Scripps Water

[ChrisMaree]

Since it only rained a couple of days ago, is it a bad idea to get water from Scripps this afternoon? TIA

[Techknowledgy]

I got some yesterday. I have not tested it yet, but there really was not thta much rain, so I trust that it is safe. Just test it first.

[afitzwater]

I got some yesterday and it tested fine....I live 2 min from there and we got about 5 actual minutes of rain

[pk-sd]

It should be good. There was hardly any run-off. Good to see you are going to give Scripps a try:) . How is the leather frag doing ?

[ChrisMaree]

Hi PK, yes, I'm looking forward to trying something new (especially after hearing of your results). It was a pleasure meeting you as well. The frag opened up almost immediately. I love the neon green! Thank you!!!

[ChrisMaree]

Please excuse my ignorance, but what exactly are you testing for?

[Techknowledgy]

I check the salinity. It is often high, but it varies depending on the weather. Also, phosphates seem to be an issue. I also check for calcium and alk, and dose appropriately when I add the water. I do need to let you know that more times than not, the water is within acceptable parameters for a water change of 10-20%. My tank was initially set up with a salt mix, but since June I have been doing a 20% water change every other week (I have a LOT of fish) using Scripps water with no problems whatsoever.

[mazilla]

just a question, what do all the scripps users do during heavy rains, especially if/when it last for weeks at a time?

[Techknowledgy]

Go back to making water as a last resort. I am glad you thought about this though Maz, because I am going to invest in more water containers to make sure I have a months worth of water on hand. (I WISH it would rain for weeks........ we could really use the water!) From what I have read here Scripps water keeps for quite some time if just kept in a cool, dark place. (Like my garage)

[ChrisMaree]

Really great info. I've had my tank for 2 1/2 years and have been putting off Scripps water mostly due to lack of confidence. I'm ready to take the plundge.

[pk-sd]

I store and use my water for up to 3 months. Mid November I make a run and fill all my containers. Also water is bad after initial rains. If it has been raining for a more than a week(like in December), scripps water is good as most of the pollutants are probably already in the ocean and got diluted by then.

[mazilla]

what kind of changes in water quality have you guys noticed during testing that caused you to scrap the scrips, and make your own? what i mean is, are there any particular levels you watch in order to consider it safe or is it just a general rule not to use it x amount of days after a storm?

also, did you notice any change in overall tank zen if/when you bounced back and forth between mix and scripps?


when storing your scripps, is it heated and do you run a ph?

[BigAir]

Personally I do not test scripps at all. The only thing I do is adjust the salinity. I have stored scripps for 4+ months with no problems. Just make sure it is kept in the DARK. No sun or light of any kind, or it will be green and funky in 2-3 weeks.
Only time I keep a heater and power head in it is the 1 barrel that I am doing changes out of. All the other barrels are just sealed and dark.

[mazilla]

Personally I do not test scripps at all. The only thing I do is adjust the salinity. I have stored scripps for 4+ months with no problems. Just make sure it is kept in the DARK. No sun or light of any kind, or it will be green and funky in 2-3 weeks.
Only time I keep a heater and power head in it is the 1 barrel that I am doing changes out of. All the other barrels are just sealed and dark.


do you use it no matter the weather as well?

[malachai629]

ChrisMaree, I was hesitant to use Scripps too but it's just so damn cost efficient that I wanted to try it. (I have a 125 and I do pretty big and frequent wc's). I noticed that I had to clean the glass sooner when I went to scripps, but that may have been from some other variable as well. Now, I use half mixed and half scripps. Best of both worlds, I guess. I still feel like the few times my replacement water has been a higher percentage of scripps (75% scripps to 25% mix, i.e.) again, I'd see the algae reappear a lot quicker. I do feel though that there is something to be said about using the Mother Nature brand (Scripps) though. Can't really replicate that. I'm happy with the half anf half.

[Bogg]

I have seen corals that have been out of a tank from a user that always used scripps water during rains and red tide and his corals looked phenomenal. I have no idea if it really matters or not?. The thought comes to mind of what does birch aquarium do?. have you guys seen the stag tanks they have?. Although I'm not sure if they use scripps on all their tanks. But you have to ask yourself.. What are the filters for? I might stay away if the water was labeled contaminated but I dunno if it really matters or not from the rains. By the way I tested scripps water for po4 w/ hanna and got an 0.05. Which is nothing. But I am interested what has happened in the past you guys that has lead to staying away?.

[Diver Dan]

We are lucky that scripps is not on the southern side of point loma.
I went surfing down in IB this past weekend right after it rained, and there was no visibility in the water. The Tijuana river was flowing and the south swell was bringing everything north. But it was the most perfect surf you could ever imagine so i had to go out, but if Scripps was closer to the slough we would have some weird growth in our corals i am sure. I know just surfing out there for 3 hours or so i grew a couple extra fingers!:p

[BigAir]

do you use it no matter the weather as well?

Yes I do, BUT.... I also usually have about 200 gallons sitting around at any given time. As for picking up during red tide, be sure to run it thru a couple micron socks while you are filling, then let it sit and die off before use(about 1 week +). In the 3+ years that I have been in the hobby, I have not used anything else. Only mixed 1 time, just to see and found it to be more work than it is worth.(Pump the water into the house to refill the tank, no lifting required.) I keep 1 barrel that is heated and circulated, and pump the stored water into that barrel when needed. All the die off is left in the storage barrel stuck to the sides and bottom.
Any alge growth that people are seeing with scripps is probably from using it fresh from the pier. The die off is everything when it comes to cutting down the alge.

[Bogg]

Since we are talking about the water. It's intersting how scripps water smells strong when it's fresh, real pungy. It also seems to irritate my little cuts on my hands/ arms more. This strong smelling sore irritating water seems to make me think that it will always be better than mixing asw, from some reason.
Big air I like how you think. I recently added a pump to my top off barel. Now Instead of getting out a hose and sucking and draining from the top off can to the bucket then haul it into the tank room setting it on a chair so it's high enough to drain etc. Now I just plug in the pump and top off and giggle a lil. When I do water changes I think I'll t off the return pump and push out as much as I want. Anyways scripps just cuts down one more thing to do, mixing.

[loose-electron]

With respect to Scripps Water --

Read -- "the conscientious marine aquarist"
by Robert Fenner
Page 93

He speaks to using Scripps water explicitly. In a nutshell, ok, but beware of...

I use Scripps exclusively, no problems, and it gets trundled into a dark place for week or 2 before using it.

[malachai629]

Any alge growth that people are seeing with scripps is probably from using it fresh from the pier. The die off is everything when it comes to cutting down the alge.
Probably true, I do use it same day I acquire it. I like to think there's good stuff in there that i wouldn't want dying off. Any thoughts on this?

[ChrisMaree]

I won't mind having the algea...I enjoy the using the magnet to clean my glass. :D


ChrisMaree, I was hesitant to use Scripps too but it's just so damn cost efficient that I wanted to try it. (I have a 125 and I do pretty big and frequent wc's). I noticed that I had to clean the glass sooner when I went to scripps, but that may have been from some other variable as well. Now, I use half mixed and half scripps. Best of both worlds, I guess. I still feel like the few times my replacement water has been a higher percentage of scripps (75% scripps to 25% mix, i.e.) again, I'd see the algae reappear a lot quicker. I do feel though that there is something to be said about using the Mother Nature brand (Scripps) though. Can't really replicate that. I'm happy with the half anf half.

[mazilla]

I won't mind having the algea...I enjoy the using the magnet to clean my glass. :D

it gets old pretty fast, especially if you have to manuver around crap with the MF(mag float, not the other MF).next tank gets about an inch more clearance from the front glass, lesson learned.

[BigAir]

Probably true, I do use it same day I acquire it. I like to think there's good stuff in there that i wouldn't want dying off. Any thoughts on this?

There is lots of good stuff in there, but the extra work of cleaning the glass is not worth the lttle bit of goodness you do get.

Bogg, I no longer siphon water out of the tank (50ft hose out the front door and stick it in front of a power head to get flow started.), nor bucket/jug it back in. Being a machinist, I have to stand in front of the machine ALL day. Buckets ruined my back in the first 2 months of this hobby, and I ended up not working for several days due to severe back problems. I started with a rio 2500 and took about 15mins just to refill, now water changes take me 6mins total tops. I store my water out in my patio, and pump it about 30 to 50ft depending on the tank I am cleaning.(Front room or bedroom)

CM, trust Mazilla and myself. Cleaning the glass gets really old really fast. Until you have put in fresh scripps for weeks on end and had to clean the glass everyday between changes, you really don't know. Major PITA.

[ChrisMaree]

I DO have one spot that's a royal pain. I guess I'm going to find out just how royal it is. However, from what I'm reading, I'm going to pick up water tonight and let it sit for a few weeks. So in the mean time, I'll continue to mix my own. Or perhaps, I'll just top-off for 3 or so weeks.


it gets old pretty fast, especially if you have to manuver around crap with the MF(mag float, not the other MF).next tank gets about an inch more clearance from the front glass, lesson learned.

[ChrisMaree]

I just completed my first 10 gallon Scripps water change. OH MY GOSH!!! You all have made the water changes so easy for me. I was going to wait for a couple of weeks, but thought that I'd try both. I picked up 20 gallons. I'll do my next water change in a couple of weeks and see if I notice any difference. I noticed today that once I was finished my pecula's got very active. Any idea why?
I want to thank everyone. I think I read somewhere that Dave donated the hose. The directions to the pier were perfect. You guys on the forum are awesome.

[Flamehawk]

maybe the water taste different than normal so the fish got excited

[sandiegoryu]

w00t for Scripps water and SIO and the people who made that one awesome article on it.

Seriously, water changes are just like water changes for planted tanks. Perhaps even better because it comes in with the elements already prepared (where in planted tanks I have to dose).

[Haeun]

Shumpei, let me know when you go for a Scripps run in the future.

So I guess the general consensus is to let the Scripps water sit for a few weeks before putting it in the tanks?

[Daniel]

Shumpei, let me know when you go for a Scripps run in the future.

So I guess the general consensus is to let the Scripps water sit for a few weeks before putting it in the tanks?
You can use it immediately if you want. You'll get a lot of different opinions but I've had no problems using it directly out of the tap. It wouldn't hurt to let it sit, but either way Scripps will be fine.

Just watch out for:
1. Red Tide
2. Run-off after rains

[Techknowledgy]

We are so lucky to have this resource. I can keep a nice reef with WAY too many fish in it and it all does well with frequent water changes. (20% every two weeks.) There is no way science can reproduce with chemicals what nature has taken millions of years to make. Never even think about trace elements. Just calcium and alk. Cleaning the glass a bit more is a pain, but I only do it twice a week...... to give my snails and other critters food. A little dirty is good...... IMO.

[Bobgeo]

Hey sorry for the dumb question but will it be raining this weekend In SD? reason for the dumb question is i live in the IE and i'm going to SD to visit my gf and get some scripps while i am down there. Just wanting to know if the water will be safe.

[Daniel]

Hey sorry for the dumb question but will it be raining this weekend In SD? reason for the dumb question is i live in the IE and i'm going to SD to visit my gf and get some scripps while i am down there. Just wanting to know if the water will be safe.
It's going to be a sunny weekend :cool:

http://www.weather.com/outlook/homeandgarden/pets/tenday/USCA0565?from=36hr_fcst10DayLink_pets

[Bobgeo]

It's going to be a sunny weekend :cool:

http://www.weather.com/outlook/homeandgarden/pets/tenday/USCA0565?from=36hr_fcst10DayLink_pets


Sweet thanks for the reply :)

[iVgOnMaD]

I just completed my first 10 gallon Scripps water change. OH MY GOSH!!! You all have made the water changes so easy for me. I was going to wait for a couple of weeks, but thought that I'd try both. I picked up 20 gallons. I'll do my next water change in a couple of weeks and see if I notice any difference. I noticed today that once I was finished my pecula's got very active. Any idea why?
I want to thank everyone. I think I read somewhere that Dave donated the hose. The directions to the pier were perfect. You guys on the forum are awesome.


Was the water a little colder than the tank water?

[ChrisMaree]

I rode with the heater on to my house. I then let the jugs sit for a while. By the time I was finished, my tank was only 1 degree cooler than when I started. I guess that's a plus about living in Jamul, a longer commute home from Scripps Pier :D


Was the water a little colder than the tank water?

[Techknowledgy]

I live in Spring Valley. If you like I can let you know when I go for water and you can go with me. Save gas.

[ChrisMaree]

That'll be great! We can take turns. ;) I have another 10 gallons, so I probably won't have to go back for another 3-4 weeks.


I live in Spring Valley. If you like I can let you know when I go for water and you can go with me. Save gas.

[Pescaiolo]

I have been reading through this thread and was wondering if anyone runs Scripps water through a skimmer and UV sterilizer to clean it further, anyone?

[iVgOnMaD]

if you guys ever have an emergency and need some water I store about 50-100g of Scripps in some barrels in my garage.

I am trying to get some more drums so I can store one more drum for RO and still have a spare drum to work with.

[malachai629]

I won't mind having the algea...I enjoy the using the magnet to clean my glass. :D


I know it's a labor of love, but I promise you, the novelty wears off!;)

[ChrisMaree]

I hope not :o


I know it's a labor of love, but I promise you, the novelty wears off!;)

[iVgOnMaD]

I have been reading through this thread and was wondering if anyone runs Scripps water through a skimmer and UV sterilizer to clean it further, anyone?

UV... I guess you could but it will also kill any good bacteria in there...
The skimmer is a good idea though!!

I would run the skimmer and keep the water in a dark place for a week, that should be enough to remove any unwanted algae spores.

I personally use fresh scripps same day w/no problems.

[Techknowledgy]

I use it usually next day.... depending on when I get the water. Some of it sits for up to a week. When I do my change I drain my sump completely. I shut off the pumps. The sump holds 30 gallons. I toss the old water down the drain, and refill the sump with Scripps. The make sure the parameters are as close as possible. A little cooler is okay. Then I add bioplankton and phyto to the water. Then I turn it all back on. The display gets a blast of new water, full of goodies, which simulates what happens in the wild. It all seems to like it.

[ChrisMaree]

When I powered my pump back on yesterday, my perculas went wild! They were super happy. Everyone's mouth opened up, even my sun polyps. I've never seen that reaction when I've mixed my own water. Hmmm, maybe I'm just looking into it ;) Either way, it was easy, fast and fun! I'm glad I finally gave Scripps a shot.


I use it usually next day.... depending on when I get the water. Some of it sits for up to a week. When I do my change I drain my sump completely. I shut off the pumps. The sump holds 30 gallons. I toss the old water down the drain, and refill the sump with Scripps. The make sure the parameters are as close as possible. A little cooler is okay. Then I add bioplankton and phyto to the water. Then I turn it all back on. The display gets a blast of new water, full of goodies, which simulates what happens in the wild. It all seems to like it.

[Daniel]

Yea, that's one thing I notice with Scripps. After a water change, LPS go crazy.

[BigAir]

I have been reading through this thread and was wondering if anyone runs Scripps water through a skimmer and UV sterilizer to clean it further, anyone?

No need unless there is a red tide.

[mazilla]

do you guys have to adjust your water params with scrips, or is it good right out of the tap?

[malachai629]

I hear you want to addd calcium and magnesium. I always do.

[pk-sd]

I hear you want to addd calcium and magnesium. I always do.

Yes you are correct. Here is the link to how much you should add.

http://www.sdreefs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11201

[Techknowledgy]

I always check every batch for sg, calcium, alk, phosphates, etc, all of it. For the most part, it has been close enough right out of the tap. It is a little high in sg, but I am only adding a MAX of 20% in a water change, so it doesn't alter my sg all that much. I too dose it with calcium and magnesium, but I do that after I have aded the water in the water change. So far it seems to be working just fine. I have a lot of water (170 gallons total) so it is stable, and testing is a pain, but easier to maintain than make major adjustments later.

[mazilla]

i dunno, my landlord pays the water, and a bag of salt is 21.00. my tank is only 55g with a 5 g refugium so i do a 5g change every two weeks. i think the hassle of going to scripps, and dosing is a little too much for my needs. i'm gonna stick w/ reef crystals until i get a big mofo setup.

[Techknowledgy]

Yeah, it is a personal thing like boxers or briefs. 5 gallons hardly seems worth it, but when you go large, it is. I used to do water changes making my own..... and it took literally hours because of the mxing and waiting and all the rest. If you could store three aquatainers you would have enough to do water changes for two months.

[iVgOnMaD]

When you do 20% every 2 weeks in a 100g tank you are using like 20g at a time. Right after I do a water change and run out of water, I usually take my 2x 55g drums and I fill up with Scripps for the price of a single 50g bag (gas).
There is 2 weeks for me to get up to Scripps to get some water before the next WC so I don't stress too much.

Since I just did a WC and I won't need to do a WC for another 2 weeks, with the two drums I have enough water to last me 10 more weeks without having to do a run up to Scripps.

[Techknowledgy]

Cool..... well no more Scripps runs till 08! Happy New Year!