Reed crystals help

[tmz]

I've been using the Milwaukee for a long time and prefer it . The digital readout is easy to read. It has been reliable . Checks well with standard solutions at 35 ppt. I have several old swing arms ,a standard refractometer and a conductivity meter as well.I keep a small bottle of distilled water handy for zeroing it.
After each test I soak up the sample with a paper towel.; squeeze on some dstilled water and sponge that off that off before the next test. If your are under suspect external lights you an shade it with you hand before pressing read or zero.

 

[diablo30xp]

Ok so should I still use reef crystals cuz I still have another bag and full box

 

[diablo30xp]

Or what can I do so I don't have the high alk

 

[BuzzPion]

The problem is probably inconsistency in your salt mix. If it is an all-in-one mix, things can and do settle out at different rates. When you scoop a bit out here and there it can lead to your parameters being off batch to batch. Especially true if you are making 10 gallons at a time out of a 200 gallon bucket. If you are not mixing up the entire 200 gallons at a time the best thing to do is mix the dry ingredients thoroughly every time before you scoop any out. Do this with a brand new bucket too (things settle in shipping).

 

[diablo30xp]

Ok I'll try this thx

 

[outssider]

I calibrate it every month to make sure it's on

some refractometers (mine) can be very temperature sensitive. I calibrate before every use.

 

[ericarenee]

The problem is probably inconsistency in your salt mix. If it is an all-in-one mix, things can and do settle out at different rates. When you scoop a bit out here and there it can lead to your parameters being off batch to batch. Especially true if you are making 10 gallons at a time out of a 200 gallon bucket. If you are not mixing up the entire 200 gallons at a time the best thing to do is mix the dry ingredients thoroughly every time before you scoop any out. Do this with a brand new bucket too (things settle in shipping).

this is why i buy by the box. I use kent marine . but RC Salt comes in a box of 5 50 gal bags.. I Fill my mixing tank to the 50 gal marker turn on the Huge mixing pump plumbed inline and SLOWLY POUR In a bag. Set the timmer to mix 2 hours and done

its very hard to remix a whole bucket at once.

 

[diablo30xp]

I have the bags but I only do a 20 gal wc a week I do r have a place to store all that so I think I'm gonna mix all the salt in a bucket and use it that way

 

[jason2459]

Reef Crystals mixes to around 13dkh alk at 35ppt. It's one of the salt mixes with higher calcium, alk, and magnesium. Good if you have those demands, do a lot of water changes, and don't dose or want to dose very little.

Reef Crystals
490
13
1440

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1714505

 

[outssider]

Reef Crystals mixes to around 13dkh alk at 35ppt. It's one of the salt mixes with higher calcium, alk, and magnesium. Good if you have those demands, do a lot of water changes, and don't dose or want to dose very little.

Reef Crystals
490
13
1440

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1714505

this is what I usually get, but I just opened a bag from a box and am getting much smaller numbers than usual. 9 dkh 440 cal 1150 mag

 

[water is wet]

this is why i buy by the box. I use kent marine . but RC Salt comes in a box of 5 50 gal bags.. I Fill my mixing tank to the 50 gal marker turn on the Huge mixing pump plumbed inline and SLOWLY POUR In a bag. Set the timmer to mix 2 hours and done

its very hard to remix a whole bucket at once.

It's actually 4 50 gallon bags. :fish1:

 

[ericarenee]

It's actually 4 50 gallon bags. :fish1:

You're right was a typo
[emoji13]

 

[jason2459]

this is what I usually get, but I just opened a bag from a box and am getting much smaller numbers than usual. 9 dkh 440 cal 1150 mag

That's rather low magnesium numbers for any "reef" salt. Did you use the entire bag at once to mix up or just part of the bag? The bags normally don't have as big of an issue of settling as buckets do but I still poor 3 bags into an IO bucket and mix it up. I use regular IO but I would do this with any brand.

Or you just got a bad batch.

Or it wasnt mixed to 35ppt

Or a combination of the above.

 

[diablo30xp]

What do u mix it's up with?? Do u use ur hands

 

[jason2459]

What do u mix it's up with?? Do u use ur hands

Pouring it into the bucket starts the mixing. Then I close the bucket up and roll it around and upside down.

 

[diablo30xp]

Ok I'm gonna try that and see how it goes

 

[Buzz1329]

Why don't you just switch to IO, which costs less and has alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, etc. levels much closer to NSW than Reef Crystals?

 

[diablo30xp]

I have always used reef crystals since I started my tank 6 yrs ago I do t want to change now

 

[wcharon]

So i talked with Milwaukee support and this is their recommendation based on the model that i have that is the MR32ATC:

1. Clean the lens with cotton ball soaked with Windex glass cleaner.
2. Flush using distilled water not RO water to check that your calibrated to 0.
3. Finally and probably most important you cannot use an optical refractometer under florescent lights, Mercury vapor lights, halogen lights or LED lights due to incorrect wavelength you will get erroneous readings. You sunlight or 75 to 100 W incandescent light bulbs.

Hope this helps clarify doubts to others.

Just to update: i followed Milwaukee recommendations for calibration and the refractometer was only a little off to the low side so i am good to go.

Thanks for everybodys advise.

 

[Member No. 1]

Reef Crysrals - New 200gal Box - Issues

Reef Crysrals - New 200gal Box - Issues

First some background
35 Gallon Brute for mixing - over 8 years in service so I know it's clean.
RODI 2 brand new DI cartridges TDS 0 with 2 separate meters.
Filled brute to top, again checked TDS now 1 on both. This is to be expected.
Milwaukee Optical Refractometer calibrated per instructions.
Tank 1.026 with meter, 35.6 is the reading with Apex. It ranges 35-36 over the course of the day.
Start mixing the Reef Crystals into the preheated (78) RODI water.
I keep checking salinity as I go. This is a bag from a box of 200 gal mix so 1 bag should make 50 gallons. The brute only holds 35. I keep adding/checking. I have a big pump fir mixing so it dissolves pretty quick. Well to my surprise I had to add the whole bag, and then some from the next bag to get the salinity to 1.026!
Ok I'll wait 24 hours to see if there are any changes. Nope, over a bag of salt into 35 gallons of RODI water, still holding ar 1.026!
As I always do, I tested the NSW.
CA 538 Hanna
Alk 11.592 dKh Hanna
MG over 1500 Sarifert - Used whole syringe.
I looked for lot control markings on the box or bags. Only thing I found was on the bags, all 4 the same: 2014/233 15:14
So is anyone else seeing low salinity numbers?