How long should you let salt mix up for?

[Breakthecycle2]

I just made a 5 gallon pail of saltwater for the first time and it's still very cloudy. I have a powerhead and heater in the bucket as well. Is it OK to do a water change? It's been mixing for about 5 hours.

 

[Phranque]

Typically you want to let it mix overnight.... I'd say a minimum of about 12 hours, and then check your salinity before using it.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Thank you

 

[Phranque]

No problem....

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Should the cloudiness go away?

 

[Mrc8858]

Yes, how did you add the salt?

 

[Breakthecycle2]

I added two cups

 

[Mrc8858]

If the salt was added to quickly then you can have pockets of super high alkalinity which will cause the calcium to precipitate or what is some times called a snow storm.

 

[bigbanker]

If the salt was added to quickly then you can have pockets of super high alkalinity which will cause the calcium to precipitate out of the water or what is some times called a snow storm.

Can you please explain this further? Does it affect the amount of calcium going into the tank

 

[Breakthecycle2]

Yeah that's what happened I believe. What should i do? I also just checked the salinity. The new water is 1.28 and my tank is 1.25. Is this going to be a problem?

 

[Mrc8858]

Add ro/Di water to bring it down to the correct salinity. And banker, when alkalinity rises to quickly or to high it causes the calcium to solidify into calcium carbonate I believe its called. This can happen easily if salt is dumped in large amounts and yes it will lower calcium levels in that water since it has precipitated. It doesn't ruin the water really just leaves you with a bunch of sediment and lower reef levels. This is also known to happen when dosing alkalinity. Same thing, if to fast or to high it will happen to the calcium in your tank and there isn't anything you can do but watch it run its course and it can be harmful to corals since its a very fine sediment.

 

[Sniperhank]

I just add the salt first and pour my water into my mixing bucket slowly. I stir it once with a wooden spoon and let it sit over night. Next day I stir it again and it's ready for use, have the amount needed down at this point.

My laziness helps me out with water changes, as I do them slowly with the help of my ato. I siphon out about 2 gallons at a time from the dt and let it refill into my sump. Leave for awhile to clean or whatever else you need to do, come back and repeat. You get a feel for it after awhile.

 

[Breakthecycle2]

So, seperate question, I'm also starting a new tank. How should I be adding the salt when I fill it?

 

[Sniperhank]

You could mix it in the tank, but if the specific gravity is too high the. You'd have to remove water and add ro/di to bring it down. I'd mix it up in batches in buckets.

 

[bigbanker]

Add ro/Di water to bring it down to the correct salinity. And banker, when alkalinity rises to quickly or to high it causes the calcium to solidify into calcium carbonate I believe its called. This can happen easily if salt is dumped in large amounts and yes it will lower calcium levels in that water since it has precipitated. It doesn't ruin the water really just leaves you with a bunch of sediment and lower reef levels. This is also known to happen when dosing alkalinity. Same thing, if to fast or to high it will happen to the calcium in your tank and there isn't anything you can do but watch it run its course and it can be harmful to corals since its a very fine sediment.

Gotcha, thank you for that information