Instant ocean salt for reef tanks?

[fcmatt]

I just want others to know regular io mixes clean. No residue.

It is REEF crystal io that leaves crud.

Please keep that in mind as other mentioned.

I use regular io.

 

[Jeeperz]

Can those that use IO post parameters? I may switch once I'm done with my salinity/reef crystals. Was planning to go to HW brand salt as I've heard good things and parameters are where I keep mine. But if I just have to dose a bit of all before water changes, there's no reason to spend double

 

[homer1475]

Roughly 1600ppm mag, 400 cal, and 9 to 10 DKH, been very consistent batch to batch and year to year.

 

[DuckSlayer627]

Just a few pics. Regular ole cheap Instant Ocean. Been using it for years.

 

[trmiv]

I’ve mainly used IO in my 15 years of reefing. I only do 8 gallon water changes weekly on my current Reefer 350 and currently working through a 160g bucket. Before that I had a 200g box. Those two mostly tested at:

10.5 dkh
430 ca
1500 mag

I don’t have many corals in this tank since it’s only about 7 months old so I maintain levels with water changes only.

just bought a 200g box from Petco for $37. No way I’m spending $100 for a bucket of Tropic Marin with those prices. I am curious to see what the bags in this batch test at, as I expect the calcium to be lower than the 430 I’ve been getting

 

[Somethingfishy_]

jeez i didn’t mean to start a salt war. I just wanted to see if i could grow sps with it since everything but acans have thrived in my tank......

 

[homer1475]

These sorts of threads pop up from time to time, and they always start a war on which salt is best, which is the cheapest, etc, etc.

 

[Doctorgori]

jeez i didn’t mean to start a salt war. I just wanted to see if i could grow sps with it since everything but acans have thrived in my tank......

A good salt war cleanses the soul....nothing wrong with a friendly banter ...and yeah RC is the crud maker, not IO ... I buy whatever is cheap at the time... Fosters and Smith or whoever they are makes a good salt to .... so yeah you like Tropic Marin and you probably likewise got Hotwheels for Christmas while my mom got me Johnny Lightning ... I also dont bother buying wine with a cork in it as its easier to twist the top off

 

[Bpb]

These sorts of threads pop up from time to time, and they always start a war on which salt is best, which is the cheapest, etc, etc.

You should have asked “which is better for an sps dominant tank, metal halides or leds?”

 

[madweazl]

I've been using it for 20+ years with good results. Only thing I do is lower the alkalinity.

 

[inktomi]

I've used so many types of salt over the years, finally settling on Reef Crystals. I just can't see a real difference in my tank using more expensive types of salt - a lot of us, myself included, use calcium reactors and other gizmos of all sorts that tweak our water - so why stress about the freshly-mixed specs? Just keep it consistent and you'll do fine!

I do think reef crystals leaves some weird stuff in the brute can I use to mix it, but really that doesn't bother me at all. It's seems to work fine for me! Here's a recent video I did about the tank.


Use whatever salt you want - they can all grow corals and keep fish happy!

 

[Eve]

To the OP's question.....

Been using IO for decades with great results. Has always mixed clean and clear for me. No residue in my mixing container. I do use Kalkwasser in my ATO top off reservoir. I keep my alkalinity at 9.5 dkh.

Debates on salt are moot to me. Use what works for you, not what anyone says you should use and what you can afford.

Wow what a gorgeous tank!

 

[mattzang]

does it matter with the crud in the mixing container? i've yet to clean mine and i've used RC so it's got some crud in there, but i don't care. when the water goes in my tank it's pretty dang clear, so what difference does it make?

i have an lfs that swears by tropic marin and his tanks look nice, but not where i'm about to start spending at least twice as much for salt. if IO disappears someday i might switch to TM, but when i get 200g boxes of IO for like $30, i aint changing

 

[inktomi]

I clean out my reef crystals mixing tank maybe once every year but I really doubt the buildup changes the chemistry at all. I used Tropic Marine Pro Reef for a while, and that does mix up a lot cleaner...

 

[Flippers4pups]

Wow what a gorgeous tank!

Thank you.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Folks, there is a LOT, LOT, LOT more to successful reefing and keeping a healthy reef tank than worrying about which salt is the best. Once again, find a salt that works for you and stick to it. Simple.

Old school reefing is by the basics. It was successful back then and it can be just as successful now, just no need to over think it.

Happy reefing everyone!

 

[Bpb]

does it matter with the crud in the mixing container

No. People just obsess over it for some odd reason. I don’t even wait till it’s perfectly clear before using it. 20 minute mix at most and that’s it. It’s going in clear or not.

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

To have a successful reef tank it is important to focus on things that don't matter.... like the brand of your salt.

 

[Ruvegowi]

I WILL never use IO again. Used it for 20 years. Latest 525xl 30 gal change a month.
Was busy and traveling over the summer. Wife watching tank. Mixed salt and didn't check parameters only SG.
Big mistake.
IO had bad batches with Mg off the charts. Lost 80% of coals, all snails.
Was a slow death, didn't know what was happening. I checked Ca and Kh I don't dose Mg so I never checked. Thought it was me switching to B-ionic by ESV for dosing. Stopped that. Got worse. Way worse. Algae from the dead snails and dying corals. Sump full of foam. Did a water change every week. Big ones.
Worse.
Called ESV thinking they had a bad batch of B-Ionic...told them what was happening and they asked one question. What salt did you use? And the light bulb came on (to late). They said they have heard of bad batches with really high Mg being shipped.
And I tested (finally) and it was off the chart.
Never never again. I now use the ESV salt system..yes expensive but I mix it (4 parts) and its right. (Easy to do with a kitchen scale). Mixes spotless.
Cost me thousands. I should of checked all parameters every time for every water change.
I called IO, they didn't have much to say.

 

[Dragonreef202]

I use IO salt for over 10 years and have no problems with it. Just keep in mind that you'll have to dose something with any brand salt to choose to use.