ESV B-ionic vs C Balance vs Kent CB A&B

[basser1]

SeeDemTails..... I suspect it was the b-ionic was probably responsible for the mag levels. Reason I say that is, I've been using tropic marin from my lfs for well over a year now. A few months back I had an outbreak of hair algae. I tried everything I could think of to get rid of it until my lfs suggested my mag levels were low. I took in a water sample to be tested and sure enough, it was low. That's when he suggested I use the DT's. Once I got my mag levels up where they needed to be, my hair algae problem was solved.

 

 

airangel.......No problem, believe me, I've had my share of "brain farts"! Just ask my wife!

[thecowkid]

Well I will go one step further. I used reef solutions 3 part system for two months. Lets just say this. For $45 a month for a 30 gallon setup it's steep. To make matters worse, I saw no improvements in any levels. I switched back to ESV B-ionic and will never look back.

[SPS20]

I dose B-Ionic using a Litermeter III. I have tried just about every 2-part out there, and my corals seem to react best to B-Ionic. If you get the two gallon jugs it should last you awhile. I go through a gallon of each part every month and a half or so in my 20L, but I have a lot of stoney corals and clams. In your case, that much would probably last 6 months or more. Most fully stocked reef aquaria, even softie reefs, will need more supplementation than water changes alone can handle, IME.

 

As for Mg, B-Ionic contains Mg as well, so the 3-part additives are really essentially the same thing.

 

I have used the Petco water on my 20L reef (in my sig) since I first set it up, and am happier with it than with any mix I have ever used. It is impractical for larger reefs, but for small tanks, it'll only cost you a few bucks a week. I will admit it is a pain in the ass to lug around boxes of water though. In the larger tanks I have kept in the past, I used various commercial salt mixes and had the best results with Tropic Marin's products. Several others worked as well, but I settled upon Tropic Marin after a few years, and just stuck with it because, well, if it works, why mess with it?

 

- Josh.

[jamesnmandy]

i used the Kent Tech CB for a while, worked well, but i went through it fast....kind of weak and on a 75 gallon tank that gets expensive....then i found Brightwell Aquatics Reef Code A & B two part, i can dose 10cc's of each per day and keep a steady 9-10 dkh and 460-480 ppm Calcium, and i can order them from fishtanksdirect.com for $12 +/- per 2 Liter bottle, not bad....

 

the only drawback is unlike the Kent Tech CB, it does not contain trace elements you will want, but i just got a bottle of the Brightwell Replenish (provides trace including magnesium) and a bottle of their Zooplanktos_M(copepods and amino acids for corals) and dose accordingly, things are doing very well

 

for salt i use Reef Crystals or IO, whichever is convenient, with my dosing regiment, it doesnt really matter, my levels do not fluctuate much at all unless i stop dosing for a few days

[airangel]

Thanks Joshua, Josh & James for your input

 

 

Sounds like a 2 part is the way to go and am sure whatever I get will last a while. The Petco stuff I'm using isn't their preboxed water but their salt mix (dry). I change 5g of water weekly in my 24gAP. I will be setting up another tank, small, 4g (won't be dosing that one) so buying salted at the LFS at 75cents gallon or making my own is more economical.

 

Does the ESV stuff contain trace elements?

 

Do most of you have dosing units or do you just try to remember to manually dose?

 

I had wondered if the salt mixes that said REEF on it were any better than the regular salt mixes. I guess I will finish up my box of Petco salt and get a 2 part product to get the Ca++/ALK/Mg the tank needs.

[basser1]

While th B-ionic may contain Mg, I wonder in what concentration? And I guess I'm getting better mileage out of my 3 part system than thecowkid. My corals are showing great growth, good color, and the clam has shown new growth in the last 3 months. The bottom line is find something that works for you and stick with it!

[airangel]

Basser...thats the thing, trying not to spend a fortune trying a ton of stuff to find what works best. I figured I'd be lazy and post to see what worked for everyone else....so far the ESV stuff is getting good grades but just cause it did for some, doesnt mean for all.

 

I'm probably going that route since the place i've got a few items to order carries it and its on sale this month.

[Weetabix7]

ESV 2 part does contain Mg, as well as potassium, bromide, strontium, lithium, barium, rubidium, iron, zinc, nickel, copper, manganese, cobalt, and chromium. (I was reading off the label.) Those elements listed are in the Ca part of the additive.

 

Salts that say "Reef" on them typically have higher Ca levels.

Coralife and Oceanic both have higher Ca levels.

Tropic Marin Pro and RSM Pro are both supposed to have higher Ca levels, but it doesn't always work out that way.

The bucket of RSM Pro that I have mixed up at a much lower Ca level than it was supposed to, according to the label.

[sbreefs]

Kent products suck! The only good thing about Kent is if you drop a whole bottle in your tank nothing will happen accept maybe algae growth.

[Weetabix7]

From what I've heard, the head chemist at Kent (who is supposed to be pretty good) left Kent Marine not long ago and went to work for Brightwell Aquatics.

I've had good experiences with some Kent products, but I have to admit that what I've heard from friends about Kent's 2 part, it's not that good.

[airangel]

Coralife and Oceanic both have higher Ca levels.

Tropic Marin Pro and RSM Pro are both supposed to have higher Ca levels, but it doesn't always work out that way.

The bucket of RSM Pro that I have mixed up at a much lower Ca level than it was supposed to, according to the label.

 

Weetie...hmmm...so if I want higher Ca levels I should go with Coralife & Oceanic over Tropic and RSM Pro? I'll be using up what I've got now (Petco mix)....I'm going to order the B Ionic two part and see how that goes for me. Anythings better than the low levels I have now.

 

Now to find someone using Petco dry mix......

[tinyreef]

just wanted to add, when you're using the two-parter's keep an eye on your salinity. after a while, you should notice an uptick of salinity due to the salt content of the two-part additives. iirc, b-ionic even notes this warning on its packaging somewhere.

 

if you constantly adjust/monitor your salinity it shouldn't be a problem. but don't assume it won't vary even if you maintain the same wc ratios as the additives slowly creep it up. nothing to worry about versus the benefits they impart. just something to keep track of every few months or so.

[Weetabix7]

Honestly, I'm hesitant to recommend any salt mix right now.

After my own difficulties with salt mixes I did a decent bit of checking around, and it seems that one of the problems is that there are sometimes variations between different batches of the same brand of salt. For instance, TM manufactured on the West Coast might have a different Ca level than TM manufactured on the East Coast. So where you get your salt from may also be a factor in it's levels.

I could tell you that I've had good luck with Oceanic and you could go get some that comes from a different plant and have a totally different experience. I say this after checking with people in different parts of the country who use the same salt mix, and after also checking some salt studies.

I don't have ANY salt mix that I am totally happy with right now and my own personal research in the area is still ongoing.

Having said that, I am relatively happy with the Oceanic that I am currently using. Whether I will be sticking with it longterm I don't know. The Oceanic I use has a very high Ca level (over 525) and a fairly high Alk level as well.

At this point, it would probably be a really good idea for you to research how Ca, Alk, and Mg work together and how they influence each other. Unfortunately I don't have links to that, but I know that others here do. Ezcompany is one of them.

Here's a link to a thread I started with some questions I had when I first started using B-Ionic. I think you will find some useful info on it.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...t=0&start=0