Salt mix confusion for mixed reef. Is IO and all4reef the way to go?

[Jcon82]

Hi All,

I am about to run out of my first box of Instant ocean and have been researching other mixes like Red Sea and Tropic Marin. I just added a bunch of corals to my 40 breeder this week (total 6 sps and 11 lps) so I'm evaluating if I need to switch salts.

I'm able to mix IO to 35ppm, 420 cal, 9dkh and 1250mg which I think is rather ideal. Now I dont know how fast my corals will deplete this once they settle in but I'm hoping to be able to stick to biweekly water changes around 20% since it suits my lifestyle better.

So I figure I have two options. I can continue with instant ocean and dose all4reef or I can go with something like RS Coral pro. I feel like the instant ocean+A4R option is better.

My LFS has Tropic Marin and I was debating trying it but started to read stories of bad batches out of Turkey and fish dying. I'm not experienced enough to catch something like that so I think I'll wait on their product.

 

[ScubaFish802]

Hi All,

I am about to run out of my first box of Instant ocean and have been researching other mixes like Red Sea and Tropic Marin. I just added a bunch of corals to my 40 breeder this week (total 6 sps and 11 lps) so I'm evaluating if I need to switch salts.

I'm able to mix IO to 35ppm, 420 cal, 9dkh and 1250mg which I think is rather ideal. Now I dont know how fast my corals will deplete this once they settle in but I'm hoping to be able to stick to biweekly water changes around 20% since it suits my lifestyle better.

So I figure I have two options. I can continue with instant ocean and dose all4reef or I can go with something like RS Coral pro. I feel like the instant ocean+A4R option is better.

My LFS has Tropic Marin and I was debating trying it but started to read stories of bad batches out of Turkey and fish dying. I'm not experienced enough to catch something like that so I think I'll wait on their product.

I would start by figuring out how much of each of these things your tank is consuming, before blindly dosing allforreef.

There are a few methods to determine this, the easiest in my opinion is to test, wait a couple of days and then re-test. Figure out how much was consumed, then begin dosing based off that number, retesting to confirm or adjust the dosing amount as needed.

Since the corals have just been added the consumption is likely to change over time as they settle in, etc..

When I started reefing it was easy to buy additives thinking I needed them, in most cases I didn't

 

[Jcon82]

I would start by figuring out how much of each of these things your tank is consuming, before blindly dosing allforreef.

There are a few methods to determine this, the easiest in my opinion is to test, wait a couple of days and then re-test. Figure out how much was consumed, then begin dosing based off that number, retesting to confirm or adjust the dosing amount as needed.

Since the corals have just been added the consumption is likely to change over time as they settle in, etc..

When I started reefing it was easy to buy additives thinking I needed them, in most cases I didn't

I agree, all4reef just caught my attention should I need it. I would of course test before dosing.

 

[PatW]

Hard corals take up Calcium and ALK in producing calcium carbonate and to a much lesser extent magnesium. A way to maintain stability is to test for ALK and add an equal amount of 2 part, I use soda ash for the ALK component and calcium chloride for the calcium. Actually 2 part is really 3 part because there is another additive for the magnesium component. I find in my system, water changes maintain mg pretty well. But I have enough uptake that to stabilize ALK and calcium by water changes is ………… impractical. I use bulk reef supply 2 part. Initially just testing for ALK and adding ALK to compensate and equal amounts of Ca by hand works fine. Once the uptake increases, you will find using dosers will be far more practical.

For a much more complete discussion of this, go to the stickies in reef chemistry. Randy has a more than extensive treatment of this.

 

[alabella1]

Hi All,

I am about to run out of my first box of Instant ocean and have been researching other mixes like Red Sea and Tropic Marin. I just added a bunch of corals to my 40 breeder this week (total 6 sps and 11 lps) so I'm evaluating if I need to switch salts.

I'm able to mix IO to 35ppm, 420 cal, 9dkh and 1250mg which I think is rather ideal. Now I dont know how fast my corals will deplete this once they settle in but I'm hoping to be able to stick to biweekly water changes around 20% since it suits my lifestyle better.

So I figure I have two options. I can continue with instant ocean and dose all4reef or I can go with something like RS Coral pro. I feel like the instant ocean+A4R option is better.

My LFS has Tropic Marin and I was debating trying it but started to read stories of bad batches out of Turkey and fish dying. I'm not experienced enough to catch something like that so I think I'll wait on their product.

And the price for TM is out of control compared to the others out there.

 

[Hooz]

I've been using All for Reef for 18 months now. I absolutely love it.

As for salt, I used IO for a while, just like your plan. Worked fine for me. I only switched because I have a smaller tank that I don't dose, and I wanted to start with "better salt" (i.e. Better parameters for a mixed reef) for that tank... and I don't want 2 salt mixes for 2 different tanks. hw-MarineMix Reefer has been working PERFECTLY for me, and mixes up to a similar alkalinity with a bit more calcium, magnesium and trace elements.

 

[alabella1]

I've been using All for Reef for 18 months now. I absolutely love it.

As for salt, I used IO for a while, just like your plan. Worked fine for me. I only switched because I have a smaller tank that I don't dose, and I wanted to start with "better salt" (i.e. Better parameters for a mixed reef) for that tank... and I don't want 2 salt mixes for 2 different tanks. hw-MarineMix Reefer has been working PERFECTLY for me, and mixes up to a similar alkalinity with a bit more calcium, magnesium and trace elements.

I've heard a few mention hw-MarineMix Reefer. I've used IO purple, RC and now trying Red Sea Coral Pro.

 

[Bigred321]

I use red sea coral pro and have good results.. but i am not too concerned about the price. Sometimes u get what u pay for..

 

[Jcon82]

Hey All,

Thanks for reviving this thread!

I decided to try IO Reef Crystals since I got a big bucket for $35. I struggled with high Alk and wanted to dose All for reef but couldn't keep the alk down.

What ended up happening was the corals became starved for nutrients so I am switching to Aqua Forest reef salt (similar to Red sea blue) and will take the alk down slowly. Also will cautiously does no3 and po4 until things level out.