Which Salt is the best?

[Kaz Reefer 57]

From what I hear Fritz and Topic Marin sounds like the two best slat for me. what Parameters are you guys getting on it and what other elements are in the mix.

 

[RickG]

Was using Red Seas salt for a while and had great results but switched over to Reef crystals to lower down maintence costs. Haven’t had any issues thus far and corals are doing good, i just let the water mix and stabilize a bit longer. Have noticed that Reef crystals doesn’t clear up as good as coral pro tho

 

[paraletho]

I used Kent for years then switched to Reef Crystals because the local fish stores all closed up and only left Petco for salt. Both of these left residue and mixed high alk 10.5 to 11 dkh. I then tried Fritz RPM on the recommendation of some pretty solid reefers. I saw a thread on a local forum about excessively high Magnesium in this salt. I checked my fresh made batch 1770. It took a month and a half to get back in the low 1400’s. I am with Live Aquaria F & S right now because of a deal, but I agree with many that it is probably just rebranded Fritz. My problem with Fritz was not that they had a bad batch,but that they wouldn’t own up to it. My guess is they didn’t want any negative press around the time of the deal with F&S. As long as they can get consistent it isn’t a bad salt if you like 8.2 to 8.5 which I do.

Wow, not one person mentioned Kent. Top notch if you ask me.

 

[jda]

I don't care how it takes to mix... it takes overnight to heat up anyway. I don't know if this is true, but I have heard that there is more precipitation of elements using warm water over cold.

I also don't care about the parameters, every single salt on the market needs doctored to get where I want it.

IO has given me perfectly repeatable results for close to two decades. I tried Seachem and a few other over the years and regretted it each time.

50G bag of IO into 44G brute of cold water with 2 tbsp of dowflake. Stir and heat until clear. 20mls of Muratic. Stir again for a least a day to drive off CO2. Perfect acropora water.

 

[gfox]

I’ve been using fritz RPM for the last 6 months mixes really fast and leaves no residue. Usually after mixing I obtain 8.2alk and 420ppm calcium

At what salinity?

 

[Justin Swinney]

I use LiveAquaria, which might be Fritz. I like how much better it mixes than reef crystals, and no brown crud. Plus, Foster's and Smith occasionally have great discounts. I stocked up huge on Black Friday!

Are the levels they advertise the levels you get when it mixes. I was curious because I’m considering buying that next time. Those are my target levels

 

[reefwiser]

This is a post that has been done over and over again. Everyone has different reasons why every salt is better than another and people reasons change over time too. I use a salt that I mix myself ESV salt I know that I can mix it to my needs and it is simple and easy to make and is ready to use in minutes if need be. Now it might not be the cheapest salt but I know it is mixed the way I want and is not based on the whole mixture in a bucket where things settle out and you could mix up a batch that is off.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I don't care how it takes to mix... it takes overnight to heat up anyway. I don't know if this is true, but I have heard that there is more precipitation of elements using warm water over cold.

Il.

FWIW, that is true.

 

[jda]

I wonder if that is why I don't get any brown stuff from IO mix, yet some do.

 

[kingclam52]

I use Fritz Pro salt in my tanks for over the past year things are looking good if its not broke don't fix it

 

[Rick Cavanaugh]

The the goal is stability of Alkalinity, so your salt's natural alkalinity should match what you want your tank to be. It should not be higher otherwise your tank will yoyo up and down which the corals do not like..

Personally I can not see why people pay huge premiums for some salts. It is really cheap and easy to spike your salt mix with a bit of sodium carbonate and calcium chloride to acheive what ever level you need. It is an extra step, but you really should check anyway as most likely your salt has settled/stratified a bit on shipping and your water is not going to be consistent.

 

[Psustein]

Red sea for reefs is deffinetly solid.

 

[Moo76]

I just ran out of my current salt mix and was thinking of switch from my current one RC. What do you guys use and which one is best in your a opinion.

I just started using Drs FS new salt a few months ago. It really mixes up nice, like it better the the Instant Ocean that I had been using.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The the goal is stability of Alkalinity, so your salt's natural alkalinity should match what you want your tank to be. It should not be higher otherwise your tank will yoyo up and down which the corals do not like..

Personally I can not see why people pay huge premiums for some salts. It is really cheap and easy to spike your salt mix with a bit of sodium carbonate and calcium chloride to acheive what ever level you need. It is an extra step, but you really should check anyway as most likely your salt has settled/stratified a bit on shipping and your water is not going to be consistent.

There’s only a yo-yo if you do larger size water changes. More smaller or even continuous water changes prevents any such concern. [emoji3]

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I wonder if that is why I don't get any brown stuff from IO mix, yet some do.

Normal IO or Reef Crystals? The latter is the one with brown deposits.

 

[HippieSmell]

Are the levels they advertise the levels you get when it mixes. I was curious because I’m considering buying that next time. Those are my target levels

Honestly, I've never checked it. I run a calcium reactor and all I test is my tank's ALK. If that's good and the tank looks good, I don't worry. I do a 1% water change every day, so any mismatches between my tank and the nsw isn't very important.

 

[Elgringodiablo]

I’ve used Red Sea Coral Pro, Aquaforest Probiotic and currently Fritz RPM. All three were fine. My tank didn’t react too well to the AF probiotic method so I switched to Zeovit with Fritz.

After having some ICP tests done and identifying a few slightly elevated contaminates (nothing super serious) I am going to transition over to Tropic Marin Pro.

Honestly, best results I’ve had were Red Sea black bucket, but running all my systems at 7-8 dkh now, so not an ideal choice.

 

[Koi Obsession]

Tropic marine ,,,, enough said

 

[fishbox]

One of the reasons I stick to IO is because it's so readily available from just about any pet shop in my area. So if I'm ever in a pinch, it's easy for me to get quickly.

 

[jda]

I do not want my alk to raise even .2 with a water change. Muratic Acid is easy to lower the alk in salt mix. It needs handled with respect, but it is not death in a bottle or anything. The mix also needs time for the PH to rise again.

Gallons * desired dKh drop * .123 = mls of Muratic Acid to use.