^^^

who doesn't love seeing a nice pair of blue footed boobies? i know i sure do.

I just did my water change and noticed a brown residue also. I have been using this salt from the get go, even though its only been 2 months or so my params are doing very well. I have to clean out my salt mixing bucket after each change. I heard a lot of good things about this salt and my corals love it. They do much better then when I purchased from the LFS.

I've got the brown residue too. Wonder what it is. Just rinse it out.

See I am switching back to Oceanic.
Same results and virtually the same make up as this $99 salt.
I never had magnesium problems, never had calcium problems.
But after switching to seachem I have had both to a degree.
The reason for switching was all the complaints about the residue.
Now after reading this about the residue left behind with the high dollar salt I am peeved and switching back.

meh, Im staying with it, as oceanic caused me too many alk problems..............

THat was the initial reason I was thinking about switching but then the residue complaints pushed me over the edge to switch from Oceanic. BUT seeing as how cheap baking soda is I am switching back. And I may never listen to another expert on a reef forum again LOL!

are we talking about the salt or the Vit-C

Ha Ha !! I edited that out right before you posted.
I am talking about the salt.. but I ran two conversations in to one reply as well

hahaha, you posted the wrong thing. Residue doesnt bother me or my tank. I just rinse it out after making up new water. I wish the price would come down, but it gets shipped three times before it get's to you.

IO here i come................................

Someone needs to add a poll to this thread: Is DD Pro worth the money? Yes or No.

Do it fast because I got a gift certificate for my bday and I need more salt. I used a small bucket of the DD and never tested it, so I don't know what the levels were.

I use it. Is it worth the money???????????????

Do I like it, yes. Will I keep using it in the future, yes.

EDIT: I see now what size tank you have now. In a small tanks the difference between "el cheapo" salt and D-D is about $20-$30 buck a year....so you you can do the math and decide on the money issue.

It's worth it to me.
I work with a really tight budget on Reef stuff, and I am still willing to pay the money for this salt.

20-30/year? Awesome. Decision made. Mortons it is.

I've gone ahead and ordered a large bucket of this stuff... 79.95 CDN, plus shipping (with a 5 dollar surcharge for the shipping). Since I've never had a saltwater tank before, I'll let you guys know what I think, me being the expert in salt and all

EDIT: I canceled my order for this salt because I found a place closer (cheaper shipping) for the same price, and then I canceled that order because I was unsure (again). I've now decided to go with Seachem Reef Salt to start off with, and switch over to the D-D once my rock has cured. This won't be for a while.

Its good salt for keeping a reef tank. I use it on my reef tanks only. I use IO on my cultures and Broodstock tanks.

Is it worth the money????????? that's the million dollar question. There are very successful reef tanks here and in public aquarium that use IO. I feel it is worth it, based on the response to in my tanks and the fact the the parameters after mixing are great.

The issue why it's such an expensive salt is because it's shipped three times before it gets to you. It comes from Germany to the US to the LFS etc...... I wish the price would drop on it, but I dont see that happening and Im willing to pay the price for it.

I did a cost analysis on D-D Pro and IO (forgive me if I'm off a bit):

Based on an 11.36 lt (3 gal)/week WC. Prices from marinedepot.com including shipping. For D-D Pro, I used their estimate that 6.6kg makes 182.5 liters (avg.) at 1.025. For IO, I went with a bucket making 160 gallons, but I think that is to 1.022, so there's a discrepancy that I don't have time to figure out.

D-D Pro: 23.3 kg bucket
IO: 160 gal bucket

D-D Pro: $109.53/year
IO: $64.98/year

Difference: $44.55

LIke I said, this isn't perfect. Maybe it's close though.

Fixed.

When you get your new bucket of salt, do you stir up the salt in the bucket before using it? The darn buckets of salt weigh a ton and I can't figure out an easy way to get all that salt stirred up before using it. Does it even need to be done? And if you do, what's your method? I've been hearing how certain elements can settle in shipping so that is my concern.

place the lid on the bucket as tightly as possible and just start rolling the bucket and tip them end to end. takes a little bit effort but not as bad as say picking up a bucket and just start shaking

thank you! Could I do that before I even open up the bucket or do I need to take the salt out of the bag?

i would empty it out into the bucket first. theres no room inside the bag for the salt to mix. also, when you empty the bag, your already mixing the salt.. just roll the bucket a few more times and i say your good to go

Thanks!

I don't do this, I just make a bit of slack in the bag by moving the tie up and roll the thing....actually I didn't do that with my current bucket

Anything new on this salt? Everyone still happy with it?

I just switched over to it (slowly) and my softies and lps appear very happy with the new mix. Much better polyp extension. Ca, Mg, Alk and pH all seem to be more stable now too. I was initially using RC then tried Tropic Marin, went back to RC and finally tried DD. With all other things being equal (feeding, bioload, lighting etc.) I have seen the best results and been most satified with DD.

I just got a bucket of this salt as well and I must say I am very impressed. Here is a quick overview I wrote for it in a new thread but was directed to this one.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...t&p=2480113

So anyone try Brightwell yet? All of my LFS carry this stuff... I am thinking about trying it (switching from Reef Crystals).

I think I'm going to try it as well. Not because I dislike DD though... Just want to try something new! Plus my LFS has it for 30% off this weekend!

Brightwell was kinda scary because they basically claim on the bucket that it matches seawater, and tests conclude it certainly does not = false advertising.

What tests?

It's pretty fairly well known and evaluated by Boomer.

Tests aside, any salt that claims their salt basically matches sea water is full of it They actually had the numbers on the buckets saying that their salt was the same as seawater.

The tests of the salt show it to be a fairly decent salt but far from what they claim on the bucket.

I can find the exact article if you like but you'll have to register to the site to view it.

I'm using brightwell neomarine....I like it so far, as does my tank....mixes clear, which is the number 1 thing in my book after parameters.

some tests show inconsistent alkalinity....11 instead of 8 or something like that, but thats not a really big deal in the real world IMO. threads exist on RC as far as this...but most of the negativity seems to be of the nitpicky variety IMO. People pissed about it not meeting exaggerated marketing claims, which I guess is understandable.....Overall though, after reading those threads, I wasnt considering not using the salt or anything that dramatic.... not looking to rehash the debate here, btw.

funny, the salt has a really crazy almost disturbing plastic smell too it, though.....fyi/

my favorite salt will always be tropic marin pro reef though....its the best IMO, if you can find it.

EDIT: want to try this DD salt everyone keeps hyping....as long as it mixes good.

Agreed, it seems like a decent salt it's just their rediculous claims. Does it still have everything printed on bucket saying it matches seawater almost to a T?

yeah it does.... I got a bag of it....was hoping it would tide me over until I can find some more TM Pro Reef on the cheap.

i use DD salt and i love it. i do recomend though mixing it for 24hrs like the destructions say, but it is very solid and parameters and i love the fact that they put it in writing. when i have done a batch and used it right away instead of the 24 hr wait, the new batch water seemed to be a little cloudy but it went away in about a hour. this only happened twice when mixed and used right away and it has always been superclear when you wait the 24 hours. again it is a very good salt that it consistent.

So I'm getting ready to a WC.
Mixed the water for 2 days, like you're supposed to do.
Just tested it with Salifert test kits.
Got the following:
Alk- 12 dKh
Ca- 410-420
SG- just a hair under 1.025

I tested the Alk twice to be sure.
Is anyone's else's D-D H2O water mixing up at this high of an Alk?
I was surprised.

Mine mixed high alk for a while

I like the esv salt. It mixes in 15-20 minutes and its clear. No more scrubbing buckets after mixing salt for me.

I'm shopping for a new tank now since I've been out of the hobby for awhile. I really liked DD salt and that is what I plan on using for my new tank. I had good growth and extension from my SPS after finally getting my old tank switch over to DD and the params were great. I've heard good things from Brightwell as well, but I'm not rocking the boat since DD works so well for me. I do agree that it needs to be mixed in advance.

I'm also am now using D-D, I originally was using Red Sea Coral Pro, and every batch I had mixed clear for me until my last batch it, it was so cloudy and had a brown film, so I thought I'd try something new, I always struggled with low alk with red sea, so hopefully this will be different, My alk on the nsw was also 12dkh with D-D but with yesterdays wc it gave my tank a nice boost....time will only tell long term results, but I'm hoping for the best.

YAAAAAAAAaa your back!!!!1

Switched from TM to DD about a year ago I think. Very happy with it.

I stumbled into a new LFS around my work place, and the owner recommended DD salt. I read through this thread and i'm thinking of switching.

The only problem is the price. He quoted me $125 CND which is insane.

I'm debating between DD and Reef crystals. I'm currently running my tank on IO, but need to make the switch cos i'll be adding more corals (recently added a MH light to the tank).

Let me say I switched to D-D from TropicMarin Pro about 4 months ago. My tank has been running for 3 1/2 years. My acros and montis have never looked better! They are showing good polyp extension and the colors have been nothing short of amazing!

Here's another link for you to look at:
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...214426&st=0

Thanks for the link! Since my tank wont be heavily dominated by corals, do you think it's necessary?
My tank has been running for 1year.

I plan to add:

1x brain coral
1x Clam
Zoa colonies


Currently I have:

Frogspawn (expands to the size of a softball)
Xenia
Small batch of Zoas

Judging from the coral stocking list, do you think it'll benefit me to switch to DD as opposed to RC (reef crystals)?

I notice you do have a clam and they do use up Ca. Plus if you do decide to get some sps, especially now since you have a MH, I would still give the D-D a shot. Another thing to consider is dosing. With the D-D, plus weekly water changes, I no longer have to dose. So if you look at the standpoint of not having to buy additives, I'm saving money in the long run.

I've used DD for the past year now and I'm thinking of switching to the new TM Bio-actif or the new B-ionic 4-part. DD has lots of sediment and takes too long to mix, imo. And my particular bucket never had stable levels. My corals all fared very well and the tank has thrived, but I think I'm going to shop around now.

Good call . Might go to the LFS after work to pick up a bucket.




How long does it normally take you to mix a batch of DD salt?

I have a large rubbermaid container with a heater+pump. I let the water mix for 3-4 days before I do a water change. Would this still be an issue?