Which salt to buy?

[spamvicious]

I’m getting an rodi unit this weekend so need to order some salt. Which should I get?. I currently have fish and a couple of soft corals. I read that some have a higher alkaline mix which I think could help my tank as it’s always on the lower end. I’m in the UK.

 

[SamsReef]

I have been in the hobby for 17 yrs and experimented with several salt mixes. Since last year, I have gone back to reef crystals and I am a die hard fan now. Because of their scale, they have Good quality control and low cost. Also, their 200 gallon boxes come with four 50 gallon bags. It makes it very convenient to mix in my 50 gallon drum. Mind you, the 50 gallon bag only makes around 42 gallon 35 ppt salt mix.

one added benefit for you is that it has high alkalinity, so for soft coral reef tank, you might not need to dose calcium or carbonate…

I regularly wait for deals on reef crystal on chewy or Amazon and order in bulk.

hope that was helpful.
Sam

 

[Jo P White]

I started off with reef crystals but the high alk was hard for me to maintain so I had big swings during water changes. I’ve been using LiveAquaria salt, basically Fritz’s blue box, and it’s easier to maintain those parameters for my tank. I have mostly softies, a few lps and sps.

 

[spamvicious]

I have been in the hobby for 17 yrs and experimented with several salt mixes. Since last year, I have gone back to reef crystals and I am a die hard fan now. Because of their scale, they have Good quality control and low cost. Also, their 200 gallon boxes come with four 50 gallon bags. It makes it very convenient to mix in my 50 gallon drum. Mind you, the 50 gallon bag only makes around 42 gallon 35 ppt salt mix.

one added benefit for you is that it has high alkalinity, so for soft coral reef tank, you might not need to dose calcium or carbonate…

I regularly wait for deals on reef crystal on chewy or Amazon and order in bulk.

hope that was helpful.
Sam

Thanks Sam is that reef crystals by Aquarium System?

 

[SamsReef]

Instant Ocean-Aquarium Systems 200 Gallon Reef Crystals Sea Salt (Box) https://a.co/d/1B7gzaZ

 

[SamsReef]

I started off with reef crystals but the high alk was hard for me to maintain so I had big swings during water changes. I’ve been using LiveAquaria salt, basically Fritz’s blue box, and it’s easier to maintain those parameters for my tank. I have mostly softies, a few lps and sps.

Good point, My system is over 500 gallon, so weekly 50 gallon water change does not cause any swing. If you need something closer to Natural sea water, you can always use instant ocean.

Sam

 

[spamvicious]

Good point, My system is over 500 gallon, so weekly 50 gallon water change does not cause any swing. If you need something closer to Natural sea water, you can always use instant ocean.

Sam

Should have said in my post my tank is very small in comparison, just running a 35 gallon for now but will be upgrading at some point

 

[SamsReef]

You can start with instant ocean as your tank is new.just remember to mix it overnight.

Once it’s full of soft corals, you might want to try reef crystal for its high alkalinity.

Sam

 

[Tamberav]

I’m getting an rodi unit this weekend so need to order some salt. Which should I get?. I currently have fish and a couple of soft corals. I read that some have a higher alkaline mix which I think could help my tank as it’s always on the lower end. I’m in the UK.

instant ocean

don’t bother with high alk salts

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Should have said in my post my tank is very small in comparison, just running a 35 gallon for now but will be upgrading at some point

If your tank is 35 gallons what i use is Julian Sprungs Accurasea1 salt that comes in bags that mix 4.5 gallons of water...it's not too expensive and for smaller tanks it's the perfect volume. You also don't have to worry about settling since you use all the contents of each small bag. The parameters are where most people aim to keep their tanks too Alk 8, cal. 420, etc.

 

[DE FISH]

instant ocean

don’t bother with high alk salts

My biggest regret was swapping from Red Sea blue bucket to coral pro

 

[LeftyReefer]

I also use Fritz Rpm or Live Aquaria salt, interchangeably.

I keep my ALK at 8 - 9.
keeping SPS and LPS

I like that it mixes up fast and clear, doesn't leave any gunk behind and in the 2+ years I've been using it, I've never once had any issues with it. it's not quite as cheap as IO/RC, but it's close. last time I stocked up, I paid under $30 per bucket. (58 cents per lb)

 

[Rmckoy]

I would personally stay away from any salt with excessively high Alk .

ideally . Something close to nsw ( 7.5 dkh ) is all you need .
I believe Red Sea blue bucket is 7.5-8

 

[Enderg60]

It doesnt really matter, they will all work.

Get something cheap to start (IO or RC) and if it meets your needs fine. If not, try something else.

 

[Jo P White]

I also use Fritz Rpm or Live Aquaria salt, interchangeably.

I keep my ALK at 8 - 9.
keeping SPS and LPS

I like that it mixes up fast and clear, doesn't leave any gunk behind and in the 2+ years I've been using it, I've never once had any issues with it. it's not quite as cheap as IO/RC, but it's close. last time I stocked up, I paid under $30 per bucket. (58 cents per lb)

I had the same issue with mixing IO, leaves behind a ton of residue and took longer to mix. I just ordered a big box of Fritz from Amazon, think it was 200 gal for $80.

 

[Acros]

Salt recommendations have completely changed after TurkeyGate! lol.

 

[LeftyReefer]

I had the same issue with mixing IO, leaves behind a ton of residue and took longer to mix. I just ordered a big box of Fritz from Amazon, think it was 200 gal for $80.

I buy all my Fritz or LA salt from either Petco or Petsmart, whichever one has the salt sale. petsmart has the fritz salt on sale right now. You can buy the 14# bags for cheap. 3.5 of the small 14 lb bags is about equal to a bucket of salt. (48 lbs) You can buy 4 bags for about $45 right now. it was even cheaper a week or two ago. I stocked up and got 5 buckets worth for under $30 per bucket.

They are all out of stock of the buckets right now, but you can still buy a bunch of the 14 lb bags for cheap. I just dump them into buckets anyway. Not as cheap as it was a week or two ago, but still a lot cheaper than $80/bucket!

 

[spamvicious]

Thanks for all the recommendations however I’ve just done a test and my water pressure is only 0.11 bar so I don’t know if I’ll be able to run an rodi unit from my flat.

 

[Uncle99]

Buy the salt that is the easiest to fine and always available.
The mix has a great impact on the water chemistry stability, so “stock outs” make us have to change, and there’s a lot of variation in mixes.

 

[Rmckoy]

Thanks for all the recommendations however I’ve just done a test and my water pressure is only 0.11 bar so I don’t know if I’ll be able to run an rodi unit from my flat.

You can add a booster pump for rodi to increase the pressure .