What salt do you use and why?

[Blue Ring Octopus]

I use Two Little Fishes salt that is pre measured for 5 gallons on my nano tanks

 

[DexterKarin]

Reading through this, I feel like odd person out. When I started a couple years back seemed like everyone was using red sea coral pro. I started with IO reef crystals but got swings in alkalinity. I know that shouldn't be the case but was for me. I switched to coral pro and my system has been much more stable around 8.4 alk. Easy to mis, clean, etc Why does it seem like no one is using red sea coral pro any longer?

 

[Doctor Derp]

I wish we could get our hands on some ATI Absolute Ocean here in the states.

 

[StartingATank]

I mix both red sea salts

 

[petcellar]

Curious..... does anyone use any of the aqua craft salts these days? I guessing not... I never see the name come up on threads like these.

I'm thinking that it was big in the late 90s early 2000s maybe? They used to take out full page ads in TFH magazine showing how their salts stacked up better against the competition and all the trace elements that they had.

There was BIO SEA and their premium salt was Marine Environment.

I used to use BIO SEA in a 55 gallon reef I had as a kid.

Marine Environment used to be a two part mix.... you had to add the contents of a bottle to the dry salt for the trace elements.

I guess it used to be a pretty good competitor to Instant Ocean, because I remember that IO always used to brag that their salt had "no little bottle".

Anyway, I checked out their website and surprisingly it still seems to be functional. But I guess their salt isn't used much among hobbyists anymore.

Just was curious.

 

[Reef Jedi]

I have a 44 gallon brute that is always full. I use nyos, and top it off after any water change. So some of that sw has been in that tub for many, many months. No issues, no residue. It’s usually stagnant. I circulate it 24 hours before expected water changes, but not all small wcs are expected. I keep it at 73 degrees, and circulate for about 24 hrs after I add new water to the tub. Sometimes it sits still for a month before a wc. It really has been painless & consistent in parameters.

I thought it needed to stay circulated and heated?

 

[zbrusko]

I have a 44 gallon brute that is always full. I use nyos, and top it off after any water change. So some of that sw has been in that tub for many, many months. No issues, no residue. It’s usually stagnant. I circulate it 24 hours before expected water changes, but not all small wcs are expected. I keep it at 73 degrees, and circulate for about 24 hrs after I add new water to the tub. Sometimes it sits still for a month before a wc. It really has been painless & consistent in parameters.

I thought it needed to stay circulated and heated?

No clue. All I know is what I do & I have had no noticeable issues yet.

 

[alabella1]

Awesome! I mix 50 gallons at a time once a month, I think next time I get the low level alert I'll pull it, clean it and try this. I'm more excited about this then I can say lol Dirty mixing bin has always been a bother of mine.

Same here. I am 100% going to try this in my 65g container next time I clean it out. The top is narrow so it's a real PITA to clean on a regular basis. I'd love for it to not get all brown and nasty.

 

[alabella1]

Red Sea Blue bucket for me. I run Captiv8 (Trace element dosing much like Reef Moonshiners). This is the most consistent salt that gets me close to NSW levels for most the elements.

I do get the brown crud from the salt but it's all captured by a 5 micron sock on the return in my mixing tank.

Wait what? I need more details on exactly what you are doing here!

 

[Pome]

What salt do you use and why?

What benefits do you think your choice has over others?

I used instant ocean regular for 20 years. The last two tanks I’ve used Red Sea blue bucket and I’m not too impressed with the residue it leaves in the mixing bin. I run an awc so it needs to be stored for a month.

I get 1000 litres of ocean water delivered as required ($120au), and use Red Sea reef pro to balance as required after skimmer etc.

 

[Australian_Reef]

I’ve used lots of different but I’ve basically settled on Aquaforest now. I use all three varieties depending on my application with the bog standard sea salt the most used of all.

 

[JulesH]

Tropic Marin, as its easy to mix and seems to not mind not being used for a while.

 

[mcarroll]

I thought it needed to stay circulated and heated?

Someone hit the nail on the head – give them a prize!!

Over circulating and overheating is what is causing all that precipitation in color.

Surprising nobody has searched this before setting up elaborate filtration, etc. because the question has been answered so many times over the course of the years… It's your trace elements coming out of solution with their binder. (clay)

Mix ASW until it's clear then stop. Unless the water is more than 5 or 10° colder than your tank, don't heat it at all. if it is considered heating it only right before use.

A cool water change has never seemed to bother any tank that I've ever had, and precipitation is less at lower temperatures. fish always seem to dig it.

 

[Australian_Reef]

Reef crystals.. I’ve mixed it warm, I’ve mixed it cold, I’ve mixed it long I’ve mixed it short, I’ve used straight away and I’ve held it. Every time it has precipitation and binder mess.

 

[WhatCouldGoWrong71]

Fritz Blue. Price. And I do Trace, so I am not worried if it’s deficient anywhere.

 

[Amstar]

for me its instant ocean reef crystals - been using it since the start of my tanks and as I have gotten more and more into corals- I've continued to use it due to having my dosing and tank parameters dialed into using it -

worried to switch salts and parameters being different during water changes -- corals and fish in my various tanks are doing great

only downside for me is like others have said -- dirty brute trash can -- but I clean that out every month/two months and start new batches

 

[Reef Jedi]

Someone hit the nail on the head – give them a prize!!

Over circulating and overheating is what is causing all that precipitation in color.

Surprising nobody has searched this before setting up elaborate filtration, etc. because the question has been answered so many times over the course of the years… It's your trace elements coming out of solution with their binder. (clay)

Mix ASW until it's clear then stop. Unless the water is more than 5 or 10° colder than your tank, don't heat it at all. if it is considered heating it only right before use.

A cool water change has never seemed to bother any tank that I've ever had, and precipitation is less at lower temperatures. fish always seem to dig it.

Wow! So constantly circulating and heating is what’s causing the build up of clay (brown/red residue on mixing bin). That’s very interesting if true. So it also sounds like it’s pulling out the trace elements and not being any beneficial to the tank. Essentially stripping the water before it can enter the tank. So if I understand correctly I’ll pull the mixing bin, clean it and only circulate when mixing the salt.

 

[BZOFIQ]

IO for me - because its cheap and has worked for everybody for decades. No issues to report in largely undemanding softies/LPS reef.

If I had unlimited budget, ESV all the way. Perfect salt mix, crystal clear in one minute....but comes at a price I can't justify.

 

[NeptuneSpear2011]

I use Red Sea Coral Pro Salt for roughly 10 yrs no issues or complaints with the product.

 

[Reef Jedi]

I use Red Sea Coral Pro Salt for roughly 10 yrs no issues or complaints with the product.

Do you get a clay lining in your mixing bin? Or do you store it at all?