new to mixing saltwater help needed

scotty b

Butterfly Fish
#1
I am new to mixing my own saltwater , what salt would be recommended ?
what filter micron sized do I need in a rodi unit ?

any help in this matter would be appreciated

I have a 3 stage rodi by spectra-pure
and 2 55 gallon mixing drums

have a 35 gallon red sea max with soft corals and macro algae
 

jda123

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#2
Whatever comes with the spectrapure is fine. You want the TDS near zero.

1). Dry mix your salt unless you are using a full bag - all of it settles and some worse than others
2). Add salt to cold water - measure and write it down
3). Mix with powerhead
4). Heat the water

Take notes so that you know how much to add next time.
 

sethsolomon

Hammerhead Shark
M.A.S.C Club Member
#3
For Filters, I recommend a 5 micron sediment filter and a 1 micron carbon block , ro membrane, and a DI resin canister.

Alternate option: Do a purtex sediment filter, 5 micron carbon block, 1 micron carbon block, ro membrane, and then pick up a DI chamber and convert your 3 stage to a 4 stage. http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/121217771426?lpid=82



Salt recommendations:

IO Reef Crystals
Fritz Reef Pro (This is what I use)
Tropic Marin
Seachem Salinity (If you don't mind constantly shaking and rolling the bucket)
 

zombie

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#4
sethsolomon;334280 said:
Alternate option: Do a purtex sediment filter, 5 micron carbon block, 1 micron carbon block, ro membrane, and then pick up a DI chamber and convert your 3 stage to a 4 stage. http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/121217771426?lpid=82
That would be a 5 stage. The ro membrane counts as a stage.


Since you have a choice for 2 filters, I would still follow his advice (using a 5 micron sediment filter. Get lots of these, they only last about a month on my 125), but leave out the 5 micron carbon block. A DI canister os a relatively cheap add on that makes a world of difference.
 

TheRealChrisBrown

Reef Shark
M.A.S.C Club Member
ex-officio
#5
I use a 5 gallon bucket, fill it about 1/3 full with RODI water, add your salt mix, stir like crazy to mix and dissolve. Then top off the rest of the bucket, stir and mix again, check salinity, add to tank. That's what I do.

I've ordered replacement filters and DI refills from BRS (Bulk Reef Supply), they seem good and they have packages for 3 stage filters, 4 stages, 5 stages...

Also you can pick up a TDS meter pen cheaply to check your finished RODI water to know when to replace the filters. Something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-TD...UTF8&qid=1417541648&sr=8-1&keywords=tds+meter

Amazon has a bunch of them to look at.
 

SynDen

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#6
sethsolomon;334280 said:
For Filters, I recommend a 5 micron sediment filter and a 1 micron carbon block , ro membrane, and a DI resin canister.

Alternate option: Do a purtex sediment filter, 5 micron carbon block, 1 micron carbon block, ro membrane, and then pick up a DI chamber and convert your 3 stage to a 4 stage. http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/121217771426?lpid=82



Salt recommendations:

IO Reef Crystals
Fritz Reef Pro (This is what I use)
Tropic Marin
Seachem Salinity (If you don't mind constantly shaking and rolling the bucket)
+1 to both Doug and Seth's comments, although I use 1 micron in both my sediment and carbon filters. The salts that Seth mentioned all work pretty good, pick one and run with it. I myself will be switching to Fritz too as soon as I finish out the KENT salt I have, but I have used IO reef crystals and I know Doug (JDA) use IO and has had good results with it. I dont recommend using Kent salt, because its numbers can vary drastically from bag to bag, but IO and Fritz, as well as the other two, all give consistent numbers from batch to batch.
 

FishTV

Sting ray
M.A.S.C Club Member
#7
I use IO, and reef crystals, mix the same way JDA Does, and use 1 micron filters all the way through. You will use slightly more sediment filters, but it will keep your carbon filter cleaner and make better use of its full life.
 

zombie

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#8
jda123;334279 said:
Whatever comes with the spectrapure is fine. You want the TDS near zero.

1). Dry mix your salt unless you are using a full bag - all of it settles and some worse than others
2). Add salt to cold water - measure and write it down
3). Mix with powerhead
4). Heat the water

Take notes so that you know how much to add next time.
Any particular reason you mix with cold water? I have my rodi barrel heated all the time so I dont shock my turtle or freshwater fish when I give them the good stuff. After adding that heater, it seems to dissolve a lot easier and I can check my salinity accurately after 15 minutes (vs several hours)
 
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jda123

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#9
Calcium carbonate won't precipitate as badly when mixing if the water if colder. It mixes more thoroughly with less residue.

I also forgot to include:
Add salt to a full-volume of water
 

sethsolomon

Hammerhead Shark
M.A.S.C Club Member
#10
zombie;334293 said:
Any particular reason you mix with cold water? I have my rodi barrel heated all the time so I dont shock my turtle or freshwater fish when I give them the good stuff. After adding that heater, it seems to dissolve a lot easier and I can check my salinity accurately after 15 minutes (vs several hours)

RODI water with fresh water critters?
 

zombie

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#12
sethsolomon;334298 said:
RODI water with fresh water critters?
Ya. With a teaspoon of salt per 5 gallons (on waterchanges) to give it some trace minerals
 

SynDen

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#16
scotty b;334354 said:
thanks for all the input , greatly appreciated.
@ seth it is the one in the 1st photo

would rodi replacement filters from ebay be a bad idea ?
somthing like this (would get a 1 micton to swap out)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-STAGE-REP...039016304?pt=Fish_Filters&hash=item2a26c42970
Those would prolly work okay, but the membrane and resin cartridge dont get changed very often. Resin about once every 12 month for most ppl, and the membrane about once every 2 years. The carbon block and sed filter though get changed every 6 months, so you will need more of these then anything. Also that membrane is a 150gpd one, and its my understanding that those dont work as well as the 75gpd membranes. I believe the 75 ones last longer and perform better over the long term. And for the resin cartridge, you can buy a refillable cartridge for it and just buy the resin bead and refill when needed.
 

jda123

Dolphin
M.A.S.C Club Member
#17
How bad is the water where you live? It will matter. Up here, we have like 30-40 TDS out of the tap with nearly no sediment and you can almost use it straight up. If your water is really dirty, then you need a 5 micron followed by a 1. You need to plan your RODI for your water, and is not something to do in general.

If you have to switch out a lot of filters and membranes, which add up quick, then you can almost buy a new unit for the same money.
 
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