Salt Creep Question

[CastAway]

Sometimes my kids tell me "don't be creepy Dad". And, I'm into salt water. So, am I a "salt creep".

Anyway, I spent some time cleaning my sump last night. Where my DT overflow enters the filter sock area of my sump I have some salt creep. I have yet to build a cover for this area.

I’m wondering, is it okay to push the large deposits back into the system? It seems logical that it be okay, even though it kills the foam production in my skimmer temporarily.

 

[143MPCo]

Hello, In my experience it's a "bad thing" so I tend to shop vac it up (once or twice in a three month time span)... I've read more than a few post about people carelessly or accidentally pushing it back into the tank only to find out later that it land on a chalice and burned the section it land on because it didn't fully dissolve.

 

[YodaHart]

I push mine back into the sump. In the entry area it has more than enough time to dissolve and it has to run through filter socks to make its way back to the DT. IME it doesn't cause a problem. I have my area covered and I still get some. It's inevitable and almost impossible to prevent. It even creeps up the PVC pipe that isn't glued.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

You mostly want to be sure that undissolved chunks of salt don't land on creatures.

The chemistry effects are minor, but the dry salt is likely quite deficient in alkalinity since precipitated calcium carbonate won't redissolve.

 

[vic67]

I push it back into the sump; no livestock to worry about in there. Any salt does dissolve eventually and doesn't get back into my DT.

 

[PostShawn]

Yup, back in my simp it usually goes. If you do it often enough it won't be too much of change. I do it about once a month.