Stability of stored saltwater

[dgreaney]

I am returning to salt after long absence, and reading a lot to get educated. I am currently converting 210 gallon which is 1 month into cycle.

An opinion I read (and I read a lot of opinions) is that its a good idea to keep mixed saltwater equal to the volume of your tank in the case of an emergency. Doing so is possible, but the local shop says that salt water must be used within two weeks of mixing or it 'goes bad'. Being a scientist by training i struggle with the concept of a salt water mix going bad. that said i am concerned with potential leaching of plastics from a poly storage tank over time. My intent may be to store 200 gallons of mixed water which i use for water changes, adding new water and salt as needed. it then could be kept at temp and mixed, aerated via powerhead or submerged pump.

thoughts?

[captstinky]

Aeration will help keep the pH stable, so it could promptly be used in emergency situations. As far as leaching of plastics- PVC plumbing on the tank would do the same, granted it's less surface area...but no reports of tumorous corals to date. Point is, you might not need to worry about that issue.

Two weeks of storing non-aerated water might be a bacterial issue and hence be 'bad' but I go more than two weeks with water in my systems and do not see 'bad' water.

Since you mention 'turning over the water' by periodically taking some for water changes it is my OPINION that you are in the clear. Make sure you monitor evaporation for specific gravity.

[thegrun]

No problem at all in storing water assuming you use a food grade container with a lid to store it in. It is a good idea to aerate stored water just before you use it, but water does not go bad.

[keezdiver]

i'm interested in the same thing.

while i live close to a free source of semi-filtered water (macro filter) i don't have a means to move more than a 5gal bucket (really only about 4gal to prevent spills) or two.

HOWEVER i do live on an island, with a boat. so i have access to NSW.

i've considered setting up a large rubbermade trash can on my porch and fill it with salt water. this way i can keep it topped off when i'm regularly on the ocean. but for those times when weather keeps me from gettin out...i'll have plenty of "extra"

would storing water in a covered trash can be a bad thing? it should be impervious to light so i can't see too much algae growing.

i've considered adding small amounts of bleach to kill bacteria and algae...then just putting an air stone in it for a week or so to offgas the chorine.

would be much easier to have this than deal with transporting water in my car. the boat can get salty ;)

[sfilipowski]

would the same hold true for stored non salt rodi water as well? would a few weeks of storage in a good container be ok?

[gowingsgo]

I keep 50 gallons of mixed saltwater and 50 gallons of fresh RO/DI water on hand all the time I use about 14 gallons a week for top off and 20 gallons for a water change. I then just top off my holding cans with new RO/DI water and add salt to bring my saltwater holding tank back up to the proper level. I keep a heater and pump in both containers all the time. I have been doing this for the past three years with out any problems. I do clean my salt holding tank out about every 6 months to clean out some of that brown build up from the salt.

[thegrun]

I'm dating myself, but way back in the old days before good salt mixtures were available (or I was too poor to buy it), we used to go out in a boat a few miles from shore to avoid pollution and collect water. We would then store the water in rubber trash cans for a month (the thought at the time was that storing the water for a month would kill off any free swimming parasites). I never had any issues with the stored water.

[bertoni]

Artificial saltwater can be stored indefinitely, no pump or aeration required, just topoff to replace any evaporation.

Actual seawater will contain nutrients, so I'd keep it aerated to prevent anaerobic decay, which has some nasty outputs. Otherwise, it'll store perfectly well, although I might be tempted to filter it, if possible, to reduce any possible nutrient load.

[dgreaney]

Great info. i appreciate the feedback!

[Jhutto]

I would keep it aerated and heated just to be sure....One less thing to worry about.