LET'S GET SALTY: What's a FAIR price for salt and what are you using in 2020?

[revhtree]

OPTIONS! In this hobby we have options! There are so many ways to run and maintain a tank and with that comes many options for equipment, additives, livestock etc. There are so many cool gadgets that we can utilize that gives us the options to pick and choose whether we use them or not.

BUT one thing we all must use and can't reef without is salt! Not only do we need it but we need it often for water changes, emergencies, quarantine and more! So for the QOTD I wanted to talk about SALT and ask you a couple of questions!

1. What is a fair price to pay for a 160g - 200g bucket of salt?

2. As of 2020 what salt mix are you using?

 

[Epic Aquaculture]

I/O Bro!

 

[Hair Algae Wizard]

I have no problem paying a premium for a brand that is consistent batch-to-batch, and would be willing to pay up to 100.00 a bucket for piece of mind and quality.

Most say salt is salt, and that is probably true, but many vendors parameters are off from bucket-to-bucket, so when I factor in piece of mind, that is worth it to me. (although I still test Alk every time I do a water change with fresh saltwater)

I'm currently using Tropic Marin Bio-Actif, but had been using TM Pro Reef.

 

[DivingTheWorld]

I make adjustments to my water change water no matter what salt I use. So I prefer the cheapest salt with the least amount of additives, IO.

 

[AllSignsPointToFish]

I've had the best luck with Instant Ocean....that was, before they changed the bag material.

 

[flsalty]

IO for life! Runs about 50 bucks plus or minus a few dollars.

 

[MHascsak]

$35 for the 200 gallon mix of IO for me

 

[gioNVA]

IO salt for me. Anytime the 200g box or 160g bucket is around $35, I stock up.

 

[kapnkush608]

I run @Aquaforest reef salt. $75 seems to be the sweet spot for me. Before that was reef crystals. They were ok but sometimes it would be cloudy for days after mixing before I could finally use it.

 

[Dreamoceanbig]

Tropic Marin Pro Reef or Red Sea Coral Pro all the way.. too many other cheaper salts are all over the place from batch to batch with no consistency.

 

[hllb]

I am currently using Red Sea Coral Pro but just received my first box of HW Marine Reefer. I like the parameters of it better, but dislike the packaging LOL. I'll start using it in a few weeks, probably. My tank is small, so the cost isn't as relevant to me.

 

[William Norman]

I am currently trying Tropic Marine Pro in my new tank after using Natural Salt Water and I/O in my others.. I liked the idea of natural but I started having some issues. I thought hey it comes from the ocean a few miles offshore, less need to add any micro elements to it. But I started finding algeas coming in with it. I used I/O but I had lots of crud in my barrel and also saw swings in parms.

 

[JMetaxas]

50 gallon bags of Reef Crystals for about $13-$14 on Amazon.

 

[B7Joe]

Tropic Marin Pro-Reef. Changed to the brand recently. Mixes consistently, very quickly and stores well. I have a smaller tank and mix only small amounts of water (5 to 10 gallons at a time), so the higher cost is not an issue. In the future, when I have a larger tank, I may need to change but for now it’s perfect for my needs.

 

[fraghunter]

I was using Tropic Marine Pro Reef but started testing the Alk and it was consistent but at 5.3. Switched to Aquaforest reef salt and its alk is slightly better at 6.3 and about 30 bucks less so going to stick with them for now. Neither of the 2 seem to be in the range they claim.

 

[Deephouse_jedi]

I've used cheaper salts like Fritz and IO in the past. The batch to batch was aweful and I found myself constantly adding a lot of dKH to boost to appropriate levels. I've since switched to Tropic Marin and couldn't be happier. A bit pricey and I'm looking into Brightwell for that reason. But for now I'm happy paying the premium for quality. The cheaper stuff definitely had me cleaning my storage more often. Ill for sure pay more if it means less work for me later lol.

 

[LC8Sumi]

$76. Red Sea Blue bucket

 

[Spongking1]

Red Sea blue label. Not the coral pro. At $60-70 it makes me sad. But it’s what lot of friends with great tanks use. As well as the LfS locally that I spend a lot of my money in.

 

[RP709]

ESV! Most consistent levels of any salt I have ever used (& I've used them all!) and I try not to think about the price

 

[JCTReefer]

Red Sea Blue Bucket @ 72.99 from BRS. Every once in a while they'll have a sale. It's about the closest salt to the parameters I keep. I've found it's also consistent from batch to batch.