What would be a good salt mix to switch to. I am using Instant Ocean and its well and all but I'm sure there are better kinds out there that will help my tank. I have a friend that used Tropic Marin and says its is amazing so I'm wondering if that would be a good brand to switch to.
Salt Mix
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Randy Holmes-Farley
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I actually doubt that is true.
I used it for more than 20 years, and never saw a convincing reason to use anything else.
All salt mixes have their pros and cons, and as long as you account for them, any salt mix can lead to a great tank, and on the flip side,any salt mix can lead to a crappy tank.
BoomCorals
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After using IO and RC the past 8 years I switched to fritz because it costs almost the same as IO, and mixes up with identical parameters every time, including a lower DKH that corals like. Also mixes crystal clear in 20 minutes.
jenkinscrew2578
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+1 Fritz RPM
Randy Holmes-Farley
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Corals only "like" lower alkalinity if you keep nutrients very low. They often grow faster at higher alkalinity if you give them adequate nutrition.
Also, there's no reason the tank needs to be at the same alk as the salt mix. If you change water automatically (as I and many others have done), there's no problem with using a higher alk mix than the tank.
BoomCorals
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Corals only "like" lower alkalinity if you keep nutrients very low. They often grow faster at higher alkalinity if you give them adequate nutrition.
Also, there's no reason the tank needs to be at the same alk as the salt mix. If you change water automatically (as I and many others have done), there's no problem with using a higher alk mix than the tank.
I'm around .20 phosphate and 20 nitrate. When I lowered alk to 9 from 12, my coral coloration and growth got better. Nothing else changed but the salt. I guess my tank wasn't nutrient rich enough for IO. *shrug*
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BoomCorals
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Indeed!Maybe they were deficient in something else.
I recommend ESV bionic 4 part if you have a smaller tank and do frequent water changes. It's more expensive but for my nanos it's a matter of a $60 difference per year compared to IO. I do a lot of smaller water changes.
Why? Because it's dead nuts on Alk, Ca, Mg every time as long as you buy a cheap digital scale and measure it all out carefully. I've used IO, RC, Brightwell and H2Ocean. So none of them were terrible (except maybe H2Ocean) but every time I mixed up 5 gallons worth of change water I tested it and it was always different and it was never what the label claimed. ESV was very close to stated parameters the first time, but more importantly it was the same so many times in row that I quit testing it. Tested it again after many many batches and it was, you guessed it, exactly what I tested the first time.
I'm interested in consistency from batch to batch on small batches because of how I change water. The way I mix it I get 3.2meq alk , 425 ca and 1350 mg. So that's what I dose my tanks to remain at and it works perfectly. For me. And I have an absolute crap load of measuring cups now too. ;P
Why? Because it's dead nuts on Alk, Ca, Mg every time as long as you buy a cheap digital scale and measure it all out carefully. I've used IO, RC, Brightwell and H2Ocean. So none of them were terrible (except maybe H2Ocean) but every time I mixed up 5 gallons worth of change water I tested it and it was always different and it was never what the label claimed. ESV was very close to stated parameters the first time, but more importantly it was the same so many times in row that I quit testing it. Tested it again after many many batches and it was, you guessed it, exactly what I tested the first time.
I'm interested in consistency from batch to batch on small batches because of how I change water. The way I mix it I get 3.2meq alk , 425 ca and 1350 mg. So that's what I dose my tanks to remain at and it works perfectly. For me. And I have an absolute crap load of measuring cups now too. ;P
BoomCorals
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This is why I use fritz. It's exact same every time. And costs me $5 more a box than IO.
Hans-Werner
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I guess 12 is so high that some Acropora spp. won´t like it even with 0.2 ppm phosphate. One more confirmation that growth of corals even can get better with lower alkalinity.
Schad
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I don't mean to hijack but seems relevant. When I mix IO I get a brown film virtually overnight. With tropic marina I get a white film. Film isn't really right but not sure what else to call it. Chalky buildup? Now I'm using Kent and everything send to be don't better. Any ideas?
ws6kid
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That is why I currently use ESV, but will be swapping to Fritz. Synthetic salt mixes do not have the fillers or biological components that the cheaper salts have. With ESV, I have made 2400 gallons of salt water this year and have always had the same stats and never had to clean the tub. I dont like not knowing what that stuff is in my mixing barrel. No need for things I cant measure going in to my tank 
Randy Holmes-Farley
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That is why I currently use ESV, but will be swapping to Fritz. Synthetic salt mixes do not have the fillers or biological components that the cheaper salts have. With ESV, I have made 2400 gallons of salt water this year and have always had the same stats and never had to clean the tub. I dont like not knowing what that stuff is in my mixing barrel. No need for things I cant measure going in to my tank
I'm curious what this means. What sort of fillers are you talking about and which mixes are not "synthetic"?
There's no mix that is just dried seawater.
ws6kid
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Hm, possibly I misunderstood what I read. I was under the impression that the salts that mix clear and are useable within 15 minutes of mixing like ESV and Fritz did not contain some form of filler or biological component. I thought it was why they do not need to mix overnight for the pH to settle and the reason that you don't need to clean the brown film out of mixing buckets like you would with Reef Crystals, Kent, or some other salts. I feel like I am terribly wrong though based on your response!
