Best Cal/ Mag supplements
- Thread starter Frank
- Start date
- Tagged users None
w0r1d5m1n3
Active Member
I would say. A good two part. Like from Bulk Reef Supply.
Reeferdood
2500 Club Member
Personal pref...
I personally like Brightwell, or Oceans Blend..
I personally like Brightwell, or Oceans Blend..
wishntoboutside
Snow flake
i am a big fan of Warner Marine. great quality at a good value. the two part is also balanced with mag too.
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
For calcium and alk and a drip system there is Grocery store pickling lime.
For calcium there is calcium chloride which is available in 25 or 50# bags from local redimix places. Like $20 for a 50# bag.
For alk there is baking soda. plain old arm & hammer.
For magnesium there is epsom salts (grocery store) and magnesium chloride. Magnesium chloride is hard to obtain.
both magnesium chloride and calcium chloride are used for pavement ice melters to replace rock salt in that application. Some times up north you can get both at hardware/building supply stores. Check the label to make sure they are just one or the other and not a mixture.
I get both now from a local industrial chemical supplier. a 50 pound bag of calcium chloride and a 50 pound bag of magnesium chloride are ~ $40-50 total with taxes and shipping.
This is so cheap I give the stuff away at local club meetings and frag swaps.
my .02
Last edited:
Reef Empire
I bleed saltwater.
+1 on Warner Marine. We use the whole line exclusively and have been doing so for years.
I love Brightwell products too....granted i have a much smaller tank than most so not sure if it is cost effective for you but they have decent prices.
wishntoboutside
Snow flake
nothing wrong with that as well. but i have to pass. i like to use only pharm or lab grade products. knowing that these are 100% reef safe with no side effects.
i do recall mag flake bags saying not made for aquarium use do to inconsistent batchs from the past.
Reeferdood
2500 Club Member
What has led you to believe that all commercially available products use pharmaceutical grade ingredients? Also, what makes you think that just because someone sticks a label on someting that it's reef safe and has no side effects? History has proven that's simply not the case with various products in this hobby. Especially some of them put out by additive companies...
The magnesium from BRS is pharmeceutical grade as are most Epsom salts/Magnesium Sulfate. In addition, Magflake has been tested and proven to be just fine for aquarium use, the manufacturers just don't want to be held responsible nor bite the hand the feeds them since they probably supply some of the addititive companies.
beaslbob
2500 Club Member
Magesium chloride has a warning because the "ice melter" grade used a process that resulted in ammonia in the flake. But even with that, the small amount we dose presents not danger to our tank IMHO. After all we are not creating salt mixes just bumping up magnesium. And ammoina is rapidily consumed by bacteria and algaes.
FWIW and IMHO we do not need reagent or lab grade. Much better to use food grade. Lab grade is a higher percentage of the product and that is important for lab use. But things like copper which will not affect lab use are not tested for. But are tested for in food grade for human health concerns.
I use "technical grade" and have read the assay which indicates that less then 1% has anything that is unknown of dangerous to our corals.
Technical grade calcium chloride and magnesium chlorde are $15-$25 to 50 pound bags.
my .02
FWIW and IMHO we do not need reagent or lab grade. Much better to use food grade. Lab grade is a higher percentage of the product and that is important for lab use. But things like copper which will not affect lab use are not tested for. But are tested for in food grade for human health concerns.
I use "technical grade" and have read the assay which indicates that less then 1% has anything that is unknown of dangerous to our corals.
Technical grade calcium chloride and magnesium chlorde are $15-$25 to 50 pound bags.
my .02
