my instant ocean batch
- Thread starter aarone
- Start date
aarone
Active Member
well heres what i did,
I put the amount of salt in the rubbermade. Then i put maybe 1/2 a gallon of water in the bin. I thought i had more water but i did not. The mixture was a thick paste. 1 day later i went and got my proper amount of water. I added it and i noticed some foam, but i thought it would be because of the pasty junk. I ran a powerfilter and powerhead after i noticed the cloudiness. It went away in about 10 minutes. Would the foam be associated with the paste or the alkalinity and ph?
here are the readings for the water.
ph is 8.2
the alkalinity is low (my test just tests a range not specific measurments)
is this ok? i know the ph is reasonable but should the alkalinity be better?
I put the amount of salt in the rubbermade. Then i put maybe 1/2 a gallon of water in the bin. I thought i had more water but i did not. The mixture was a thick paste. 1 day later i went and got my proper amount of water. I added it and i noticed some foam, but i thought it would be because of the pasty junk. I ran a powerfilter and powerhead after i noticed the cloudiness. It went away in about 10 minutes. Would the foam be associated with the paste or the alkalinity and ph?
here are the readings for the water.
ph is 8.2
the alkalinity is low (my test just tests a range not specific measurments)
is this ok? i know the ph is reasonable but should the alkalinity be better?
bang guy
Moderator
ahhh.. ok I see now.
ALWAYS...always add the salt to the water while stirring vigorously.
What happened...
You added a small amount of water to a bunch of salt. The Calcium and BiCarbonate levels exceeded what the water could hold so it precipitated and formed tiny crystals of CaCO3 (Calcium carbonate). It's these crystals that are keeping your water cloudy. They will not dissolve unless you get the PH below 7. If you tested Magnesium, it too will be very very low.
Throw out that batch of saltwater and try again.
ALWAYS...always add the salt to the water while stirring vigorously.
What happened...
You added a small amount of water to a bunch of salt. The Calcium and BiCarbonate levels exceeded what the water could hold so it precipitated and formed tiny crystals of CaCO3 (Calcium carbonate). It's these crystals that are keeping your water cloudy. They will not dissolve unless you get the PH below 7. If you tested Magnesium, it too will be very very low.
Throw out that batch of saltwater and try again.
T
thomas712
Guest
Originally posted by aarone
thanx bang!
well that was a waste of money
oh well you learn from your mistakes!
aaron
Waste of money? Be thankful you didn't go ahead and use that batch. Let us know what happens with the next one.
For the record I always put the water in, turn on heater and power head, then add the salt.
Thomas
T
thomas712
Guest
Actually Thank You Aarone, at least someone has given some feed back on testing their water change water before adding it to the main tank, sounds like you still need to do this again and I would really like tok know what happens.
Thomas
Thomas
aarone
Active Member
oh that could make sense. I buy my RO/di from the grocery store, no telling how much they are used. My sister tests groundwater for a living (rock nerd) and i had her test the water to make sure it was good stuff. It tested ok for all minerals and regular deposits. but im sure as time goes by it lets more and more through.
aaron
aaron
