What have I done?!!!! Please HEEEELP!!!

[Angel*Fish]

Just started mixing own water --
Tested tank water - needed a little buffer
Thought up clever idea:idea:
Add buffer to salt water before adding the new water to the tank.

Turned super cloudy!!!:confused:
Didn't see it until I had drained tank water....
Should I go ahead and add it all ? Or should I make new water and put it in without "curing" it ?
Please help!!!
:(

[Angel*Fish]

Adding cloudy water to tank 2cups every 10 min or so - if any body thinks this will spike my pH or hurt the animals, please post
thanks:confused:

Going up to check pH....

[budhaboy]

adding it slowly shouldnt give you a problem, as long as you didnt go beyond the recommended amount estimated for your tank size- the cloudiness will percipitate out and shouldnt be a problem.most buffer directions say to mix the buffer in a cup of Fresh make up water and slowly add to your tank anyway.

[Angel*Fish]

Thanks Budhaboy!!!!!

I did add it to freshwater before adding it to the "new" water - thought it would be a great way to dilute it even further before going into the tank:rolleyes:

I guess it was too much to add to the 3 g that were going into the tank - was doing a quick 10% change on my 30g - didn't turn out to be so quick after all

[Toutouche]

This is still o.k. to add to your tank, just make sure all your other parameters are o.k., and add it a bit at a time just to let it dissipate instead of in one shot. I've made that mistake, and I'm sure lots of others have also. Like I said, as long as the amounts of stuff added is in right amounts for the tank it is going into.

[Angel*Fish]

Thanks Toutouche ! I was really worried - it was only a teaspoon BTW

Never had cloudy water before - it isn't fun

[dragon0121]

It would appear that you should have tested the make-up water to see if it needed buffer. Entirely possible that you didn't need to add anything to the new water. Who knows? I would try and buffer make-up water to match the tank water, then gradually modify over time. Enough of a change comes with the new water, I wouldn't push it further out of kilter by using it to try and fix things like alkalinity, pH, or SG. IMO I would do these over the next couple days, after the water change. You might want to run some tests on the tank water a day or so after the change, and verify if anything is out of whack.

[Angel*Fish]

It would appear that you should have tested the make-up water to see if it needed buffer.

Dragon, thanks for detailed response!
I checked th Ph of both waters but only alk of tank water - which was a little low...
I think your advice is good - it didn't make sense to make sure the temp, sg and pH were about the same and then add buffer for the total 30 g to the 3 g "similar water"!!!:eek1:

Thanks for the help:)

[bradwent]

In case you ever need to mix an emergency batch of water, read this link How to Mix a Batch of Synthetic Seawater in Under Five Minutes (http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/aqfm/1997/sep/bio/default.asp)

I will be honest and tell you that I have not done this myself, never needed to yet. But, it was written by Craig Bingman.

You can then set the container of mixed water in a bathtub of hot water. Should heat it fairly quick, just make sure the mixed water is moving and that you watch the temp so it doesn't go too high.

[Angel*Fish]

WOW - thanks Bradwent! I put that on my favorites list - now I have it if I need emergency water!

Also it was some good information that helped me understand what's going on when you mix your own water - I'm one of those people who kinda needs to either have very exact instructions or preferably some understanding of the "whys" of a process...

Which is not to say that I can completely forget to use my brain as above!!:rolleyes:

Thanks for all the help everyone -- tank is all clear and the splitting BTA almost looks like he's added a third mouth!