Da Maui life
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This subject is subjective, but I’m looking for consensus. What would be considered a reasonable maximum storage life for filtered NSW (natural sea water)
Storing NSW
- Thread starter Da Maui life
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Da Maui life
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Always one in every thread.:hammer:
SaltandLight
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I have used NSW that I had stored for 2 months with no problems. Poured it in a bucket, ran a powerhead in the bucket for an hour and did my water change. That was my longest wait. Usually I use it within an hour of collecting.
inthedeep2
Member
I get about 35gals every 3 weeks for my bio-cube. I store it in my drum with a pump on 24/7 and heat it the day before my water change.
Actually this is fairly accurate. So long as it kept in a non reactive container and protected from contamination, it won't go bad...ever.
If it isn't kept aerated, then sufficient organic matter in it might result in production of hydrogen sulfide.
Way back in the day it was common practice to store all collected NSW for at least 8 weeks to kill off parasites. I never had issues with NSW stored for several months in a sealed food grade container without heat or circulation. Assuming the water was filtered to remove any large organics it should store indefinately.
spamreefnew
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what about the life in the water? would it die and release toxins??? This is the only thing that has kept me from using nothing but NSW. I always thought when I opened the month old bucket that I would find a stinky toxic soup.
Filtering it will remove most things. Even unfiltered, if left stored in the dark for several weeks (Martin Moe recommended 6 weeks in his books), anything will die off, bacterial action will deal with resulting decay and after several weeks leave you with nice clean water...no worries
Da Maui life
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Thanks for the info Randy. I was aware of the hydrogen sulfide issues and I do run two air stones that go to the bottom of my black 50 gal holding tank.
Da Maui life
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Filtering it will remove most things. Even unfiltered, if left stored in the dark for several weeks (Martin Moe recommended 6 weeks in his books), anything will die off, bacterial action will deal with resulting decay and after several weeks leave you with nice clean water...no worries
Bill your saying nothing is needed other then stored in a dark place. If the container is air tight I would think NSW would need some sort of gas exchange device like an airlock, like home brewers use for fermentation?
Unless there is an awful lot of junk in your collected water to ferment (rot), no gas exchange needed
Da Maui life
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Bill, thanks for the contribution. I’m fortunate to get mine from Maui Ocean Center, It’s incredibly clean I have yet to see any rubbish in it.
Da Maui life
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BTW the book from Martin Moe you referred, was it Natural Reef Aquariums
Green Chromis
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:fish1: Nothing better than NSW, I collect my water monthly from the outer reefs or Gulf Stream. I only store the water for a couple weeks at most or use the water right after collection. Never had a problem and the animals in the tank really love when I do a water change. :fish1:
Da Maui life
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^^^ I would agree nothing in my tank every skips a beat.
