Adding water into tank

[Mizu]

So im about to add in my Arag-alive sand and then add in my saltwater, I just have a few questions:

1. I only have 10 gallons of saltwater made (about 40% of what the tank needs) will that affect the live sand?

2. I'm pretty sure I am supposed to put in the return pump and heater before adding the water, but am I supposed to add in the filters as well?

3. My two buckets of water have slightly different salinity. Originally I put 2 cups of salt into each 5 gallon bucket of water and the first bucket read at 28 ppt and the second was only 24.6, I added a little more into the second and its now at 30.9. The funny thing is now the first bucket is reading 31.4 even though I did not add any extra salt. I mixed the salt by hand.

Thanks for the help, im very new to this so if there is any other generic advice you think a beginner should know I'd really appreciate the tip!

 

[1112-425XL]

If you're not adding any livestock your heater and return pump will be sufficient, and you can wait till you have more water in to turn them on. At 78° you should read 1.025 Salinity or approximately 35.4ppt. You can make adjustments in the tank once you have all the water in and the heater and return pump running.