# My screwed up brine maker . . . . .



## Vaughn Schultz

Okay here is the deal, we made a brine maker today (well part of one) This is how we thought it would work:

We have one 300 gal stock holding tank we pump water into the bottom. The stock tank is filled half way with bagged rock salt. as the water reaches the drain (over the salt) toward the top of the tank it flows into a pipe that holds it into a trash can as a pump transfers it into a 1650 holding tank on the other side of the shop.

Problem is were just making some test batches before we make the set up to pump into the holding tank and were reading off the scales. Our Hydrometer is reading WAY off the scale.

What are we doing wrong? why is it so strong?

Thanks

- Eric


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## Vaughn Schultz

...............


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## Vaughn Schultz

...................


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## grandview

Bathtub Gin is still illegal.



Since I have no idea I throw my 2 cents in. Can't you put the drain at the bottom and have the water leach down?


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## Superior L & L

Looks like you know what your doing LOL

even if the end result is wrong


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## elite1msmith

hey i dont know much about making brine homeaid, but what is it currently reading , too much salt , or not enought?

if its too much , thats good, all you do then is add water to your test batch i would think

if its not enought salt, then i would turn down your water flow , and possibly consider putting some type of strean nozzle on it , to break down the salt faster, i think PJ said he used a power washer in a 55 gal drum possibly? or some one told me that


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## Vaughn Schultz

Its reading WAY to much salt, Im thinking ill just add water. This thing cranks out brine, I should be able to fill my 1650gal holding tank in no time.


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## elite1msmith

lol, as fasre as i know , you just add water, 

you should try it with your bulk.... save even more money ....

id be interested to know wha tthe cost per gal comes too?


Im not sure - would you maybe need to take only the top few inches of brine on the second bucket you have? let it pour through another pipe so larger sediment might sink to the bottom? were are you taking samples from? 


common sense would say, its better to have a stronger salt mix, becasue adding water is easy , adding more salt if its weak isnt -


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## Vaughn Schultz

elite1msmith;612375 said:


> lol, as fasre as i know , you just add water,
> 
> you should try it with your bulk.... save even more money ....
> 
> id be interested to know wha tthe cost per gal comes too?


Bags are easy in the shop I orders the bags early and only paid low three's for them. Bulk is out side in a bin. I should have this thing finished in a day or two


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## elite1msmith

cant wait to see how it goes - lets us know on that cost per gal part too -


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## Vaughn Schultz

elite1msmith;612380 said:


> cant wait to see how it goes - lets us know on that cost per gal part too -


will do :salute:


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## IMAGE

Cant wait to hear how well it works come winter also. What Hydrometer # are you shooting for?


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## DKG

Looks great. Very similar to mine. I don't think you have too much salt in the brine as it is impossible. The saturation point is 23%. The specific gravity is 1.210 Another way to double check is the amount of salt you have used. There is 2.3 lbs of salt in 1 US gal of water.


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## SnowMatt13

You got concentration (23.3%) on just running water through salt once??
It must be your salt.? Basically I do the same thing, but from the top of the tank it gravity flows into an 1100 gallon tank. I have to recirculate it back through the bottom of the stock tank (with a pump) for about 6-7 hours before the 1100 gallons is at 23.3%.


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## Boast Enterpris

Very nice. I am trying to learn about this, what do you do with the brine in the holding tank?? Do you ever have to circulate it, does the salt eventually settle to the bottom? this brine operation really fascinates me?? Sorry for all the questions??


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## Vaughn Schultz

Look what I got today . . .. . .


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## Vaughn Schultz

two more . . .


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## Vaughn Schultz

last one one . . . 1650 gal


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## elite1msmith

is that a holding tank for your other brine maker?


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## Vaughn Schultz

elite1msmith;613915 said:


> is that a holding tank for your other brine maker?


yes sir, soon we will run pipe strait out of that trash can, up into the air, across the shop ceiling  and into the tank 

that way its out of our way and can run by its self.

In fact its making brine right now as I play on plowsite


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## elite1msmith

Vaughn Schultz;613924 said:


> yes sir, soon we will run pipe strait out of that trash can, up into the air, across the shop ceiling  and into the tank
> 
> that way its out of our way and can run by its self.
> 
> In fact its making brine right now as I play on plowsite


did you get that ratio worked out?


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## Vaughn Schultz

elite1msmith;613938 said:


> did you get that ratio worked out?


working on that right now, going to buy a better glass meter and a filter for any impurities


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## redman6565

can you email me some pictures? i was thinking about making my own personal salt brine maker...

[email protected]


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## Vaughn Schultz

redman6565;613955 said:


> can you email me some pictures? i was thinking about making my own personal salt brine maker...
> 
> [email protected]


did you not see the six I put up ?


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## redman6565

not sure if it will let me copy and paste is all and have high clarity.


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## sechracer

one way to help gets your saturation straightened out is to add some kind of mixing blade..... also, what saturation level are you working towards?


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## SuperBlade

mix 1145lbs salt with 492 gallons of water which will give you 500gallons of brine at 23.3% (88 salinity)


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## elite1msmith

SuperBlade;613983 said:


> mix 1145lbs salt with 492 gallons of water which will give you 500gallons of brine at 23.3% (88 salinity)


so using bagged salt , that would come to about 19 cents per gal , 35 gal per acre = $6.65 to treat one acre,... Vs 500 lbs of rock salt at 120 per ton = $30

how if that stuff works that a huge cost savings....


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## Superior L & L

elite1msmith;614030 said:


> so using bagged salt , that would come to about 19 cents per gal , 35 gal per acre = $6.65 to treat one acre,... Vs 500 lbs of rock salt at 120 per ton = $30
> 
> how if that stuff works that a huge cost savings....


Well i hate to bust up the party but its even better than that. I think you will find that it will take more like 800-1000 lbs to cover a acre so it would probably be $60.00 worth of salt

EVEN BETTER


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## elite1msmith

Superior L & L;614048 said:


> Well i hate to bust up the party but its even better than that. I think you will find that it will take more like 800-1000 lbs to cover a acre so it would probably be $60.00 worth of salt
> 
> EVEN BETTER


well i was also considering an "equal" comparison, 35 gals per acre, is middle of the road as far as i know - some ppl are well into the 40 numbers , so i was trying to figure an average application , for an average temp and conditions. if your applying 800 plus per acre, id bet its really cold out, and you should be switching to calcuim possibly


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## wirenut

where does the garden hose go to ?


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## wirenut

not trying to be a smart arse here but:
to a backflow preventer ....i hope....


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## Superior L & L

Never thought about that ! That is a must have im sure


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## mlbock

check out cargillsafelane.com/documents/pre wet. they give a lot of scientific info concerning
concentraation ratios and eucletic temp. try iowa dot, they have a pic of thier homemade brine maker.
we're putting one together tomorrow. we got an old skid mount sprayer with hose reel. we thought we'd try it next week. it's suppose to get cold enough to have flurries and some icy spots


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## Mike S

Nice job on your setup! I have a few questions if you dont mind. What kind of pump are you using to pump the brine out of the trash can? Where did you get your large tank? That thing is nice!! How are you planing to aggetate the brine? The reason I ask is that Im looking for a 110 volt pump that will withstand the brine. The GPI is to small and the pacer is to expensive, these are the only two that I have seen. Thanks!


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## Vaughn Schultz

To be honest were running this off an 1/2 horse sump pump, then adjusted the float to go off toward the top of the can. Look maybe the sump pump is not the ideal pump but you can pick up an awesome one for under $100.00. We got this cause my buddy owns a pet store and they use those pumps for the salt water fish tanks and they get about 3 years out of them.

The tank I got from http://www.rotonics.com/ for 400 bucks out the door.

no back flow thing yet but that is on the list. Were not finished yet I just kinda wanted to see if this worked. The garden hose runs from the pump to the top of the holding tank so I'm not super worried about a back flow issue.


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## elite1msmith

i was gonna acctually say use a sub pump ... i bet the auto float works nice


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## powerjoke

Vaughn Schultz;612374 said:


> Its reading WAY to much salt, Im thinking ill just add water.


it should be 23 pounds of DISOLVED salt per 9 gallon of water......that makes 10 gallon.

you'll need to buy you a hydrometer and check specific gravity (approx $45) or you can just weigh it ...per gallon in a milkjug.

i used Cattle Feed Salt and mixed in one of my ceba-gigy (farm chemical) tank's with a power washer. like Elite said

Too much Salt per gallon and it'll go the other way on you ....i don't know what the percentage would be but if you make it with Calcium and Sodium you would add some BTU's (no B/S) to the mix

PJ


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## elite1msmith

its too bad you couldnt figure out some type of float , that add the proper amount of water for you


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## powerjoke

sorry for repeating alot of the info that was stated earlier.....i didnt read the entire thread before i posted  lol

I have some that i mixed up about 2 year's ago and 99% of the salt is still in suspension. but it was mixed at ~300* and with an extreme amount of agitation.

first of all........Salt Brine WILL NOT melt at a lower temp than rock salt, and it will start to get thick and gel at temp's we see here in MO so i know it will cause problem's for you northern guy's

it needs to be cut with some Calcium or Mag to help out the problem's

i have a 1 1/4" diaphram transfer pump and it froze up on me one night  so i gave up the SALT and went to other chem's

hope it works for you though. 

PJ


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## powerjoke

elite1msmith;614754 said:


> its too bad you couldnt figure out some type of float , that add the proper amount of water for you


i don't know if it could EVER be dialed in to be 100% automatic.......Among Many variables.The temp of the water comeing in will change with the ground temp....and that'll change how well the salt dizolves


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## elite1msmith

PJ , since hes making his own brine, could he add a few baggs of Cal, to the mix , ? in the same tube as the rock?


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## powerjoke

elite1msmith;614768 said:


> PJ , since hes making his own brine, could he add a few baggs of Cal, to the mix , ? in the same tube as the rock?


I hate to "hy-jack" Vaughn's thread.....but i've already imposed the way it is so.....

yeah he could, and it would def. lower the temp' but to get an extremely acurate. reading he would need two brine system's....since the calcium and sodium will disolve at different rates, or liquid calcium may be an option..

i am still looking for the chart/graph that will make sense of how much of what to add.

PJ


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## elite1msmith

powerjoke;614765 said:


> i don't know if it could EVER be dialed in to be 100% automatic.......Among Many variables.The temp of the water comeing in will change with the ground temp....and that'll change how well the salt dizolves


temp of the water would have little to do with the boency of it

as i understand it , water weights X per gal...... so if you had a 1 gal jug, filled 90 % of the way up with water and 10% with air... it would just barely float (minus the weight of the jug?) so the same could be done with salt water? if there was too much salt , the jug (or weight) would float on the top , then relasing more water into his trash can tank?

when the water would be added, the jug would then sink and no more water -

or somthing along those lines.

it would be along the same lines as how your hydro meter works.... each ball indicator has a certain weight, and will float or sink , based on its weight in relation to the liquid you suck up


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## elite1msmith

powerjoke;614772 said:


> I hate to "hy-jack" Vaughn's thread.....but i've already imposed the way it is so.....
> 
> yeah he could, and it would def. lower the temp' but to get an extremely acurate. reading he would need two brine system's....since the calcium and sodium will disolve at different rates, or liquid calcium may be an option..
> 
> i am still looking for the chart/graph that will make sense of how much of what to add.
> 
> PJ


Im only asking because around here, most snow storms , its not below 15 degrees... im using it as anit ice, so i can treat when the wheather is nicer... Im using liq CAL for a prewet on salt.

I was just thinking brine for the anti ice

If i could come up with a cheap solution that effectivly worked down to 10 degrees , id be happy enough


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## SuperBlade

i can see where your going with that. and powerjoke is right too. you would have to make sure the that the salt and water has completely brined together


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## SuperBlade

i'll post my set up here in a couple of days....and let everyone know how it is working out


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## powerjoke

elite1msmith;614773 said:


> temp of the water would have little to do with the boency of it


i am not talking about boency.....i am talking about the temp of the water and it's ability to disolve the solid's.


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## SuperBlade

ok best temp: would you say 65F


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## elite1msmith

powerjoke;614782 said:


> i am not talking about boency.....i am talking about the temp of the water and it's ability to disolve the solid's.


right , but van is saying his mix is too strong , for what ever reason , so he could just add water and circulate it in his holding tank right? the float would just add the water for him...and im sure it would nver be fully automatic...

but if he had something that would float, when the weight of the brine was correct, (just like your hydrometer)


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## SuperBlade

but warmer the better right? and not too warm


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## SuperBlade

i wouldnt trust automatic unless you had the money to put in it. i just add weighted salt and gallons of water. let mix. measure. and store.


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## SuperBlade

so what do you say about deicing with brine let say the temp is 0degreesF


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## elite1msmith

SuperBlade;614788 said:


> i wouldnt trust automatic unless you had the money to put in it. i just add weighted salt and gallons of water. let mix. measure. and store.


yeah , but hes making 1650 gals at a time... so if his mix was messed up , addign additional water too it, then he would need to circulate it for a while before rechecking it. the process could take all day.... at least this wold get him pretty close that one manuel adjustment might fix it quickly

maybe he needs to get his brine maker more regulated?

van did you add water too it yet and come up with results?


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## powerjoke

SuperBlade;614788 said:


> i wouldnt trust automatic unless you had the money to put in it. i just add weighted salt and gallons of water. let mix. measure. and store.


. 

pj


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## SuperBlade

here is a good site http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/sgpubs/onlinepubs/h99002.pdf


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## SuperBlade

look how much it jumps if you put in too much!


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## powerjoke

SuperBlade;614794 said:


> here is a good site http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/sgpubs/onlinepubs/h99002.pdf


POST 38 of THIS SAME THREAD!!!! 

word to the wise,......you might start putting more than 7 word's in a post. i see it getting ALOT anoying!

We already have one from canton on here who posts a lot lol (clapp) 

pj


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## Vaughn Schultz

So were all thinking Brine + 10% liquid cal is the best for a pretreat and then spray strait 32% liquid cal on our salt as a pre wet? 

I know we are all jumping all over on topics but who cares? this has turned into a good discussion thread


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## powerjoke

Vaughn Schultz;614894 said:


> So were all thinking Brine + 10% liquid cal is the best for a pretreat and then spray strait 32% liquid cal on our salt as a pre wet?
> 
> i think 10-15% would be a good place to start..... i havent figured out how to figure a blend?....
> 
> I know we are all jumping all over on topics but who cares? this has turned into a good discussion thread
> 
> o.k., it's youre thread lol, it seems to have taken on a life of it's own


i used 10 Gallon per ton of 32% but 20 Gallon per ton is recomended 

pj


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## Vaughn Schultz

I guess the question I have been relentlessly asking my self and others is:

A brine + liquid cal will work better and more vestal than just 32% liquid cal as a pre treat? Looks like liquid cal is a much "hotter" product but can get slick and has other limitations and brine alone is a little under powered


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## SnowMatt13

I think that when you get to a product that is "hotter" (chlorides, etc) the % you use in your mixture has to be a fairly exact number....
Example: The county highway department by me uses a mixture of 85%brine, 10%geomelt, and 5% either mag or cal chloride.
If the percentage of the chloride changes too much the blend turns to a very thick substance and doesn't spray..........
I am blending for the 1st time this year and my mixture is 80% brine 20% Geomelt....
I can use it to +/- 0 degrees pavement temp......


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## elite1msmith

ok i have a question , somepne might be able to answer?

how is the CAL makeing the mix hotter? i assume it reacts to the mostior in the snow or ice? then a chemical reaction casues heat? if so , when your mixing it with your brine , wouldnt it start to heat up in your tanks rather than on the pavment?


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## DKG

Calcium & mag both create heat when exposed to moisture. They also have a lower effective temperature. This is what I think heating up the brine mix means.


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## elite1msmith

DKG;615643 said:


> Calcium & mag both create heat when exposed to moisture. They also have a lower effective temperature. This is what I think heating up the brine mix means.


right i understand they create heat, but if your adding them to a liquid brine (which has water in it) then wouldnt the chemical reaction ( heating) occur in the tanks , rather than on the pavement? Almost wondering, if its better to keep the liquids speperate until your acctually spraying them - ?


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## DKG

The "heat" may not occur with liquid cal, but the lower effective temperature is still true.


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## powerjoke

elite1msmith;615487 said:


> ok how is the CAL makeing the mix hotter?
> 
> it's called exothermic reaction
> 
> when your mixing it with your brine , wouldnt it start to heat up in your tanks rather than on the pavment?


verry verry minute amount of heat but it still is heat.....kinda lol



elite1msmith;615792 said:


> Almost wondering, if its better to keep the liquids speperate until your acctually spraying them - ?


not nothing near like that....you'll be fine with a blend 

i wouldnt think that the 5% of Cal is what's makeing th emix "thick" i would almost beleive if i didnt experiance it first hand it would be almost B/S

the Brine is what will get thick on you not the cal.......i don't know much about the geo-melt, is that the sugar beet stuff that jay is useing?.....if so, it could get thick if, it didnt have enough dilution. of salt

But maybee someone will eplain how?

the reason i say that is....i have had Brine thicken on me but Never Calcium

there is a reaction with sugar and salt that make's it a lower temp.. i don't know why but their just is,

here's a little info i found on exothermic

PJ


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## SnowMatt13

Geomelt is a much "thicker" solution that straight brine


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## elite1msmith

thanks for the info -, im learning more everyday


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## Boast Enterpris

Guys this is the most imformative thread ever!!


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## pelt35

*Brine Question*

I have a question for you guys concerning brine. I have a water conditioner that uses salt for softening the water and when it has cycled itself it discharges the brine or whatever it is, to my sink drain in the basement. I have been told by my plumber that it's not too good to let that salty water go thru my septic, as it will in time plug up my drain field. Do you guys think that if a person were to collect that all year that it would make a good brine? How do you check it for salinity? Just curious. Thanks Jack


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## SnowMatt13

Good question.
Not sure on the answer, but as far as checking it you can get a hydrometer and that is all you need.


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## Bill Rowe

have a look at this site from the Iowa dot. a tone of brine info & plans for a brine maker & a section on how to make brine. I've posted this before.

http://www.iowadot.gov/maintenance/internetpages/chemicals/index.htm

www.snowman.ca


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## fernalddude

*Chemical mix for Liquid*

Ok guys been some time since I gave out the mix and a easy equation on the correct mix of chemical to water ratio. No hydrometer needed just dilute it to this.
CaCl2 2.8lbs per gal H2O =33%
MgCl 1.8lbs per gal H2O =21.6 %
NaCl 2.5lbs per gal H2O= 30 %
Add 8.4 pounds of water + chemical to batch and have the total pounds per gal of mix
Rule of thumb 11 lbs per gallon is the weight.
Just add dry mix to some type of container and cycle water thru it and have holding tank to collect it till all solids are gone and your done.
Yes Ca and Mg do make heat during the process so have your tanks able to handle the temp. If I remember its around 150 Deg or so. 
Hope it helps Just a quick rule of thumb...................:waving:


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## elite1msmith

fernalddude;620460 said:


> Ok guys been some time since I gave out the mix and a easy equation on the correct mix of chemical to water ratio. No hydrometer needed just dilute it to this.
> CaCl2 2.8lbs per gal H2O =33%
> MgCl 1.8lbs per gal H2O =21.6 %
> NaCl 2.5lbs per gal H2O= 30 %Add 8.4 pounds of water + chemical to batch and have the total pounds per gal of mix
> Rule of thumb 11 lbs per gallon is the weight.
> Just add dry mix to some type of container and cycle water thru it and have holding tank to collect it till all solids are gone and your done.
> Yes Ca and Mg do make heat during the process so have your tanks able to handle the temp. If I remember its around 150 Deg or so.
> Hope it helps Just a quick rule of thumb...................:waving:


how come everone else has told me 23%?


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## fernalddude

Elite If you a chemist than you would go for the correct amounts but if your making a batch process it deppends on the quailty of the NaCl and if the scraped any rocks or crap in the load they sold you. So just rule of thumb you might spill some or they were a the botom of the pile when you got your load. I bet you have spread some rocks and crap in your salt over the years you have been doing this work. So plus or minis 10%


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## elite1msmith

Ok, thanks for the info , i was just wondering because it sounds like you know this stuff well -


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## fernalddude

I did tons of research for about 3 years then had the chemist at work figure the mix out. I work at a chemical plant so it was not that hard. But I did get some new batch tanks from work and am going to get my batch plant working in a few weeks so will post some pics when its ready.:angry::yow!:


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## powerjoke

pelt35;617996 said:


> I have a question for you guys concerning brine. I have a water conditioner that uses salt for softening the water and when it has cycled itself it discharges the brine or whatever it is, to my sink drain in the basement. I have been told by my plumber that it's not too good to let that salty water go thru my septic, as it will in time plug up my drain field. Do you guys think that if a person were to collect that all year that it would make a good brine? How do you check it for salinity? Just curious. Thanks Jack


that would probably not be a good source of brine just because of the prodution. but if you wanted to test it without a hydometer/salometer just put 1 galln of liquid in a milk jug and weigh it and pm me or post back and i'll help you with the actual % of salt 



elite1msmith;620465 said:


> how come everone else has told me 23%?


salt brine is at it lowest freeze temp (-5) at 23% any thing more or less it freezez sooner


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## elite1msmith

BUMB >>> hows the hone aid coming along?


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## mlbock

so why don't ours make sense - we tried bagged at that ratio 92.3 to 1 gallon) and we had to dilute it 3 times amount of h20 to get 23%. nother time we tried it and it took 3 times h20. we're usiong a hydrometer from a sea fish store.

why couldn't we just sea water in a tanker???!!!


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## powerjoke

mlbock;629028 said:


> so why don't ours make sense - we tried bagged at that ratio 92.3 to 1 gallon) and we had to dilute it 3 times amount of h20 to get 23%. nother time we tried it and it took 3 times h20. we're usiong a hydrometer from a sea fish store.
> 
> why couldn't we just sea water in a tanker???!!!


92.3:1 ,,,,,what does 92.3 represent?

i think it's a specific gravity of 85.5....or 23.3%saturation (same thing) that you want to achive.

i've never seen a fishtank hydrometer that will measure that high, i think you maybee getting saturation and specific gravity confused, or maybee even someother form of mesurement ?

you could use sea-water......but it would just freeze quiker  lol

pj


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## mlbock

its a typo - i've got big fingers!! we used 2.3 lb salt and the hydometer we use has the
breakdown with the graduations we're trying to find. i don't get it or are we trying to make too muh of it?


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## powerjoke

yeah the "9" and the "2" are right next to each other  lol

i would say if youre not getting the result's you want with 2.3 pound's per gallon (remember you have to leave out room for the salt) i would say youre hydrometer is not correct,

2.3lbs/gal and you'll be fine. don't worrie too much 'bout what the salimeter is telling you. at least try the 2.3 mix before you dilute it.

BTW:.......why don't you take one gallon of it and weigh it in a milk jug. use a fish scale or meat scale etc. something that a little more acurate than a bathroom scale and get back to me i'll try to tell you total salt saturation based on weight

pj


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## Marek

Any more updates? How many gallons are you making a day ?


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## mlbock

ha...we just ran water thru and weight it - 10.6 lb on a digital scale. what were trying to figure out no is the hole size and spacing. we wqant to try gravity fed before speding the $ on a nozzle system. our boom is 8' by 2" pvc, we figure 6 - 8 holes to give coverage while providing dry areas and were shooting for 40 gpa. any ideas on hole size? we're thinking 7/64 and driving at 12 mph...


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## SuperBlade

7/64" for 40gals/acre....9/64" for 50gals/acre i drive at around 10mph


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## Superior L & L

SuperBlade;645189 said:


> 7/64" for 40gals/acre....9/64" for 50gals/acre i drive at around 10mph


Oh good info thanks


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## elite1msmith

mlbock;645127 said:


> ha...we just ran water thru and weight it - 10.6 lb on a digital scale. what were trying to figure out no is the hole size and spacing. we wqant to try gravity fed before speding the $ on a nozzle system. our boom is 8' by 2" pvc, we figure 6 - 8 holes to give coverage while providing dry areas and were shooting for 40 gpa. any ideas on hole size? we're thinking 7/64 and driving at 12 mph...


i made a small homeaid gravity feed system , with mixed results

its simple to make and operate... heres the down side.... once you shut the system off, it continues to spray for an additional period of time , lossing 1-2 gals depending on your set up. So if a car pulls out in front of you , or if you have to stop and back into a spot, you loss chmical , which can cost $$ , depending on what your spraying.....

the electronic ball valve costs some big coin, you need at least a 2 inch....

If you take the size of your drilled holes and multipy by the QTY of holes that will tell you the min size boom , hose and valve you need to get a consitant flow. you also need to have multiple hose connections to your boom , so that no matter which way your truck is leaning the fluid will flow "down hill" towards a hole.... i would recommend at leat 1 on each side and one in the middle

personally , there is nothing at all even remotley close between a presurized sprayer system, and a gravity one,... so even a trial run just to try out the chemical will have different results


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## mlbock

good point. but, we can make a quick boom for about $20 with left over irrigation parts. we want to try it on some long drives at a medical facility we take care of. if we can prove to them it works, we treat the whole place - 10 mile of roads 15 acres of parking lot. we want to try it out on the drives only.
We thought about sprasying on with a lawn gun but everything everyone says that's not the best. I'm using the info from the IA DOT site as my blueprint. We hope to have it together today and try it tomorrow. Since you've done it, did you use a smaller pipe and if so, what size holes at what app rate.
hanks - this helps a lot!


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## elite1msmith

mlbock;645944 said:


> good point. but, we can make a quick boom for about $20 with left over irrigation parts. we want to try it on some long drives at a medical facility we take care of. if we can prove to them it works, we treat the whole place - 10 mile of roads 15 acres of parking lot. we want to try it out on the drives only.
> We thought about sprasying on with a lawn gun but everything everyone says that's not the best. I'm using the info from the IA DOT site as my blueprint. We hope to have it together today and try it tomorrow. Since you've done it, did you use a smaller pipe and if so, what size holes at what app rate.
> hanks - this helps a lot!


if you use the Idot specs ... you need to mulitpiy the number of holes by the size of the holes and that will tell you the min size pipe that you should have


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## Vaughn Schultz

powerjoke;629073 said:


> i've never seen a fishtank hydrometer that will measure that high, i think you maybee getting saturation and specific gravity confused, or maybee even someother form of mesurement ?
> 
> pj


Thats what we did LOL, in fact thats how this thread got started LOL. Then we went to I scientific store and bought the right one.


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## murphyslaw

update????


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## lawnprolawns

I'm thinking about building a similar setup and came up with another idea or two. First question. What about using a 55 gallon drum to make the brine, and suspend the pump towards the top of that. Doing so would eliminate the need for a second container, and the need for the brine maker to be elevated. 

Second question.. I have heard that if you over-saturate the water with salt, it can suddenly fall out and you're screwed. I'm not a chemist.. but is that easy to do, or do you really have to "try" to over-saturate things? 

also, to the orignal poster (or others).. Do you eventually have to clean out the brine maker tank due to sediment build up, or does most everything dissolve?


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## DKG

Q1- I think it would work ok.
Q2- I don't think you could over saturate it.
Q3- Yes you do have to clean it out. Mine is basically a 45 gal drum set up. I continuously add salt as I go, when the brine concentration starts to drop I will empty out all the salt and start over with new salt.
Make sure your brine maker isn't any bigger than your ability to empty it. (I learned this the hard way!!)


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## lawnprolawns

is there a lot of stuff left over? this is going to sound confusing, but... lets see... how many gallons do you run through how many pounds before you clean it out? Are you talking clean it out ever 100 lbs of salt, or after you run 1000lbs of salt through it?

hope that makes sense.. i'm tired..


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## DKG

My brine maker is actually a used water softener salt container. 35 gal I guess. I couldn't flip over the bigger drum. It is filled to about 6" from the top with salt at all time. I can make about 600 gallons of brine, approximately 3/4 ton of salt through it before it needs to be emptied.


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## lawnprolawns

Cool. Thanks for the info.


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## Superior L & L

DKG;675097 said:


> My brine maker is actually a used water softener salt container. 35 gal I guess. I couldn't flip over the bigger drum. It is filled to about 6" from the top with salt at all time. I can make about 600 gallons of brine, approximately 3/4 ton of salt through it before it needs to be emptied.


So your saying that a ton of salt will make about 800 gallons of brine.

Peopel have been saying liquid should be applyed at 50-100 gallons per acre, so your 800 gallons will cover 8-16 acres just using 1 ton to make the brine.

This info is good news since one ton of salt will typically cover 2 acres so even on the low end you are increasing the use of one ton by 400%


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## lawnprolawns

that sounds too good to be true. What about a re-freeze of the brine once it's down? will it stay wet or evaporate before it has the chance to turn to ice again? 

something just doesn't seem right about spraying a water-bases solution to get rid of frozen water...


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## DKG

1 tonne (2200lbs) will make 1000 US gallons of brine approximately.


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## Superior L & L

DKG;675127 said:


> 1 tonne (2200lbs) will make 1000 US gallons of brine approximately.


We can buy liquid well brine for .20 a gallon so that is about the same since a pallet of salt runs $210.00 right now


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## JD Dave

Superior L & L;675116 said:


> So your saying that a ton of salt will make about 800 gallons of brine.
> 
> Peopel have been saying liquid should be applyed at 50-100 gallons per acre, so your 800 gallons will cover 8-16 acres just using 1 ton to make the brine.
> 
> This info is good news since one ton of salt will typically cover 2 acres so even on the low end you are increasing the use of one ton by 400%


For anti icing you use 1000 lbs/acre, lets be realistic here and trust me 40-50 gallons of brine for deicing isn't going too melt much.


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## elite1msmith

Superior L & L;675130 said:


> We can buy liquid well brine for .20 a gallon so that is about the same since a pallet of salt runs $210.00 right now


yeah , your cost savings comes from how much is applied... 30-50 gals per acre..... or 500 lbs of rock

50 gals = 10 bucks

500 lbs of rock (bulk at 120) = 30 bucks.... 66% savings


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## lawnprolawns

Superior L & L;675130 said:


> We can buy liquid well brine for .20 a gallon so that is about the same since a pallet of salt runs $210.00 right now


Where can we buy that around here?


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## DKG

For de-icing 1 tonne of salt is equal to 1000 gallons of brine. The water in the liquid is only a carrier, it is the salt doing the work.


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## JD Dave

DKG;675175 said:


> For de-icing 1 tonne of salt is equal to 1000 gallons of brine. The water in the liquid is only a carrier, it is the salt doing the work.


Winner winner, chicken dinner. The only time you save money is for anti-icing.


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## DKG

lawnprolawns;675124 said:


> that sounds too good to be true. What about a re-freeze of the brine once it's down? will it stay wet or evaporate before it has the chance to turn to ice again?
> 
> something just doesn't seem right about spraying a water-bases solution to get rid of frozen water...


Brine or salt will both melt until diluted out. Liquid anti-icing is just a way of putting down less salt and more evenly than spreading salt


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## DKG

JD Dave;675181 said:


> Winner winner, chicken dinner. The only time you save money is for anti-icing.


I would prefer a steak dinner.


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## JD Dave

DKG;675202 said:


> I would prefer a steak dinner.


Sorry it doesn't rhyme, I forgot chicken gives you LPA.


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## Superior L & L

JD Dave;675139 said:


> For anti icing you use 1000 lbs/acre, lets be realistic here and trust me 40-50 gallons of brine for deicing isn't going too melt much.


Thanks for your observation !

But i didnt say anti or deicing. we dont do any anti icing so my 1000# per acre was for deicing and i never said anything about 40-50 gallons. I said 50-100 (little different)


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## JD Dave

Superior L & L;675269 said:


> Thanks for your observation !
> 
> But i didnt say anti or deicing. we dont do any anti icing so my 1000# per acre was for deicing and i never said anything about 40-50 gallons. I said 50-100 (little different)


Still doesn't matter 1 tonne of salt on it's own or in 1000 gallons of water is still 1 tonne of salt for deicing but you knew that, sorry for misquoting you, just going by what my expeirence with liquids are sorry.


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## 2FAST4U

this is a very help full thread, we just bought 100 gall. of liquid cal yesterday and thought it was great, now if we can take the rest of our rock salt and turn it into brine that would be great. Think we should save a little salt for the burn off's we do sometimes for the 1" and under snowfalls on my zero tolerance accounts


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## lawnprolawns

Bump. Someone asked for this thread in another. 

I'm going to get to work on a brine maker over the next few weeks. In case anyone cared.. lol. 

It's like a hobby.. only really nerdy. Maybe chicks will dig a salt brine maker.


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## terrapro

lawnprolawns;812324 said:


> Bump. Someone asked for this thread in another.
> 
> I'm going to get to work on a brine maker over the next few weeks. In case anyone cared.. lol.
> 
> It's like a hobby.. only really nerdy. Maybe chicks will dig a salt brine maker.


LOL...I don't think the chicks will dig your brine maker! Thanks for bumping this thread though.

So you are going to continue with liquids this year?


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