Mixing Salt...

[timmystood]

I've just gone to mix up 100 litres of salt water and reading the back of the salt packet it says I need 34g per litre... so 3400grams for 100 litres of water!! Is that right? Seems an awful lot to me?! Sorry.. i'm still a newbie in Marine

 

[maidenfan]

i put 700grams in 20 litres so at 3400 for 100 litres your not far off remember get your water up to temp first before adding salt dont add it all keep some back mix it well i attach a air pump to airate the water check the sg if you need it higher add more salt until you get the sg you require

 

[timmystood]

OMG!!! That means the £50 bucket of salt I brought will only be enough for 3.5 water changes! So like £50 a month just on salt... then add the price of RO water on top of that (I have no idea how much RO water costs per litre)... WOW! This is gonna be expensive... I'm not gonna be able to afford to do a water change every week.. is there anyway to cut the cost of water changes? Damm.. 3 water changes out of a £50 bucket... WOW!

 

[N1z]

I guess lol sama: just test it every so often when its dissolving if any problesm just add more fresh water in

 

[maidenfan]

where i used to get it from ro water was £2.50 for 25 litres

can i ask what size tank you got? remember you only need do 10%-20% water changes

 

[Siamese Fighter05]

Yeah, remember your only changing 10-20% not the whole tank.

Unless 100 litres is a 10% water change

 

[Mr Miagi]

The amount and volume of a water change depends on how fast the water is polluted. Test your water regularly, and gauge from the results whether or not you need to change water. If you keep coral, there are more parameters and essential elemnts which need replacing, and can be replaced via water changes. You definately dont have to do a water change every week if you keep your stocking levels lower.

Check out TFF's sponser, Osmotics UK for RO unit prices, dirt cheap IMO.

You could cut back the cost of water changes by collecting natural sea water (NSW), rather than mixing synthetic salts + RO water, but that depends on how much you want to change, how much you can lug in your car, how far you live from the beach, and how good the water quality is around Lincolnshire.

 

[timmystood]

..and how good the water quality is around Lincolnshire.

Quality water NSW in Lincolnshire Now that's a good joke!! You can pretty much tread water in Lincolnshire with a bit of toilet roll stuck to your leg... it's a real mess our sea!! Just like one big sewage lake!

Yeah, remember your only changing 10-20% not the whole tank.

Unless 100 litres is a 10% water change

It's a 30 Gallon tank... I thought it would be like tropical i.e. changing about 25-50% every week (I currently do 50%) hence the 100 litres (30 gallons is about 185litres). If it is only 20% a week then that's fantastic news!

where i used to get it from ro water was £2.50 for 25 litres

That doesn't sound too bad.. just means quite a few trips to my LFS (30 mins away) to get it!!
I don't really want to get an RO unit because i'm no good at installing those sort of things!

 

[sparklefuzz]

It's a 30 Gallon tank... I thought it would be like tropical i.e. changing about 25-50% every week (I currently do 50%) hence the 100 litres (30 gallons is about 185litres). If it is only 20% a week then that's fantastic news!

Firstly, 30g is only about 135l, not 185. My 40g is 180l.

Secondly 20% sounds an awful lot to change weekly.... I've done alot of reading and of course everyone has a different view, but I would have thought 10-15% would be ample. So, in that case you'd be looking at 13.5 - 20l a week, which is very different to 100l a week!

I think a water change of 25-50% a week even in freshwater is a very large amount. My tank gets a 20% fornightly and is pristine and the levels are great.

Anyway, your bucket of salt will last ages

 

[Siamese Fighter05]

Yea like Mr M says test your water weekly as you get used to it, You'll start to understand your own tank better with time and can make up you mind how often and how much you want to change to get the levels

10-15% is the norm but every tank is different

 

[timmystood]

OK thanks! I think i'll do just 15% a week then... that sounds right? Then perhaps a 30% monthly just to help everything along?

Can't wait to get going

 

[Chac]

Personally I would leave off doing a 15% weekly WC & replace with a 15% fornightly one

Also you dont have to hard plumb in your RO unit, they can be made portable so that you can use it on an outside tap (like I do) or in the bath (like I did)

I used to get my RO from my LFS but quickly got fed up when he hadnt any made up & I had to go back & forth

 

[Miss Wiggle]

you get attachments for the Ro unit to hook up to an out side tap or a hose...

dead easy

 

[timmystood]

Great!! Could someone link my to a portable RO Unit?? I can't find any

 

[voo]

Have you started the upgrade to marine conditions yet? Liverock, sand etc... or is the tank still as it was, brackish?



Have you started wishing you'd left it as brackish yet?