Salt Water Mixing Stations Let's See Them

[Patrick Cox]

Yes, that would work fine with 2x4's and pocket screws. Just make sure the horizontal boards sit on top of the legs. That was the mistake I made so I added some extra support for the legs and doubled up on the plywood.

Thanks for your reply. How would I use 2x4s and rest connecting rails on a leg? The only thing I can think of is the sketch below but this seems a bit unstable. I think I could only use one pocket screw to connect each board. Any other ideas? Thanks.

 

[rjjr1963]

Just make a rectangle and sit it on top of the legs. Use pocket screws at the top of the legs pointing up to the bottom of the frame. I glue and screw the joints for additional strength. Use the same process for each additional level. Then attach plywood to the back of the stand and each level to give it lateral stability. I would start out with a rectangular frame sitting on the floor to prevent the legs from kicking out.

 

[BlurrVT]

Awesome thread. I read the whole thing this weekend I started plans for a water mixing station earlier in the week and then found this thread which answered a lot of my questions. Mine is just a redendering at this point. 5 basic functions here. RODI on the left, salt on the right. Tanks will hold 30-50g each. The tanks are there for reference as I haven't decided what I will go with yet. Thanks to you all for finding the Roto Molds from RuralKing with free shipping!
1. Move RODI to the salt container.
2. Mix water in the salt container.
3. Send RODI to the ATO container at the tank.
4. Send salt to the sump during a water change.
5. Fill buckets of either if needed.
I wanted a separate pump for the RODI because I didn't think it was a good idea for the RODI water path to come in contact with the salt path at any point. Could contaminate the water going into the ATO tank. Am I overthinking that bit? Not sure what the RODI pump will actually be at this point, but the Eheim in the drawing is probably overkill. It's just there for reference. I will be using the Eheim 1262 for the salt pump. I haven't worked out the details of actually doing the water change yet (manual on/off of outlets or float switches), so some adjustments might have to be made. I'll also have to take into account any siphons that might be created so that may change things some. I'm also trying to figure out the best way to keep the RODI tank full. I don't want it to just top off. I would rather have it get down to a few gallons and then fill back up. I'm thinking a float switch near the bottom that triggers a solenoid for a set amount of time, a float valve for the RODI inlet just in case the solenoid fails, and possibly another float switch to trigger a hard shutoff in case both of those fail. Anyone have anything they've successfully done here?

What solenoids are you all using with Apex to control RODI flow?
Are the horizontal mounted reed float switches as reliable as the vertical ones? I won't make the system reliant on any one float switch, but I do want to start off with something relatively reliable.



Thanks all for the great inspiration in this thread.

 

[brittonv]

How far is this from your tank? I just have a tunez ato pump direct from my storage tank to my DT.



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[Volcmreefer]

water Station

water Station

Here is mine. Using an Iwaki 55RLT to pump up about 15 feet. Top container is fresh and bottom is salt. Iwaki is plumbed so that i can mix the saltwater or pump upstairs. I also have the capability to drain from the display as well. Better than carrying three 5-gallon buckets up stairs every week or two! I can pump topoff water up stairs as well.

Jon

 

[Roccus]

this is my mix/water station...

DI water is monitored with gauges and TDS meters... one gauge on each side of pre filtration tells me when the filters need changing.. I change them when I get a 10lb differential.. anything over that and the pump starves... the third gauge tell s me pump pressure..

I run two sets of TDS meters... one monitors the water coming in and out of the membrane... the other one monitors the water coming out of the DI resin canisters( I buy in bulk and refill).. when the primary one starts to show TDS I then replace it with the second one in line and install a new one in the second slot... it allows me to make better use of the resin..
Water flows into a 35 Gallon brute storage container controlled by a float and relief valve... the salt water "mixed" tank is also a brute trash can... the bulk head "incoming" side has a Tee fitting with and 90 and a 90 with a 3' section of pipe.. this aids in mixing and allows for attachment of a power head and heater.. 10 scoops of salt gives me a 1.025 mixture from empty.. back flow is prevented by a ball valve at the tank and a check valve at the pump..

A Pan World 100PX delivers the water flow via a series of valves... this valve set up allows me to draw fresh or salt water and also pump water to the tanks on the first and second floor..A quick disconnect at the top of the basement stairs facilitates attachment of a 25' hose that allows me to drain and fill the three tanks... a siphon is accomplished by purging air from the line into a bucket ( this is used to wash filtration and purge any left over "stale" water from the system) then the pump is shut off and a series of valves are closed and opened to allow siphoning of the tank... filling is the reversal of siphon... the 100PX delivers about 4 gallons a minute to the second floor...

 

[Scffvariable]

Here is my new mixing station.

65g tank for RO, 35 for salt. Quite one 400 to mix and pump. Plumbing runs to my two sumps to be able to refill after a w/c as well as a line to refill ro reservoirs.

Booster pump for RO/DI

Switched outlets to easily turn on booster pump, mixing pump, and recirculating pump.


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[maxpc99]

Salt Water Mixing Stations Let's See Them

Has anyone come up with an automated way to slowly add a bag of salt their mixer? I have a similar setup as most of the posts here with a couple of 50g barrels rigged up pretty standard. My next pain point I want to resolve is standing over the mixing barrel slowly scooping in my bag of salt for 15 min. I buy the 200g boxes of reef crystals with the 50g bags so I'm already pre measured . It would be great to load it to some sort of sieve with a shaker/vibrator that would slowly add the contents over 30 min.

Yep, I'm lazy, but I love automation. I run a Genesis water change system to, so really mixing my salt barrel and emptying my skimmer overflow bucket are my only weekly chores. [emoji41]

 

[soulpatch]

Guess I dont know why you would need to slowly add it. You already know the amount to add so just dump it in. It will mix if you have a powerhead or pump moving the water.

 

[jason2459]

Guess I dont know why you would need to slowly add it. You already know the amount to add so just dump it in. It will mix if you have a powerhead or pump moving the water.

Dump in to much to fast in one spot could cause precipitation that wont ever mix back in under normal pH.

 

[soulpatch]

Ah Guess I dont have to dump in that much as I am making 35 gallons at once...I dont have precip issues in my mixer unless I use Red Sea salt.

 

[jason2459]

I can see it varying from mix to mix based on alkalinity and Mg levels. I go "slow" which is just shaking the bag back and forth and all around while the mixing pump is on but I also am currently using a 44g brute with a large opening to be able to shake around.

 

[Sphack]

I'm looking at buying two tanks and am looking for some input. I'm trying to size my two tanks.

How long do people store mixed salt water? I have read that some salts (primarily non-reef salts, i.e., Instant Ocean) have no organics and hence are able to be stored for a few weeks.

Similarly, do people run their mixing pumps only to mix, or constantly (and with which salts?) Are there any precipitate problems?


As far as tanks go, I'm looking at a pair of 130g (22" diameter, 82" high) for ro/di and salt water. I can go with smaller/shorter tanks, but would prefer to have the capacity to perform larger water changes in the case of emergencies.

System background:
* setting up for 400g DT, ~550g total water volume
* 150 g/day BRS RO/DI

Thanks!

 

[stage3-s4]

Has anyone come up with an automated way to slowly add a bag of salt their mixer? I have a similar setup as most of the posts here with a couple of 50g barrels rigged up pretty standard. My next pain point I want to resolve is standing over the mixing barrel slowly scooping in my bag of salt for 15 min. I buy the 200g boxes of reef crystals with the 50g bags so I'm already pre measured . It would be great to load it to some sort of sieve with a shaker/vibrator that would slowly add the contents over 30 min.

Yep, I'm lazy, but I love automation. I run a Genesis water change system to, so really mixing my salt barrel and emptying my skimmer overflow bucket are my only weekly chores. [emoji41]

I have been searching for something myself. Right now I have an Allen Bradly PLC that controls my tank, water changes, and RO/DI unit. It would be great to integrate a device to mix in salt. There are some commercial devices I found that are not cheap that I could probably get to work.

 

[iced98lx]

Check out an auger drive setup in a channel. I always pictured the auger limiting the salt sliding down the pipe vs pushing it down, if that makes sense. Perhaps a drive unit out of a pellet stove.

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[SchnitzelReef]

Has anyone come up with an automated way to slowly add a bag of salt their mixer? I have a similar setup as most of the posts here with a couple of 50g barrels rigged up pretty standard. My next pain point I want to resolve is standing over the mixing barrel slowly scooping in my bag of salt for 15 min. I buy the 200g boxes of reef crystals with the 50g bags so I'm already pre measured . It would be great to load it to some sort of sieve with a shaker/vibrator that would slowly add the contents over 30 min.

Yep, I'm lazy, but I love automation. I run a Genesis water change system to, so really mixing my salt barrel and emptying my skimmer overflow bucket are my only weekly chores. [emoji41]

I have been mixing salt for 5+ years, I never add it slowly. I also use instant ocean, I just dump the whole 50g bag right in and let my pump mix it up. Never had one issue doing this in 5 years.

 

[maxpc99]

I have been mixing salt for 5+ years, I never add it slowly. I also use instant ocean, I just dump the whole 50g bag right in and let my pump mix it up. Never had one issue doing this in 5 years.

A your mixing container a typical looking rain barrel or some other shape? What size pump and how is the water flow in the container configured? Approx water temp when you mix?

I'm asking because of precipitate. Do you get a lot? I have almost none.

I mix in a standard rain barrel with basement room temp water (60ish degrees). I have a little giant 60px that recirculates the water from bottom to top and for complete overkill I also run an eheim 1252 that is laying on its side forcing the water in a circular motion. I only run that pump for a few an hour or two, but the little giant close to 24 hours. I use a 1 cup scoop to add the contents of the 50 pound bag. It probably takes me all of 3 or 4 minutes.

 

[SchnitzelReef]

A your mixing container a typical looking rain barrel or some other shape? What size pump and how is the water flow in the container configured? Approx water temp when you mix?

I'm asking because of precipitate. Do you get a lot? I have almost none.

I mix in a standard rain barrel with basement room temp water (60ish degrees). I have a little giant 60px that recirculates the water from bottom to top and for complete overkill I also run an eheim 1252 that is laying on its side forcing the water in a circular motion. I only run that pump for a few an hour or two, but the little giant close to 24 hours. I use a 1 cup scoop to add the contents of the 50 pound bag. It probably takes me all of 3 or 4 minutes.

1800gph pump pulls from the bottom and pushes to the top. Never noticed any precipitate. What would it even look like? Water is typically pretty cold. Less then 70* for sure.

 

[jason2459]

Colder is better to reduce precipitation of Ca. More flow will also help as well to mix faster. But with more flow usually means stronger pump which could cause localized high heat causing a build up of precipitation on the pump.

Some precipitation most likely isn't a big deal.

It could look like a film build up on the sides of the container, build up on pumps or heaters, or particulates undesolved at the bottom but may get sucked up into the tank with water changes and is at that point sand.

 

[Redman88]

Check out an auger drive setup in a channel. I always pictured the auger limiting the salt sliding down the pipe vs pushing it down, if that makes sense. Perhaps a drive unit out of a pellet stove.

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I work with auger drive powder/sand delivery systems. They suck for long term consistency of delivery.