salt water levels

Question
i have had a 1.5 gallon salt water tank with a clown fish and some bristleworms. i recently upgraded to a 10 gallon tank. the salt level was very high at first (above 1.028), but now it is very low (below 1.022). what should i do to get the salt level perfect? should i add more salt until the meter moves? i'm worried all my sea creatures will die...

Answer
hey Brent.

Im sure you have heard that small tanks are harder to keep/maintain then larger tanks...

this is because things like evaporation will affect a smaller tank more radically then the large tank...

i.e.

Salt water does NOT evaporate... Only Fresh water...

So, when evaporation ocurrs in your tank, only the fresh water is evaporating, leaving the salt behind, making the water in the tank more 'saltier'

On a larger tank, a 1/2 gallon wouldnt be much of a relevent change...

PER RATIO

BUT, that does not mean it can not be done...

The first thing you need to do is to get your tank salinity to where you want it...And this depends on what you want to keep in your tank..If it is fish only, then you will want the salinity to be around 1.018-1.024

If you are going to want corals then you will want the salinity to be a bit higher, maybe 1.024-1.026

And those numbers are 'critical', meaning if you dont have that target amount, things wont die... the numbers are just an 'ideal' target to try to achieve...


Going back to maintaining the salinity...

Adjust the salinity to where you want it... remember that after you add some salt, make sure you leave adequate time for the salt to fully dilute and blend with the tank water... I suggest to test right after you add salt and mix it, and then again in 1/2 hour after you added the last salt...

ALSO, while mixing and adjusting the salinity, you want to fill the tank up to the desired height...  if your tank has trim on it, then probably just behind the trim so you cant see water level.. if you want it lower, that is fine also...

The IMPORTANT part of this is to identify where this level is... so that you have the correct salinity and the correct water level...

If you need to make a mark on the tank/glass, you can use a 'sharpie' marker pen.. and draw a line, maybe on the side/back corner...

Now that the saliity is wher eyou want it, and the water level is where you want it... all you have to do when water evaporates, is to add FRESH WATER until the water level returns to the water mark you made...


This process is called FRESH WATER TOP OFF... This should be done OFTEN... EVERY DAY PROBABLY...  again, on a smaller tank, if you want two days, then the water in the tank will get more salty.. the salinity will rise because fresh water is evaporating and it is leaving behind the salt....


Please keep me posted as to what you do and how things work out for you...

It might be easier to carry on a converstaion/dialogue at my new forum..

the address is....

www.thelittleocean.com


for now, just check out the introductions forums, and please start a 'new topic' to introduce yourself....