Mixing salt

[noob reefer]

Quick question about mixing salt..so I've switched from the cheap LFS brand salt mix to red sea coral pro salt and first time doing water change with new salt I thought I'd see a difference in clarity of water but I didn't.. My steps for mixing are for a 5 gallon water change on my 30gal tank...I use 5 gallon bucket add ro water add my pump then added salt...the instructions for rscp salt said its better in colder water so I didn't add the heater..and it said only mix 2-4 hours so I mixed it for close to 3 hrs checked the SG and it was matched to my tank. But I noticed that the water wasn't completely clear so I heated water to match my tank levels and still wasnt crystal clear.. Is this a proplem ? Is it suppose to be crystal clear in the bucket or am I wrong? My other salt use to clear up over a few weeks in the tank but everywhere I read that rscp salt dissolved very quick. Any suggestions or comments to help or give me more insight on mixing salt. I don't use ro/di water I use just distilled ro water.

[Dmorty217]

Quick question about mixing salt..so I've switched from the cheap LFS brand salt mix to red sea coral pro salt and first time doing water change with new salt I thought I'd see a difference in clarity of water but I didn't.. My steps for mixing are for a 5 gallon water change on my 30gal tank...I use 5 gallon bucket add ro water add my pump then added salt...the instructions for rscp salt said its better in colder water so I didn't add the heater..and it said only mix 2-4 hours so I mixed it for close to 3 hrs checked the SG and it was matched to my tank. But I noticed that the water wasn't completely clear so I heated water to match my tank levels and still wasnt crystal clear.. Is this a proplem ? Is it suppose to be crystal clear in the bucket or am I wrong? My other salt use to clear up over a few weeks in the tank but everywhere I read that rscp salt dissolved very quick. Any suggestions or comments to help or give me more insight on mixing salt. I don't use ro/di water I use just distilled ro water.

Water should mix for 24 hrs before doing a water change. You used distilled water? You said distilled RO water?? Check the DKH of the water your using.

[noob reefer]

I know water should mix for 24hrs but this red sea salt said do not mix for more then 4 or it would precipitate

[lovetoclown]

I've used rscp salt for over a year now. There are many posts on the forum about it and I do believe it one salt that is able to use within a few hours. But nice strong mixing pump, nice cool water and pour the salt in slowly. Also make sure you mix the salt in the bucket because it will become layered during shipping.

[lovetoclown]

I let mine mix over night or even a couple nights sometimes and never have an issue with precipitation.

[noob reefer]

What is precipitation? Trying to figure out if that's what's happing or if the salts just not dissolved. It looks like the salts not dissolved but its mixed for longer then the 2 hr recommended time.

[spikey114]

Coral Pro Salt - Mixing guide for quick and easy …: http://youtu.be/UlIHJ02NaKk

Actually red sea pro salt only needs to be mixed until clear. For me it's literally takes 10 min. If you mix longer it may cause cloudiness.

[noob reefer]

I watched that video b4 doing water change..IMA wait and see because its only been a few hrs since I did my water change..I'm thinking I did mix to long it was close to 3 hrs ..I started it and went to my sons football practice and then came home and did the change so it might a been to long hope it'll calm down by morning. How do you mix yours spikey?

[droog]

I'm one of several reefers here that switched from RSCP to another brand because I could not get that salt to mix clear, whatever I tried.

I mix to 35 ppt, testing with a digital refractometer. My water would start to go cloudy about 20ppt with a strong pump in the bucket for circulation. Same results from three different buckets whatever mixing proceedure I used. It clears up after a day or so in the tank - you can use the water, but why deal with cloudy water every time you do a water change?

I swapped to Reef Cystals by Aquarium Systems - that mixes clear every time using the same mixing station. That salt has similar elevated levels as RSCP.

Some here have no issues with the salt, others, myself included, could never get it to "work" so I swapped and have never looked back.

-droog

[spikey114]

I watched that video b4 doing water change..IMA wait and see because its only been a few hrs since I did my water change..I'm thinking I did mix to long it was close to 3 hrs ..I started it and went to my sons football practice and then came home and did the change so it might a been to long hope it'll calm down by morning. How do you mix yours spikey?

all i do is use a 5 gallon bucket with RO/DI water. Put a pump inside the bucket and add the salt needed and wait until it clears up. I then check the water with my refractometer and add more salt until is 1.026 salinity.

I have a 20gallon nano so a 5 gallon bucket is all i need.

[tmz]

What is precipitation?

In some slat mixes with high alkainity and calcium the calcium and alkainity bind together to form calcium carbonate basically fine particles of coral sand. This can cloud the water and weaken the useful alkainity and calcium content.The Red Sea Coral Pro salt has some unique mixing instructions presumably to avoid that but many reopt some diffculty with it.
I don't know what "cheap lfs salt " you were referencing in your post but many have success with low priced brands like Instant Ocean and Coralife, including me.Sometimes you get what you pay for;sometimes you just pay more.

[noob reefer]

Cheap LFS brand was top fin from pets mart. Thanks for all the suggestions I'll try again next 5 gallon water change I think I just mixed it 2 long besides here I've also seen ppl say it takes just minutes apose to the 2 hr instructions on their website

[Aquarist007]

IMO you will do better buying a brute garbage can and having thirty gals mixed up. Keep a power head in the brute for circulation . I would change 1% of the water daily rather then a big water change. It's very easy that way and very effective

[uncleL]

I'm using Kent Reef Salt Mix its mixed in my 75G tank. I stopped using plastics and my water seems to be much better. 10-15 . percent water change works best for me.

[Aquarist007]

I'm using Kent Reef Salt Mix its mixed in my 75G tank. I stopped using plastics and my water seems to be much better. 10-15 . percent water change works best for me.

It's not the salt mix rather the ro/di water.. A very reactive substance

Brute brand garbage containers stand up the best to ro/ di water

[Anim8me2]

I mix Red Sea for three hours.
Usually 100 gallons at a time. Anything more and it goes cloudy, although it will clear up after an hour if you turn the pump off again.

I change 5 gallons a day.

[RDuhb]

@noob:
I had the same problem with rscp not mixing clear. Some batches weren't that bad but still cloudy. It cleared up fairly quickly in the tank (75g) and never had any adverse affect. I switched to reef crystals about 9 months ago and things are fine. Mixes clear, levels are good, and it's LESS expensive. With rscp, make sure you have a strong pump and add the salt slowly.

[wom001]

i know its not RSCP, but i use Salinity by Aquavitro and it takes a long time to clear up, i usually let if go over night. Btw are you mixing up the salt when you purchase it? I used to not till i read some interesting articles on line and now i usually tip it over and mix up every once in a while to keep everything nice and uniform. I have seen an improvement in the cloudiness when i mix it vs when i don't, it just might be me tho.

[Aquarist007]

i know its not RSCP, but i use Salinity by Aquavitro and it takes a long time to clear up, i usually let if go over night. Btw are you mixing up the salt when you purchase it? I used to not till i read some interesting articles on line and now i usually tip it over and mix up every once in a while to keep everything nice and uniform. I have seen an improvement in the cloudiness when i mix it vs when i don't, it just might be me tho.

If you switch over to the 200gal boxes it eliminates have to do that. The box contains 4 bags which you can shake up before you use it. I go through 1000 gal of salt a month and I've never had to do that however.

[wom001]

I didn't think aquavitro salinity came in boxes with the 225 gallon bucket available. I mainly do it because my lfs has these things sitting for what seems like months. Iv been looking into the 55 gallon barrel they sell to save a little money on the $$ premium price salinity charges but then I couldn't mix it when it came in. :D

[Dan_P]

The notion that it takes 24 hours to dissolve and equilibrate a fresh batch of saltwater is not because salts take a long time to dissolve. They dissolve quickly.

You do want to equilibrate the new salt water with atmospheric CO2. This takes hours with good aeration not days.

The other thing that happens in 24 hours is that a small amount of insoluble material settles out. This stuff can sometimes be seen sticking to the bottom or sides of the bucket. I would guess the amount varies from batch to batch and from brand to brand. I would also guess this is why aquarists using the 24 hour or longer method never see the cloudiness problem.

[Happyreefing11]

I run red sea pro and I mix for 12 hrs with heater and pump with rodi water all salts mix much better with warm water in my opinion and always clear

[Viethuenese]

i mix my red sea for 2 hr, no more then 3..

[Aquarist007]

I didn't think aquavitro salinity came in boxes with the 225 gallon bucket available. I mainly do it because my lfs has these things sitting for what seems like months. Iv been looking into the 55 gallon barrel they sell to save a little money on the $$ premium price salinity charges but then I couldn't mix it when it came in. :D

Your paying a lot for that salt and it's really no better then IO or Reef Crystals
Which come in 200 gal cases for the same price of the buckets

[wom001]

Iv been trying to find the drum of salt and buy aquavitro in bulk to where's it's substantially cheaper. But in any case for the average bucket of reefcrystals sells for around 59 bucks for a 200 gallon case, while salnity runs around 75 to 80 (where I'm at atleast). With salinity you get 225 gallons of saltwater at 1.026 instead of the 200 gallons at 1.024 from reef crystals. So in essence if you like your tank at 1.024 you can dial back the amount of salt you use. That plus the extra salt for 25 gallons seems to even out the price. I know that alone may not merit the 15 to 20 dollar price bump but In the end it's all personal preference. Iv used many different brands of salt including RC and IO and salinity has been the best to me.

[wom001]

Also noob reefer how are you getting your distilled water?

[noob reefer]

Sorry for late response but I've been using the ro filter from Walmart..glacierwater I believe what's its called..I got their maintenance schedule down so I'm usually there right after they service the machine.. I figured this is much better then my city water and I did a TDs test and it was very low I can't remember exactly how low but I can test again soon.

[ReefKeep66]

Following Red seas directions works perfect for me. Mix salt with 68 degree ro water,mix as needed and as soon as the waters clear raise temp and add to tank. Easy.

[chinmoy]

I am new to the Hobby.. so plz help
"Prodac Ocean Fish Salt" is a good salt?

[noob reefer]

Never heard of prodac chinmoy

[woodnaquanut]

I started the current tank w/ RSCP. I could never get it to mix properly. There was always lots of precipitation. I tried cold water, cool water, warm water and very warm water. Always same results - a nice white coating on everything in the barrel. I also hated the fine salt dust. It really irritated my nose!

I switched to ESV's B-ionic and really love it. Yes you do have to measure four things - that takes 1-2 minutes. Yes it's a bit more expensive than RSCP. The two dry ingredients are easy to dissolve so their particle size is much larger that RSCP. No dust! There is NO precipitation. Takes less than ten minutes for complete mixing. Since the two dry ingredients are pure there is no worries about settling during shipping. Also if the dry ingredients get damp and clump they still dissolve completely. An all in one salt like RSCP is useless if it clumps up.

Finally, I have an issue with using a super Alk and CA salt like RSCP. How in the world are you going to keep the tank stable if you add a high Alk and CA salt at every water change?

[chinmoy]

Thanks...
noob reefer