Aquaforest vs Instant ocean SALT

[Flame2hawk]

I usually buy Aquaforest and/or normal Instant Ocean for my fish only or softie/LPS tanks. Find that IO mixes and clears up faster than AF. AF salt particles take a bit more effort to dissolve. Other than that dont really observe any difference so buy the one on sale. Any thoughts?

 

[Doctorgori]

I want to say BRS or someone did a test on this, also each brand usually states how soon the salt is supposed to be ready before use…
I thought IO was 24hrs….I never personally wait that long but whatever it is that info is somewhere

 

[TokenReefer]

I've used iO an Red Sea; iO (purple) mixes clean for me. Red sea occasionally leaves dark/black spots that smudge when I rinse the bucket and wipe it to see what it is :thinking-face: That is all :)

 

[Kodski]

I too didn't find much difference between AF salt and IO aside from parameters. I didn't observe that AF took any longer to mix though, for me they mixed about the same.

 

[SpyC]

I use AF reef salt and it mixes clear for me in about 15 minutes. If the mixing parameters are the same, I think you could buy whichever is cheapest when you need it. I nornally wait for a sale on AF once I am down to half a box left from the prior order.

 

[OrchidMiss]

I switched to AF from RS black bucket about 2 years ago and I love the salt.
I find that it mixes exceptionally clear in a very short amount of time *about 10-15 mins* and stays clear (no slime or precipitate) when I leave it to mix or sit longer than anticipated.
I also wait for AF to go on sale and buy 3 or 4 200g bags.

 

[Kodski]

I switched to AF from RS black bucket about 2 years ago and I love the salt.
I find that it mixes exceptionally clear in a very short amount of time *about 10-15 mins* and stays clear (no slime or precipitate) when I leave it to mix or sit longer than anticipated.
I also wait for AF to go on sale and buy 3 or 4 200g bags.

How long have you let it sit? I found with AF salt it still produced a coating in my mixing station. But I sometimes have the same batch of salt for a few weeks in there.

 

[OrchidMiss]

How long have you let it sit? I found with AF salt it still produced a coating in my mixing station. But I sometimes have the same batch of salt for a few weeks in there.

I've let it sit for up to 2 weeks (my largest mixing container is 10g, and I have let it sit up to 3 weeks and only have to adjust for evaporation and recheck SG.

 

[Flame2hawk]

Thx for feedback. AF does go on sale more often then IO and thats when I buy 4 boxes. In my case IO mixes better but I can tolerate the slight difference in effort to get AF to be as clear and as quickly. Have rarely had mixed saltwater sit more than a couple of hours and in most cases 15-30m. Have never noticed any issues with fish or corals.

 

[herozero]

How long have you let it sit? I found with AF salt it still produced a coating in my mixing station. But I sometimes have the same batch of salt for a few weeks in there.

At least on Af reef salt directions say use within 5 days of mixing, I can’t say with certainty but maybe that is the cause of the coating? Is it sitting without circulation? Heater? I left IO because it was always leaving a brown film on my mixing buckets and I couldn’t get consistent parameters.

 

[Kodski]

At least on Af reef salt directions say use within 5 days of mixing, I can’t say with certainty but maybe that is the cause of the coating? Is it sitting without circulation? Heater? I left IO because it was always leaving a brown film on my mixing buckets and I couldn’t get consistent parameters.

Yup, that's actually why I switched to IO. I observed that the ALK dropped quite a bit after a week. I think it being heated also causes the coating. I notice when I heat any salt it seems that something precipitates out more or faster than when its left to room temp.