Salts... OPINIONS

[w1dude]

I have always used IO. It was ok in my smaller tanks, but I am not as happy with it in my 150. I plan on making my tank mainly SPS. Opinons please! I am thinking about sea chem.

 

I have read a few articles and none tell me much, so I just want opinions!

 

Thanks

[BillyMays]

i use reef crystals but will stop after the bag is gone..... my calcium is above 500

[lakshwadeep]

Yes, any "reef" salt would be fine. These have higher amounts of things like calcium that get used up. That isn't to say instant ocean is bad; in fact, it's probably closer to natural seawater values. However, since your tank isn't experiencing continuous water changes like what would happen on a natural reef, it's useful to add the most common things that would get used up.

 

However, with SPS in a large tank, it's hard to do large water changes like in a nano to keep up with calcium/alkalinity demand, even with a reef salt. So, it's best to research a supplementation scheme:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-04/rhf/index.php

[zjharva]

weef kwystals seems good enough,its a little bit better than plain jane instant ocean in terms of the "stuff" it has in it.

[amnestia]

I've tried Instant Ocean, Tropic Marin, D-D Giesemann. Out of the 3 I like DD the most, this isn't to say that it's the best but my corals seemed to respond to it the best. This is purely from visual observation so it's definitely not concrete.

[montipora]

I've tried Instant Ocean, Tropic Marin, D-D Giesemann. Out of the 3 I like DD the most, this isn't to say that it's the best but my corals seemed to respond to it the best. This is purely from visual observation so it's definitely not concrete.

 

Completely agree, although in a 150 gallon tank not sure if it is going to be a good idea considering how much it costs. In a larger system it's easier to set up dosing pumps and automate anything you can for easier maintenance.

[briancv]

Not meaning to scare anybody and the salts they use, but I would take a look at this two-part study when you want to compare salts from a scientific approach, there is some pretty scary stuff in some of these salt mixes.

 

Study Part 1

Part 2

 

I recently switched from Tropic Marin to Red Sea Coral Pro and have been loving it. Unfortunately, this was not one of the tested salts, so I am venturing a bit into the unknown.

[Pickle010]

i use reef crystals but will stop after the bag is gone..... my calcium is above 500

 

 

I don't see the problem here.

[lakshwadeep]

It's a good idea to read this article before using one study alone to decide what salt is "best".

 

The problem with using such studies to select a salt mix is that, while we can look to see which brands most closely match natural seawater, the problem is that none really does, and it becomes very difficult to decide what is best. For example, is it better to have too much sulfate or too little fluoride? Too much borate or too little bromide? Too much strontium or too little potassium? No one knows. Ask that question about nearly every chemical constituent, and the true answer is, “No one knows.”

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/rhf/index.php

[MikeTR]

I was using IO without issues.. switched to Oceanic.. by the time the bucket was gone so were some of my corals.. thanks oceanic, switched back to IO..

[briancv]

It's a good idea to read this article before using one study alone to decide what salt is "best".

 

 

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/rhf/index.php

I agree, no doubt one article is not enough to make an air-tight case. I guess my biggest concern out this particular study is the mixes that had large amounts of heavy metals, one of the reasons we avoid tap water like the plague.

[Alexraptor]

I use Coralife.

Have not had any problems with it.

[coolwaters]

i got the cheapest thing and buffed it get the right paras.

 

i have seachem cuz it was less then $40 for a 160g bucket. paras was good enough so i didnt need to buff it.

[Oceanus]

Use Oceanic. Works great for me.

[BillyMays]

I don't see the problem here.

 

I was reading somewhere on another forum where someone was saying their calcium was over 500. The people responding said it wasn't bad but it wasn't a good thing either. If you all think its alright then I'm fine. Its hard to believe things on the net with so many mixed opinions .

[lakshwadeep]

It's not really bad because excess calcium won't hurt anything and will eventually form calcium carbonate on nonliving things, like on a heater or pump (abiotic precipitation). However, that can be a bad thing in using up carbonate (which is what alkalinity measures).

 

This is a good overview of acceptable ranges for various water parameters, including calcium, with detailed explanations of why the upper/lower limits were chosen.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

[Mudfish]

The "what's the best salt" question has been argued for years and years now. The studies that briancv quotes are from 2005; no doubt some of the formulas have been adjusted since then, not to mention in the summary the authors say "When all factors are considered, Tropic Marin, Instant Ocean, and Kent Marine score the best, but such a score can not be arrived at without some amount of subjective judgment in evaluating the pertinent factors."

 

Countless aquariums, large and small, have been using IO and Reef Crystals for many years. I reckon this track record says something. But I imagine just about any quality brand will do fine.

[Rocket]

I used IO once, with a small 50 gallon bag, The salt left deposits after dissolving, I've never touched the stuff again.

 

Ran my 125 on Oceanic for over a year and no problems (highly recommend the High initial mag of 1600 with this salt if you are going to do a Magnesium attack on bryosis algae!!!). But now that corals are filling in, the Alkalinity was constantly low( Oceanic has very low alk at 8.5) , and requiring buffering. I just purchased D-D Pro Mag+ or whatever they call it and so far I am happy.

 

I do 30 gallon monthly water changes.

[ulver982]

Red Sea Coral Pro Salt is awesome, I love it.

[bird]

I have been using TM pro reef and though it reads high in copper and a few other things once the corals became used to the salt switch they are all doing really well now.

I am using a Polyfilter and will always do so since reading the above links some time ago.

Supposedly Polyfilter remove copper and other undesirable metals and organics.

So far seems to be doing the job.

Just have to add magnesium and calcium (kalkwasser in top-off) but that is to be expected since the tank is sps dominant.

[Shaggy420]

reef crystals here

[herefishy]

reef crystals here

I have used reef crystals over the last several water changes...The stuff never dissolves completely. Run a power head to mix for a full 24 hours and there is always a white film on the water surface with visible particulates in the water. Never had problems like that Tr Marin or Oceanic. I guess it is time to switch again.

[Drewster09]

I have used reef crystals over the last several water changes...The stuff never dissolves completely. Run a power head to mix for a full 24 hours and there is always a white film on the water surface with visible particulates in the water. Never had problems like that Tr Marin or Oceanic. I guess it is time to switch again.

 

 

Is that necessarily bad? My Red Sea Pro Salt does the same thing...i have not had any issues yet...about to purchase my second bucket, but thought I would read up on salts a bit more before i purchase. The inexperiences of not trying another salt...

[Drewster09]

Is that necessarily bad? My Red Sea Pro Salt does the same thing...i have not had any issues yet...about to purchase my second bucket, but thought I would read up on salts a bit more before i purchase. The inexperiences of not trying another salt...

 

Anyone else use this salt? Red sea pro?

[ulver982]

The first bucket of Coral Pro Salt I used never had any brown residue left behind. My second bucket did occasionally leave some brown residue behind just like reef crystals does. Red Sea is updating their salt to this...

 

I can't wait until this comes out, I'm excited to try it.