I'm still kindf a noob and got kind of a dumb question so please bear with me...lol

[jmnewman2]

panayiote73, I may just take you up on that offer, I would really love to learn a lot more about that part of the hobby and especially going to a professional lab like that I think would be extremely informative for me. Thank you very much for your extreme generosity!

 

[Matt W]

 

[panayiote73]

View attachment 95746

Very nice! We have a much smaller tank and smaller sediment filters but similar setup. Where are your procon pumps, UV? I presume you have a few judging by the size of those canisters.

 

[higorc]

View attachment 95746

I want an RODI like that. I bet you have no issues coming up with a couple of 0 TDS gallons per hour with that setup



Higor

 

[jdeb101]

Maybe related or not... I have had mixed water (Reef Crystals) prepped for a water change sit next to my tank for 2+ weeks at a time (Being Lazy).
During that time, it has had heat, circulation and light from Display tank Spillage.

I have noticed that my Brute barrel gets a 'Silt' coating of brownish film all on the interior of the barrel that can wipe down easily once the change is done. But, it is definitely bio-growth of some kind.
I have read some older threads about salt mixes leaving residue like film covering the water, and maybe this is just that. But, curiously it's coating the interior of the barrel and not sitting as a film on the water.

Moral of the story: .
I would recommend covering any mixing barrel to inhibit growth. And light is IMO a contributor (Duh, I know) to some kind of growth.

That being said, Unless contaminated with some other agent other than RO/DI and Salt mix, the water going in is still more beneficial to what I am taking out, and my skimmer "Should" be able to handle the trace 'Biological additive' I am putting in.

The same for me (Brute barrel with RC salt). It coats the barrel as well as my circulation pump and heater and for me it does not wipe off easily. Usually it requires a vinegar bath.

 

[panayiote73]

All bacteria, algae, organisms in our world fluorish under the right conditions. Bacteria are opportunistic organisms, so are some algaes. The most hardy and prolific ones encapsulate and/or replicate quickly i.e. E.Coli is one of the fastest at 7min. Every 7 min the colony doubles. You can go from a single organism to billions upon billions in a few hours. Some of the slowest have a doubling rate of ~24hrs. Everything else is somewhere in between. This rate is based on optimum growing conditions. If you cool the temperature down and provide less fuel than the doubling rate slows considerably. Think about the process of Pasteurization. Processing plants knock down the CFU's in milk to a level low enough to keep milk from spoiling in your fridge for 3 weeks. Otherwise it's sour the next day. Dairy farmers now use aseptic techniques to minimize colonization. This is NOT sterilization.
If you heat your water while mixing over several days your speeding up the process. Keep your water cool and use it quickly the CFU's stay low and have minimal effect on your water.