View Full Version : help!!!!!! salt??????
ohioreefer
06/08/2011, 11:29 AM
ok so im out of salt and going to buy more tonight this is only the second time i have bought salt so im new im using crystal sea and there is only one place i can find who has it in stock and thats a hour away am I wanting to change is it going to cause problem ????
SoLiD
06/08/2011, 11:36 AM
Nope... most salts are pretty close in constitution. Some use easier to dissolve dry compounds but most aren't all that different.
b0bab0ey
06/08/2011, 11:50 AM
Switching salts doesn't normally cause a problem. If you're looking for a good salt that's relatively inexpensive and usually easy to find, I recommend Instant Ocean. The same Co. also makes a slightly more expensive salt called Reef Crystals that is higher in trace elements like calcium, magnesium and has a higher alkalinity. However, you'd only want to pay more for Reef Crystals if you have a reef tank with live corals.
No matter what salt you end up buying, I'd play it safe and do smaller, more frequent WCs with the new salt at first to acclimate your livestock to the change.
thebkramer
06/08/2011, 11:54 AM
:bounce3: WELCOME TO RC & THE ADDICTION!! :bounce3:
to ease your mind :lol2:
I switch between Instant Ocean & Coralife Salts...
whichever of the 2 is on sale for the 160g box is what I buy! and I never have issues..
I do however, like previous poster stated, do a few smaller WC's before doing my usual
Happy Reefing!!
ja4207
06/08/2011, 12:04 PM
RedSea Coral Pro IMHO best salt on the market!
SoLiD
06/09/2011, 01:09 AM
RedSea Coral Pro IMHO best salt on the market!
You are new, so I will accept your answer as your humble opinion. Do a little searching around and you will find some other salt brands that are much better, but also very expensive. I've seen many people be successful at this hobby using a bunch of different brands of salt and even mixing different ones together. The key is stability IMHO. :fish2: :fish2:
pentrix2
06/09/2011, 05:26 AM
tagging along.
in my area instant ocean are $37 per bucket while reef crystal is $55 per bucket. I went with the cheaper one because I go through a bucket about once every 8 weeks or so.
I agree with b0bab0ey regarding reef crystal is better for reef tanks.
IMO, get what you can afford. there's so many items needed to keep a saltwater tank up. i can't afford to buy the best of everything so things like salt compound I get what is decent quality and decent pricing.
Pen
pentrix2
06/09/2011, 06:53 AM
Switching salts doesn't normally cause a problem. If you're looking for a good salt that's relatively inexpensive and usually easy to find, I recommend Instant Ocean. The same Co. also makes a slightly more expensive salt called Reef Crystals that is higher in trace elements like calcium, magnesium and has a higher alkalinity. However, you'd only want to pay more for Reef Crystals if you have a reef tank with live corals.
No matter what salt you end up buying, I'd play it safe and do smaller, more frequent WCs with the new salt at first to acclimate your livestock to the change.
+1 on this one, slowly instroduce the new salt.
b0bab0ey
06/09/2011, 06:54 AM
tagging along.
in my area instant ocean are $37 per bucket while reef crystal is $55 per bucket. I went with the cheaper one because I go through a bucket about once every 8 weeks or so.
I agree with b0bab0ey regarding reef crystal is better for reef tanks.
IMO, get what you can afford. there's so many items needed to keep a saltwater tank up. i can't afford to buy the best of everything so things like salt compound I get what is decent quality and decent pricing.
Pen
You can do just fine using IO for a reef tank, so long as you don't mind dosing trace elements (calcium, magnesium) and baking soda to keep your alkalinity up. Below is a link listing all the major salt brands and the cal/mag/alk levels contained therein. Oceanic is another fav of mine as it contains high cal & mag concentrations. You just have to add some baking soda to it before doing a WC to bring the alk up. Some people claim using a 50/50 mix of IO & Oceanic keeps all their trace elements right where they need to be.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1714505
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