Warning! Potential Problem with Kent Salt.

[Beverly]

Whew!!!!!

Just mixed up 2g of RO/DI water (heated and aerated since Sunday, Feb 12) with the Kent salt from one pail from our recent Edmonton group order. All of our pails have a yellow Kent logo. Salt in pails is in a sealed bag, which I have never seen before with any salt I've used (IO and Kent) since I started reefkeeping back in the mid-90s.

Results:

dKH - 8.5 (using Aquarium Pharmaceuticals test kit)
Temp - 79 F (using Hagen stick on tank temp gauge)
SG - 1.026 (using refractometer)
pH - 8.26 (using a Pinpoint pH probe and Hanna Instrument pH controller digital readout)

Am not going to worry about the rest of the five pails, though I am certainly going to wait awhile before ordering more salt, just in case.

[BMW Rider]

Dang, I just ordered two pails of Kent salt. I will see when they get here what batch they are by testing the mix. I hope they are ok, if not I'll be contacting Kent for a suppliment or replacement pails. Thanks for the heads up on this issue.

[Psyire]

Thanks for the test results Bev.

Do you have anyway of testing Calcium & Magnesium? I'm curious to see what they are at. If not, that's fine. It'll be a few days but I'll be able to test these eventually.

[Beverly]

Did the tests shortly after getting out of bed this morning and didn't have time to test Mg or Ca.

[Ruth]

Bev was the salt mixing in the water for 24hrs heated and aireated? I know that I have gotten different readings after the salt has been in the water for 24 or 48 hours.

[Beverly]

Ruth,

The RO/DI water had been heated and aerated since last Sunday after the water change. The salt was added, fully dissolved, then aerated for about 20-30 minutes before testing.

BTW, we mix the salt into the heated and fully aerated RO/DI water not longer than 24 hours before using. After about 36 hours, we've noticed that something precipitates out of the salted water, which could explain your different readings. Or, if you start out with cool, unaerated RO water when you add the salt, you could also get different readings after it has been aerated and heated with the salt in it.

[Ruth]

That doesn't make sense to me. If it is going to percipitate out in a mixing bucket aireated and heated it is certainly going to continue to percipitate out in your tank aireated and heated.

[Ruth]

[quote=Beverly]

After about 36 hours, we've noticed that something precipitates out of the salted water, which could explain your different readings. QUOTE]

I have never noticed anything precipitating out of mine and just wondered what you had noticed out of yours. Maybe I am missing something here.

[adidas]

Originally Posted by Beverly

Salt in pails is in a sealed bag, which I have never seen before with any salt I've used (IO and Kent) since I started reefkeeping back in the mid-90s.

I have Coralife salt bucket and the salt is in 3 sealed bags.

[Ruth]

Tropic Marin is in one big bag inside the bucket as well. I haven't opened any of the Seachem buckets yet as I am using the boxes up first and they each contain 3 50g bags.