No more Instant Ocean?

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

RPM mix cleaner, no more brown residue or a brown tint to the mix. RPM mix crystal clear. My PH has always been 8.0, now with RPM it stays at 8.2, other parameter are all within in range now, magnesium sits at 1350 instead of 1440.

I think you must be referring to IO Reef Crystals, not normal Instant Ocean, which does not have brown residue.

As to pH, it is unrelated to the salt mix once in the tank. pH is determined ONLY by the alkalinity and the carbon dioxide level, neither of which are determined by the salt mix in a tank that gets any alk supplements. To be 0.2 pH units higher in pH would imply an alkalinity that was 58% higher, or, say 11 dKH vs 7 dKH.

 

[jphilip813]

Yep... it's very hard to get... I went back to Tropic Marin and after the first waterchange the corals extended their polyps in a gesture of gratitude.

What are your MAG/CAL levels with Tropic Marin Reef...I am hovering at 1250-1260 for MAG, 485-500 for CAL and ALK 9.0...all with dosing using Aqua Forest

 

[moonwaxx]

I too buy the RC from Chewy. I think it the cheapest place anywhere. Plus Its delivered to my door in just a few days. I have found that the best deal is the 50lb bag. If you do the math thats the cheapest per gallon. unless there running a sale on anther size. with 2000 gallon system its the most affordable way to go. I have had great luck with it.

 

[Homebrewer]

I too buy the RC from Chewy. I think it the cheapest place anywhere. Plus Its delivered to my door in just a few days. I have found that the best deal is the 50lb bag. If you do the math thats the cheapest per gallon. unless there running a sale on anther size. with 2000 gallon system its the most affordable way to go. I have had great luck with it.

This is the key, get the 50lb bags. If you buy 5 (250 gal equivalent) it is cheaper than the box at most places (200 gal equivalent) and the 5x50lb bags puts you over $49 so you get free shipping.

There were some other avenues for finding it cheap posted in a thread a few weeks back:

Post in thread 'Instant ocean salinity?'
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/instant-ocean-salinity.759544/post-7981846

It’s worth looking at Chewy for certain supplies as they are sometimes cheaper. That said, all things being equal I buy most other stuff from BRS because of all the free content and reviews they make available.

 

[mattzang]

https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/instant-ocean-aquarium-salt

buy 2 and do in store pickup and it's about $60

apparently petcos don't carry more than 1 bucket at a time so they'll probably cancel one of the buckets

and you'll arrive at:

Order summary:

Subtotal: $39.99 Promotions: -$10.00 Shipping: $0.00 Taxes: $2.32 Total: $32.31

 

[moonwaxx]

This is the key, get the 50lb bags. If you buy 5 (250 gal equivalent) it is cheaper than the box at most places (200 gal equivalent) and the 5x50lb bags puts you over $49 so you get free shipping.

There were some other avenues for finding it cheap posted in a thread a few weeks back:

Post in thread 'Instant ocean salinity?'
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/instant-ocean-salinity.759544/post-7981846

It’s worth looking at Chewy for certain supplies as they are sometimes cheaper. That said, all things being equal I buy most other stuff from BRS because of all the free content and reviews they make available.

Yup exactly ,
I usually get 8-16 at a time so kind of forgot about the free shipping part. as I always am over the thresh hold.
good catch.
Ths

 

[ThePurple12]

Their prices are really weird right now, but I'm not complaining! RC buckets used to cost like $50, and it was better to order the box.

 

[moonwaxx]

Their prices are really weird right now, but I'm not complaining! RC buckets used to cost like $50, and it was better to order the box.

Yup there pricing can be way crazy at times i all ways do the math on price per gallon. Heck once i ordered 50 10 gallon bags as it was crazy cheap at the time..!
I mean right now its cheaper for a 50 gallon bag than a 25 gallon bag..??
Lol

 

[Devaji]

I was hoping for some IO sales this BF/CM but did not find any.
that is a good catch on the 50lb bag. I normally buy off amazon and help support a charity.
they have been out of the 200 gal box but WOW I never noticed the 50# bags and did the math you guys are correct.