Salt is solid

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

Just a quick noob question. I'm about 2/3 of the way through a bucket of salt an I have just discovered that the bottom 2-3 inches were solid.

1) is this ok to use?
2) is there a trick to breaking it up easily?

Thanks in advance

saltyfilmfolks · Aug 25, 2018

It’s most likely water. Salt mixes will suck the water right out of the air.

You can break it up yes.
Personally I’d try to get it as small as possible. I like to shake the bag every time I use the salt.

Smash with hammer

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

saltyfilmfolks said:
It’s most likely water. Salt mixes will suck the water right out of the air.

You can break it up yes.
Personally I’d try to get it as small as possible. I like to shake the bag every time I use the salt.

Smash with hammer

Thanks. Forgot to mention that it has a blue tinge to it.

I swear I'm not Heisenberg [emoji23]

saltyfilmfolks · Aug 25, 2018

Eww. Well , I think that’s above my pay grade there.

#reefsquad

“Should” be ok but....

Rockit · Aug 25, 2018

been there... done that.
left the lid off my salt bucket right next to my mixing barrel. just a bit of splashing and I had a solid mass of salt.

Hammered off chunks and made a brine solution in my blender to make mixing easier. I didn't have much success mixing it as even small chunks. Blend into solution and it worked just fine.

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

saltyfilmfolks said:
Eww. Well , I think that’s above my pay grade there.

#reefsquad

“Should” be ok but....

Haha thanks anyway.

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

Rockit said:
been there... done that.
left the lid off my salt bucket right next to my mixing barrel. just a bit of splashing and I had a solid mass of salt.

Hammered off chunks and made a brine solution in my blender to make mixing easier. I didn't have much success mixing it as even small chunks. Blend into solution and it worked just fine.

Thanks. Did yours look blue as well?

jsker · Aug 25, 2018

Mine was not blue, since it is such a small amount I would suggest tossing it.

I now keep mine in a plastic bag with a tie in the bucket.

DSC reef · Aug 25, 2018

I've had salt rock up like that but never saw a blue tint.

Rockit · Aug 25, 2018

Sottish_Reefer said:
Thanks. Did yours look blue as well?

Not that I noticed. I didn't really pay attention though. I mix in the garage with horrible florescent lighting.
I would assume the perceived hue is just due to the salt as a mass. I don't see how it could have been altered chemically and be harmful.

Crabs McJones · Aug 25, 2018

Same, blue tint is a first. Could it be from minerals settling out in the bucket?

DSC reef · Aug 25, 2018

Mix up a bucket with heavy flow and test after, if the numbers are ok then I'd think your good to go.

Bob Loblaw · Aug 25, 2018

I've had IO brick up a bunch of times but have never seen a blue tint. It's likely fine but I'd toss it. Risk/Reward deal. Salt is cheap, tank crashes are horrific.

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

Crabs Mcjones said:
Same, blue tint is a first. Could it be from minerals settling out in the bucket?

I was thinking it might be something like that. I can't see how that could have happened though.

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

DSC reef said:
Mix up a bucket with heavy flow and test after, if the numbers are ok then I'd think your good to go.

Yeah I will try that. I will get another bucket to use right now. I currently have fish in my QT so don't want to use my bucket to mix water that could potentially just get poured down the drain. I don't have another container or powerhead to mix more at the moment

Will testing for salinity, PH, ALK, MAG, and CAL be enough?

saltyfilmfolks · Aug 25, 2018

Sottish_Reefer said:
I was thinking it might be something like that. I can't see how that could have happened though.

I live a few miles from the ocean. If I forget to rinse the salt cup I use, it’s wet in ten minutes.

Sottish_Reefer · Aug 25, 2018

saltyfilmfolks said:
I live a few miles from the ocean. If I forget to rinse the salt cup I use, it’s wet in ten minutes.

Yeah I noticed that today when I left my salt scoop out

GoVols · Aug 25, 2018

Sottish_Reefer said:
Yeah I noticed that today when I left my salt scoop out

Is it Aquaforest salt that has the blue tint?

DSC reef · Aug 25, 2018

Sottish_Reefer said:
Yeah I will try that. I will get another bucket to use right now. I currently have fish in my QT so don't want to use my bucket to mix water that could potentially just get poured down the drain. I don't have another container or powerhead to mix more at the moment

Will testing for salinity, PH, ALK, MAG, and CAL be enough?

I think that will suffice to be honest.