Let’s Mix it Up! Designing and Using a Water Mixing Station

[Coral Frenzy]

Great write up! Thank you!

Also, nice setups to everyone else who has shared so far.

 

[dbl]

Great write up mate. I'm in the process of planning / starting to make mine.

Im using 2 blue 55Gal drums. I have a question for anyone that might be able to answer, I couldn't find uniseals where I live so I got bulkheads but obviously the barrel sides are curved. Can anyone see any issues with putting the bulkheads in the base and building a stand to lift the barrels off the ground enough to fit all the plumbing? I was going to build a stand for it anyway, and this way more of the water would be able to drain out too.

Bulkheads in the bottom of the conatiners is not an issue. Actually my first mixing station was made with Brutes and that is exactly how I did it. Just build a stand to accommodate it. Good luck.

 

[rayn]

Great write up!

 

[Rick Gaas]

 

[Joe Rice]

Ordered online from here. Farm supply stores also carry variations of the containers as well. Shipping is the killer if you can't find them locally.

I just ordered two of these from here:

http://www.ruralking.com/ace-roto-mold-rectangle-utility-tank-sp0055-mm.html

Might be a promo but for now, at least, the shipping (to Massachusetts) was free! It does say 4-6 weeks shipping though so no good if you need it sooner.

 

[Dustin1300]

Nice article, having the right setup sure makes life easier!

 

[cromag27]

These have been free shipping for as long as I can remember.

I believe they are drop shipped from the manufacturer which takes more time, apparently.

I just ordered two of these from here:

http://www.ruralking.com/ace-roto-mold-rectangle-utility-tank-sp0055-mm.html

Might be a promo but for now, at least, the shipping (to Massachusetts) was free! It does say 4-6 weeks shipping though so no good if you need it sooner.

 

[jazzmik]

Excellent write up! Moving in a few months but will be using this when I'm settled.

 

[Jackcarp]

I've got a similar design. Definitely helps make waterchanges a lot easier. Takes me maybe 10 mins tops to do one now! I figured the easier they are to do the more likely I am to keep up doing them.

Where did you get your tanks?

 

[Scubafrog]

Thank you for this article and the labeled picture. Very nice explanation for newbies.

 

[gettaReef]

Great write up! I was wondering if you could possibly explain more about your salt hopper? Like some pictures, how it works exactly, where you can purchase the parts , if it is DIY product with several parts or a product that's already built, etc.. Or maybe you can direct me to a site or article with info about them (if you know of one of course). I've been looking online for info on a salt hopper (for what seems like forever!) with minimal luck. Really, just any info you could provide regarding your salt hopper would be very much appreciated!

 

[JBradford]

Thanks for the write up. I'm also currently in the process of designing my station so this will be handy.

 

[Arron209]

Where did you get your tanks?

They are norwesco tanks. I found them online and picked them up locally to save on shipping.

 

[BigAsh]

I'm still working on this but it is mostly there. Inside the saltwater tank (righthand tank) there is a pipe that extends near the bottom with a 90% nozzle to create a clockwise stirring motion. I will be running 1/4-inch tubing from the RO water tank to the DT for ATO using a BRS dosing pump. The tanks are 65 gallon from Rural King (free shipping on these). I have a third 68 gallon low-profile rectangular tank that fits in the back of my SUV that I use to transport ocean water from Scripps Pier in San Diego. I'll store that in the saltwater tank for water changes or mix my own with HW Marinemix Reefer. Valves are all Cepex from BRS. Pump is Vectra M1 (overkill I know but I want DC to adjust the flow depending on what I'm doing and it has to work externally and not have leaky fittings).

 

[revhtree]

I'm still working on this but it is mostly there. Inside the saltwater tank (righthand tank) there is a pipe that extends near the bottom with a 90% nozzle to create a clockwise stirring motion. I will be running 1/4-inch tubing from the RO water tank to the DT for ATO using a BRS dosing pump. The tanks are 65 gallon from Rural King (free shipping on these). I have a third 68 gallon low-profile rectangular tank that fits in the back of my SUV that I use to transport ocean water from Scripps Pier in San Diego. I'll store that in the saltwater tank for water changes or mix my own with HW Marinemix Reefer. Valves are all Cepex from BRS. Pump is Vectra M1 (overkill I know but I want DC to adjust the flow depending on what I'm doing and it has to work externally and not have leaky fittings).

Where is your RO water entering the tanks at?

 

[BigAsh]

Where is your RO water entering the tanks at?

It's not connected yet but it will enter the top of the left hand tank.

 

[dbl]

Great write up! I was wondering if you could possibly explain more about your salt hopper? Like some pictures, how it works exactly, where you can purchase the parts , if it is DIY product with several parts or a product that's already built, etc.. Or maybe you can direct me to a site or article with info about them (if you know of one of course). I've been looking online for info on a salt hopper (for what seems like forever!) with minimal luck. Really, just any info you could provide regarding your salt hopper would be very much appreciated!

The part was ordered here. It’s actually called a specialty rinse tank, but I refer to it as a hopper. I only ordered this since I wanted a shelf above my storage containers - Totally unnecessary but convenient. It’s really nothing but a fancy funnel. But here’s the process I use…

I drilled hole in the shelf the hopper rests in. I didn’t want to put a hole in the top or lid of my saltwater storage container; otherwise, it could be permanently connected the hopper. So I simply fill the SW container with RODI, take the lid off, and insert a small piece of PVC in the bottom of the hopper that extends down and in to the SW container. Set the valves for mixing, turn on the pump, and just pour the pre-measured salt in to the hopper and it funnels down to the SW container. I keep my hose hooked up to the station so I simply rinse out the hopper after I’ve put the salt in, using the hose (as if I’m pumping SW water to the display). Once completed, I just remove the piece of PVC, put the lid back on the SW container and let it mix.

Once the water is mixed, if I need to add additional salt to adjust salinity, I do have room to add via the top of the container…in other words, I don’t use the hopper for minor adjustments. I just didn’t want to have to add 12-15 pounds of salt one cup at a time, hence my setup.

If you really wanted to (and someday I may do so) you could determine how much salt it takes to make X number of gallons. Cap the hopper, put the salt in, and mark the fill point of the hopper. That way, you could simply fill the hopper without really measuring the salt. Small adjustments could be made to get you where you wanted to go.

A little long winded but hopefully that answers your question. If you’d like or need pictures, let me know. As I said earlier, the way I currently use the hopper, it’s really nothing but a really fancy (and expensive) funnel.

 

[steve&mari]

Well now that we're buying our home I've got this on my to do list soon as I can. Hopefully you don't mind if I end up with questions and pick your brain David lol.

I'm thinking about these for ours. They're pickle barrels 50 gallons. Will they be good? I'm hoping so they're 15 bucks around us and kinda like the tops lol.

 

[dbl]

Well now that we're buying our home I've got this on my to do list soon as I can. Hopefully you don't mind if I end up with questions and pick your brain David lol.

I'm thinking about these for ours. They're pickle barrels 50 gallons. Will they be good? I'm hoping so they're 15 bucks around us and kinda like the tops lol.

Ask away Steve...happy to help where I can. I don't see why those barrels wouldn't work as long as you give them a good cleaning. If I'm not mistaken, pickles are cured in saltwater and vinegar, both reef safe...lol. Plus, you can't beat the price!!!

 

[Corey Chism]

This is a great thread. I am looking to set something similar up. I would like to have one pump to mix, push and pull water from the aquarium. Does anyone have a diagram on how to set it up like this. I would like to run a hose to drain, turn some ball Valves and re-fill.