| As sure as night follows day, if you have enjoying | | | | water. You did make a not of how much water it |
| your fresh water aquarium it will not be long till | | | | took to fill your tank right? Salt mixes are |
| you decide you must now have a salt water | | | | normally sold in premeasured amounts. So if your |
| aquarium to complete your aquarist education. It | | | | tank used 10 gallons than a 10 gallon premixed |
| goes without saying that keeping salt water fish is | | | | packet should easily do the trick. It becomes a |
| a heightened experience. The abundance of | | | | little more complicated when your tank held an |
| beautiful colors and species can make a fresh | | | | uneven amount of water. A little math and |
| water tank seem uninteresting. So how to get | | | | instructions on the salt mix packet should get you |
| started. | | | | through this crisis. Be cautious not to over salt as |
| First you will need to know the size of the | | | | it is very difficult to reduce the salt level once it is |
| intended aquarium tank so you can gauge the | | | | added. |
| proper amount of sea water to prepare. Once | | | | Add the salt a cup at a time stirring all the while |
| the tank is purchased the next step is to | | | | with a large wooden spoon or paddle. Now |
| compute its volume. You can do this with a | | | | carefully insert a clean hydrometer. Once the |
| mathematical formula. Measure the inside of the | | | | instrument stabilizes take a reading from it's scale. |
| tank. Width, length and height to the bottom of | | | | Most hydrometers are calibrated at a specific |
| the top rail. Multiply the length x width x depth | | | | temperature. Be sure to check your instruction |
| and divide by 231. | | | | sheet and try to use it when your tank water is |
| For the mathematically challenged there exists a | | | | at the proper temperature. You should find tables |
| manual method. Simply fill the tank using a | | | | in your hydrometer case which will allow you to |
| container whose capacity is known and keep | | | | compute the specific gravity and thus the salinity |
| track of how many containers of water were | | | | of the water. Adjustment can be made by adding |
| used to fill the tank. Now that you know how | | | | or removing fresh water. For instance if the |
| much water the tank holds empty it and fill it with | | | | salinity is too high, remove a cup of water from |
| an equal amount of cold tap water. Now add the | | | | the tank and replace it with a cup of cold tap |
| tank heater and allow it to raise the water | | | | water. |
| temperature to 77 degrees Fahrenheit. | | | | Remember that salinity will increase as water |
| Your next task is to calculate the amount of salt | | | | evaporates from the tank. Because of this you |
| mix required to produce the proper mix of salt | | | | would do well to check your water often. |