Salt

[Clownface]

Here a total newbie question. Salt? When cycling an aquarium for the first time when and how much salt do you add to the tank? Any other info would be great.thanks

 

[Crabs McJones]

You add salt right away. You'll want to get a refractometer to measure your salinity. You want to aim for somewhere between 1.023 to 1.026

 

[Clownface]

You add salt right away. You'll want to get a refractometer to measure your salinity. You want to aim for somewhere between 1.023 to 1.026

I have a 36 gal tank. How much salt and what kind of salt or any suggested reading?thanks

 

[jeffrey750750]

I have a 36 gal tank. How much salt and what kind of salt or any suggested reading?thanks

I know with instant oceans reef crystals and tropic marin pro reef its 1/2 cup per gallon

 

[Crabs McJones]

I have a 36 gal tank. How much salt and what kind of salt or any suggested reading?thanks

There are lots of salt brands out there. Most common one I'd say is instant ocean reef Crystal's.
Every mix is different but its generally 1/2 cup of salt per gallon. But again make sure you get a refractometer to measure your salinity to make sure it's at the level you want.
Check out this thread here, might have some valuable info for you

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[vetteguy53081]

Crabs pretty much said it.
I mix in a bucket at proper temp matching the tank and add Prime to water and verify salinity Before entering it into tank

 

[Clownface]

There are lots of salt brands out there. Most common one I'd say is instant ocean reef Crystal's.
Every mix is different but its generally 1/2 cup of salt per gallon. But again make sure you get a refractometer to measure your salinity to make sure it's at the level you want.
Check out this thread here, might have some valuable info for you

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

Any refractometers that you’d recommend? Or are they all pretty much the same?thanks.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Any refractometers that you’d recommend? Or are they all pretty much the same?thanks.

Absolutely! They all for the most part are the same, just make sure yours has ATC. This stands for Automatic Temperature Compensation. Basically saltwater at different temps will show different readings. An ATC refractometer automatically adjusts for temp differences. Takes about 45 seconds but will give you an accurate reading

 

[slojim]

you can use a hydrometer instead - I did for many years before I got a refractometer for Christmas and still use one mostly at my mixing station in the garage, and keep my refractometer at my tank. Hydrometers are cheaper, any LFS will have one. Starting out sometimes simple and cheap is better.
But you raise an interesting question - I do wonder if it is necessary to add salt for cycling if you don't have any live rock and you are doing a fishless cycle - like using a dead shrimp or a bottle. I don't know if the bacteria strains are actually different. I might have to try it one day on my QT to see what happens.
Regardless, the advice would be to add the salt first, use the measures previously provided a as rough guide, but actually measure the salinity in your tank with a hydrometer or refractometer to confirm, fine tune, and keep correct.

 

[Clownface]

Absolutely! They all for the most part are the same, just make sure yours has ATC. This stands for Automatic Temperature Compensation. Basically saltwater at different temps will show different readings. An ATC refractometer automatically adjusts for temp differences. Takes about 45 seconds but will give you an accurate reading

Will this refractometer do? Just making sure.thanks

 

[Crabs McJones]

Will this refractometer do? Just making sure.thanks

Yup!

 

[Sleeping Giant]

I used to use Instant ocean, but switched a month ago, based on everything it has to offer. Plus bonus on their site (below) a calculator for using their salt. I used it and it was bang on, you can add any gallon amount and it will tell you how many cups/ml of salt to use.

https://www.tropic-marin-smartinfo.com/en/sea-salt/pro-reef-sea-salt.html