bad experience with coralife salt/why

i started to set up my 100 gal last week i no your suppose to put the sand in 1st but im gonna set it up slow so i dont mind it being clowdy from adding sand later any ways this is what happend filled the tank up with fresh water not ro/di let it sit for a week put chlorine/chloramine remover let sit 2 days added 1.5 bags of coralife salt enough for 75 gals left to mix for 5 days with2 500gph pumps and this is what it looks like if i turned the pumps off when it settled it looked like chalk was on everything does anyone no why? i drained the tank and cleaned it back out and am now filling it back up with salt water from the fish store my friend works there so i dont get charged just gotta make a couple trips

 

That's weird. You only put in enough for 75 gallons into 100 gallons? Well its not like you had to worry about it being supersaturated which is the only thing I can think of as to why it would remain cloudy.

Time for a dumb question: You sure it was salt you tossed in there?

 

Was the water at the right temperature? That is really cloudy after 5 days. It may just be a bad batch of salt, have you tried just putting a small amount of salt in a glass of water to see how it dissolves?

It's a shame you had to drain and clean it all out. How is the tank looking with the pre-mixed water?

 

Could of been some Kalk, that leaves a chalky residue!!!!

 

it should of been salt it was reading in the hydrometer but it really didnt taste salty at all,the water was at room temp i really dont think that was the prob cuz at my lfs there mixing tub is at room temp but it did cross my mind till i looked/talked to my buddy at the lfs,i dont have it any more brought it back too petsmart and traded it for a 40lb bag of live sand it looks perfect with the lfs water

 

What was the reading on your hydrometer? Also it should have smelled salty as well.....ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, I love that smell

 

Ahhh, "Hydrometer" --- that is your problem.

Notoriously inaccurate, esp for a beginner. Readings can be waaay off at any given time for a multitude of reasons.

Recommend getting a refractometer before going any further if you are serious about long term health of tank.

 

I have used that type of salt many times and have never seen that happen.
I always mix mine in a 5 gallon bucket or larger, stirring it or running a pump to mix it up but it does not take longer than a hour or so to clear up.

By the way do NOT use tap water ever. If you do not have a ro/di unit go to a grocery store or somewhere and buy water. I know it is a little trouble with a tank that size. But the potential algae problems that you can create with tap water can be far more irritating and can continue for months.

 

You dont have enough flow to properly mix the salt. Coralife is all I use, and I mix it in 5g buckets with a 300gph powerhead and its crystal clear in like 10 mins. Thats also turn the water over 60 times an hour though. With the pumps you have on it, you're only turning the tank over 10 times an hour, thats pretty low. But the cloudiness will go away, and the chalky stuff is just part of the additives in thats not fully dissolving because of the low flow but will eventually dissovle.

 

I agree with Geekdafied, that you either don't have enough flow to mix the salt using a powerhead, or that's not salt. You should be able to mix in salt to 1.025 SG within a minute by just stirring with your hand or a big serving spoon.