What is this growing in my rodi container?

[Leon Gorani]

BTW, the Red Sea Salt mix is quite dirty. When I was using it I had to clean the mixing container frequently.

Yeah I’m starting to think about switching mixes, I will have to search for cleaner ones that match the coral pro salt parameters. Your right it might help out with not having to clean them as much because I’ve definitely cleaned it many times.

 

[Leon Gorani]

Yes, this is a known thing with the Red Sea salt. I dealt with it the entire time I used Red Sea. When I researched it here on R2R, I found that it is commonly discussed.

I wouldn't quite say that it is "dirty", and I don't think there's any harm using it. There are loads of successful tanks using it. The organics likely come with the territory when using salts from natural sources like Red Sea Salt. In fact, I believe Red Sea says on their salt packaging to use the salt within 4 hours of mixing. It isn't the best choice for longer term storage.

I switched away from Red Sea because I got tired of cleaning my mixing container. And by the way, this isn't a result of your Brute trash can. I mixed mine in a glass tank and had the same issue. Synthetic salts like Tropic Marin, HW, and Brightwell do not have this issue. But probably no reason to switch unless you're like me and don't like cleaning the storage container out all the time.

BRS Investigates did TONS of videos on this topic 2 years ago.

Here are a couple:

Ohh wow I didn’t read that you had to use it within 4 hours of mixing. That’s probably why my mixing can is always so dirty. I appreciate it, I will think about switching to a different salt mix for sure, hopefully one that mixes faster and cleaner.

 

[undermind]

Ohh wow I didn’t read that you had to use it within 4 hours of mixing. That’s probably why my mixing can is always so dirty. I appreciate it, I will think about switching to a different salt mix for sure, hopefully one that mixes faster and cleaner.

I'm going to actually correct myself and my recollection of their instructions – the bucket actually says not to mix for more than 4 hours. I also went to their site and read a blog post they published about mixing their salts and they say not to store for more than 12 hours, as they say there will be precipitation of Calcium and Alkalinity.

All that said, over the course of several years casually absorbing real world reports of people using RS salt, the general consensus seems to be that there does not seem to be any significant reduction in parameters when storing over many days. And the brown crud is very much a thing with this salt. Both of these are covered in great depth by BRS in their videos. In fact, they did a SW storage video where they tested parameters over time with all the main brands. The big takeaway for me was that none of them seemed to have a reduction of anything in any amount to concern me; although some were better than others. Some actually went UP in Alk over time... ???

I think all the salts out there are fine to use. Some mix quicker than others, some store better than others, and some certainly cost more than others. But sometimes switching can really impact the parameters you're shooting for in your tank, and can make it not worth switching. I would go with what works best for your target parameters, and ignore brand names. No reason to have loyalty when it comes to a salt mix. I switched to synthetic salts because I hate the brown crud.

 

[ThRoewer]

What I understand is that Red Sea is using salt harvested from the ocean as their starting point. They clean it and add elements that permanently bind and fall out in crystallization. That's why you have sometimes sand and muck in it. It isn't really a problem for the mixed up water, but leaves you with deposits in your mixing container.

I switched to BTAC Ocean Potion SPS Reef Formula and that one is definitely cleaner. I still get some deposits over time, but far less than with Red Sea salt.