[dori9941]

The lady at the lfs said 2 cups per gal. If she is right then both my hydrometers are very wrong. Does vinegar cal. them. How am I going to test, can I go by measurements this one time I don't have the car till 6 and can't see after dark and only have $10. till Fri. I have no vinegar. I can afford it and make it to the store. If I need new hydrom. I can't drive that far and might not be able to afford it.

[dori9941]

I think I put 1/2 cup too much. The hydrometer in in middle of good area. the com. is in differant room so, middle of good area on both tanks. I just took out half a g and put it in jug. Then added 1/2 a gal fw to both things of water. is that right? the water is not in the tank so don't freak out on me, lol

[ksreefbuilder]

I ask the same kind of question in a different thread, but have not gotten a response. My LFS said to never use over 1/2 cup per gallon and keep it at 1.023 at max, but online I see everything says to keep it at 1.025 and to add 3/4 to a cup per gallon. Which is it?

[msbdiving]

Read to see at what temp the hydrometer was calibrated for. You will get different sg's at different temps. That could account for the discrepancy. If you have the lfs test, correlate that number to your hydrometer so that you can use that as a reference.

[ksreefbuilder]

How does temp affect the salinity reading? I have done warm and cold water tests and had it read the same everytime. We are just talking about how much salt should be added per gallon of water for a reef mix tank. LFS and internet FS just seems to have different opinions to me, but what is the best to have, high or low salt readings? Drs Foster & Smiths say to have it at 1.025 at all times for best results, but my LFS says it will kill everything in the tank with that high of salt.

[lynnvangsnes]

I use 5 gallon water bottles. To get the SG at 1.022, it takes 2 cups in 5 gallons of water to reach the aforementioned SG. It may vary slightly depending on the type of salt you use, but that should give you a good starting point.

[ksreefbuilder]

Why do you keep it so low? Do you have a reef mix tank?

[msbdiving]

1.020-1.024 is the ideal range. I keep mine at the high end 1.023-24. The warmer the water, the more solute (salt) can be dissolved. A change of 20 degrees in freshwater can have a sg change of 0.002. Here is a site that shows the difference. Water - Temperature and Specific Gravity

You can also do an experiment at home by dumping salt into a glass of water until it reaches its saturation point. Then heat it up and you will find you can add more.

[WILLIAM1]

I use reef crystals and only 1/2 cup per gallon you should test your water before you add it to the tank for proper readings that way if there is to much salt you wont harm your livestock hydometers are not usually wronge.

[ksreefbuilder]

ok, well Drs Foster & Smiths told me to keep the tank at a 72-78 temp range with 1.023-1.025 SP for ideal settings on most fish and corals. Does this sound right to you?

[ksreefbuilder]

Originally Posted by WILLIAM1

I use reef crystals and only 1/2 cup per gallon you should test your water before you add it to the tank for proper readings that way if there is to much salt you wont harm your livestock hydometers are not usually wronge.

yes, this is what I was doing as well, but was just told to raise my salinity from 1.022 up to 1.025 for a healthier tank.

[e_baer]

first off, it depends on what brands everyone is using. second, 1.020-1.025 is the range in red on most hydrometers. In reality, the oceans salinity in many reef areas is as high as 1.027. I have kept my SG at lower levels of 1.023 and have not had as much success in keeping soft corals. So i read how the natural reefs have 1.027 and rasied it to 26, and my corals have been growing a lot more in the past few months than the past year.

[e_baer]

I beleive 1.020 -25 is just a guidline and it also leaves a little room for error, like evaporated water.

[WILLIAM1]

I keep my tank at 1.025 but I have an auto top off system on the tank. I usually keep my tank temp at 79 to 82 degrees but this works for me. I'm moving to Georgia next month and am going to need a chiller becuase of the warmer weather than Wisconsin.

[ksreefbuilder]

Originally Posted by e_baer

first off, it depends on what brands everyone is using. second, 1.020-1.025 is the range in red on most hydrometers. In reality, the oceans salinity in many reef areas is as high as 1.027. I have kept my SG at lower levels of 1.023 and have not had as much success in keeping soft corals. So i read how the natural reefs have 1.027 and rasied it to 26, and my corals have been growing a lot more in the past few months than the past year.

Yes, I think truth be told that for more natural settings you need a higher salinity between 1.025 & 1.027 for a standard. I spoke with a lady at Drs Foster & Smiths about this for about 30 min the other day and she said never to go under 1.023 with any kind of reef tank items or they will die. I think I will just not top off my water for a few days and let my salinity raise to the appropriate range of 1.026 before adding anything else to my tank. Thanks for all the help

[e_baer]

Originally Posted by parsonsc

Yes, I think truth be told that for more natural settings you need a higher salinity between 1.025 & 1.027 for a standard. I spoke with a lady at Drs Foster & Smiths about this for about 30 min the other day and she said never to go under 1.023 with any kind of reef tank items or they will die. I think I will just not top off my water for a few days and let my salinity raise to the appropriate range of 1.026 before adding anything else to my tank. Thanks for all the help

that would be a perfect way to do it because it is nice and slow.

[ksreefbuilder]

Originally Posted by e_baer

that would be a perfect way to do it because it is nice and slow.

great, I think more people need to be made aware of this... At least in my area. Everyone I spoke with locally including all LFS say it is very bad to raise salinity above 1.023, but after looking into it further it is dangerous to let it be that low, with coral/fish tanks atleast. Thanks

[e_baer]

the main reason fish stores keep their salinity at lower levels is because supposedly it will help keep parasites out of the water funnel, but it would have to be down to 1.011 to help reduce parasitic growth. Unfortunately, it is just one of those things someone knows someone, who thought they heard that keeping the salinity at 1.020 is better for coral.

[ksreefbuilder]

Originally Posted by e_baer

the main reason fish stores keep their salinity at lower levels is because supposedly it will help keep parasites out of the water funnel, but it would have to be down to 1.011 to help reduce parasitic growth. Unfortunately, it is just one of those things someone knows someone, who thought they heard that keeping the salinity at 1.020 is better for coral.

That figures. Myths and wives tails have no place in this hobby, they will get people into trouble. Thanks

[e_baer]

you could say that again!

your welcome.

[dori9941]

Originally Posted by parsonsc

ok, well Drs Foster & Smiths told me to keep the tank at a 72-78 temp range with 1.023-1.025 SP for ideal settings on most fish and corals. Does this sound right to you?

thats what mines set at now. every thing went great

[dori9941]

Originally Posted by parsonsc

That figures. Myths and wives tails have no place in this hobby, they will get people into trouble. Thanks

i thought the salt helpes fight parisites

[Lowej82]

I use coralife what the LFS has, I mix in a 2 gallon bucket andput in about 1 1/4 cup, which gets me close to 1.23

[dori9941]

Originally Posted by WILLIAM1

I keep my tank at 1.025 but I have an auto top off system on the tank. I usually keep my tank temp at 79 to 82 degrees but this works for me. I'm moving to Georgia next month and am going to need a chiller becuase of the warmer weather than Wisconsin.

its been a very hot summer down here

[dori9941]

i use instant ocean