how long do you mix fresh sw?

[reefer916]

I have mine constantly mixing in a 30 gallon Brute trashcan. I usually like letting it mix for a day or two with the large powerhead and heater to make sure temp, salinity, etc. and the salt is completely mixed.

 

[melev]

I add salt to the heated, aerated(ing), pump running water.

I thought the gross slime I had seen on other people's stuff was because they didnt wash it out. I wont be mixing my h2o for longer than 12 hours again unless I can figure out what went wrong.

Gross slime? Like brown stuff on the tubing, the pump and the barrel? It could be stuff in the salt mix causing that. I noticed stuff in my mixing barrel when I mixed up Oceanic salt. I used a few buckets over a nine month period, and it happened consistently. I just cleaned off the gear and had it ready for the next batch.

I don't think time is a factor if the water is circulating and covered. The water in my 265g poly tank isn't getting dirtier or building up anything even after four weeks of circulation. I just opened the lid last night to measure salinity and temperature as I'm thinking about doing a water change.

All that said, I don't think most of this is a big deal. I usually just pour the new fresh RODI water into my sump, and then pour the salt on top of it. But then I'm lazy.

Seriously???? How much water and salt are you adding to what sized system? Talk about a post grenade.

 

[patent]

Seriously???? How much water and salt are you adding to what sized system? Talk about a post grenade.

LOL, sorry, should add those details. My main display is a 180, total system volume is roughly 270-300 gallons after skimmer, fuge and sump. I usually am only adding 20 gallons or so at a time, in 5 gallon increments. I usually dump 5 gallons in the sump, dump a bunch of salt in, and then keep dumping in more water as the system catches up.

Pump is a dart, so turnover at 4 feet and a bend is around 2800 gph, roughly, or nearly a gallon a second. I can't pour it faster than it mixes, and adding only 7 percent of the system volume at one time, there isn't a big swing anyway.

 

[melev]

That appears to work for you. I'd never do it in any of my tanks.

 

[patent]

That appears to work for you. I'd never do it in any of my tanks.

I think most people wouldn't do it, and I wouldn't suggest that what I do is right for others.

That said, I think the amount of concern people have over when they mix saltwater, how long they let it sit, etc., is a little too much. Of course, there are better ways to do it than mine, but corals are pretty tough about most things. So, my view is just do your best and don't spend so much time worrying about it. The subtle salinity changes in how I do it don't hurt things at all. Now, if I did a 50 percent water change that way, I suspect I'd have issues.

 

[SaraB]

That appears to work for you. I'd never do it in any of my tanks.

That's quite a concept for saltwater mixing ... but I guess it works for you. How long have you been doing this process? Do you have a set amount of gallons of water you add and an exact measurement of salt to add or do you do this on the fly?

LOL and yes that was a post grenade!

 

[patent]

That's quite a concept for saltwater mixing ... but I guess it works for you. How long have you been doing this process? Do you have a set amount of gallons of water you add and an exact measurement of salt to add or do you do this on the fly?

Well, probably about 5 years, and I usually do it that way but not always.. I can't say for sure when I started as I didn't keep track of when I started. So far no issues with it. My biggest problems in reefing have been a heater related crash (or in reality, a laziness related crash, I wasn't checking my heaters often enough) and algae, which relates more to my style of pouring food in the tank than pouring salt in the sump.

I do have a set amount of water. Salt I eyeball it. I know by now roughly how much to add, let it mix while I do something more fun, check it and add as needed. As an ex-chemist I've spent quite a bit of time mixing stuff up, measuring stuff, etc.
Not saying that makes me accurate, but just that I think I've got a good idea of how flexible these things can actually be. By and large salt mixes quickly and evenly at these flow rates. Some of the additives WILL take longer to mix in, but I seriously doubt that has any effect on the corals.

LOL and yes that was a post grenade!

;-) I try.

 

[butts182]

mix it a minimum of 24 hours if you can, but longer if you can do it.

 

[revhtree]

Hey Marc I just got me a 160g poly tank that looks like yours. I saw it in the back ground of one of your pics. It has the black screw on top and then the outlet at the bottom. Couple questions.

Did your smell like plastic real bad and did you rinse it?

How do you have it set up and do you have any pics?

Thanks bro.

 

[Tabasco1]

Love the best/most common practices threads. They are very helpful. Sounds like the best/most common practice is mixing overnight or 12-24 hrs w pump/ph and a heater.

Benny-z you made the comment that you'd be surprised at the alk levels after ~5 days. Have you tested this? If so, what were the results?

A couple posters mention that they test after mixing, is this common? Seems like it would add alot of time and get $$

 

[VegasRick]

I mix mine until its clear, usually 20-30 minutes.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

This stuff wasnt brown, it is white.

It feels like a bacteria coating or something...very strange.

I will mix this next batch only overnight, and if I have the same problem...I guess I will keep trollin this thread ha

 

[CJO]

Any idea what that stuff is? Its gross, hoping it wont happen again especially if I dont let my water sit that long.

See my response in the other thread. It is probably some leftover that is insoluble in water from an incomplete reaction when the salt was made by the manufacturer.

CJ

 

[benny z]

Benny-z you made the comment that you'd be surprised at the alk levels after ~5 days. Have you tested this? If so, what were the results?

yes! try it and see. ime, without anything to buffer mixed saltwater, the alk level falls.

for this reason i try never to mix fresh saltwater for more than 48 hours before using it.

 

[benny z]

This stuff wasnt brown, it is white.

It feels like a bacteria coating or something...very strange.

I will mix this next batch only overnight, and if I have the same problem...I guess I will keep trollin this thread ha

did you heat the water before adding the salt? i have found that if i mix fresh saltwater while the water is still very cold, i'll get a white film in the mix container. however, if i heat the water to normal tank temp before mixing the salt, there is no white film.

 

[melev]

The white film isn't a big deal, other than clean up.

 

[kingfisherfleshy]

See my response in the other thread. It is probably some leftover that is insoluble in water from an incomplete reaction when the salt was made by the manufacturer.

CJ

Same bucket of salt as the previous two times, with no issues. Stuff isnt crusty, and is everywhere...pump, airstone, heater...doesnt seem to be mineral oriented.

did you heat the water before adding the salt? i have found that if i mix fresh saltwater while the water is still very cold, i'll get a white film in the mix container. however, if i heat the water to normal tank temp before mixing the salt, there is no white film.

Water had been running overnight fresh...with pump, aerator, and a heater. The first two times I have premixed my saltwater, I added it right away. Then again my water temp is pretty high when I add it to the bucket anyways.

The white film isn't a big deal, other than clean up.

Except when it comes off of the inside of hosing that is pumping h2o into your tank or buckets...then it makes your water cloudy with particulate.

 

[melev]

Interesting. Perhaps keeping yours running for a longer period of days raised the water temperature to the point you got the white film. I use a Tunze pump to mix salt in my 55g barrel, and it adds no heat at all. I have to add a heater to warm it up to make it tank ready.

 

[revhtree]

Hey Marc did you see my last post buddy?

 

[Aquaph8]

I usually make my water the night before I use it but feel comfortable using it as soon as its mixed up well and the temp is the same as my tank. Never had a white film though.