 200 gallons at 1.024 from reef crystals. So in essence if you like your tank at 1.024 you can dial back the amount of salt you use. That plus the extra salt for 25 gallons seems to even out the price. I know that alone may not merit the 15 to 20 dollar price bump but In the end it's all personal preference. Iv used many different brands of salt including RC and IO and salinity has been the best to me.

 

[wom001]

Also noob reefer how are you getting your distilled water?

 

[noob reefer]

Sorry for late response but I've been using the ro filter from Walmart..glacierwater I believe what's its called..I got their maintenance schedule down so I'm usually there right after they service the machine.. I figured this is much better then my city water and I did a TDs test and it was very low I can't remember exactly how low but I can test again soon.

 

[ReefKeep66]

Following Red seas directions works perfect for me. Mix salt with 68 degree ro water,mix as needed and as soon as the waters clear raise temp and add to tank. Easy.

 

[chinmoy]

About Salt Mixing

About Salt Mixing

I am new to the Hobby.. so plz help
"Prodac Ocean Fish Salt" is a good salt?

 

[noob reefer]

Never heard of prodac chinmoy

 

[woodnaquanut]

I started the current tank w/ RSCP. I could never get it to mix properly. There was always lots of precipitation. I tried cold water, cool water, warm water and very warm water. Always same results - a nice white coating on everything in the barrel. I also hated the fine salt dust. It really irritated my nose!

I switched to ESV's B-ionic and really love it. Yes you do have to measure four things - that takes 1-2 minutes. Yes it's a bit more expensive than RSCP. The two dry ingredients are easy to dissolve so their particle size is much larger that RSCP. No dust! There is NO precipitation. Takes less than ten minutes for complete mixing. Since the two dry ingredients are pure there is no worries about settling during shipping. Also if the dry ingredients get damp and clump they still dissolve completely. An all in one salt like RSCP is useless if it clumps up.

Finally, I have an issue with using a super Alk and CA salt like RSCP. How in the world are you going to keep the tank stable if you add a high Alk and CA salt at every water change?

 

[chinmoy]

Thanks...
noob reefer