Reef Crystals Salt Mixing Cloudy - Very concerned please help

[that Reef Guy]

I have been using Reef Crystals Salt for over 5 Years with no problems.

I mixed up a couple of buckets and was about to do one of my weekly water changes on my tanks.

When I took the lid off the bucket I was shocked to see that the water was cloudy.

I am concerned that this could kill fish and coral.

Has anybody else experienced this with Reef Crystals or any other Salt?

I tested the Newly Made Water too.

Temperature - 78
Salinity - 1.025
PH - 8.1
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - 0
Alkalinity 11.7 (Low for Reef Crystals - Usually I measure it at over 13)
Calcium - 580
Magnesium - 1725

I use RO Water too.

I mixed three five gallon buckets and all are cloudy.

If it was one bucket cloudy I would probably blame the heater but this is three cloudy buckets with three different heaters and all are cloudy.

They were made 2 days ago so this is not normal.

Every Bucket I have ever mixed (a Zillion over the last 5 Years) has always been Crystal Clear in like 5 to 10 Minutes.

I have half a bucket mixed up from the last box of reef crystals and it is clear with a slightly higher PH than the cloudy ones at 8.3

Also, the Salt feels odd.

It feel and looks like Powdered Sugar and sticks to my hand like Powdered Sugar too.

In the past Reef Crystals has always felt heavier and more "crystallized" like table salt than the "powdered" way it feels now.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Usctom]

Iv had this happen to me when I added water to the salt or if I left the open bag out and it absorbed water.
The cal and mag seem really high. Your right the alk seems really low for reef crystals.

 

[Usctom]

I'v used the cloudy water in the past with no issues.

 

[that Reef Guy]

Iv had this happen to me when I added water to the salt or if I left the open bag out and it absorbed water.
The cal and mag seem really high. Your right the alk seems really low for reef crystals.

I add salt to the water and mix.

I have been doing it the same exact way for over 5 Years and this has never happened.

I also test my every five gallon Buckets of RO Water with a TDS Meter right before I add the Salt so I know that the RO was definetly good.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I'v used the cloudy water in the past with no issues.

I have talked to a couple friends on the phone and they tell me not to use it.

Do you use Reef Crystals or another brand?

Did your Cloudy Water have super high Calcium or Magnesium like mine do? 580 and 1725

 

[moulton712]

I've had cloudy water, I thought it was the anti caking clay. I used some poly filter tied it around the tube connected to the pump I use to get water out of my brute trash and the next day my water was clean. Worked fine for me.

 

[Usctom]

I use reef crystals. I never tested it specifically when it was cloudy but those numbers seem off from normal reef crystals. If you go on istant oceans website faq they talk about why it would be cloudy.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I use reef crystals. I never tested it specifically when it was cloudy but those numbers seem off from normal reef crystals. If you go on istant oceans website faq they talk about why it would be cloudy.

Thanks for the tip.

I just checked that.

They talk about moisture getting into the salt.

This is not the case as there are no "Hard Clumps."

It is very Soft and "Powdery."

There actually have been a couple times where I did leave the Lid off my Salt Bucket overnight and the Salt Did get Hard and Clumpy.

I actually still used that Salt and it did not make the water cloudy at all.

The only difference was that I had to add more salt than normal because the Salinity was low.

But it did not get cloudy like the Instant Ocean Web Site said and nothing in my Tanks were harmed from using the Hardened Salt.

 

[NanaReefer]

Crazy! Been using RC for 5yrs too and have never run into that issue. Now I've gotten the notorious brown residue but that's it.

 

[that Reef Guy]

Crazy! Been using RC for 5yrs too and have never run into that issue. Now I've gotten the notorious brown residue but that's it.

I get some residue (White/Gray) on my Heaters in the Buckets so I have to clean them off now and then.

Sometimes the Residue flakes off the Heaters and sits on the bottom.

I just try to keep the flakes from going into the tank when I do the Water Change.

Never had a Problem from that though.

 

[NanaReefer]

I don't use a heater. Never have. Room temp has worked very well. It's actually best if you don't from what I've been told.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I don't use a heater. Never have. Room temp has worked very well. It's actually best if you don't from what I've been told.

What is wrong with using a Heater?

Room Temperature is Colder than my Tanks.

People always say to keep things constant.

So wouldn't you want to keep your temperature constant? You need a Heater for that.

 

[NanaReefer]

I didn't say it was wrong did I? But I will say this. Room temp for my makeup water is 76-78, circulation pump adds heat also. Add this to my tank, which temp is 79-80. Once done, I check my tanks temp and there is but a 1 degree difference, sometimes! Definitely NOT a big enough difference to warrant using a energy sucking heater if I don't have to Besides, when it rains that water is much colder isn't it? Lol

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If you only mixed up a portion of a salt bucket, it may have settled in shipping and you may have gotten a larger than usual amount of alkalinity and/or calcium in the salt you used, which could have led to the precipitation.

IMO, I'd let it settle, and if alkalinity is not outside of your desired range, I'd use it.

FWIW, you cannot test cloudy water for alkalinity as the solids will get detected as if it were dissolved.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I didn't say it was wrong did I? But I will say this. Room temp for my makeup water is 76-78, circulation pump adds heat also. Add this to my tank, which temp is 79-80. Once done, I check my tanks temp and there is but a 1 degree difference, sometimes! Definitely NOT a big enough difference to warrant using a energy sucking heater if I don't have to Besides, when it rains that water is much colder isn't it? Lol

I just stir it over and over again with a Spatula.

I do not use any Power Heads to mix the water.

I thought that maybe you were going to say Heaters messed up the water sometimes and that was what made it Cloudy (Stray Voltage, something leaking out of the Heater etc.)

So to be clear the Heater itself could not make the water cloudy, right? Maybe from constantly unplugging it and taking it out and leaving out of the water over and over again a million times, etc.

 

[that Reef Guy]

If you only mixed up a portion of a salt bucket, it may have settled in shipping and you may have gotten a larger than usual amount of alkalinity and/or calcium in the salt you used, which could have led to the precipitation.

IMO, I'd let it settle, and if alkalinity is not outside of your desired range, I'd use it.

FWIW, you cannot test cloudy water for alkalinity as the solids will get detected as if it were dissolved.

It was a bag from a box not a whole bucket.

Do you guys normally mix the dry salt then?

Will that help prevent this?

You say I cannot test the Alkalinity because it was Cloudy but what about the Calcium and Alkalinity? Those two tested very very high (580 and 1725) are those two numbers accurate or can you not test for those either due to the Cloudiness?

 

[that Reef Guy]

I made a couple new buckets to see if they get cloudy.

If they are Cloudy should I just throw all these 4 Bags of Salt Out and Buy a New Box?

If the New Batch is Clear should I Use It or Throw It Out anyways because the Salt may be Contaninated with something?

I do not want to Waste the Salt that I paid good money for.

But even worse would be to use it and Crash a Tank because it was contaminated with something.

What do you guys think?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

So to be clear the Heater itself could not make the water cloudy, right? Maybe from constantly unplugging it and taking it out and leaving out of the water over and over again a million times, etc.

Calcium carbonate is less soluble in warmer water, so the more you heat the water, the more likeyl is precipitation, at least on the heater itself.

The heating of the pump is apparently why Red Sea says to not mix their water more than a few hours.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

It was a bag from a box not a whole bucket.

Do you guys normally mix the dry salt then?

Will that help prevent this?

You say I cannot test the Alkalinity because it was Cloudy but what about the Calcium and Alkalinity? Those two tested very very high (580 and 1725) are those two numbers accurate or can you not test for those either due to the Cloudiness?

Mixing may help, if you are sure you are actually mixing and not encouraging separation. It can be difficult to know.

I use most or all of a bag at once, so I don't have that issue.

Calcium and magnesium solids may also dissolve in their respective tests, although that is not quite so guaranteed. In any case, I don't think those values are high enough to worry about.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I made a couple new buckets to see if they get cloudy.

If they are Cloudy should I just throw all these 4 Bags of Salt Out and Buy a New Box?

If the New Batch is Clear should I Use It or Throw It Out anyways because the Salt may be Contaninated with something?

I do not want to Waste the Salt that I paid good money for.

But even worse would be to use it and Crash a Tank because it was contaminated with something.

What do you guys think?

I'd use it after it settles if alk is OK.