Letting your saltwater age for a water change ??????

[Nickjr000]

Just curious how many people let their water age and how long ? Before performing a water change.

 

[Hawkeye]

i let it sit for about 24 hrs with a pump circulating the water. I use reefcrystals.

 

[Nickjr000]

You nailed it!! 24 hrs and a circ pump.. Same here. I use to not do this with my other tank and i noticed the skimmer would stop skimming for a day. Now the skimmer don't miss a beat. But then again that was a different skimmer and it was more sensitive

 

[dnov99]

24-48 hrs with a powerhead.

 

[reefsandrotts]

24 hrs. pump and heater

 

[blange3]

24 hours minimum with pump, airstone and heater.

I do weekly changes and usually top off and add salt to my 55g barrel right after the water change. So in general I age it a week.

 

[mnat]

We just started mixing our own saltwater last week and we did 24 hours with a pump, glad to know we were on the right track.

 

[Hawkeye]

24 hours minimum with pump, airstone and heater.

I do weekly changes and usually top off and add salt to my 55g barrel right after the water change. So in general I age it a week.

Bill - i was thinking about moving to this - since it woudl also offer "emergency" use having the SW prepped.

But let me ask you this - after 7 days - do you find any "gunk" accumulating at the bottom? Not sure if you use ReefCrystals or some other salt?

 

[vangvace]

Bill - i was thinking about moving to this - since it woudl also offer "emergency" use having the SW prepped.

But let me ask you this - after 7 days - do you find any "gunk" accumulating at the bottom? Not sure if you use ReefCrystals or some other salt?

I'm not Bill, but I do this too. After 7 days I don't have any gunk, but if I leave it for a few weeks (which means mucho time between nano waterchanges ) then a residue will form. RHM says it's harmless though and I haven't seen any ill effects.

 

[blange3]

Bill - i was thinking about moving to this - since it woudl also offer "emergency" use having the SW prepped.

But let me ask you this - after 7 days - do you find any "gunk" accumulating at the bottom? Not sure if you use ReefCrystals or some other salt?

I'm not Bill, but I do this too. After 7 days I don't have any gunk, but if I leave it for a few weeks (which means mucho time between nano waterchanges ) then a residue will form. RHM says it's harmless though and I haven't seen any ill effects.

I hate to agree with a Red Wings fan, but me too. I use Tropic Marin and residue is not an issue. Having emergency backup gives me peace of mind, especially when I travel. I also have another 55 of RO/DI and 14g topoff at all times as well.

 

[Buffalowing]

I store my saltwater in a 20 gallon container, I only change roughly 3-4 gallons a week so it takes some time to go thru the container, I know my water smells semi funky but it looks fine and haven't had any problems, no slime in the can or anything. I generally start a pump & heater in the morning when I wake up, do the water change in the afternoon on the wknds.

 

[Nickjr000]

How long will a batch of freshly made saltwater stay good for? After so long does it start to lose the trace elements and stuff?

 

[Buffalowing]

I don't see how it could, this is brought up occasionly on nano-reef.com & reefcentral and if I remember right the general consensus is it lasts for quite awhile thus why I dont' stress over mine sitting. It gets musty smelling but as long as it's sealed, not like sitting in a garage w/ cars exhaust running into it, etc it should be ok. I don't shoot for filling the can up all the way as I have to haul the trash can to the tanks and I don't enjoy lifting 200 lbs, but mine definatly sits for upto 3-4 weeks at a time before making a new batch.

 

[Scottyrock]

mine is mixed (by stillwell) for 24-36 hours before use. mixes it w/ a pump. i get a 5 gallon pail and do 2.5 gallons weekly. keep it sealed up between uses and have noticed no difference between 1st and 2nd week. i would imagine that it would stay good really long if sealed. the elements and salt in the mix are heavier than water so evap wouldnt lessen the mixture, just make it a lil more saltier

 

[steamman]

24 hrs minimum. I always have mix prepped for emergencies. I always keep top off water in reserve. I do get a whitish brown residue on the bottom of my containers after a while. I clean it out every couple of weeks or three. Don't seem to affect anything I just don't like the way it looks in there. I never had my water smell semi funky or musty. I constantly mix my emergency salt mix and don't let it stand covered or not.

 

[magic]

I aged mine at least 24 hours with a pump. Hawk, I used to use RC and had the same residue in the bucket. I've switched to Tropic Marine and haven't had it since.

Bob

 

[flukeoutofwater]

i let mine sit for at least a day, with a power head in it