Absolute cleanest salt???

[Reefing.with.Rich]

I run the HW salt and it mixes so dirty and ends up leaving my brute can brown within a months time. I actually purchased some nice clear water holding tanks and want to change up my salt before they come in. Just don’t want to have to clean the salt tank monthly so figured I’d see what everyone believes is the cleanest mixed salt out there
Thanks

 

[Boehmtown]

I think it's tropic Marin or the multi step salts like the one from captiv8

 

[Reefing.with.Rich]

I think it's tropic Marin or the multi step salts like the one from captiv8

Both of them are actually on my radar. Was also considering accurasea1

 

[rtparty]

During my salt test, I left every salt tested to mix for at least one week. Some went 2 weeks depending on how lazy/busy I was before using it for a water change.

Off the top of my head I would say ESV, HW Reefer, and NYOS were the cleanest. Tropic Marin will usually leave a dark green ring around the waterline which, after talking to Hans Werner on here, I believe to be an iron/manganese precipitation. Scrubs right off and poses no threat to anything. A few salts left this dark green ring but I couldn't name them all. It is odd though because many new salts contain elevated iron and manganese.

The reasons for the "crud" left behind can be quite mysterious for some salts.

Avoid any high alkalinity salts like Red Sea Coral Pro, AquaForest Reef Salt Plus, Reef Crystals, etc. I would also avoid Red Sea Blue Bucket, Instant Ocean Purple, Brightwell, Fritz, and any salt with pre/probiotics.

 

[slingfox]

Tropic Marine, Neos, and ESV all are known to mix very clean and leave limited to no residue on the container.

I used to use RedSea Pro Reef but did not like the brown residue it left behind (the less often I have to lug by 55 gallon barrel outside to hose down the better). I have gone through almost 3 buckets of TM Pro Reef and it has been great (mixes very clean). I will soon switch to Nyos since it recently went on sale at BRS.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Avoid any high alkalinity salts like.... Reef Crystals

I'm curious why? Is it just the brown residue left from the binders? Or is there another reason you suggest avoiding it?

 

[Reefing.with.Rich]

During my salt test, I left every salt tested to mix for at least one week. Some went 2 weeks depending on how lazy/busy I was before using it for a water change.

Off the top of my head I would say ESV, HW Reefer, and NYOS were the cleanest. Tropic Marin will usually leave a dark green ring around the waterline which, after talking to Hans Werner on here, I believe to be an iron/manganese precipitation. Scrubs right off and poses no threat to anything. A few salts left this dark green ring but I couldn't name them all. It is odd though because many new salts contain elevated iron and manganese.

The reasons for the "crud" left behind can be quite mysterious for some salts.

Avoid any high alkalinity salts like Red Sea Coral Pro, AquaForest Reef Salt Plus, Reef Crystals, etc. I would also avoid Red Sea Blue Bucket, Instant Ocean Purple, Brightwell, Fritz, and any salt with pre/probiotics.

I use HW reefer and it turns my mixing tub up brown over a months time
ESV is something illl look into for sure thoufh
I use their 2part

 

[rtparty]

I'm curious why? Is it just the brown residue left from the binders? Or is there another reason you suggest avoiding it?

For the purposes of this thread, it does not store cleanly IME.

For purposes outside the scope of this thread, I don't care for any high alkalinity salts (I run mine between 7-8dkh), IORC has been very inconsistent IME, and found it to be much dirtier than other salts. I prefer IO Purple if cost is the driving factor.

 

[rtparty]

I use HW reefer and it turns my mixing tub up brown over a months time
ESV is something illl look into for sure thoufh
I use their 2part

Are you storing the water long term? Is it heated and mixed? What temperature if you are heating it?

My "storage" was very short term but I used up the whole box of HW Reefer with weekly water changes. My Brute can stayed super clean the whole time. I really liked the HW salt and went to buy more but the price had jumped like 20% overnight so I switched away.

 

[Spare time]

Just run a salt with lower alk and such. That should help. It is just precipitation

 

[Reefing.with.Rich]

Are you storing the water long term? Is it heated and mixed? What temperature if you are heating it?

My "storage" was very short term but I used up the whole box of HW Reefer with weekly water changes. My Brute can stayed super clean the whole time. I really liked the HW salt and went to buy more but the price had jumped like 20% overnight so I switched away.

I keep it full at all times. I do around 30gallon WC weekly ao typically a week of sit time. I also add water occasionally as I take water out when selling/trading coral to replace water taken from tanks. I keep the mixing tub heated at 77 degrees

 

[Spare time]

I keep it full at all times. I do around 30gallon WC weekly ao typically a week of sit time. I also add water occasionally as I take water out when selling/trading coral to replace water taken from tanks. I keep the mixing tub heated at 77 degrees

I am willing to bet your are getting the precipitation because you are keeping it heated. Don't store saltwater heated.

 

[piranhaman00]

Instant ocean purple is the best salt on the market.

 

[Reefing.with.Rich]

I am willing to bet your are getting the precipitation because you are keeping it heated. Don't store saltwater heated.

Then when you do a large water change you’re going to have a large temp swing
My basement is where my mixing station is and if I don’t heat it, it will be likely 60 degree water

 

[rtparty]

Then when you do a large water change you’re going to have a large temp swing
My basement is where my mixing station is and if I don’t heat it, it will be likely 60 degree water

You could try heating it less. More around 72 or so. A couple degree temperature swing won’t cause issues IME

 

[Spare time]

Then when you do a large water change you’re going to have a large temp swing
My basement is where my mixing station is and if I don’t heat it, it will be likely 60 degree water

Heat it when you need it. Don't store it heated.

 

[KrisReef]

I’m just trying to figure out what happens with cold storage salt water when it warms up in the DT?
Which begs another question, or two.

Do people have filtration or skimmers on their mixing stations? Maybe I should? Thanks for the suggestions and discussion.

 

[Jason_MrFrags]

I've stopped heating my water even to mix. No longer have any brown residue even from Instant Ocean.

 

[Court_Appointed_Hypeman]

I am on my 4th bucket of reef crystals and its my first time seeing some of the brown. I thought it was some sort of lyngbya at first. I have a bin mixing all the time, and it got a little brown on the powerheads outer casing but none anywhere else, ill have saltwater stored in 5 gallon buckets not mixing for up to a month, and in those buckets, 5 gallon, I got about 1.5 tsp of brown stuff that was collected at the bottom, though not in a sheet, more like a couple small low floating blobs. I just pour the bucket and stop before the brown ends up pouring out.

Almost considering switching, might as well since I change water so infrequently every change I do is probably the equivalent of doing a water change with a new salt anyway.

I do not heat my mixed water at any point but am considering having one that turns on the day before a change.

 

[trevorhiller]

I've noticed no ill effects from the brown crud. There's lots of brown crud in my sump too lol tank seems to be fine.

I've used instant ocean, Tropic Marin Pro & Red Sea Coral pro and they all seem to leave a residue. If you were truly intent on keeping it out of the barrel, plumb a larger sediment filter (like a RODI canister in line with your mixing pump or hang a filter sock on the end of your mixing station return line) I bet that would take care of the bulk of the problem.

I actually contemplated doing this when I made my mixing station, but it was just one more complication to maintenance so I opted not too.