Do you mix your saltwater the night before a water change?

Emma01

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Hi all. Do you guys mix and heat up your water the night before a WC? Does this affect the chemistry and minerals in the freshly mixed SW for next day?
Is this a good idea? Your ideas and experience please.
Thanks
Emma
 
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Emma01

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i try to mix it up at least 4 hours before if not the day before sometimes i mix up saltwater weeks before and then get it up to temp right before use.
Great, thanks very much. I’ve been mixing it on the day for a years. And now that I’m upgrading from a nano to a 170L, I think mixing it on the day would be quite optimistic !
I’ll mix it the night before/days before and heat it up before I use. Thanks
 

homer1475

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Depending on the salt your using will determine if you need to use it right away, or can store it.

I personally mix up about a enough for a months worth of WC's, no heat , and no mixing after the initial mix.

BRS did a great video on what salts are the best to store and whether they need to be continuously mixed or not, and how long they need to be mixed to be a homogenized mix.

 
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Emma01

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Depending on the salt your using will determine if you need to use it right away, or can store it.

I personally mix up about a enough for a months worth of WC's, no heat , and no mixing after the initial mix.

BRS did a great video on what salts are the best to store and whether they need to be continuously mixed or not, and how long they need to be mixed to be a homogenized mix.


These are brilliant videos and advice
Thanks very much for that!
Emma
 

Waters

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I actually mix mine every sunday and it is used all week long with AWCs.....I have checked the chemistry throughout the week and nothing ever changes (salinity, ALK, Ca).
 

stanleo

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I go to work at 4PM and get home around 11PM. My routine is every two weeks on Monday I start the RODI filter when I get up to take the kid to school and it's finished filling the tub I use for mixing right before I leave for work. I get home from work and mix the salt to 35 ppt and let it sit with a pump and heater over night and do the water change on Tuesday morning after taking the kid to school.

I only forgot the filter was running once. That was fun.
 

Jeeperz

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Reef crystals and salinity both drop in parameters after mixing if not used, by my own testing. Either mixed and stored for a week or constant mixing, parameters both drop. I don't think BRS is telling the whole truth
 

Quietman

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I don't have near the routine some folks have. Also have smaller tank (RSR170). I have two 10 gallon reserve tanks for RODI and one for SW. When I do a water change, I use half to all of it (depending if I'm doing QT or not) and then fill it back up when done. Throw in the salt and let the pump/heater run (pumps on timer 30 min every 6 hours) until next water change whether it's 3 days, a week or longer.

I usually end up tweaking the salinity the day before or morning of by adding 1/3 cup or so of salt.
 

Greybeard

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My NSW barrel holds 4 water changes, I typically refill it after the 3rd, that way I'm never 'empty'...

Best practice: have enough new salt water on hand at all times to do a water change. Never know when something will happen, and you'll NEED that water.
 

Daniel@R2R

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Hi all. Do you guys mix and heat up your water the night before a WC? Does this affect the chemistry and minerals in the freshly mixed SW for next day?
Is this a good idea? Your ideas and experience please.
Thanks
Emma
I do. Many manufacturers recommend a number of hours between mixing and adding to your reef. I figure overnight is a good way to do it without causing my wife anxiety over the buckets being left out in the living room during the day. :cool: #goodhubby
 

Reefer_Rob

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Ive had salt mixed @ temp in my barrel a week or more before I used it. Sometimes ive mixed 25, used 10, then used 15 etc.

No negative effects. Its stable. Heck it stays in the tank for multiple weeks so why not the mixing barrel.

Tropic Marin Pro btw.
 

S.Pepper

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Hi all. Do you guys mix and heat up your water the night before a WC? Does this affect the chemistry and minerals in the freshly mixed SW for next day?
Is this a good idea? Your ideas and experience please.
Thanks
Emma

It depends on which salt you are using. Some mix faster than others and some store better than others. Tropic Marin Pro mixes fast and stores for months without crude building up. It's why I chose it, besides the fact it's pharmaceutical grade salt. I typically heat up the water to the temperature of the tank and add salt. I let it mix with a powerhead for about 4 hours. gl
 
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ReefGeezer

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I mix up 40 gallons at a time. That's about 3 or 4 weeks of water changes. I let it mix overnight before the first change then just leave the mixing pump on but throttle back so it circulates the remaining water and keeps it warm. I use Fritz RPM. I check salinity before using it though. I've had to add RODI to make up for evaporation but otherwise I've never had it change. I've checked alk and the change (up or down) over 4 weeks could be attributed to test kit noise.

I guess I don't understand why salinity or alkalinity would change in an unsealed storage vessel... beyond that caused by evaporation.
 

JCTReefer

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Yep, I mix mine at least a day before a water change. Heated to same temp and specific gravity as tank. I always check my ro/di and make sure it’s reading zero TDS also when making up water. Use Red Sea Blue Bucket. The BRS videos are helpful. I like their little experiments they do. Been mixing since 2000. Same ole routine. I have in emergencies mixed up salt water in a couple of hours. Not ideal, but didn’t have a choice.
 
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SMB

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Usually make my RODI water the day before, add a heater and circ. pump to the 30 gal trash can.
Next morning I add Red Sea salt to the same SpG as the DT and let it mix while I do tank chores. When the water is clear,I do the WC.
I did just buy the
Great little gadget, keeps the floor dry!
 

Stevel

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i try to mix it up at least 4 hours before if not the day before sometimes i mix up saltwater weeks before and then get it up to temp right before use.
I’m going to be mixing my own salt water can you tell me how much salt to use per Gallon I’m getting Red Sea salt now but don’t see how much per gallon on pail ?? Maybe I’m blind ???
Thanks guys
 
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