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There was an excellent thread put together quite some time ago now by Billybeau1 and hilgert. I've referred to it may times to see if someone is close to the expected values of a particular saltmix. There can of course be slight variations and if any settling has occurred in the mix before use can cause results to be even farther from the normal numbers.
There's threads all the time with people testing their new salt mix but seems like its always when there's possibly a problem with it.
I'd like this to be a thread of new batches of salt mix tested when there aren't any problems. Get a good array of tests done on different brands. Then compare each one against the original synthetic saltmix parameters thread and compile a set of averages for a particular brand and compare.
Just basics like temp, salinity, alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium. Or at subset of those three but I think temp and salinity level should be published with all the posts. Giving what was used for the testing would be nice too.
Something simple like
Brand:
Temp:
Salinity:
Alkalinity:
Calcium:
Magnesium:
Another good point brought up was
Along with bringing temp up to around 77F or 25C just before testing.
This will not be perfect and useful only as a rough idea of what to expect from a particular brand of salt mix.
My tests done recently from my New Salt mix brute.
Brand: Instant Ocean (IO) nothing added
Temp: 77.2 (Hanna handheld meter)
Salinity: 53mS pinpoint probe and 35ppt veegee refractometer
Alk:10.4dkh Salifert
Ca: 410 ppm Salifert
Mg: 1320ppm Salifert
Edited for
Latest compilation of results of the big 3:
Triton only results
Correction on AquaVitro Salinity
There's threads all the time with people testing their new salt mix but seems like its always when there's possibly a problem with it.
I'd like this to be a thread of new batches of salt mix tested when there aren't any problems. Get a good array of tests done on different brands. Then compare each one against the original synthetic saltmix parameters thread and compile a set of averages for a particular brand and compare.
Just basics like temp, salinity, alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium. Or at subset of those three but I think temp and salinity level should be published with all the posts. Giving what was used for the testing would be nice too.
Something simple like
Brand:
Temp:
Salinity:
Alkalinity:
Calcium:
Magnesium:
Another good point brought up was
To make this as accurate as possible, It wouldn't be a bad idea to make sure the dry salt mix has been thoroughly mixed before using, to eliminat any possible elemental stratification that may have occurred during shipping.
Make sure you're adding the mix to the RO/DI water, and not the water to the mix. Allow the ASW to mix for at least 4 hours before taking any measurements, to ensure a good mix.
Use a properly calibrated salinity measuring device, i.e. Refractometer calibrated with a 35ppt solution, not RO/DI or distilled water, or a probe calibrated with a 53mS solution. If using another type of device, make a note of it.
What kits were used to measure the Ca, Mg and Alk.
Along with bringing temp up to around 77F or 25C just before testing.
This will not be perfect and useful only as a rough idea of what to expect from a particular brand of salt mix.
My tests done recently from my New Salt mix brute.
Brand: Instant Ocean (IO) nothing added
Temp: 77.2 (Hanna handheld meter)
Salinity: 53mS pinpoint probe and 35ppt veegee refractometer
Alk:10.4dkh Salifert
Ca: 410 ppm Salifert
Mg: 1320ppm Salifert
Edited for
Latest compilation of results of the big 3:
Triton only results
Correction on AquaVitro Salinity
Last edited: