Cloudy New Salt Water

Maine_fisher · 10/15/2012, 10:25 AM

Hi All:

I mixed up a batch of Red Sea Pro for water changes for my three tanks and the water never cleared up and I am wondering why. Here is what I did:

1. Added 10 gallons of RO/DI water from my relatively new BRS RO/DI to my 20 gallon Brute trash can that had a couple of quarts of 1.026 residual salt water in it from the last mixing two weeks ago.

2. Heated the water to 78 F with a tank heater.

3. Added the correct amount of water and mixed it up. Salinity is 1.026.

Since then the water has remained cloudy and that was about 20 hours ago. It looks like some of the salt hasn't dissolved. I don't understand what I did wrong. I've used this batch of salt several times before without issue.

I did decided to increase the temp to 82 F and the water has started to clear, but it is by no means clear yet. I also added a small pump to slowly circulate the water. Should I dump this water out and start again?

I would like to know opinions on what is going on and what I should do.

Thanks in advance,

Rick

bigfish14 · 10/15/2012, 11:43 AM

Did you have any form of circulation in the trash can before you added the small pump? Circulation is needed to mix the salt and dissolve it.

DNA · 10/15/2012, 12:11 PM

I've heard that the correct temperature of 77°F (25°C) is important with this salt.
My first two mixes turned out clear but the third one had visibility less than a feet after 24 hours of mixing.
I used it anyway with no apparent ill effect.

C4rN4gE · 10/15/2012, 12:23 PM

Out of curiosity, why slowly circulate the water? As long as its not splashing out, I would vigorously mix it up. This would also help oxygenate the water.

disc1 · 10/15/2012, 03:46 PM

Cooler water will dissolve the calcium and alkalinity mixtures better. That is the cloudiness you're seeing. It's better to mix cold and then heat. Just backwards of what you would think because calcium carbonate has retrograde solubility.

Maine_fisher · 10/15/2012, 04:47 PM

Thanks...good discussion. To answer a question...i only slowly circulated the water because the pump i had available was a very low flow.

Sounds like what some are saying is that i should add my salt then warm the water? Anyone have issues with this?

Thanks,

rick

Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

bertoni · 10/15/2012, 05:28 PM

I always mixed my salt into cold water. It works well. You might be seeing some problems from the high temperature, or the issue might have been adding the salt too quickly, or with not quite enough flow to mix it rapidly enough.

10/15/2012, 10:25 AM	#1
Maine_fisher Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Berwick, Maine Posts: 96	Cloudy New Salt Water Hi All: I mixed up a batch of Red Sea Pro for water changes for my three tanks and the water never cleared up and I am wondering why. Here is what I did: 1. Added 10 gallons of RO/DI water from my relatively new BRS RO/DI to my 20 gallon Brute trash can that had a couple of quarts of 1.026 residual salt water in it from the last mixing two weeks ago. 2. Heated the water to 78 F with a tank heater. 3. Added the correct amount of water and mixed it up. Salinity is 1.026. Since then the water has remained cloudy and that was about 20 hours ago. It looks like some of the salt hasn't dissolved. I don't understand what I did wrong. I've used this batch of salt several times before without issue. I did decided to increase the temp to 82 F and the water has started to clear, but it is by no means clear yet. I also added a small pump to slowly circulate the water. Should I dump this water out and start again? I would like to know opinions on what is going on and what I should do. Thanks in advance, Rick Last edited by Maine_fisher; 10/15/2012 at 10:38 AM.

10/15/2012, 11:43 AM	#2
bigfish14 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Ohio Posts: 406	Did you have any form of circulation in the trash can before you added the small pump? Circulation is needed to mix the salt and dissolve it. __________________ Happy Reefing Joe Current Tank Info: 40B reef tank being transferred into a 20 gallon because of apartment rules

10/15/2012, 03:46 PM	#5
disc1 -RT * ln(k) Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Little Rock Posts: 9,705	Cooler water will dissolve the calcium and alkalinity mixtures better. That is the cloudiness you're seeing. It's better to mix cold and then heat. Just backwards of what you would think because calcium carbonate has retrograde solubility. __________________ David Current Tank: Undergoing reconstruction...

10/15/2012, 05:28 PM	#7
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I always mixed my salt into cold water. It works well. You might be seeing some problems from the high temperature, or the issue might have been adding the salt too quickly, or with not quite enough flow to mix it rapidly enough. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

10/15/2012, 12:11 PM	#3
DNA Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Iceland Posts: 1,516	I've heard that the correct temperature of 77°F (25°C) is important with this salt. My first two mixes turned out clear but the third one had visibility less than a feet after 24 hours of mixing. I used it anyway with no apparent ill effect.

10/15/2012, 12:23 PM	#4
C4rN4gE Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 56	Out of curiosity, why slowly circulate the water? As long as its not splashing out, I would vigorously mix it up. This would also help oxygenate the water.

10/15/2012, 04:47 PM	#6
Maine_fisher Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Berwick, Maine Posts: 96	Thanks...good discussion. To answer a question...i only slowly circulated the water because the pump i had available was a very low flow. Sounds like what some are saying is that i should add my salt then warm the water? Anyone have issues with this? Thanks, rick Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android