Anybody mix their salt in a 5 gallon bucket

[thelawnwrangler]

looking for economical power head to help churn water, but not make my house look like the first 5 rows of Sea Worlds Shamu's enclosure.

Suggestions?

[DamonG]

Originally Posted by thelawnwrangler

looking for economical power head to help churn water, but not make my house look like the first 5 rows of Sea Worlds Shamu's enclosure.

Suggestions?

I actually use a hydroponic pump. 20 dollars from the stores.. Swirls the water nicely without overflowing..

http://tcs-hydroponics.com/product/B...mersible-pump/

[Aquageek450]

I use a orange home depot 5 gallon bucket and a maxijet 1200 pump. works great and mixes quickly and cheap. I then use the maxijet to pump the water right into the tank during a water change. 2.5 cups of reef crystals added gives 1.026 salinity. nice and easy.

[ZeeSparrow]

^^ +1

[thelawnwrangler]

thanks for replies good ideas

might be time for me to have a pump to mix and then pump into display. I pour into a smaller bucket to pour into aquarium, but I generally at least on 1 pour disturb sand bed.

I bought a $7 tetra heater for 5 gallon tank and oddly I am not getting the water heated up quickly lol. I might go a bigger heater or just plan to do it longer.

[jml1149]

If you search Amazon for Power Head Reef Tank plenty of cheap options pop up.

[jml1149]

Depending on the ambient temp that might be an issue. It's cold enough where I mix I had to insulate my 5g bucket to allow it to get warm enough.

[Jscwerve]

In a 5 gallon I just use one of the freshwater undergravel filter powerheads I have laying around. They are like 12 bucks and do the trick.

[thelawnwrangler]

http://www.amazon.com/Rio-Plus-1400-...=maxi+jet+1200

What is the right hose for this pump 3/8" --(Edit I see it says 3/4 ")

I want to run it without hose to mix salt in 5 gallon, and then slap hose on it and fill display when done.

[JMorris271]

I do this for water changes on a 120 gal tank but have to use a 35 gal brute to get enough mixed for an all at once 25% change

[Clownfish Chris]

I agree with the Brute. When I was running my 29gal, I mixed 30gal at a time then stored it in 5gal blue water bottles. I only mixed water every 2 months.

3/4 nylon hose from home depot will be fine for this pump.

[power boat jim]

I use an old salt bucket and a piece of pvc pipe to stir it up. Then, let it set for an hour or so. Cost is $0.00.

[toothybugs]

Originally Posted by power boat jim

I use an old salt bucket and a piece of pvc pipe to stir it up. Then, let it set for an hour or so. Cost is $0.00.

Likewise. When done, set it on a chair and siphon it in to the sump.

It worked for my smaller set up, anyway. Going to the 75DT means I have ~135 gallons in the system so I might build a short stand for a 20H. Still see no reason why I can't run a siphon to drain it, though.

[Clownfish Chris]

Originally Posted by power boat jim

I use an old salt bucket and a piece of pvc pipe to stir it up. Then, let it set for an hour or so. Cost is $0.00.

The problem with this is that there are buffering agents in salts that take time to fully dissolve. Most manufacturers require there salt to mix for 24hrs before adding to the display. When this is not done, the additives in the salt will either precipitate out or not fully establish. I do not know the ins and outs of the chemistry behind this but I have had a much easier time keeping parameters stable once I started doing this.

[toothybugs]

Originally Posted by Clownfish Chris

The problem with this is that there are buffering agents in salts that take time to fully dissolve. Most manufacturers require there salt to mix for 24hrs before adding to the display. When this is not done, the additives in the salt will either precipitate out or not fully establish. I do not know the ins and outs of the chemistry behind this but I have had a much easier time keeping parameters stable once I started doing this.

It's my understanding to do so to allow for proper aeration, which includes CO2 balance with the ambient atmosphere.

I'm not aware of any salt in our mixes that should take 24 hours to fully dissolve.

[power boat jim]

Originally Posted by Clownfish Chris

The problem with this is that there are buffering agents in salts that take time to fully dissolve. Most manufacturers require there salt to mix for 24hrs before adding to the display. When this is not done, the additives in the salt will either precipitate out or not fully establish. I do not know the ins and outs of the chemistry behind this but I have had a much easier time keeping parameters stable once I started doing this.

When I see to the bottom of the bucket clearly I believe everything has dissolved. Dont see any reason to wait much longer. Do what works for you though. It has seemed the longer you wait to use the water the more good stuff that precipatates out onto the sides and bottom of the bucket.

[power boat jim]

Originally Posted by toothybugs

It's my understanding to do so to allow for proper aeration, which includes CO2 balance with the ambient atmosphere.

I'm not aware of any salt in our mixes that should take 24 hours to fully dissolve.

I dont know why a proper balance with atmospheric Co2 levels matter or if its a factor if you use RO water that has been sitting in a container for several days in the same room with the sump.

[skp]

I use a 7 gallon aquatainer and a eheim compact 300. I use dd-h2ocean salt mix and I mix for about 6 -7 hours in 70 degrees F temp (constant temp in my basement). I have found this to be the sweet spot for me. Any cooler temp or shorter time and I will have white undissolved solids at the bottom of the container. Any hotter temp and I'll need to mix less than 4 hours or I'll have brown precipitation in the water and on my pump.

[Vinny Kreyling]

When I did maintenance as long as the new mix was clear it was good to go.

[homer1475]

I mix the day before and have 2 el cheapo nano korralias in my bucket to aerate and mix, next morning before work I throw in a heater. When I get home its perfectly mixed up and at the right temp. Then I use a maxijet 1200 to pump it into the tank.

Its super simple, and exactly 2 1/2C of RC mixes to exactly 1.025.

[heathlindner25]

Originally Posted by Aquageek450

I use a orange home depot 5 gallon bucket and a maxijet 1200 pump. works great and mixes quickly and cheap. I then use the maxijet to pump the water right into the tank during a water change. 2.5 cups of reef crystals added gives 1.026 salinity. nice and easy.

Just for the record the orange buckets are not food grade, but they do sell white 5 gallon buckets that are

[heathlindner25]

Originally Posted by homer1475

I mix the day before and have 2 el cheapo nano korralias in my bucket to aerate and mix, next morning before work I throw in a heater. When I get home its perfectly mixed up and at the right temp. Then I use a maxijet 1200 to pump it into the tank.

Its super simple, and exactly 2 1/2C of RC mixes to exactly 1.025.

I usually have to put closer to three cups to get 1.026 in a five gallon bucket with reef crystals
1/2 cup per gallon should mix to 1.022

[JMorris271]

Is there a limit to the amount of salt that a 5 gallon bucket of water can dissolve ?

[heathlindner25]

I have put as much as 5 cups of salt in a five gallon bucket and it has dissolved

[JMorris271]

Right now my salt is reading 1.005. I need to get it to the proper 1.025-6. Is there another way to do this beside hit or miss? I haven't figured out how to disclude the gallons displaced by rock making use of the salinity calculator not exactly true.