Wolf said:
Is it a bad idea to mix salts together reguraly?
I'm not sure why you'd want to. It doesn't "build up" like shampoo, so there's no reason to change in order for it to remain effective. And when you think of the investment you've already made (i.e., tank, rocks, fish, etc.), saving 50 cents by buying a cheaper brand of salt seems hardly worth the trade if you upset the balance in your tank and things start dying, doesn't it? Part of the key to a successful marine tank is consistency, and if you start changing the basic chemistry of your tank(s), you just might upset the balance of the ecosystem.
Honestly, DO NOT SKIMP on your supplies, especially one as basic as salt. Find one that works for you and stick with it. If I found out that Instant Ocean was going out of business, I would stock up with about 20 bags and do the transition to a new salt very, very slowly.
And as far as dissolving, yes, Instant Ocean does take some time to dissolve completely, but most salts do. And once the salt has dissolved, the other chemicals and compounds take a while to break up completely. Even the ones that claim to be faster will usually recommend letting it take a little longer than the minimum time. Again, don't rush...if you add salt compounds that aren't completely dissolved, you might see a saline spike once the salts finish breaking up in your tank.
Instant Ocean recommends 48 hours for complete dissolution...I use this as my
minimum. I mix 30-40 gallons at a time...I add my
RO water, a few drops of Prime for slimecoat, my salt, two powerheads and a pre-calibrated heater, throw on the lid and leave it alone. 24 hours later, I check my salinity to see if it needs an adjustment and let it continue to cook. By the time I get ready to use it, it's exactly the right temperature, everything is completely dissolved and it's fully aerated. As long as you plan ahead, the waiting time is minimal.
I've had one or two emergencies where I needed some salt water quickly and couldn't wait for natural dissolution, so I added 1 cup of IO to some distilled water and brought it to a boil. The heat greatly speeds up the dissolution rate (I knew Home Economics would come in handy some day). Then add this to enough room temperature water to bring it down to 80 degrees and it gave me enough water to tide me over until I could get some prepared correctly. I don't recommend this method for standard practice, just a matter of urgency, and if you use it, be very careful not to scald your fish.
--Aquabear