hydrometer...im dumb!

[dumpythepuffer]

k i'm sure theres other forums about this. i have also read a lot about the hydrometer but mines not reading anything. i dont put the salt right into the tank i mix it with the water when i do water changes, wait for it to disolve, stir it a bit then dump it in. i have added about 12 table spoons within the last couple days...the hydrometer is from red sea. the salt is instant ocean. the aquarium is 30 gallons and the temp is 30 degrees celcious. thats about 80f.

am i doing anything wrong?

[Nusquam]

What number does the hydrometer start at? 1.000 or a higher number? 1.000 is completely fresh water, so that's what you're looking for.
Have you calibrated it before? 12 tablespoons shouldn't add that much s.g. to the water, but if you're not sure, bring some water to your LFS and ask them to test it using a refractometer; if you do this, make sure to ask them to calibrate it with RO/DI water first. OR, if you have access to RO/DI water yourself, use that in your hydrometer to calibrate to see if where it says 1.000 on the meter is actually 1.000.

[Hilly]

Might not be enough to show up a change on a hydrometer. Take some tank water out in a glass and hen float the hydrometer on that rather than doing it directly in the tank. See if that makes any difference.

[dumpythepuffer]

it starts at 1.005...i dont know why. maybe because its strickly for marine aquariums. how long will it take to get to 0.015?
whats the max of salt i can add a week?

[Puffalicious]

What I've found was.... every cup(8oz) of salt/5gallon of water will approximately raise the SG 0.005.... You don't want to raise the salinity more than .002 per week, if you do then you'll kill some of the beneficial bacterial and a mini cycle will occur...

I actually messed up my calculations when I did mine the first time and accidently raised it .004 in one week. Ammonia spiked up, but the tank was stable again in less than a week.

[dumpythepuffer]

thanks thats a lot of info.
im happy to know that im not over doing it. i gave about one cup in a 30g tank so it should be ok