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DIY Remineralisation for RO or Rain Water

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The solubility of calcium sulfate or gypsum is apparently only 2g/L, so making a concentrated premix would be difficult. Given this, would you add the powder directly to your replacement water?

 

Bunnings sells agricultural gypsum and potassium sulfate and epsom, would these be fine for shrimp or does it need to be food grade?

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  • Author
1 hour ago, viridisornatus said:

Bunnings sells agricultural gypsum and potassium sulfate and epsom, would these be fine for shrimp or does it need to be food grade?

Adding the powder directly into the water is possible but is too difficult to estimate  correctly. So try avoiding doing that . 

Bunnings agri grade is fine to use. 

Thanks Jayc! Heaps more economical than Salty.

If you've used gypsum, what's the most premix you would add to stock solution?

  • Author
27 minutes ago, viridisornatus said:

Heaps more economical than Salty

?Hell yeah. Wayyy more economical.

 

28 minutes ago, viridisornatus said:

If you've used gypsum, what's the most premix you would add to stock solution?

What do you mean? Not sure if I understand the question.

Just treat the gypsum as the same as Calcium sulphate (it is calcium sulphate dihydrate). Same quantities as per my first post.

 

Sorry, I mean how much premixed powder would you add to the stock solution so you don't get precipitation/undissolved gypsum.

Also, you wrote earlier that calcium gets used faster than magnesium, so would you change the ratio to increase calcium in later remineralisations? And can you prove this by testing for calcium?

  • Author

Well, assuming you followed the recipe, you would have ~100g of the premix.  I usually dissolve this in 350ml (max 400ml) of rain or RO water. There shouldn't be much undissolved residue. 

As for altering the recipe, I suggest against it. The mix is carefully calculated to give a ratio of Ca:Mg of close to the ideal 4:1.

The mix might not be exactly 4:1 but maybe around 3.8:1 depending on how accurately the ingredients were weighed.

The most I would alter is to maybe increase Ca to 60mg. 

Thanks Jayc :D

  • 2 weeks later...

Great topic, good info, thanks a lot! 

I can't seem to find Calcium Sulphate CaSO4 Heptahydrate or hexahydrate anywhere neither chemical info nor for sale. Do you have any links please Jayc?

  • Author
15 hours ago, viridisornatus said:

 

I can't seem to find Calcium Sulphate CaSO4 Heptahydrate

 

I'm also beginning to find it increasingly difficult to source.

I might have to change the formula to Calcium Chloride CaCl2 - which is easier to find in pool shops or bunnings.

Do you still think the chloride converts to chlorine when the calcium is consumed?

I've been tinkering with Ca/Mg on http://rotalabutterfly.com/nutrient-calculator.php

Your recipe seems to be about Ca:Mg ppm 3.5:1, is that correct?

Thanks :)

*Based on CaSO4.2H2O gypsum

Edited by viridisornatus

  • Author
1 hour ago, viridisornatus said:

Do you still think the chloride converts to chlorine

 No it doesn't. No risk of that happening.

Water dechlorinators turn chlorine into chloride. So chloride is the safer form.

 

1 hour ago, viridisornatus said:

Your recipe seems to be about Ca:Mg ppm 3.5:1

yes, that is roughly correct.

Awesome, thanks Jayc!

On 29-12-2016 at 5:33 PM, viridisornatus said:

I can't seem to find Calcium Sulphate CaSO4 Heptahydrate or hexahydrate anywhere neither chemical info nor for sale. Do you have any links please Jayc?

Got the same problem. Amazing btw that you can dissolve so much more of the Heptahydrate version of CaSO4 instead of the 2grams/liter with the 'normal' Sulphate CaSO4 I've got. 

  • 2 months later...

i'm trying to follow this mix ca:mg  can't find caso4 heptahydrate in my country if i changed to cacl is it ok? also if i changed  Potassium Sulphate (aka Sulphate Of Potash) K2SO4  to kcl since i cant find k2so4 is it possible?please advice guys and thanks for this thread specially to jayc now i managed to survive more crs :)

Calcium chloride will work, but you'll need to use a different measuring formula as they're not interchangeable at the given weights.


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thanks corryjames can you advice how many gr should i give? for k2so4 change to KCl/potassium chloride is it ok?

  • Author
20 hours ago, coryjames said:

 

Calcium chloride will work, but you'll need to use a different measuring formula as they're not interchangeable at the given weights.

 

 

17 hours ago, inuter said:

thanks corryjames can you advice how many gr should i give? for k2so4 change to KCl/potassium chloride is it ok?

 

@inuter,

Coryjames was talking about Calcium Chloride. However, you seem to be talking about Potassium chloride.

Careful you are not mixing the two up.

 

 

Calcium Sulfate dihydrate has a molar mass of approx 172 g/mol.

Where as Calcium Chloride dihydrate has a molar mass of 147 g/mol.

 

You you will need to use less CaCl2.

But my formula on the 1st post was already on the cautious side for calcium. So in theory you could still use the same amount as my calcium sulfate formula on the 1st post.

If you can't find Potassium Sulphate, don't substitute it with potassium chloride. Especially if you are also replacing Calcium sulfate with Calcium chloride. Just leave potassium out of the formula if you can't find potassium sulfate. Most gardening centres will have it.

 

 

 

Edited by jayc

so i will not use potassium chloride @ jayc thanks for your answer

Awesome topic. Wish i saw it before ordering another kg of salty shrimp ?

Edited by anthonyd

  • Author
9 hours ago, anthonyd said:

Wish i saw it before ordering another kg of salty shrimp

It pays to read the threads on SKFA.

  • Author

Aquarium Online Store (AOS) has closed down.

Alas, there goes the easy source of bulk aquarium chemicals.

I suppose we still have Aquagreen.

If any one knows of other sources for bulk chemicals for Aquatic use, please let me know.

  • 3 weeks later...

this is my mix i already make it but without k2so4

IMG_20170407_013955_zpstok6izy3.jpg

i cant find seller who sell salty shrimp in my country so i hope this one can help thanks @jayc and i can find K2SO4 at hidroponik store can i use it? aviary-image-1491504796232_zpskalyoqrv.j

an for Mn and Zn they sell

fertiziler called BASF librel Fe Hi it uses for hidroponik tooPupukLibrelFeHiBASF7FeEDDHAIronChelateBe

PupukMnEDTA13MnEDTAManganeseChelateManga

can i use it for Mn and Zn?

  • Author

Yes you can use ferts from a hydroponics store.

1kg is a lot though. You can make your own  remineraliser and sell it!

The pic is Iron (Fe), not sure why you wrote Zn, which is zinc.

But the iron and manganese chelates are fine to use as well.

Edited by jayc

thanks so much @jayc so i will use it they sell minimum only 1 kilo each no other choice

sorry zn means Mn (typo)

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