Salt Mix
- Thread starter Zoarder
- Start date
Make my RODI water the night before with a heater in it, Mix salt and let it sit for 30 to 60 minutes depending on how fast it dissolves and clears up. I clean other equipment while it's dissolving with a pump for circulation in a 40 gallon container. Test salinity to match display tank and then pump it in with a hose.
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Sorry, got interrupted:
Just get a cheap betta bowl heater ($10?) and that is really all you need.
I just hand mix my water with a wooden dowel, lately, but every once in a while, i will mix and then let it sit with a pump running inside of it.
You can gey a small 8-80 pump from amazon for about $8,and besides occasionally stalling, they do the job.
In an ideal situation, I mix in a 5 gallon paint home depot bucket, exactly the amount of water i want to put in with a betta heater, a small pump and my wooden dowel,and let circulate for at least 10 minutes (circulating, pre mixed water has been shown to shelf just fine for up to a month with no degradation, FFR, in some cases, much longer).
In another 5 gallon bucket, i pull, using the same pump i mixed with, the same amount of water i plan to replace.
I hold onto that water, cap it, put the new water on top, drop the pump into the new water, and start pumping it into the tank.
That is the ideal situation. But because I culture copepods and so much other stuff, I actually vary the way i do my water changes every time.
I do a 10% water change every 2 to 3 weeks max, and seldom heat it, but usually mix my copepod culture with a slow triclle of the higher salinity water for thr reef. I have to go from 1.20 to 1. 25 when i do that, so I typically mix my new water at 1.27 or 28, as well as another bucket at 1.25,so that once 1.25 is reached with the pod/new mix, I can just fill up to the right volume.
HAY DESMADRE!
Don't keep mandarins XD
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Just get a cheap betta bowl heater ($10?) and that is really all you need.
I just hand mix my water with a wooden dowel, lately, but every once in a while, i will mix and then let it sit with a pump running inside of it.
You can gey a small 8-80 pump from amazon for about $8,and besides occasionally stalling, they do the job.
In an ideal situation, I mix in a 5 gallon paint home depot bucket, exactly the amount of water i want to put in with a betta heater, a small pump and my wooden dowel,and let circulate for at least 10 minutes (circulating, pre mixed water has been shown to shelf just fine for up to a month with no degradation, FFR, in some cases, much longer).
In another 5 gallon bucket, i pull, using the same pump i mixed with, the same amount of water i plan to replace.
I hold onto that water, cap it, put the new water on top, drop the pump into the new water, and start pumping it into the tank.
That is the ideal situation. But because I culture copepods and so much other stuff, I actually vary the way i do my water changes every time.
I do a 10% water change every 2 to 3 weeks max, and seldom heat it, but usually mix my copepod culture with a slow triclle of the higher salinity water for thr reef. I have to go from 1.20 to 1. 25 when i do that, so I typically mix my new water at 1.27 or 28, as well as another bucket at 1.25,so that once 1.25 is reached with the pod/new mix, I can just fill up to the right volume.
HAY DESMADRE!
Don't keep mandarins XD
Sent from my 1+3 via Tapatalk
i do a wkly 10% WC with Fritz RPM. Since its cold lately, i have been using a heater(normaly i dont) to bring up the temp. My WC process take roughly 30 min +/-. Fritz mix pretty well, once clear i check for salinity, Siphon out 10% along with detritus build up, replace nylon filter sock (highly recommend, so easy to clean), pour/pump new salt mix. Done
Fwiw isn't rscp supposed to be used within a couple of hours of mixing. I have just started using it a bout a month ago. I make the water the night before or the same day depending on how busy I am and mix it to 1.026 and use a cheap heater from amazon. I usually wait an hour to make sure it's properly mixed and clears up. 20 percent water changes weekly.
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I had and issue with this salt when i clouded up real bad after a day. It also left a lot of grey residue in my mixing container. I've found TMP, HW, and the Korallen Zucht salt are all pretty good and seem to have the right numbers for me. They also mix easily and can mix for days without clouding.
I was not impressed with Brightwell, IO, and RSCP.
EDIT: I keep a strong pump in the mixing container going the whole time I get the salt ready. I add salt to the water not, vice-versa and I do not heat the water anymore.
I was not impressed with Brightwell, IO, and RSCP.
EDIT: I keep a strong pump in the mixing container going the whole time I get the salt ready. I add salt to the water not, vice-versa and I do not heat the water anymore.
How long do you guys mix the Salt and how long does it take for you to make a water changed after is fully mixed? Do you heat the water before adding to you tank? Mostly interested with people using RSCP but others can post as well 
RSCP is popular and is readily available, but also have had its own issue. When i started this hobby that was the salt to use, but after getting your hand and floor wet for sometime. This salt does not seems to be the option out there, especially with the High ALk. I have used TM, DD H2O for a few years, but have recently switched to Fritz RPM. I have only been using it for the past 2 month, so the jury is still out on this salt. I usually like to give salt, supplements, and/or equipment a good 6mth-1yr use before concluding if any of it is good or bad for your system. However on paper is sure does look good and mixes fairly well for being synthetic.
Below is a comparison of the salt that looks great on paper..I would like to point out that AF salt were mixed at 1.024sg
Frtitz RPM
Salinity 35 ppt (1.025 sg)
Calcium 440 ppm
Magnesium 1425 ppm
Alkalinity 8.5 dKH
Strontium 9 ppm
Potassium 400 ppm
Aquaforest Reef Salt Parameters
at 75
Below is a comparison of the salt that looks great on paper..I would like to point out that AF salt were mixed at 1.024sg
Frtitz RPM
Salinity 35 ppt (1.025 sg)
Calcium 440 ppm
Magnesium 1425 ppm
Alkalinity 8.5 dKH
Strontium 9 ppm
Potassium 400 ppm
Aquaforest Reef Salt Parameters
at 75
The reason I asked, is because I left my salt mixing for 4 days with pump and heater. I didn't think much of it since I have done it before. So when I tested my water in my tanks I noticed a drop. So I tested the water still in the container and sure enough it dropped to 7.8 dkh, so from 12 dkh to 7.8 is a lot to drop in 4 days. I was like wtf... I did contact them and they said this is due to the pump heating the water too much blah blah blah. Their instructions do say to mix 30min to 2 hrs max at 68 degrees, and once its fully mixed then you can add a heater. To turn off the pump once is mixed and heated. So wanted to see who else noticed this. I've always used D&D but its hard to come by those from my LFS since price went up on them because of shipping!
I just started making my own saltwater. Using HW marinemix. I have a nano so I just would mix 5 gallons with a power head and keep a heater in the bucket.
One time I added a new fish and the next day did a big water change. It died. So I figured it was the double shock of it all. So now I always preheat my water to match.
One time I added a new fish and the next day did a big water change. It died. So I figured it was the double shock of it all. So now I always preheat my water to match.
