How to remove moisture from salt mix

[Galeno rocha]

Hi! I accidentally left my salt container open for several days. The salt os ver hygroscopic and absorbed a lot of moisture. It is now wet actually. It is still useable, but it makes it very hard to dissolve and messed up my salt/water proportion. Can I heat it in the oven to remove the water? I have a fish and Soft corals only nano, so I'm not that worried about calcium precipitating.

 

[Dan_P]

Hi! I accidentally left my salt container open for several days. The salt os ver hygroscopic and absorbed a lot of moisture. It is now wet actually. It is still useable, but it makes it very hard to dissolve and messed up my salt/water proportion. Can I heat it in the oven to remove the water? I have a fish and Soft corals only nano, so I'm not that worried about calcium precipitating.

You will not be able to recreate the original salt mix by heating it in the oven. Most likely it will form a hard lump. Why nit dry a tablespoon of the wet salt in the oven and determine if it meets your needs?

 

[P-Dub]

Certainly worth a shot! Report back your findings.

 

[atomos]

I've used this method before in the past...not sure if it's not right but it worked...

Purchase or gather up silica gel packets/Desiccant from vitamin bottles. Add them to a mesh filter bag. And place inside salt mix container

 

[Galeno rocha]

For how many kilos of salt?

 

[Galeno rocha]

Tried the oven method. It came out very clumpy, but mostly breakable and not rock like. Most of it is still a fine powder.
Muito main worry is about weird chemichal changes due to heat. I know that heat can turn bicarbonate into carbonate. Will
it yield a crazy ph after mixing?

 

[Scorpius]

Bag of white rice in a mesh bag.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I'm not sure if the heating helps or hurts the potential to store the salt mix long term, but it doesn't do anything to improve short term use (and may hurt it).