[thussain93]

i am adding more salt to my aquarium im taking out 25% of the water and putting in new salt. i was thinking to first mix the salt with the water in a bucket and add it but if its the same salinity as the water in the tank won't it overall raise the salt level?

[swinginbeef]

if you mix water and salt in a bucket to the same salinity as the water in the tank, when you add it the combined salinity won't change.

If you mix water and salt in a bucket that has a higher salinity than the water in the tank, when you add it to the tank the combined salinity will go up.

[swinginbeef]

and always mix the salt with water in a bucket, NEVER add salt directly to your tank. I think you probably already know that but something about your wording made me wonder.

[thussain93]

oh yea i kno i wouldnt dare put the salt directly in the tank, yea im just going to mix it in the bucket i just wanted to clarify it thatnks

[bri74]

i mix mine in buckets overnight with power head running for total mixture then check salinity the next day

[glampka]

Best to mix in a bucket overnight to get to proper salinity & temperature.

[pogodzib]

For water changes, you'll want to make up some new saltwater in a bucket at the same salinity as your tank to keep your tank water at the same salinity. Since you are removing the same volume of saltwater as you as adding, your tank's salinity will remain unchanged.

For doing a water top off, you want to add plain RO/DI water since it is only replacing water that has evaporated since the salt doesn't evaporate.