How many cups of salt?

[Notsolostfish]

I have 20 gallon brute trash containrr 20 gallons. To mix salt. Its my first time mixing salt. Whats the math here? I did 6 1/2. On the instructions it says 1/2 per gallon. So i need to do 20 of those?

 

[I never finish anythi]

Do you have a refractometer???

 

[dstockwell]

1/2 cup per gallon.

 

[Notsolostfish]

1/2 cup per gallon.

So 20 of those for 20 gallons?

 

[tyrym1234]

Get a refractometer or salinity tester. Makes life easy and your fish/coral will thank you.
Sry, to answer your question, its 10cups to 20gallons if it says so on salt container

 

[Notsolostfish]

Get a refractometer or salinity tester. Makes life easy and your fish/coral will thank you

I have a refractometer. But still like how do i know how much do i need left to hit my salinity. And my question was is it 1/2 per gallons meaning 20 1/2?

 

[KStatefan]

1/2 cup/gallon x 20 gallons = 10 cups.

I like to mix a little light then check and adjust as necessary

 

[dstockwell]

So 20 of those for 20 gallons?

Yep but stop one or two short and check salinity.

 

[Idech]

So 20 of those for 20 gallons?

Yes, twenty half cups for 20 gallons.

 

[Fish Think Pink]

I have 20 gallon brute trash containrr 20 gallons. To mix salt. Its my first time mixing salt. Whats the math here? I did 6 1/2. On the instructions it says 1/2 per gallon. So i need to do 20 of those?

You don't say type of salt. You do say what your salt's instructions say to follow.

I've never had salt mix say that, but I have only tried some of the different salts out there.

USE REFRACTOMETER. It is always easier to undermix salt and add salt to bring it up, than it is to mix too salty and add water to bring it down (since likely container for mixing is already filled with water). Also keep in mind that "container" is not filled to top.

It is said in other posts, I've said it here, TEST SALINITY! Do not just go by what I've written or anything anyone else... mix and TEST ideally using refractometer.

 

[Notsolostfish]

Yes, twenty half cups for 20 gallons.

They are saying 10. How did u get 20 and a half

 

[dstockwell]

1/2 cup salt per gallon of water 20 gallons = 20 1/2 cups.

 

[tyrym1234]

I have a refractometer. But still like how do i know how much do i need left to hit my salinity. And my question was is it 1/2 per gallons meaning 20 1/2?

20 x 1/2 cup

 

[Dom]

It depends on the salt mix you are using. Which salt mix do you have?

I use Reef Crystals. It mixes at 35ppt when mixing 1.3 kg per 10 gallons

 

[Notsolostfish]

It depends on the salt mix you are using. Which salt mix do you have?

I use Reef Crystals. It mixes at 35ppt when mixing 1.3 kg per 10 gallons

I have tropic marin

 

[Dan_P]

They are saying 10. How did u get 20 and a half

20 x 1/2

 

[AKL1950]

Direct Salt Addition Calculator

Aquarium calculator; Estimate the amount of solid salt required to raise salinity to a target level.

www.hamzasreef.com

Link above works great for me. You can use it to figure out pounds of salt for gallons you’re mixing. You can also figure out how much additional salt to change salinity of water that you need to adjust.
you need a weight scale. I got one that can handle 50 lbs. I mix 42 gallons at a time, because the bags for 50 gallons doesn’t get you to 35 ppt. The bags are 14 pounds and that will get 42 gallons to 35 ppt. If you want to do, say 20 gallons, it will tell you how many lbs to use.

 

[exnisstech]

Just mix it short then adjust to your desired salinity. It's pretty much a one time thing unless you change salt. If it's 10 cups this time most likely it will be 10 cups next time. I've only used a few different brands but always have to add more than the directions say. I use IO and it almost always needs 32 cups for 28 gallons to reach 1.026.

Don't over think something as simple as mixing salt. There will be plenty of things to over think later.

 

[Scooter21]

Im about to go home and mix up salt for the first time? 1/2 cup per gallon will generally get you to what specific gravity? I have a refractometer. If I'm aiming for 1.022, do I add less than the 1/2 cup to start with and then test and work up from there??

 

[AFHokie]

Im about to go home and mix up salt for the first time? 1/2 cup per gallon will generally get you to what specific gravity? I have a refractometer. If I'm aiming for 1.022, do I add less than the 1/2 cup to start with and then test and work up from there??

Depends on salt but for me with both RPM and IO a half cup gets me right about 1.025

I would rather put a hair more salt because dumping in a bit of RO is easier than trying to put spoonfuls of salt in and wait for it to dissolve.