Did first water change, salanity is lower

My salanity had been high 1.028, as when i first started my tank i topped off with saltwater, not ro/di freshwater, and for the past 5 weeks i've been topping off with r/d fw. I did a 3 gallon water change. I topped off with r/d fw. My salanity went from 1.028, it was that high for the past few weeks, down to a good 1.025

My question, once my cycling is over and when i start doing regular water changes, how will i be able to keep my salanity between 1.023 and 1.025? Now that it's at a good salanity i don't want it to get to low or to high

 

Explore auto top off device options.

 

Do top offs with freshwater and do water changes with saltwater and you should stay in a good range. If you ever need to make adjustments in the future then you can top off with saltwater to raise it or do a water change with freshwater to lower it, but you should rarely have to make adjustments.

 

Measure the salinity of your tank water. After mixing your new saltwater until all salt is dissolved, measure that salinity. Adjust until it matches the tank. Then replace the same amount of water you removed.

 

ok, i have 10 gallons or ro saltwater that's been sitting in the garage for the past few weeks, i'll use that on my next water change

 

what if i get my water from the lfs, i believe they have their salanity at 1.023, as on the first week, before i did sw top offs the tank read the 1.023 and when i did the sw top offs that's when it rose to the 1.028, and now back down to the 1.025

 

I only ever top up with RO water (quite frequently, actually!), and then just use the salt water in the same ratio I always have when I do water changes. It shouldn't change drastically that way, but I always check the salinity as part of my weekly water change to monitor it. What worries me is the fact that all the evaporated water has gone into my house!

 

As water evaporates from your tank, your salinity will rise. Salt doesn't evaporate like water does causing the concentration of salt to water to be higher. By adding fresh water, you are diluting the salt, lowering your salinity. To maintain your levels, add what you lose. If 5 gallons evaporated, add 5 gallons of fresh water back. If you add more than what you lose, your salinity will lower because you have more water to dilute the salt. MAKE SENSE? lol...took me a little bit too. When you do water changes, make sure that the salinity of the water you are making is the same as what is in your display tank. This will ensure that your salinity levels remain the same. To raise the salinity, make saltwater that has a slightly higher salinity. DO NOT RAISE YOUR SALINITY QUICKLY. COULD CAUSE SHOCK. DO THIS OVER THE COURSE OF WEEKS RAISING .001 WEEK. Continue replacing with saltier water. Hope this help......

 

If your salt water source, your lfs, is only 1.023, you either need to start mixing your own, or buy some salt and add some to the water you buy. It will be much difficult to keep it stable if you are trying to obtain a salinity of 1.026 with water that is 1.023 and 0.

This is a good warning in that raising salinty at one time is detrimental and may cause problems with livestock, but .001 a week is a little too cautios IMO. I have raised/lowered it by .003-.004 in a day with no ill affects, and I keep sps, clams and inverts.

 

Cant be too cautious...lol...."ONLY BAD THINGS HAPPEN FAST IN A REEF TANK!".......;D