Hyposalinity - How to safely raise levels

[dimik]

When treating via hyposalinity at 1.009 what is the safest way & time frame to raise levels?


If I'm running hypo in a 20G tank how much water should I remove & exchange with higher salinity water?

How often should I change out the water?

What should the salinity of the new water be when adding it to the hypo water to maintain a steady balance?

What is a safe rate of salinity increase per day?

I've read multiple guides and people saying to raise it slowly but, noone gives details as to what slowly is.

 

[canadianeh]

how about dropping the salinity or when bring new fish from LFS? Do we put the fish into QT tank with normal salinity 1.026 and then slowly bring it down to 1.009? OR, do we drip acclimate the fish to 1.009 right away?

 

[ichthyogeek]

No idea, but I know that rotifers can withstand specific gravity changes of .005 every 24 hours. So assuming that fish (which are much hardier) have similar requirements to rotifers when it comes to specific gravity changes, you can probably say you can raise the SG of the tank by .005 SG every 24 hours. Assuming you're aiming for a SG of 1.026, that's a .017 SG change. This translates to around ~3 days of changing the salinity. Let this be the minimum amount of time for you to raise your tank's salinity.

BUT remember that there's a lot of dilution going on. Raising your tank's SG from 1.009 to 1.014 will require you to change out 6 gallons of water at first. But when you want to raise the tank water to 1.019, you'll need to change out 9 gallons. To get to 1.024, you'll need to change 15 gallons...

What may be better, is for you to continue doing your weekly water changes of around 25% or so. Here's a nice table for you to see what happens over time, assuming a 25% water change (5 gallons) each week (rounded to the nearest .001):

Week	SG
1	1.009 (no WC)
2	1.013
3	1.016
4	1.019
5	1.021
6	1.022
7	1.023
8	1.024
9	1.025

For bringing in new fish from the fish store, get them to the store's parameters, then drop the SG accordingly.

 

[Drew1900]

Here’s a calculator that does everything for you https://www.saltyzoo.com/SaltyCalcs/SalinityAdjust.php

 

[dimik]

No idea, but I know that rotifers can withstand specific gravity changes of .005 every 24 hours. So assuming that fish (which are much hardier) have similar requirements to rotifers when it comes to specific gravity changes, you can probably say you can raise the SG of the tank by .005 SG every 24 hours. Assuming you're aiming for a SG of 1.026, that's a .017 SG change. This translates to around ~3 days of changing the salinity. Let this be the minimum amount of time for you to raise your tank's salinity.

BUT remember that there's a lot of dilution going on. Raising your tank's SG from 1.009 to 1.014 will require you to change out 6 gallons of water at first. But when you want to raise the tank water to 1.019, you'll need to change out 9 gallons. To get to 1.024, you'll need to change 15 gallons...

What may be better, is for you to continue doing your weekly water changes of around 25% or so. Here's a nice table for you to see what happens over time, assuming a 25% water change (5 gallons) each week (rounded to the nearest .001):

Week	SG
1	1.009 (no WC)
2	1.013
3	1.016
4	1.019
5	1.021
6	1.022
7	1.023
8	1.024
9	1.025

For bringing in new fish from the fish store, get them to the store's parameters, then drop the SG accordingly.

Thank you for your input. I'll aim for a .005 increase per day.

Here’s a calculator that does everything for you https://www.saltyzoo.com/SaltyCalcs/SalinityAdjust.php

Thanks I use this calculator too but It doesn't tell you how long to wait until the next water change. That's my Q / issue. I don't want to move too fast.

 

[Chad72]

how about dropping the salinity or when bring new fish from LFS? Do we put the fish into QT tank with normal salinity 1.026 and then slowly bring it down to 1.009? OR, do we drip acclimate the fish to 1.009 right away?

Some fish you cant raise or lower the salinity more than . 005 and they can die. Thats being generous. Thats in a 24 hour period. Some you can go from 1.017 - 1.030 in an hour, and they will survive, but it stresses the fish out.
I look at it like this, just like a dog, it cant fend for itself because we took them out of their environment and everything they get, us from us. I want my fish to be happy, and if they beed something, you should always be able to provide as comfortable as they would be free. I know most are raised and bred, but there are small signs they will show when parameters are off.
Stabilty! Dont rinse filters too often either, itll throw the whole tank off.
Ilearned that when i mixed up the existing gravel with new live sand.
Ididnt mix it like i was bearing egg whites, but just gently raked. Nitrogen skyrocketed and nitrites and nitrates.
Idid a couple water changes, new filters and some Prime, because even 40% of a 90 gallon tank - Twice! Still wasn't enough. Prime and ut was great.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Idid a couple water changes, new filters and some Prime, because even 40% of a 90 gallon tank - Twice! Still wasn't enough. Prime and ut was great.

FWIW, I do not believe there is evidence of utility of Prime in any reefing scenario, and I do not recommend it.