Holy Salinity Batman!

[RichReef]

Last year my 90 gallon tank crashed. Won't get into those specifics but never really figured out a cause. Set up a temporary 55 gallon in my basement to save what I could.

Since then I've been using it as an experimental tank trying different methods with little success. Nothing has died but nothing has looked good. A friend gives me small pieces of his red monti from time to time to test where I'm at. Sometimes it looks okay, not good, and sometimes it's on the verge of death. Since my crash I've never been able to keep snails.

I'm at Petco a few days ago. The Petco near me has a person that stays on top of their system. All the livestock always looks great. That's beside the point but I thought I'd mention that. I has some extra cash and they had a refractometer in Stock for 30 bucks. So I bought it. I have been using a bobber style hydrometer for years.

Tested the water. 1.035! For real? Calibrated it. Again 1.035. I was heartbroken. How does one of these hydrometers go bad? It had to be good at some point. I used to have great success. Did I slowly crash my tank? Because I was slacking? Was I slacking? I know the buck stops at me.

Now here is my current problem. I headed to the LFS yesterday and bought an IC swing arm and a new bobber hydrometer.

Refractometer says 1.026.
Swing arm says 1.023.
Bobber in a cylinder says 1.020.

Which one do I believe?

We spend a lot of money on this hobby and we put our faith into these companies. Why can't they give us good ****? I'm not blaming them as much as myself but what the heck?

PS. The tank is looking better by the day. Just not sure where to go from here but I'm thinking refractometer.

 

[kinetic]

Refractometers have always been great and consistent for me. I've used the same one since 2005 (have to clean it every couple years). I use two different calibration liquids and use both every month to ensure everything is in check.

Believe the one that constantly shows the same number for your calibration liquids.

I would get two different brands / sources, test both on each of your three. Whichever lines up wins. Do this a couple times just to make sure.

 

[NS Mike D]

pick up calibration fluid and calibrate the refractometer

 

[Scotty Buttons]

I always used a IO swing arm hydrometer, and kept my tank at 1.025 according to the hydrometer. After buying a refractometer from BRS calibrating it and testing my water it was at 1.030. I trust the refractometer.

 

[jsker]

I got tired of mess with conductivity probes, calibration refractometers and went out a bought a digital refractometer. Yes one still has to zero out the digital one if have, but thank only take a few seconds with ro/di water.

Back in the day I had one of the IO swing arms for my fish only, but with corals one need to be more precise

@RichReef I feel your pain, I crashed mine with running to low salinity. This was another reason I made the purchase. My controller was reading everything is OK and it was not.

 

[Cory]

I feel your pain. Its time to make your own reference solution to check those things are correct. Randy holmes farley has an article.

 

[NS Mike D]

I'm pretty lucky, like most folks, I began the hobby using the swing arm. After 2 years I splurged for the refractometer. I compared and my swing arm was dead on accurate. Not that I will go back, just that I was expecting some difference

 

[Cory]

Heres the link. Yiu can make one for the hydrometer and refractometer. Dont trust blindly without double checking.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-06/rhf/

 

[norfolkgarden]

Red sea refractomitor and BRS calibration fluid 1.026.

A gentle bump throws off the refractomitor.
Calibrate every use.

2 old swing arms.
Tapping the bubbles out is supposed to be bad for either model.

Still check the differences between the 3 when I haven't bothered testing in a week and refractomitor shows off from where I expected it to be.

Manual top off every few days and a 10 to 15 gallon water change once a week.

I still do not trust an ATO while I'm working out of town.

 

[WVNed]

You take the one you believe and then calibrate the others to it. Make a mark on the swing arm where 1.026 is. It should always float the arm to that place if the water is 1.026.

I now use a conductivity meter. I calibrated it and then I used it to calibrate my hydrometer. I now have 2 good ways to check my salinity and my methods of testing it.

 

[Cory]

Ive been in this hobby 26 years. Ive owned all those salt measuring devices.

Ive used the pinpoint condictivity meter. It was nice but not precise enough and you needed to use the battery to get an accurate read. The power adaptor didnt work well due to interference.

Ive used swing arm hydrometers. They are not very accurate because the plastic density can change and temperature is a factor.

Used milwakee digital salinity meter. Sits on the shelf. Reason- every read is different and it doesnt measure precise. I need to see 1.0264 not 1.026

Refractometer. Works good but parts are now corroding. Also if you drop it its going to read incorrectly. Plus i dont trust the technology lol. Its using a mirror inside that adjusts based on temp from exspansion and contraction. Incant see it so i cant trust it really.

Lastly ive used as a double check of my refractometer i use a floating glass hydrometer by tropic marin. The reason i love this is there is NO major interferences besides temperature mainly. Gravity is a pretty stable thing to compare against if you know what i mean. The main problem is its glass so dont drop it. So far so good.



This is what i use now:

 

[WVNed]

and there you have it. People have been keeping salt water tanks for a long time and there is no simple answer to tell how much salt is in the water.
There are several methods that work well enough that we get by though.

 

[NS Mike D]

and there you have it. People have been keeping salt water tanks for a long time and there is no simple answer to tell how much salt is in the water.
There are several methods that work well enough that we get by though.

from what I can tell from the posts is that a calibrated refractometer and the glass hydrometer are reliable when properly used and maintained. Neither seems complicated either.

 

[WVNed]

from what I can tell from the posts is that a calibrated refractometer and the glass hydrometer are reliable when properly used and maintained. Neither seems complicated either.

Lot's of people use them. I have been doing this for more than a decade and use neither. I had a glass hydrometer and broke it a long time ago. I like the conductivity meter because it is even easier to use than the swing arm hydrometer.

 

[Cory]

Oh ive also tried the apex salinity probe. What a laugh that was! 300 dollars later and the reading bounced all over the place. Electrical interference in the tank. Electrical interference outside the tank. Dont let the wires cross or it wont read correct. Try it in a glass of tank water... make sure theres no bubbles touching it. What a joke lol

Save your money. Buy the tropic marin glass and scientific thermometer, or a good refractometer. If you want a conductivity meter use the orion meter but it costs a fortune.

 

[NS Mike D]

Oh ive also tried the apex salinity probe. What a laugh that was! 300 dollars later and the reading bounced all over the place. Electrical interference in the tank. Electrical interference outside the tank. Dont let the wires cross or it wont read correct. Try it in a glass of tank water... make sure theres no bubbles touching it. What a joke lol

Save your money. Buy the tropic marin glass and scientific thermometer, or a good refractometer. If you want a conductivity meter use the orion meter but it costs a fortune.

+1

I disagree that we have to settle for "getting by" these three methods are, IMO, (and to repeat ) when properly used and calibrated, which are not that complicated - although one should learn to properly read a hydrometer if they cut that science class in High School

 

[Cory]

+1

I disagree that we have to settle for "getting by" these three methods are, IMO, (and to repeat ) when properly used and calibrated, which are not that complicated - although one should learn to properly read a hydrometer if they cut that science class in High School

To be honest though people would have a higher chance of success if they added grams of salt to kgs of water and get closer to the correct salinity than most swing arm hydrometers would.

 

[WVNed]

I must have one of the really good swing arm hydrometers. It did cost Like $6 in 2007.

 

[NS Mike D]

To be honest though people would have a higher chance of success if they added grams of salt to kgs of water and get closer to the correct salinity than most swing arm hydrometers would.

I love it. I suggested to a new reefer this weekend that if he really wanted to dial in his reef crystal mix, that he consider using a scale and not a measuring cup !!! We left it that he merely take a reading after proper mixing and add more salt accordingly (the box instructions was for a SG of 1.021 thus part of the problem of his ALK being lower than expected)

 

[WVNed]

To be honest though people would have a higher chance of success if they added grams of salt to kgs of water and get closer to the correct salinity than most swing arm hydrometers would.

If I could do it that way I probably would. Because it would work every time. It is how I measure ingredients to make bread. No measuring cups involved.

But I am always mixing some random amount of water in a trash can.