Bad Batch of Reef Crystals?

[vballlife2]

Hey everyone,

I had been using Instant Ocean for the first year of my tank and decided as I was going to start adding corals to move to Reef Crystals.

after the first 2 water changes (5 and 10 gallons) the water started to cloud. I lost an anemone, a flame, and a royal gramma. I thought the cloudiness was from losing the anemone so over the last 2 weeks I have been running 5 gallon water changes every other day and running carbon (changed carbon twice now).

I am thinking maybe I got a bad batch of reef crystals and I am hurting my system by continuing water changes with it.

I have ordered Kent Marine Reef Salt today and will not do any other water changes with the Reef crystals as I am hoping this might be the source of the problem. If so I wont be using Reef Crystals anymore.

Any ideas if my thought process is correct?

Thanks,

[reefndude]

How long did you let the new salt mix? I've been using reef crystals for a couple years with no problems. It does take a little while for a fresh mix to clear.

[vballlife2]

24 hours is what I read and have been doing.

[Shaummy]

I would be surprised if the Reef Crystals caused your issue, but salt brands can and do have quite a bit different makeup of trace elements.

You don't say how big your tank is, but if the water changes are 5 and 10 gallons, it's a fairly small tank?

The switch from regular IO to RC alone could have been enough of a shock to the system to have your anemone go south and subsequently take the fish down once the water was polluted.

It could just have easily been a switch from IO to any of the more "reef" centric brands. Now moving to Kent Reef Salt will be yet another change. Bottom line, I have been using RC for a while, no issues with it and it's been very consistent.

I guess what I wanted to say was it may not be the actual RC, but the way it was introduced into your system.

just my .02

[oshanickreef]

i had big problems with RC but it was with my levels.
the calcium was at 600
the alk was at 7
the mag was at 1125...

im still trying to level it out with regular IO

[vballlife2]

It is a 55 gallon tank and I alternate 5 gallon with 10 gallon water changes every other week. How would one adjust how to introduce a new salt mix?

Thanks

[auburnreefer110]

This is why I switched to Seachems Aquavitro Salinity

[reefndude]

What I did was mixed rc with io when I made yhe switch. Only reason was I had some io left.

[bertoni]

I'd probably just do 10% water changes with the new salt every other week or so. If you're doing a change a week, that should be fine, too. Most people who switch salt products don't seem to have much trouble.

[vballlife2]

I have mixed in 5 gallons of Kent Reef Salt and have purchased a UV sterilizer which will be in later this week that hopefully helps.

[HumbleFish]

You aren't the first person reporting unexplained losses after doing a WC with Reef Crystals. Search the threads; there have been other anecdotal accounts of supposed bad batches.

[hobbby3]

What about levels. What's the SG of the new salt water, Calc, Alk, MG? Do you use an RODI unit, do you heat the new water? If you have a 55 gallon tank and change out a 1/4 of the water and the temp is 10-15 deg different that could cause trouble too.