from red sea coral pro salt to IO reef crystals

[caliMako]

due to costs, i decided to switch salts from coral pro to IO reef crystals. I have a 110 gal reef tank. i it did gradually over 3 months. it has been about 3 months since i have completely switched over to IO

just wanted to share the results.

pros-
cheaper on the wallet
IO salt mixed quicker and cleaner. less residue
sps have been growing faster.. (surprise to me)

cons-
less calcium
red slime algae started forming once i completely switched over to IO

[jbambas]

I had that same red slime issue. I had been using Brightwell but it just tgot to hard to find and shipping salt is just cost prohibitive. The red slime issue cleared up for me a cleaning crew and about 8 weeks later. I have not had that issue since and I only use reef crystals now.

Jeff

[tkeracer619]

Could be the vitamins they put into the reef crystals feeding the bacteria. Maybe switching over to plain IO would be a good next step but likely it will go away on its own.

Randy pointed out that adding your own two part/mag to regular old IO actually makes it even cheaper than the salt by itself if you source the components from the right places.

[bertoni]

Reef Crystals does have some organics in it, as noted, and I agree that they might be encouraging the slime. You could try a bit of plain IO to see how that works for you, as an experiment.

[caliMako]

Thanks guys. Overall I'm happy with the switch. The tank is on keep the lights on mode (minimize costs). Surprised the sps have taken off

[caliMako]

Could be the vitamins they put into the reef crystals feeding the bacteria. Maybe switching over to plain IO would be a good next step but likely it will go away on its own.

Randy pointed out that adding your own two part/mag to regular old IO actually makes it even cheaper than the salt by itself if you source the components from the right places.


tkeracer,
thanks what 2 part do you recommend that is easy to add to regular IO? i have a 120gallon reef tank w sps and lps. i dont dose anything but do frequent water changes..

[tkeracer619]

I follow randys improved two part recipe.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/

I use plain old arm and hammer baking soda for buffer and driveway deicer for calcium chloride. I buy magnesium chloride from Bulk reef supply and use epsoms salt for magnesium sulfate.

My tank is maintained regularly through kalkwasser (mrs wages pickling lime) and a calcium reactor (I use 50lb bags of arm media... under $100 bucks shipped).

[BryanS4]

I recently switched from IO RC to IO and coudn't be happier. The main reason for the switch was that I wasn't happy with how high the alk mixed to in the RC. They were other reasons as well, but this was the big one. I would have to skip a day of dosing even doing small weekly 10 per changes.

As tkeracer pointed out, if you're dosing two part anyway ( I use brs) not really worth paying the little extra for the elevated levels that RC has.

[nuxx]

Been super happy with IO Reef Crystals for years...

[dkeller_nc]

tkeracer,
thanks what 2 part do you recommend that is easy to add to regular IO? i have a 120gallon reef tank w sps and lps. i dont dose anything but do frequent water changes..

Sometimes driveway deicer can be difficult to source for the calcium chloride component of DIY 2-part, depending on what part of the country you live in. That's the case with me, so I simply order calcium chloride from BRS. While it's certainly more expensive than driveway deicer on a pound for pound basis, a gallon of BRS dry calcium chloride lasts a very long time, so the overall expense is minimal (and one heck of a lot cheaper than prepared 2-part solutions).

[oseymour]

I'm thinking of moving from Red Sea to IO. Are you saying it should be a gradual change instead of just using Io when my Red Sea is finished?

[tmz]

I'd change over any salt mix slowly, say 15% water changes or less with the new salt a week a part.I haven't changed brands in over ten years from Coralife.

[rovster]

I used to use RSCP. I liked it but hated the cloudy mixes, I could never get a clear mix and would get a ton of precipitation. Only time I could ever get a clear mix was with cool water inside. I even tried freezing RO in tupperwares to ice my mixing water but was a PITA. That said, using the cloudy water never seemed to be a problem and I never noticed any negative effects. I switched to IO and RC because I got a ridiculous deal on it. I mix them 50:50 at the moment and I like the fact that it mixes quickly and clear. I do add a little muriatic acid to it to knock down the alkalinity because its too high for my liking. I keep mine around 8 so I knock it down to about 9 or so for waterchanges. I prefer to replenish my levels via my 2 part.

[oseymour]

I've never had issues with precipitation or cloudy water. I simply drop a power head in the bucket and add salt until I get to 1.025 sg. Then let it mix until I'm ready. It could be as little as an hour or as much as 24hrs

[rovster]

I've never had issues with precipitation or cloudy water. I simply drop a power head in the bucket and add salt until I get to 1.025 sg. Then let it mix until I'm ready. It could be as little as an hour or as much as 24hrs

I used RSCP for 2 years. Rarely did I get a clear mix. I would mix in a brute with a mag 7. Tried varying temps, speed of addition, everything. Not complaining because my tanks always looked really good with it. They still look good though. I wanted to give the blue bucket a try, but its going to be hard to get me away from IO and RC now....:uhoh3: