Best salt for a SPS domintate tank
- Thread starter studling
- Start date
bogg
New member
umm whatever salt you want to choose for your reef and where you desire to keep the parameters I myself used instant ocean and zeo and had my corals spawn but now I use NSW and zeo am having much better growth rates along with my ca rxtr. remember the water changes are just for trace element replenishment.
Dustin1300
Reefaholic
Agreed with bogg. Use a single salt and stick with it. I use Instant Ocean and happy with my SPS. Stability is key and once you figure things out with the salt you are using...and what dosing is required...You are set
bogg, wha is NSW?
bogg, wha is NSW?
Dustin1300
Reefaholic
Ohhh...that brand! Don't have that option so I'll stick with the IO. Think you'd be willing to ship 10-15 gallons a week
pimp2daizzo
Active member
i just started using the new seachem salt and boy does it smell bad
Western_reefer
Reef keeper
My tank is SPS/LPS dominated and I use SeaChem Reef Salt and Natural Salt Water. Water changes are NOT just for trace element replenishment, its also a way of nutrient export. 
pimp2daizzo
Active member
my tank is sps/lps dominated and i use seachem reef salt and natural salt water. Water changes are not just for trace element replenishment, its also a way of nutrient export.
+1
allsps40
New member
The salts I have had the best results with is Tropic Marin Pro Reef and HW Reefer. I have also used Coral Life is good results. IO is crap, low Ca, ph and alk. IO Reef Crystals is good on Ca and alk but has a low ph and potassium. I think I will be going back to Pro Reef or Reefer.
Dustin1300
Reefaholic
No salt is perfect and is exactly hos we stated earlier...Stay withe same salt and weekly/daily changes and you will figure your tank out. Sounds like you need to stick with one so your tank can become a little more stabe.
MechEng99
aka Reef'd Up
I use SeaChem - pretty good levels so I don't have to dose as much, it's readily available in my area, and there's usually a group buy or sale going on. After experiencing low potassium in my tank and losing several corals to it while using Reef Crystals several years ago...I realized its a bigger issue than I first thought.
serpentman
part time superhero
IO works well for me. I find that "reef salts" tend to through my alk or cal way out of whack. Like everyone says consistency is key.
sweet ride
New member
IO for me. the 2 part dosing keeps the number at par.
just like what everyone else said, doesn't matter what salt you use, it's the stability of your system that matters.
just like what everyone else said, doesn't matter what salt you use, it's the stability of your system that matters.
Dustin1300
Reefaholic
You've not had any bad experience with the SeaChem being inconsistent? I've heard of inconsistent results with that salt? Lots of bad batches?
reefyourself
New member
You know guys ive been using marine environment since the start...it has been good...but now i got a bad batch and my alk in the mix is at 4 and my calcium is at 450....I rather have low parameters to match it with the tank then to have higher and have it affect your tank parameters by raising them...just my 2 sense....
this is me
Active member
I've been using Tropic Marin-Pro for over 6 years now. It's a little expensive but I like the levels of alk, ca, and mg without adding anything.
Darkstar22
New member
I use Tropic Marin Bio-Active right now. But before that I used Tropic Marin regular. I swear by Tropic Marin quality!
ryshark
Active member
This is one of those questions where you ask 10-people and you get 12-different answers.
I use ESV Seawater for the following reasons:
It mixes up in 10-minutes, so I don't have to leave a trashcan in my family room for 24-hours
It is extremely clean with no resdiue whatsoever
It is extremely consistent from batch to batch and box to box.
It has ideal parameters for sps.
I use ESV Seawater for the following reasons:
It mixes up in 10-minutes, so I don't have to leave a trashcan in my family room for 24-hours
It is extremely clean with no resdiue whatsoever
It is extremely consistent from batch to batch and box to box.
It has ideal parameters for sps.
Rockys_Pride
New member
One more to the bunch, I use SeaChem Salinity. I hardly ever dose anymore, and you can punch up the lot number and get EPA certified results of the consistency of the batch.
allsps40
New member
Thats not true Pro Reef is perfectly balanced and very consistent. I have been using RC for like 2 years now and have never been happy with it. But it is less costly. So I think I have been using the same salt for long enough and my parameters are very stable. I was referring to IO and RC be low when freshly mixed. I would rather have a salt that is ready to go and worry free once mixed and needs less dosing. I only have a buffer and Ca for doing when I used Pro Reef or Reefer. Since I have been using RC I need to dose iodine, potassium and strontium to keep sps colored up.
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