new ro/di first timer,many questions,need help

[AIR-FX]

ok i just got my first ro/di unit. 75gpd with tds meter. my plan is to set up a food grade brute can with a 1" bulk head and ball valve to dispense water into 5 gal buckets to mix up my salt in. ive read i need a small heater and either a power head or a pump for mixing. which is better in your opinion. also....how long do i leave pump or Power head on to mix salt up?
and my other big questions are......after saltwater is mixed up....what is protocol before i can do a water change....how long do i wait and also how long will saltwater last once mixed? like a week?month? thanks

my tank is 150 gal with a 40 gal breeder sump. i want to do a 5% water change every week. when i do the math should i do 5% based on 150 gals or 190 gal ?

 

[cardiffgiant]

What, no more hauling buckets around town?? You're going to love being able to mix your own water.

I use old MJ1200's for salt mixing in 5 gallon buckets. I mix 2.5 cups of salt with 5 gallons of RODI and let it mix for 24 hours before using it for a water change. If you're going to use something larger than a bucket to mix with a bigger pump might be nice.

I'd base the changes off of the total system volume.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

suggestion

suggestion

purchase 200gallon boxes of saltmix and a big brute. Install a float valve to stop RO when brute is full.
Mix one whole bag at a time. Makes a little less than 50 gallons at 1.026

Use as needed.

 

[downbeach]

A good article here:

http://successfulreefkeeping.com/learn/salinity-mixing-saltwater/

I use a 32 Gal. Brute can, fill it with about 25 Gal. or RO/DI water, and let it aerate for 24 hr., I use an old Aquaclear 70 with venturi for this. I add my salt mix, and use another old Aquaclear 70, along with a heater, in the bottom to aid in mixing, and let it mix, aerate, and heat, for another 24hrs. before I use it.

 

[tent boy]

I do what Gary said. Mix one 50 gallon salt bag in brute can that has a shut of at top. I change the approx 50 gallons of water every month or so. My tank is a 170 gallon with 40 gallon sump. Big water change at once is what my schedule allows. I don't have high end sps though.

 

[SkiFletch]

A couple common misconceptions to discuss here. When calculating tank volume, you add display tank, ACTUAL water in the sump (if you have a 40 breeder, you're proabably only having 30-35gal of water in it), and then subtract a little for the rockwork. So you're probably near 170 gallons of water volume in your system. I personally would suggest larger water changes than 5% if you want to use a weekly regime. 10% at least, if not 15%. I'm not a fan of weekly changes though, it drives me nutty. I do 80% quarterly (3 months), but that's just me.

Once mixed, seawater does not "go bad". Changes to dissolved CO2 and thus pH can create minor calcium carbonate formations which alter calcium and magnesium a bit, but it doesn't spoil like milk . I would however advise covering it to keep excess dust out and prevent a nice "film" from rising to the surface if you're going to store it for more than say a week. Covering it will also reduce evaporation and reduce the need to add more RO water when you're goin to use it.

I'm with everyone else that mixing in large volumes when possible is very nice. Are you mixing in your basement? Is it well insulated down there? How do you plan on transporting the mixed water? Important questions . I personally have 2 large reseviors in my basement. My old 45g display tank is my RO water resevior which I use for topoff. Next to it is a plastic 55g drum that was formerly ethanol storage which I use for mixing seawater. I wrapped the 55g in insulation because my basement is not well insulated, and getting mixed water up to temp is challenging without the insulation in the winter months. Since my tank is on the 2nd floor and the water in the basement, I hate lugging water, and I'm doing 80% changes, I need to do it quickly. Thus I use an Iwaki MD100RLT plumbed to the mixing drum to push water the ridiculous length to my tank. The pump is operated via a relay, the switch being on the 2nd floor for my ease of use. You may not need that elaborate of a setup, or may even enjoy th exercise of lugging 5g buckets around, but I hate it . Regardless, I have an old, ratting maxijet mod pump in the 55g drum, and an old heater in there too to mix and heat the water. I use a water timer instead of a float valve to control my RO output, but that's just me. Your own setup will depend on your own needs.

 

[Sweet]

I have a 75G with a 20G sump. I don't have any holding tanks, so I start my RO/DI in the morning into a 20g bucket I purchased at Wal-Mart and put the heater in there with a powerhead and let I fill up. Once it's filled I add my salt and let it rise in temperature. Once it's at temperature I dump the mix in a 5g water bottle used in offices and make 4 trips to the tank. I find the water bottle more convenient than a bucket because there is less spillage.

Edit: I have a large measuring cup that I marked with a sharpie for the amount of salt required to mix 20g and 5g of water. That way I just fill it up and gradually add my salt and I don't have to measure 12 cups each time.

-Sweet

 

[block head]

I would use a brute without the bulkhead. A mag 5 and some cheap tubing can pump water easily. Mixing buckets tend to get funky . Periodic cleaning is easier without bulkheads. Ro mounted over a utility sink is convient. Float valves fail. Really depends on your basement layout. Ro tubing is pretty cheap . Bribing a local with beer to troubleshoot is a great investment.

 

[magdelan]

FYI: The reason for mixing a whole bag of salt at a time is so that your water parameters stay consistent. If you only mix a few cups of salt at a time, you risk each batch of water being different. I mix one bag=50g of salt water at a time in a 55g Brute. As SkiFletch was saying, I also used to pump my water up to my first floor from the basement using an Iwaki. I had it set up with a relay switch in my fish tank stand that would allow me to control the water that would fill my sump. The sump was plumbed into the main water drain in the basement via bulkheads with valves.

 

[block head]

has anyone seen the salt making process? i've never seen or heard of anyone who detailed the process. the closest i've seen is where they remove ultra pure salt as a waste product when ocean water is converted into fresh. or mining operations using heavy equiptment. nothing leads me to believe they do anything but pkg natural occurring salt as is.