Natural sea water vs/ making your own

[cj in sac ca]

Hello all I live in the Pensacola fl area up in the panhandle. I have a boat and I go out and get my own saltwater. Any opinions on this are incouraged and wanted. Let's hear your thoughts on using naturally collected sea water vs salt crystals. I have several small yellow sponges that have been brought in by doing this.

 

[timfountain]

For with the proviso I could assure that the SW collected was unpolluted, which is pretty difficult in the gulf....

 

[mtfish]

On the other side of the Gulf on the Texas coastal bend. Have always collected my saltwater near the beach on an incoming tide. If it is readily available why by man-made salt? If you use it quickly it has all kinds of good plankton to feed the tank. The only downside is if there is a red tide event then it is a no go.

 

[Diesel]

No experience with it but you should filter it first before using it.
Many studies are done with this.
Maybe more of the [HASHTAG]#reefsquad[/HASHTAG] can fill in here.

 

[redfishbluefish]

Actually it's a business in FLA for companies to deliver NSW to clients in large water trucks. The one I know of pulls out onto a pier on the gulf side and fills his tank truck up with water. He then delivers to clients in central FLA.

 

[Humblefish]

No experience with it but you should filter it first before using it.

^^This, to remove potential toxins/pollutants. Just in case you get water from a "bad spot" that day. The other issue is excess nutrients in the water.

 

[dbl]

We can walk to the Gulf from my house so the thought has crossed my mind many times. All the research I've found indicates it's safest if you can get off shore to collect. In either case, the thought of red tide or any other algae bloom to me makes it not worth the risk.

On a side note, just for giggles on several occasions I've brought home samples to test. The main parameters have always been scarily close to what I keep my reef at!

 

[Untamedrose]

I wouldnt.... just opens up all kinds of potential issues.

Was in the Navy...any idea how much junk we dump in the water?
and Folks wont use tap ...come on.

 

[cj in sac ca]

There is a small science station on the beach near me the head marine biologist there is the one whom have me the idea and info on it being safe. She did say to listen for reports of red tide algae blooms fish kills etc but this is what she does to fill all her tanks.
Question on filtering it how would you go about filtering it? Wouldn't that take away all the plankton and some other beneficial nutrients?

 

[Humblefish]

Question on filtering it how would you go about filtering it?

I would at least run carbon. A poly filter would remove ammonia, heavy metals, phosphate, and tell you if the organic load was normal (turns brown) or heavy (turns black).

 

[Shep]

I just would be worried about there being pollutants in the water, the sea is not exactly pristine any longer

 

[Lowell Lemon]

I remember a customer with a reef tank that pumped water from Puget sound, mechanically filtered and heated it then used it in his reef tank. That tank was great. No problems even though the fish and reef were tropical. Seems like it was a pump and dump system with not actual filtration in the tank other than rock and inverts.

 

[brandon429]

Nobody says you have to use it fully it can be a doser for your system.


Live ocean water is just like live rock

It respires (animals in suspension)
Conducts photosynthesis (flora " ")
Has wastes in suspension and soln, and myriad feed benefits at the same time. Bacterial diversity to beat anything from a retail store.

Provides nutrients such that the corals we keep come from it

Dilutions in the ocean give you a great shot, Paul B has been on sea water forty years, how clean is NY comparatively?

Do not store ocean water capped, because it behaves biologically like live rock. Keep it aerated and in motion

Use some for sure as a boost. I guarantee you if someone would just bottle up reef water off the caymans or any other currently-balanced reef in the world and sell it as a tank booster, that would not be untrue. I'd buy it. We buy mountain water or Fijian spring water why not reef water

Our made up water is lacking comparatively and we dose/feed this or that as proof. Run the ocean water through massively redundant UV setups if you want to reduce pathogen risk. Your tank is fine without added bac, and the mineral benefit will still be there along with micro feed benefits (UV is not a complete sterilizer, we only wished that was the case in our microbiology lab)

 

[Kungpaoshizi]

I hate to say it, but the reality is:
Artificial seawater is cleaner than nsw.

 

[Rjramos]

Been using NSW for 20+ yrs here in Miami. I would say at least 50% of reef aquarist use It down here. Same thing mentioned, several trucks pick up at the inlet, incoming to high tide, and deliver to LFS and private aquariums. I spend a lot of time on my boat and most of the time I get water right over the reef 6 miles+ out. The parameters of the water are perfect with no nitrates, phosphate,or nutrient problem. I will say though, it is a planktonic soup, and if that's what you want for your tank, take the good and the bad that may be. I haven't had any problems ever with parasites or unwanted pest. I collect through a course sponge that keeps larger particles out.The only other thing I do, is dilute it down just a bit with RO/DI, salinity sometimes around 1.027.

 

[Addicted2ACRO's]

I agree to the above. I've always used NSW. I've never had a problem and my corals are flourishing

 

[Kungpaoshizi]

salinity sometimes around 1.027.

Is this the case more than half the time?
I live nowhere near the coast..

 

[brandon429]

I'm surrounded by cotton fields

Which is why am willing to pay for nsw supplements lol. My reef w continue just fine on reef crystals or any other mix the lfs wants to use but to spice up reef life a shot from the caymans or Palau sure would be fun.

 

[Humblefish]

Back when I used to collect specimens from the Fort Walton Beach/Destin area, the SG was always more on the low side.

 

[dbl]

I remembered I had some results from a prior post in March, the last time I grabbed a Gulf sample. Not sure why, but I thought I'd share them here. This sample was taken right from the beach.

NO3 Undetectable - NYOS
PO4 .018 - Hanna HI736
ALK 7.45 - Hanna
CAL 390 - Salifert
MAG 1260 - Salifert
SG 1.026 - Refractometer