Aquaforest Reef Salt Mag Off the Charts!!

[Daydream Corals]

Hi Reefers.

So I have been using Aquaforest products in my tank so wanted to give the salt and try and I have been using it for about a month now and every time I check the salt before I add it into my tank the mag is 1500 sometimes off the charts. I have had my tank stable and now when I check my mag its basically off the charts at 1500. This is very upsetting when you buy these products to get your system and keep your system inline and never measures out to what they say. How can we have successful reef tanks when the product you buy isn't measuring out correctly or working properly.

 

[jhatfield]

Had the same issue a year ago with two separate batch numbers of AF reef salt. BRS stepped up and replaced both very quickly with no questions asked... guessing they were aware of the situation.

Good news is that high mg will not wreck your system. I switched to Red Sea reef salt blue bucket without issue and over time mg settled into a normal range. There is absolutely nothing wrong with mixing and matching components/additives however you see fit. Using red sea salt and NOPO4x with the AF Comp123 has worked really well.

 

[SewerynAquaforest]

Aquaforest is make a lot to keep best quality products. Below y oj u can find video how all batch of salts are checked in professional laboratory.



From our experience most of mistakes are made in measuring the salinity. We (hobbyists) usually use refractometers that do the price level are designed for measuring salt water (for food industry) not for sea water. 1500mg with higher salinity is normal level. As we all know with change of salinity all parameters are changing....
This is how freshly made salt should be measured and how to check results of your salt made in professional laboratory:

https://aquaforest.eu/en/icp-oes-results/

If you are sure of your measurements you can send an email with the code of the batch that you will find on the bucket (box) to [email protected]

 

[The River]

I have the same issue and had to switch salt to another brand to fix it. Also have the issue dosing components 123 in equal amounts to the point i can not dose component 3 at all anymore, no considering switching that as well

 

[jhatfield]

I have the same issue and had to switch salt to another brand to fix it. Also have the issue dosing components 123 in equal amounts to the point i can not dose component 3 at all anymore, no considering switching that as well

If you are mixing comp123 yourself you can mix up a comp3 and leave out the mg entirely until the tank mg drops to an acceptable level.

 

[SewerynAquaforest]

I have the same issue and had to switch salt to another brand to fix it. Also have the issue dosing components 123 in equal amounts to the point i can not dose component 3 at all anymore, no considering switching that as well

If your tank is not in balance you can read and watch video how to do and why :
https://aquaforest.eu/en/product/component-1-2-3/

If somehow it's not for you you can use Calcium , Magnesium and Kh buffer and make your own solution and dose it as your tank will need.
or... Use ready to use solutions Ca plus , Mg plus and Kh plus and dose the same way.

 

[Daydream Corals]

I had the same problem with the component 123 but it was because my ions were not inline yet. The way I got on three equal amounts was if my numbers were to high I waited till they dropped to the numbers I was happy with then I started dosing a smaller amount around 25ml each comp I have 38 gal if I saw it drop I knew I had to dose more now I'm at 3 equal doses at 30ml each but since I did a water change with the mag being off the charts my mag when I tested it was 1500 and my alk at 8.8 when before I did they water change I was at 8.0 but I think I know why my alk is higher because my salinity was around 1.022 because I was still using one of those cheap plastic salinity checkers. So last night I didn't dose anything because my mag , alk, & ca were all higher. If you are having a hard time getting Ca & MG inline you have to bring them up by using just the regular aquaforest plus or any other ca, mg supplement. Hope this helps.

 

[Daydream Corals]

Yes I keep hearing about these lab test results but really isn't giving me a real answer to why this is happening it can't be everyone's test kits are off. Now I don't know what to do since I'm using comp 123 and had all my levels in line and was dosing three equal parts. Can I dose and just leave comp 3 out until it drops to a number I'm happy with. I bought the huge bucket of reef salt and this is my second water change in two weeks with the same results now what do I do with this big bucket of salt since I'm going to have to switch to a different salt which means I'm going to have to stop dosing comp 123 correct? looks like I'm going to esv 3 part and esv salt.

 

[jhatfield]

I bought the huge bucket of reef salt and this is my second water change in two weeks with the same results now what do I do with this big bucket of salt since I'm going to have to switch to a different salt which means I'm going to have to stop dosing comp 123 correct?

No need to switch comp123. Just switch to another brand of salt. I chose Red Sea blue bucket simply because it's cal, alk and mg are right in the middle of the range so I wouldn't have to change my dosing much. Plus, their salt mix was known to be super consistent.

I'd just not dose comp3 until your mag comes down to normal levels. Maybe more frequent water changes with a known good salt but I wouldn't do anything too radical too quickly. There are worse things than having high Mag.

If you are mixing it yourself you can make a smaller batch of comp3 without the mag, that way you don't lose the other elements in comp3.

 

[reeferdon]

I am so frustrated with Aqua Forest product. I've had the same problem you guys are having for a few months.
I see so many posts of reefers having the same problem with hi mag with Aqua Forest Reef Salt.
With that being said, why are they so quick to replace the salt if nothing is wrong with it according to their icp test? It's toooo many reefers having the same complaints.

 

[Anirban]

Last year there were some issues with the reef salt being high in Mg. To resolve this AF now put a batch number which you can directly put in their website to see individual analysis report of that batch in detail. If still you have issues then you can report it to AF.
Also as said before if you have issues with high Mg then just don't add Mg when you are mixing component 3. You can then dose component 123 without any issues.

 

[Afrost]

I started using the AF and calcium and magnesium are off the charts to the point I can’t even think about dosing the 123. It’s all going in the trash. It sucks all that wasted money

 

[Aquaforest]

I started using the AF and calcium and magnesium are off the charts to the point I can’t even think about dosing the 123. It’s all going in the trash. It sucks all that wasted money

Hi Afrost, let's solve it together. Can you tell us your parameters and batch number?

 

[wackyreefer]

I have the same problem. Just re-calibrated refractometer with Salifert calibration fluid to 35ppt. Then test salt mix and get 35ppt. Spot on.

Brand new 25kg box of Aquaforest Reef salt batch 754625. Mg is off the charts (1500+) at 35ppt.
ICP test checker (https://aquaforest.eu/en/icp-oes-results/) for my batch says Mg analysis is 1308 at 33ppt salinity.

Now obviously if I mix it to 35ppt, then I am expecting to see an Mg level of around +-1387.
However, Salifert mg test is reading 1500+.
So in reality I am getting somewhere between 1500 and 1600.

Super frustrated by this

 

[Aquaforest]

Hello,
I am sure you can trust ICP results.
Here you can see how we test our products:

We mix our Marine Salt in 1 metric tonne (2204lb) batches, and 3 separate samples per batch are collected during the production stage for testing. Each of these samples is dissolved in 15 litres (4US gal) of RO water. Our experienced team of professionals perform ICP-OES analysis to verify that the chemical composition is within consistent range, and to rule out the presence of unwanted contaminants at the same time. Note: Even though our salt is thoroughly mixed, not every bucket/box will be identical. The parameters can vary slightly between containers and around a 2-3% variation is acceptable. This fluctuation is a result of both physical properties of the mix and the limitations of the processing techniques available. These variations are still smaller than the typical margin for error for popular hobbyist test kits.

 

[wackyreefer]

Hello,
I am sure you can trust ICP results.
Here you can see how we test our products:

We mix our Marine Salt in 1 metric tonne (2204lb) batches, and 3 separate samples per batch are collected during the production stage for testing. Each of these samples is dissolved in 15 litres (4US gal) of RO water. Our experienced team of professionals perform ICP-OES analysis to verify that the chemical composition is within consistent range, and to rule out the presence of unwanted contaminants at the same time. Note: Even though our salt is thoroughly mixed, not every bucket/box will be identical. The parameters can vary slightly between containers and around a 2-3% variation is acceptable. This fluctuation is a result of both physical properties of the mix and the limitations of the processing techniques available. These variations are still smaller than the typical margin for error for popular hobbyist test kits.

I am sorry but are you saying that a 2-3% variation is the explanation for all of these people having 1500-1600 mg at 35ppt where it should be +-1380 based on the ICP result you publish?
That is rather a 10-13% variation which is a much larger variation than 2-3%. Either a) Your sample method is not helping you tell an accurate story b) your quality control is off completely and your variation is much larger than you publish.

Over the years I bought an enormous amount of Red sea Blue bucket salt and never had this level of inconsistency. I would much prefer to keep using Aquaforest salt as I am using several other Aquaforest products, but I get the feeling Aquaforest has been ignoring consumer concern on this topic for several years now. A basic search on this forum will bring up several different posts with several different people experiencing the same issue. I am sorry, but this is beyond just a 2-3% variation.

Perhaps this highlights an even bigger concern. The variation between buckets may vary 2-3%, but maybe it's the complete salt batch overall that is out another x % on top of that 2-3%.

 

[Aquaforest]

I am sorry but are you saying that a 2-3% variation is the explanation for all of these people having 1500-1600 mg at 35ppt where it should be +-1380 based on the ICP result you publish?
That is rather a 10-13% variation which is a much larger variation than 2-3%. Either a) Your sample method is not helping you tell an accurate story b) your quality control is off completely and your variation is much larger than you publish.

Over the years I bought an enormous amount of Red sea Blue bucket salt and never had this level of inconsistency. I would much prefer to keep using Aquaforest salt as I am using several other Aquaforest products, but I get the feeling Aquaforest has been ignoring consumer concern on this topic for several years now. A basic search on this forum will bring up several different posts with several different people experiencing the same issue. I am sorry, but this is beyond just a 2-3% variation.

Perhaps this highlights an even bigger concern. The variation between buckets may vary 2-3%, but maybe it's the complete salt batch overall that is out another x % on top of that 2-3%.

I think the best way is to compare ICP result to ICP result. Each raport of high Mg finished with wrong result of home test kit or too high salinity. That's why you are more than welcome to send us saltmix. I am sure that your Magnesium level is the same as you can check at our website. Behind those results stands professional laboratory with highly qualificated chemists and biologists. Home tests kits could have variation even 10-15%... sometimes they are really not accurate ( storing, humidity).

If you would like to send us salt or saltmix - please PM us.

 

[wackyreefer]

I think the best way is to compare ICP result to ICP result. Each raport of high Mg finished with wrong result of home test kit or too high salinity. That's why you are more than welcome to send us saltmix. I am sure that your Magnesium level is the same as you can check at our website. Behind those results stands professional laboratory with highly qualificated chemists and biologists. Home tests kits could have variation even 10-15%... sometimes they are really not accurate ( storing, humidity).

If you would like to send us salt or saltmix - please PM us.

That's fair enough. I will get a ICP test done as that will anyway validate if there is an issue with a) my refractometer b) The Salifert MG test kit

 

[Reef.]

That's fair enough. I will get a ICP test done as that will anyway validate if there is an issue with a) my refractometer b) The Salifert MG test kit

any results to report in the thread?

 

[wackyreefer]

any results to report in the thread?

Sorry, I completely forgot about this and sold my tank since. Might be getting back into the hobby in future though.

Aquaforest was correct that the main culprid here was the test kit by Salifert, which is fair enough.
Salt bucket batch serial stats: 1308.
Marinlab test results: 1462.
Salifert test kit: 1500.

I don't think home grade test kits are made to be that accurate. So the Salifert kit reading 1500 when it actually was 1462, is actually not that far off thinking about it in hindsight.

In Aquaforests' defense, the salt MG level was not actually between 1500-1600 as per my original statements. However, it still wasn't accurate to the batch. It's now been years, and I no longer have a tank (at the moment), so happy to put this to bed.

I think the take away is, hobby grade testing kits only go so far (which is what AF rightfully so was telling me), and the batch testing by AF can probably also just be accurate up to a certain point. It's not necessarily gospel.

In future I will ignore MG if Salifert reads 1500 and rely on ICP tests every few months for an accurate reading.
I will let someone else take up the challenge of working with Salifert on why their MG test reads the way it does.