Salinity problem

W

wtjoe

New member
Hi as i posted yesterday my mag cal and alk is low guys told me to get my salinity up to 35 ppt but i only got it to 33.6 now its down to 32.2 this morning i mix fresh water with salt in my ato and it not going up i have a saljnity orobe using apex my question is how to get the salinity back up after i increase the salt when i did a water change sunday 25 prcent?
 
Salinity fluctuates depending on temperature. Do you have a Refractometer? Most of the computer based probes adjust based on the temperature probe.
 
Do you have anything in the tank yet? If not just dump some salt in till it gets to 35 (1.026)..
Don't waste time doing it through top offs,etc..

And your level WON'T drop (unless you are adding water lower than the salinity now)... It just wasn't mixed all the way when you measured or something..

It will increase as water evaporates as only fresh water is evaporating and the salt is staying there..

This isn't rocket science.. Just add salt to get it to the level you want and then make sure all your new fresh saltwater for water changes is 1.026.. Then top off water should just be fresh water..

Don't make it harder than it is.. This is simple stuff..
 
Also, can't speak from experience with this, but I'd get something other than the Apex salinity probe to test salinity with. Get a refracometer, they are only $50, some calibration fluid, and test with that. Good way to double check, especially since you are having issues.
 
I did dump some salt to try to get it up it went as far as 34 now it down to 33.6 salinity and Yes i have 3 corals torch bubble and i gorget what the name if the last one and two tangs 4 clowns
 
wtjoe said:
I did dump some salt to try to get it up it went as far as 34 now it down to 33.6 salinity and Yes i have 3 corals torch bubble and i gorget what the name if the last one and two tangs 4 clowns
Click to expand...

WHY do you have anything in a tank that you haven't even gotten salinity right?
Silly.. (used silly because I'm trying to be nice)

And again your salinity is NOT going down its simply fully mixed vs not.. You need to wait some before you check it each time (oh you have a salinity probe hence why you keep saying that)..
Keep going.. (But slowly over the next few days.. since you have animals in that torture chamber now)
 
As an Apex user with a salinity probe, I would say DO NOT rely on that. I use mine mostly for a double check. Unless you are doing heavy skimming or your water is leaking out somewhere, your salinity should not be going down. Get yourself a good refractometer and solution so you know exactly where you are at.

It also sounds like you're increasing your salinity with your ATO? Did someone recommend that? IMO, I would never add any salt to my ATO. If you want to increase salinity, just mix some salt with R/O in a separate container (I use a pitcher). Once mixed, just pour it into the tank where it won't immediately be touching corals. I pour mine directly into my overflow. After a half day or so, water should evaporate down to your normal tank level and salinity will be increased. I usually do a re-check 24 hours after adding salt.

Always make note of how much salt you are adding and how much it increases your salinity by. That way you will know how much to add. If your salinity drops from say 1.0264 to 1.026, you will know exactly how much salt to dump into your pitcher to bring it back to the proper level. I don't wet skim so I only bother checking salinity once a week.
 
You really need to go to the top of this board and read all the stickies your missing a lot of the basics.
 
Never add salt mix to a tank with livestock already in it, it is not good for the fish. And since you can't manage to keep even your salinity stable, you really have no business keeping fish or corals in the tank right now. I'd take the fish out, but if thats not possible, just hope they actually survive the ordeal. Also 4 clowns is not a good idea anyway.

You've been told this a bunch already, but get a refracometer, now.
 
You might find these formulas helpful. I have them in an excel spreadsheet and use them often
V= Total system volume
W= Amount of water change
A= Current tank salinity
B= Ending tank salinity

B=(((V-W)*A)+(S*W)/V
W=V-(B-A)/(S-A)
S=(9V*B)-(V-W)*A)/W
S= Salinity of water change amount.
 
hkgar said:
You might find these formulas helpful. I have them in an excel spreadsheet and use them often
V= Total system volume
W= Amount of water change
A= Current tank salinity
B= Ending tank salinity

B=(((V-W)*A)+(S*W)/V
W=V-(B-A)/(S-A)
S=(9V*B)-(V-W)*A)/W
S= Salinity of water change amount.
Click to expand...

Gary, have you seen the other thread?

Everything was spelled out to you to fix your tank in your other thread

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2598214
 
FYI he has another thread going on about low Mg, Alk and Cal where we recommended to increase salinity to proper levels as it was low.

This is a repeat thread to questions that have already been answered multiple times.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Q
Which mini snail for artemia tank?
Replies
2
Views
108
griss
griss
B
Left Tank for a long time, now want to reboot
Replies
8
Views
229
SantaMonica
S
E
What's Old is New Again
Replies
2
Views
406
Uncle99
Uncle99
D
Corals slowly dying / getting white spots water tests good
Replies
18
Views
2K
griss
griss
Kona26
Aerate instant ocean reef crystals salt mix..?
Replies
3
Views
840
griss
griss
Back
Top