What temperature to mix salt?,

[Oregon Grown Reef]

Your new saltwater will be fine. I just mixed up some after letting the ro sit overnight. It was at 75 degrees when I poured in the salt. 40 gallons and I used all of it. The tank looks great.

 

[Notsolostfish]

What do you plan on keeping. Fish? Soft coral, lps, sps?

Fish not suck on what stock yet , lps probably, and soft

 

[fishmonkey]

Fish not suck on what stock yet , lps probably, and soft

I recommend getting the salifert alk test kit at the very least.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Salinity is 1.026 i dont have test kits for other stuff im new to the hobby man. Getting this stuff slowly

But also... You probably shouldn't get the rest of your "stuff" TOO slowly. Before you start to cycle the tank, you will want to have everything you need to ensure it is going as planned. Good luck

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I recommend getting the salifert alk test kit at the very least.

If he just put water in the tank, alk is not really important. Ammonia and nitrate are musts though if you want to know if your tank is safe for fish and inverts.

 

[fishmonkey]

If he just put water in the tank, alk is not really important. Ammonia and nitrate are musts though if you want to know if your tank is safe for fish and inverts.

O yea I forgot about the cycle. He should watch some videos on that

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

A few good references are in the sticky threads on this forum... A good place to start is:

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium This article was sponsored by @MarineDepot at www.marinedepot.com. Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Notsolostfish]

If he just put water in the tank, alk is not really important. Ammonia and nitrate are musts though if you want to know if your tank is safe for fish and inverts.

I got hanna checkers for those, and api test kit for the cycle

 

[Justdrew]

My water storage is in the garage. It’s 95-100 degrees out there. I mix my salt at that temp. Doesn’t hurt anything. I’m using TM PRO. Now if it was Red Sea pro or another high alk salt then I would worry about precipitation.

 

[Moray_SC17]

77

 

[Reef.]

You are fine mixing at 77 and in the tank…the sea is an average of 1.0264 so as long as you keep your tank consistent then any number close to that is good, tho choosing 1.0264 imo is best as it tends to be the standard, if you go lower, then your other parameters such as alk, mag and calcium will all be lower too.

 

[AydenLincoln]

I match my tank temperature so around 77 degrees. It’s best to match it so the salt can dissolve and you avoid shocking any of the animals in the tank especially in a nano where it isn’t diluted as much instantly. I learned my lesson the first time I didn’t with my starfish now I heat and aerate it.

 

[fishmonkey]

I got hanna checkers for those, and api test kit for the cycle

I’m not the biggest fan of the Hanna checkers. I have the alkalinity one and it tested over 1 point higher than what my salifert tested. I checked the forums and found other people had the same problem. I trust the titration method of the salifert over the Hanna. Also I ended up doing more work with the hanna. Cleaning bottles with rodi water. Making sure the bottle is as clean as possible of finger prints before and during tests and scratches etc. The line on the glass is also not accurate and has to use a syringe to get a more accurate sample. Also once the reagent bottle is opened, it can expire much faster than the printed date.

 

[AydenLincoln]

I’m not the biggest fan of the Hanna checkers. I have the alkalinity one and it tested over 1 point lower than what my salifert tested. I checked the forums and found other people had the same problem. I trust the titration method of the salifert over the Hanna. Also I ended up doing more work with the hanna. Cleaning bottles with rodi water. Making sure the bottle is as clean as possible of finger prints and scratches etc. Also once the reagent bottle is opened, it can expire much faster than the printed date.

It’s the opposite for me Salifert are more time consuming/confusing for and it is important to do the checkers correctly. And all test kits will vary when compared against each other.

 

[fishmonkey]

It’s the opposite for me Salifert are more time consuming/confusing for and it is important to do the checkers correctly. And all test kits will vary when compared against each other.

The salifert alk test kit takes me under 4 minutes maybe faster. With the Hanna if I include the cleaning the bottles with rodi and of fingerprints it took over 5 minutes depending. It’s all so stressful. And even when I cleaned the bottles and kept it full of rodi water, eventually the clarity of the bottle inevitable goes down and you have to buy new cuvettes. It’s all so inconsistent.

 

[AydenLincoln]

The salifert alk test kit takes me under 4 minutes maybe faster. With the Hanna if I include the cleaning the bottles with rodi and of fingerprints it took over 5 minutes depending. It’s all so stressful. And even when I cleaned the bottles and kept it full of rodi water, eventually the clarity of the bottle inevitable goes down and you have to buy new cuvettes. It’s all so inconsistent.

I’ve found that you have to do it perfectly. I had the issue the first few times I did them then went to the fish store and found out that making sure the bottle is clean and free of debris/fingerprints as well as completely dissolved reagent gets accurate results for me. In terms of nitrates, phosphates, calcium, and alkalinity. I cross reference it against getting my water tested at the fish store. The getting different results could’ve been because the reagent needed more time to react at least it’s what happened to me.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

As a general rule, mixing at lower temps and mixing as fast as you can will reduce precipitation. With a low alk mix it matters less, with a high alk mix it matters much more.

Certainly, many folks mix water at 70-80 deg F without apparent issues.

I also never heated mine at all, since I used it very slowly in an AWC.