oceanic salt

[rodgod20]

I have been using IO salt since I started back in April and the store didn't have any in my size bag (usually the smallest size) and I needed to switch to a different brand and I picked up Oceanic salt. Has anybody experience problems with Oceanic?

I am just wondering...

Also, has anybody seen a bag of salt start to clump up and not disolve at all? I had a medium bag of IO and it started doing this and thats why I didn't want to do a medium of IO again.

[Shagsbeard]

Salt will pick up moisture from just being near a tank... and clump up as you describe. Any salt will do this... not just IO. Keep your salt away from water and it wont clump up. At our recent club meeting we compared notes on different salts. One of the guys in the club is a water quality specialist, and did some tests. IO works, but wasn't as good as reef crystals. That's all I remember. I don't recall Oceanic even being mentioned.

Salt is... pretty much salt. There are trace minerals that are important, and you can get them from salt mixes, or get them seperately as additives. Regardless, you should be testing for these minerals before you either add them or worry about if your salt has them. Most of us don't worry about them and don't add them. That's a lot safer than adding a bunch of stuff you have no idea what it is.

[naterealbig]

I am using a container of oceanic salt right now for a FOWLR that I am converting to a reef tank. I have had no problems with it, and it actually dissolves better than IO. IMO, however I think that maybe you just got a bad batch of salt - I've never heard of the salt not dissoving before. Before I am ready to add coral to my tank however, I will start doing water changes with Red Sea's Reef mix (more trace elements and higher calcium levels than regular salt). If you have a reef tank, I would recommend this also. Hope this helps.

[rodgod20]

Thanks, that kinda what I like to hear.

I'll keep the red sea reef salt in mind. Right now I am kinda limit on my lfs, but soon....very soon...when I move to charleston, I am hoping that I have a little more I can work with.

[amitchell]

I like it it dissolves really fast and has lots of Cal and Mag.

[cepaw]

I use to use oceanic
disolved great
worked great for about a year, then my calcium levels went off the charts, I've heard this from many people that used this salt.
I'm not saying its bad, just keep an eye on the calcium level.
I now use tropic marin, I have had the same success, great coral growth, more stable calcium levels.

[-TS-Vash]

Oceanic salt is cheaper than tropic marin but the calcium and magnesium levels are high. My 120 has only sps and clams so i need to run a calcium reactor and kalkwasser all the time just to keep up with the calcium so this salt is great for me. Also i can get a 200 gallon bucket for $40 dollars and it does dissolve fast since it is crushed up better. I like the bucket because the lid is easy to remove and it has a good ruber seal to keep out moisture and stop the salt from clumping.

Tropic marin is a great salt but for someone who only changes the water once a month like me the trace elements are absorbed by the coral fast and i have to use bottles anyway so why pay the extra.

Reef crystals salt is just like any pro salt it has more Cal, Mag and other trace elements if you dont want to add additives all the time and just change the water more often then any PRO brand of salt would be the way to go then.

[blufyre3]

I have been using Tropic Marin and like the 5 gal bucket. It seals well. However, if Oceanic is cheaper I will look into it. Thanks for info.