Salt not mixing, and clouds forming...

[fattyratrat]

I recently bought a 37 gallon rubber maid container to make water changes easier. Last night i put the RO/DI water about half way up (15 gallons) and put enough salt to make that a 1.023. There are three powerheads moving the water in there. One thing i noticed when mixing the salt, is that my salt was all clumped together like a rock. I broke it apart, and put it in. Not all of it mixed. Even into this morning there is still some sandy looking stuff in the cracks. Why is this happening?

the water in there is also very cloudy this morning. any reason for that?

thanks.

 

[otrlynn]

I am wondering how old your salt is and whether moisture has gotten into the container. It should not be clumped together like a rock. The grains should not be stuck together and you should be able to easily scoop it out with a measuring container. If it has not mixed to a clear solution overnight, I'd dump it out and start over. Try breaking up the salt really well so that it pours freely and just mix up a gallon of water with 1/2 cup salt and see what happens. That is the proper ratio with most brands of salt...you did not by any chance use more salt than that did you? Always add the salt to the water, not vice versa.

 

[fattyratrat]

yea, my salt is about 6 months old, and moisture has probably gotten in there, but that shouldn't hurt anything, knowing as much chemistry as I do. The salinity in the container is only a 2.014 right now, with some salt on the bottom, so no it is not a saturated with salt or anything. I am thinking the cloudiness is coming from the bucket or something.

 

[otrlynn]

Hmm, maybe someone else has some light to shed regarding the rubbermaid containers. I have heard of people using them for sumps, so I would assume they should be okay for mixing up water. Did you wash out the container when you first bought it? If not, I wonder if something was on the plastic. If you start over, perhaps you would want to wash the container with water and vinegar, followed by a very thorough rinsing. Good luck.

 

[otrlynn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13126188#post13126188 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by fattyratrat
yea, my salt is about 6 months old, and moisture has probably gotten in there, but that shouldn't hurt anything, knowing as much chemistry as I do. The salinity in the container is only a 2.014 right now, with some salt on the bottom, so no it is not a saturated with salt or anything. I am thinking the cloudiness is coming from the bucket or something.

Also, I am assuming that your quoted salinity is a typo... You would be shooting for 1.025-1.026 for a reef tank...

 

[fattyratrat]

I did wash the container out very well with a hose yesterday, following an intense dry off before putting the RO in.

Wow, 2.014 is a typo, but not the typo you were expecting. I meant 1.014. I mix very conservatively, as not to go over 1.023 and waste salt/water. I will get it up to 1.023, but make sure that i don't go over by adding very little salt at a time.

 

[billdogg]

i found when i started mixing my water in a 55g barrel that it always looked cloudy after mixing. turns out it isn't as clean as you might think. I now use a diatom filter (system1) on the barrel every time now - it has worked well for me for over 20 years now. what is on the bottom may very well be calcium that precipitated out . I would not worry too much about it

 

[seapug]

I think it's related to the moisture you think got into the salt. It can cause the calcium in the mix to precipitate into chunks that are now mucking up the pH and Alkalinity of the batch you just mixed.

If moisture didn't matter they wouldn't package it in airtight buckets. The buckets of Reef Crytals even have a rubber gasket in the lid for an extra tight seal.