Instant Ocean or Reef Crystals in beginning soft coral tank?

[miogpsrocks]

Hello.

Should I get Instant ocean or reef crystals for a beginning soft coral aquarium?


Thanks.

 

[Ron Reefman]

Either one will work. IO is less expensive and for a new system with soft corals you don't really need the higher cal, alk & mag levels that sps corals need.

 

[miogpsrocks]

Either one will work. IO is less expensive and for a new system with soft corals you don't really need the higher cal, alk & mag levels that sps corals need.

Is that a good one to start out with? Is there another one that you would recommend for a beginner?

Thanks.

 

[Billy1205]

Currently I'm using Fluval sea marine salt. Previously I was using IO, but after I switch to fluval, the different I can see is Fluval dissolves quicker, while the Instant Ocean takes a longer time and after I test the water, it does match with all the guarantee analysis.

 

[shifty51008]

Ive always had good luck with IO salt. Cheap and dependable. Soft corals will do just fine running at 1.025

 

[Hitch08]

I've read a lot of recommendations for the IO - even by those who run more demanding tanks. One of the reasons given is that the levels in the Reef Crystals can vary significantly.

 

[mluntz]

I tried both and couldn't justify the higher expense. IO for me.

 

[CStrickland]

IO and IORC are often the same price on Amazon (yay prime! Those boxes are heavy lol).
I don't think it makes much diff which you use. I been getting the IORC lately and it's fine. It's ready to use after 20 min mixing in cold water and fairly stable params. Sometimes it will precipitate if it gets warm, but any salt will if the alk/mg/ca is high. IO won't. Also, I heard rc has some organics that can make the bucket grungy, but I haven't noticed anything myself.
I'd be shocked if you noticed any diff at all between brands in a new tank without a heavy hard coral load, except maybe your wallet being lighter and your heaters getting crusty if you go fancy. I do think that if you are trying diff brands it's a good idea to mix the old one with the new one for a few water changes. So like if you want to try a spendy salt don't wait till you're all out of the old one. That'll be a gentler transition for the tank.

 

[Bent]

In a softy tank I would use regular I/O. Id also get the buckets, those buckets are useful when empty...

youd be shocked to know how many gallons of beer Ive fermented in old I/O buckets.

 

[3dees]

I started with IO and then went with RC. my zoa's all closed up and weren't doing well. I switched back to IO and everything is fine again. I have mmostly softies with a few lps, so calcium is not a big concern.

 

[pdiehm]

For me, similar boat. new system, and the price difference between 200g of IO and 200g of IORC is about $5 at the store I go to. I figure since I'll need to use the higher elemented salt at some point, may as well start using it now.

 

[nuxx]

Just always stuck with RC, but regular old IO should be fine.

Can always dose down the line if you see your levels dropping.

 

[oscarreef]

I started with RC. Tried IO for about 2 months and we'll came back to RC since all you have to do is maintain lvls of elements instead of raising them.

 

[thegrun]

Even with a high demand mixed reef tank I like Instant Ocean; it stores very well so I can make large batches at one time and use it over the course of a month and since I need to supplement calcium and alkalinity no matter which salt mix I use I don't fine the lower levels of calcium and alkalinity in Instant Ocean an issue

 

[Fish Keeper82]

I have a mostly soft coral tank and have used IO since the beginning without dosing anything. All mushrooms , zoas and leathers are growing rather quickly

 

[baitrunner]

I've never used RC - I've always used the standard IO. With each new bag or bucket I open i test the first mixed batch params. 9 out of 10 times I've found that i need to buffer pH and ALK slightly to get all params in check and match my DT. One time out of 10 I also had to raise Mag just a touch.