Getting powdered All for Reef to dissolve

[bluecheese]

I mix the All for Reef per the instructions on the Tropic Marin website:

To prepare the liquid mineral mixture, dissolve 6 level scoops (approx. 160 g) of Tropic Marin® All-For-Reef Powder in approx. 900 ml of reverse osmosis water, resulting in a total of 1 l of dosing solution.

I use a magnetic stirrer. I usually let it mix at full speed for 24 hours or so. But there's always a good bit of undissolved powder left at the bottom of the container. I've tried warming up the water in the microwave, but that hasn't helped.

Any suggestions?

 

[dedragon]

i do it by hand, stupid ik, but i use a glass stir rod and crush any larger salt crystals i see. It takes forever but that is the only way i got them to mostly dissolve

 

[Silverking]

I put mine in an empty iced tea jug and shake the **** out of for couple minutes and it all dissolves

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I've used the spoon and hand method for a few years, but I've recently switched to the bottle shake method.

 

[Chemjab]

Hi there. When I'm in the lab and have a stubborn solid that won't fully dissolve a sonicator usually will get the job done quickly. I just did a quick google search for jewelry sonicator and found this one for $60. Mind I have not tried this brand, but suspect it will work fine. You would transfer the undissolved crystals and some water into a vessel small enough to fit in the sonicator tank and turn it on. It works best if the vessel is suspended, i.e. you hold it off the bottom and sides of the sonicator. Maybe this will help?
https://www.vevor.com/ultrasonic-cl...RQKWEsGZlxrbRkfmqIDXDXTZinhJSCRoaAtJ_EALw_wcB

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I mix the All for Reef per the instructions on the Tropic Marin website:

To prepare the liquid mineral mixture, dissolve 6 level scoops (approx. 160 g) of Tropic Marin® All-For-Reef Powder in approx. 900 ml of reverse osmosis water, resulting in a total of 1 l of dosing solution.

I use a magnetic stirrer. I usually let it mix at full speed for 24 hours or so. But there's always a good bit of undissolved powder left at the bottom of the container. I've tried warming up the water in the microwave, but that hasn't helped.

Any suggestions?

When you say a “good amount”, are you talking about more like 1% or 30% of the solids?

If a small percentage, I’d just ignore it.

 

[crazyfishmom]

I mix the All for Reef per the instructions on the Tropic Marin website:

To prepare the liquid mineral mixture, dissolve 6 level scoops (approx. 160 g) of Tropic Marin® All-For-Reef Powder in approx. 900 ml of reverse osmosis water, resulting in a total of 1 l of dosing solution.

I use a magnetic stirrer. I usually let it mix at full speed for 24 hours or so. But there's always a good bit of undissolved powder left at the bottom of the container. I've tried warming up the water in the microwave, but that hasn't helped.

Any suggestions?

I make it half strength. Dissolves fully within 5 minutes with light stirring in cold RODI.

 

[Reginald Reefer III]

Heat up the RODI prior. Can put more into solution when the solvent temp is higher.

 

[Ryan Souza]

Something doesn't seem right, it normally mixes up in 30 mins with a magnetic stirrer at half speed, but I also make 5l at a time. I also use a scale to weigh it to make sure I have the ratio correct.

 

[twentyleagues]

Large plastic spoon and slightly warm water 80-90 degrees seems to work fine for me. It's usually mixed in about 5 minutes.

 

[exnisstech]

I use a magnetic stirrer for about 30 minutes with rodi at room temp. Twice mine has not mixed clear. When this happens I slowly add a little bit more rodi untill its clear. I found a few posts of others having this issue and that was the recommended fix. It hasn't affected the potency that I can tell. I use a gun powder grain scale to measure so I don't think I'm adding too much powder.

 

[bluecheese]

When you say a “good amount”, are you talking about more like 1% or 30% of the solids?

If a small percentage, I’d just ignore it.

Sorry for the late reply.

I'd say it's about quarter to a half a scoop of powder is let over.

 

[dedragon]

that is a ton left over. is it just this batch or has this been an ongoing issue? Have you checked your rodi tds with a handheld meter?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I am surprised it is that much. Only thing I can think of is alkalinity in the water that was used.

 

[bluecheese]

that is a ton left over. is it just this batch or has this been an ongoing issue? Have you checked your rodi tds with a handheld meter?

There's a meter on the RODI unit that shows 0. I've also had the RODI water ICP tested.

 

[bluecheese]

I am surprised it is that much. Only thing I can think of is alkalinity in the water that was used.

The water is straight from the RODI filter, so I don't know.

 

[flashsmith]

Shake it!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Heating speeds the process, but doesn’t really boost the solubility of calcium formate.

 

[Noodles_Jefferson]

I mix the All for Reef per the instructions on the Tropic Marin website:

To prepare the liquid mineral mixture, dissolve 6 level scoops (approx. 160 g) of Tropic Marin® All-For-Reef Powder in approx. 900 ml of reverse osmosis water, resulting in a total of 1 l of dosing solution.

I use a magnetic stirrer. I usually let it mix at full speed for 24 hours or so. But there's always a good bit of undissolved powder left at the bottom of the container. I've tried warming up the water in the microwave, but that hasn't helped.

Any suggestions?

That used to bug me too. I have since gone back to the Bionic 2 part system. I'm glad i did because for my tank i need to dose slightly less alk compared to the calcium so i prefer having precise control over the two additives

 

[Brian916]

There are a whole bunch of How To videos on YouTube about how to mix this stuff, but I found that the video from @Lou Ekus on BRS was probably the most useful. He describes that at the target concentration, the powder is very close to/at saturation (by design) and you should expect to see a small amount of the product on the bottom of your container. It is fine and guarantees that you are getting a consistent dosage without stratification.

I reccomend doing your mixing by weight to the nearest 1-2 grams with a kitchen scale for consistentcy and slightly increase your water after 24 hours if you still have a lot of undissolved product. I personally do 154g to 900 g of water and find that this gives me just a dusting of product in my jug after a day or two.