Water change day !!!???

[James Hammett]

That’s funny

 

[kz4q66]

I might not matter anymore since you change the salt.
But for Red Sea salt you should not mix it more than 4 hours. Mixing it too long will cause the water to be cloudy.
Here is the instruction

 

[James Hammett]

so is there one salt that is better or is it really just a preference thing?

 

[kz4q66]

In my opinion they are not the same. For example
Red sea has two different formulas of salt for two different markets.
The Red Sea "Coral Pro Salt" for coral growth and ideal for Mixed Reefs and SPS frag tanks.
The Red Sea "Red Sea Salt" is for SPS Dorminant, UNLS and Marine fish tanks.

 

[James Hammett]

And the Instant Ocean? I am trying to determine if there is a chemical difference I can discuss with my students? Or possibly an experiment going forward maybe setting up two tanks with two different salts and comparing tank health or coral growth?

 

[kz4q66]

Not a salt expert, I cannot help you on this.
But I think it is a hard thing to do since coral grow also depend on other factors such as light, water flow, placement in the tanks ....

 

[reeferfoxx]

And the Instant Ocean? I am trying to determine if there is a chemical difference I can discuss with my students? Or possibly an experiment going forward maybe setting up two tanks with two different salts and comparing tank health or coral growth?

You could always teach them about anhydrous vs hydrate salt mixes. There is a difference obviously but how it impacts the salt mix and it's potential for contaminants with hydrate. Then the difference of parameters and how it impacts calcification depending on nutrient levels. Also because you initially didn't use a heater for your mix, you can discuss that mixing at room temp reduces precipitation but at elevated temps can slightly impact salinity and helps neutralize pH.

 

[reeferfoxx]

https://reefs.com/magazine/evaluating-synthetic-sea-salts/