S.G of greater than 1.033 help!

[Lozanoj06]

Hi,

I have a 5 gallon Marine tank and my S.G reading greater than 1.033. I am using a hydrometer. What can I do to correct my S.G.

Thanks!

 

[Peace River]

Welcome to Reef2Reef! Do you have any corals, fish, or invertebrates in the tank? If so, are they acting like they are in distress? Do you mix your own water and do you have access to RODI water? Additionally, you may want to have a local fish store or friend double check your salinity level.

 

[NashobaTek]

Welcome to R2R!! Agree with peace river

 

[Lozanoj06]

Welcome to Reef2Reef! Do you have any corals, fish, or invertebrates in the tank? If so, are they acting like they are in distress? Do you mix your own water and do you have access to RODI water? Additionally, you may want to have a local fish store or friend double check your salinity level.

I currently have two clown fish inside. I do not mix I bought Sea-pure. At first the fish were in distress but they look fine. They are not gaping or having trouble swimming.

 

[Fish Think Pink]

Hi,

I have a 5 gallon Marine tank and my S.G reading greater than 1.033. I am using a hydrometer. What can I do to correct my S.G.

Thanks!

Welcome!

Add RO water SLOWLY over days to get back in line - BUT like posts #2 & #3 said, once you have it confirmed. I had a defective hydrometer that said I was perfect salinity - but instead I was climbing higher than you. I had just changed salt mix bucket and thought my salt was defective ... get a second opinion from local fish store (take your water to them) and go from there.

Glad you joined

 

[CMMorgan]

Agree with all of the above:
1 - calibrate the refractometer, make sure it's accurate
2 - don't rush things - nothing good happens fast in a reef tank
3 - listen to what your tank is telling you
4 - hang in there!!!

 

[P-Dub]

Welcome!
Hydrometers are notoriously inaccurate and unreliable. I would recommend using a refractometer that can be calibrated and calibrate before each and every reading. Barring that, have another individual test with an accurate and calibrated refractometer and if the refractometer states the salinity is correct then know your current Hygrometer readings are what is normal and adjust when those readings fall out of line with 1.033. In other words, 1.033 is the correct value for that hygrometer and adjust salinity in your tank only when out of that range.

 

[Lozanoj06]

Omg thank you all. I will take it my water to get check. You guys rock!!

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Welcome to R2R!!! If I understand correctly, you’re using a swing arm hydrometer? If so I would agree with others that have said get your levels double checked. Swing arms are notoriously prone to giving incorrect readings.

I also agree with @Peace River

 

[fishguy242]

welcome to the reef...
are you topping off evaporation with saltwater?

 

[Lozanoj06]

welcome to the reef...
are you topping off evaporation with saltwater?

No I used distilled water

 

[vetteguy53081]

Assure your salt tester is calibrated for accuracy. If adding saltwater to existing tank where there is water loss, it will increase.

 

[|Frank|]

Welcome to R2R, put some ro water the hydrometer and tap it a few times incase there are any bubbles under the arm if it reads zero it's calibrated. Definitely add ro water slowly in the next couple days to get your salinity down.

 

[PeterC99]

Welcome to R2R and don’t panic. The members here provide excellent advice to take care of all reef problems!

 

[Salty Rambler]

Welcome to R2R! Some great advice above. If the levels are confirmed high, you can use the RO water (or whatever water you use to top off the tank) to help slowly bring the salinity back in line.

 

[ClearRain]

I haven't seen anybody address this yet, the premixed waters (at least the caribsea and nutrisea IME) salinity runs high. I usually see it around 1.028. If you're going to continue using it be sure and test salinity of the jug before using. Cut it with R/O. Honestly though, get yourself a bag of salt mix and pickup R/O at your LFS and mix your own. You'll get alot more for less money and you can mix it to whatever salinity you want.

 

[Poof No Eyebrows]

Welcome
Easy thing to fix the key is to do it slowly. All you need to do is remove a small amount of tank water and replace with equal volume fresh water. Do once and let sit for several hours then repeat. Keep this up until your at your desired level.

 

[vetteguy53081]

 

[JL15219]

Hopefully you got the water issue straightened out....Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[Reefbuds]

Welcome to the reef! Great to see you reached out! Do you have any idea how the salinity got this high? You can do an easy water change of fresh water to bring your salinity down, but you may want to do it slowly depending on your livestock. What livestock do you have? Also make sure your readings are reliable of course.

Also note: If you replace the evaporated water with salt water it will raise the salinity instead of leveling it, I made that mistake when I first started >.>