Which Salt is the best?

[jda]

I do not want my alk to raise even .2 with a water change. Muratic Acid is easy to lower the alk in salt mix. It needs handled with respect, but it is not death in a bottle or anything. The mix also needs time for the PH to rise again.

Gallons * desired dKh drop * .123 = mls of Muratic Acid to use.

 

[dsh92056]

No salt per say is the best. It's what you prefer and what your results are.

 

[120reefkeeper]

Personal preference. I like it because of the NSW levels. Quick to mix... ready in 15 minutes. Clean mixing container.

 

[skiergd011013]

I use to use reef crystals and my bucket had a brown sludge. Now i use coral pro and i am very happy.

 

[Cae]

Always used red sea coral pro. No issues with it in over 3 years. I would like to try an Aussie made product , being an Australian. I like to support the locals if I can. Is there an Australian salt?

 

[Tanghoarder]

I always use reef crystals, affordable and never had a problem with it

 

[David S]

I just ran out of my current salt mix and was thinking of switch from my current one RC. What do you guys use and which one is best in your a opinion.

I used IO for years and had good results but had to do a lot of adjusting to my Alk and Ca levels.
I switched to Tropic Marin Pro a few months ago and I have found my Alk & Ca levels have become more consistent and predictable.
The drawback is it is more expensive.

 

[robert teseo]

io,for at least 20 yrs

 

[Peter K]

Switched to fritz the past 3ish months after using IO for 4 years, however, I haven't noticed anything different in terms of growth, health etc. Justifying the extra $20 a box for fritz is getting difficult for me (Especially when a walt disney frag is calling my name) and probably will switch back to IO and adding additional magnesium during mixing.

 

[TX_Punisher]

Depends on your targeted Params.

Fritz pro mixes at almost 10dkh(I just tested it).

Reef crystals was around 8.6 for me.

I'll be switching back to RC.

 

[Robs Reef]

RC and reg IO. Don't really noticed the brown sludge every one talks about. 20+ yrs using it. I aim for results without the high cost of other salts and it's readily available everywhere.

 

[AJsReef]

I’ve tried a few salts as most of us have. I found over the years that IO worked best for me. However, it does tend to foul up a mixing container if you store it.

With my recent build I wanted something that mixed and stored well due to my AWC set up. Additionally, I wanted a lower dKH. I’ve switched over to Red Sea blue bucket. Mixes quick and clean and dKH seems consistent at 8. Overall I’m happy with it.

 

[Eagle aquatics315]

I used to use reef crystals on all my tanks and was convinced by my LFS to switch to Fritz pro RPM reef salt, I love this stuff, my corals have seemed to have responded better and my water definitely got a lot clearer, also have noticed more growth. I recommend fritz salt to everyone. For the price you cant beat it.

 

[maroun.c]

My theory is that salt isna overhypped topic. Many people including some of the greatest tanks getting away with IO (a salt made for FO setups more than 10 years back and I doubt has changed since it was created)
Funny that were afraid of a 1-2 higher DKH or a bit more Mg potassium...
Where as Im real life a half stocked tank with corals would suck up that in a day. Most of the ICP I had for my tank and ICP tests I've seen of other tanks is deficient in what I think is needed for corals (other than alk Ca and Mg) strontium potassium and Molybdenum. Some might say Iron as well. Supplementing those up to the min level is quite expensive so theoretically the best salt is one that by ICP is richer in those and with the least contaminants one is willing to love with. How many of usbhave tested a new Freshmix of their salt in ICP? Can u trust vendor stated values and Their own ICP?
I have struggled lately with few contaminants in my tank and lower levels of the above elements with a newer salt (you'd expect newer salts to have more of the elements you want) compared to older salts I have used like RC. It also takes a long time from the time of switch for contaminants in a salt to accumulate to bad levels and start showing effects. So I believe long term observation is needed, which is not always objective as we change a thousand things in our tanks every now and the.
Other factors to consider is how much water changes are we doing. How many of us have considered a large 30_50 percent water change every 6-9 months to offset any accumulation of to somehow boost exhausted levels of needed elements that we can't test for.
So no best salt for me but a best practise for each salt if reefers know the quality of their salt and know how to make use of its advantages and how to deal with its contaminants or disadvantages.

 

[SMB]

Omega Sea Premium Reef for the past two years. Mixes quickly and has been pretty stable.
A local aquarium was using it for all it's exhibits after testing all available salts, and it is carried by my LFS who also runs a tank maintenance business.

 

[reefer1]

Tropic Marine Pro
I've been using Tropic Marine Pro for over 2-1/2 years. It's alkalinity level (8.5dKH) approximately matches my tank (8.0dKH). This helps keep the system stable. It also mixes clear in just minutes. I previously used Red Sea Coral Pro which seemed to take forever to mix. It also had a much higher alkalinity level (12.2dKH)

 

[C5thomas]

Always used red sea coral pro. No issues with it in over 3 years. I would like to try an Aussie made product , being an Australian. I like to support the locals if I can. Is there an Australian salt?

Yes. It’s called the Pacific, Southern, and Indian Ocean, not to mention the 4 seas around you. Lol. If your luck is anything like mine, your 275 miles 442.5 km from the nearest body of salt water. I’m like you love you supporting your local. I live in Fritz’s backyard. Ever since they had the fire at their location in Mesquite, Tx I noticed a change in the quality of their products. That may have changed in the last year or so, but I went with HW synthetic salt (a bit more expensive but worth it to me) and have had great success. More stable parameters from box to box, mixes fast and so far same ratio of salt to water mix and doesn't vary plus no residue in my mixing station.

 

[Cae]

Yes. It’s called the Pacific, Southern, and Indian Ocean, not to mention the 4 seas around you. Lol. If your luck is anything like mine, your 275 miles 442.5 km from the nearest body of salt water. I’m like you love you supporting your local. I live in Fritz’s backyard. Ever since they had the fire at their location in Mesquite, Tx I noticed a change in the quality of their products. That may have changed in the last year or so, but I went with HW synthetic salt (a bit more expensive but worth it to me) and have had great success. More stable parameters from box to box, mixes fast and so far same ratio of salt to water mix and doesn't vary plus no residue in my mixing station.

I'm ashamed to say that I'm only 45mins from the coast and the southern Great Barrier Reef. Thanks for the info. I will definitely look into buying local, there's a guy that sells fresh saltwater but I don't know how or where he gets it. And I was told not to collect seawater from the beach or estuaries because they are like the skimmers of the ocean!

 

[Dobermanp]

I'm switching from red sea coral pro to the regular sea salt due to some alk issues.

 

[CoralReefer1019]

Yes. It’s called the Pacific, Southern, and Indian Ocean, not to mention the 4 seas around you. Lol. If your luck is anything like mine, your 275 miles 442.5 km from the nearest body of salt water. I’m like you love you supporting your local. I live in Fritz’s backyard. Ever since they had the fire at their location in Mesquite, Tx I noticed a change in the quality of their products. That may have changed in the last year or so, but I went with HW synthetic salt (a bit more expensive but worth it to me) and have had great success. More stable parameters from box to box, mixes fast and so far same ratio of salt to water mix and doesn't vary plus no residue in my mixing station.

wow there facility had a fire? What happened are they open?