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Cultivated Reef

What Salt Mix do you use?

Clubby

By Clubby,
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Clubby

Clubby

Posted
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Hi

Was wondering what is the most used/recomended salt mix, are there any that you have moved away from or had problems with?

What would you rate as the best?

Thanks

Ian

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KoolFish

KoolFish

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Posted
Hi

Was wondering what is the most used/recomended salt mix, are there any that you have moved away from or had problems with?

What would you rate as the best?

Thanks

Ian

Everyone will have a salt they like best and one salt that works for someone may not work for another. I suggest you try searching the forums for "best salt mix" and go through the results, then you might have some direction to what you would like to try.

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Clubby

Clubby

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Everyone will have a salt they like best and one salt that works for someone may not work for another. I suggest you try searching the forums for "best salt mix" and go through the results, then you might have some direction to what you would like to try.

Yep sorry should have searched......

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natrate

natrate

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Yep sorry should have searched......

 

Don't be sorry. I'm sure you could find an answer to any question you had by searching. So technically, there's no need for a forum anymore?? If you have a question, post it. When I had my reef tank, I was using Intant Ocean with no problems.

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KoolFish

KoolFish

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Yep sorry should have searched......

As natrate said, no need to be sorry. Here is a link to a good read about some salts:

 

Little Salt Study

 

I have tried alot of salts and in the end I stuck with Seachem Reef Salt. I get the best results with a fresh mix and my corals seem to love it.

 

Chris

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H20

H20

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Posted

I am using Red Sea Coral Pro Salt at the moment. I would like to try one day the SeaChem Reef Salt. You will probably find that the majority of reefers use Reef Crystals or Instant Ocean. Not that they are the best, but they are usually the most economical and alot of people find them to be consistent from batch to batch.

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Louie3

Louie3

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after switching from instant ocean to tropic marine i noticed alot more growth in my corals. Tropic marine is a bit more expensive but its worth it. My parameters between cal,alk,and Mag seem to be more stable now, also instant ocean gave me more of a pH swing

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Clubby

Clubby

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after switching from instant ocean to tropic marine i noticed alot more growth in my corals. Tropic marine is a bit more expensive but its worth it. My parameters between cal,alk,and Mag seem to be more stable now, also instant ocean gave me more of a pH swing

 

Yeah I've opted for Tropic Marin, this sites been great for info as I'm new to SW after keeping FW for many years, I've got a 24G nano cube on its way for christmas and I'll open a thread up with regular updates to let you all know how it all goes (and for more advice I'm sure!!!!!)

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ezcompany

ezcompany

Posted
Posted

Most commonly used:

 

Instant Ocean (low CA 320ish sometimes less ok alk)

Oceanic / IO mix

Tropic Marine Regular (low CA 360ish spot on alk, consistent mix batch after batch)

Reef Crystals (inconsistent CA 330 - 400+ inconsisten alk but smaller gap than CA)

 

Latest salt thats been getting good reviews: Red Sea Pro

 

I am using Reef Crystals right now, and have previously used IO, TM, and Seachem Reef. Of all the salts I've used i like TM the best. My next salt bucket is gonna be Red Sea Pro.

 

hth

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Weetabix7

Weetabix7

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I just got a small bucket of Red Sea Pro and am getting mix up a fresh batch today.

According to the bucket, it will mix up at 2-2.5 meq/l on Alk, which is kinda low.

What are other's experiences with this?

I was thinking of adding Reef Builder to bring up the Alk.

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psam

psam

Posted
Posted
I just got a small bucket of Red Sea Pro and am getting mix up a fresh batch today.

According to the bucket, it will mix up at 2-2.5 meq/l on Alk, which is kinda low.

What are other's experiences with this?

I was thinking of adding Reef Builder to bring up the Alk.

 

What does the Ca / Mg mix up to?

 

2 or 2.5 meq/L is perfect for me.

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Weetabix7

Weetabix7

Posted
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What does the Ca / Mg mix up to?

 

2 or 2.5 meq/L is perfect for me.

 

It was my understanding that 4 meq/l or higher is better on Alk.

 

I haven't mixed it yet so I'm just going by what the bucket claims, but it says Ca is 480 ppm at 1.025 SG. Doesn't say anything about Mg.

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Weetabix7

Weetabix7

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Okay, here are some params I just got from Azurel on Club-Zoa. He has been using Red Sea Pro and tested the first 150 gal buckets of the salt that he mixed. Here are his results at 1.025 SG:

 

Ca- 460+/-

Alk- 2.5-2.8 avg.

Mg- 1280-1300 avg.

Nitrate- 0

Nitrite- 0

Phosphate- 0

Silica- 0

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psam

psam

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It was my understanding that 4 meq/l or higher is better on Alk.

 

I haven't mixed it yet so I'm just going by what the bucket claims, but it says Ca is 480 ppm at 1.025 SG. Doesn't say anything about Mg.

 

I run a probiotic system, so I keep as close to NSW as possible. I stay under 7.5 dkh, and usually hover just above 6.5 dKH (~2.3 to 2.6 meq/L). There's nothing wrong with 4 meq/L at all, just not recommended with zeo, ultra, or the likes of them. I currently use reef crystals which mixes a little higher in kH, so I just do small changes.

 

EDIT - just saw the results you posted above - thanks for finding those!

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DogfoodEnforcer

DogfoodEnforcer

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Tropic Marin

 

everything in my tank seems to really like it. i do water changes pretty often (every few days) just to see the reaction of the corals when i add some new water. they go nuts. but im pretty sure that is the same with all salt mixes...and it's more the fresh water they like

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Seanfg89

Seanfg89

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I'm currently using Instant Ocean but used Oceanic for the longest time and loved it. It has a really high calcium level which I liked but its alk tended to be kinda low but nothing a spoonfull of Kent superbuffer wouldn't fix, it also disolves really well and comes in small sized pouches which are perfect for nano and pico reefs. I plan on switching back to Oceanic by my next water change.

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H20

H20

Posted
Posted
I just got a small bucket of Red Sea Pro and am getting mix up a fresh batch today.

According to the bucket, it will mix up at 2-2.5 meq/l on Alk, which is kinda low.

What are other's experiences with this?

I was thinking of adding Reef Builder to bring up the Alk.

 

 

My first and second batch mixed up at about 2.29 meq/L at around 1.025 ( I am not the best refractometer reader :D ). I wanted mine higher so I dosed in some SeaChem Reef Carbonate and it brought up the alk just fine. The Calcium was about 440 if I remember correctly. Of course, there is the whole debate on the Salifert alk test kits being off right now, so I just bought a LaMotte alk kit to compare. I was also using a API Calcium test and just bought a SeaChem Calcium test to compare it too as well. I will post back if I find a big difference in the kits when I use both kits in a little while.

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