Salt mix poll

Salt mix poll

  • Instant Ocean

    Votes: 208 28.2%
  • Reef Crystals

    Votes: 221 29.9%
  • Marine Enterprises Crystal Sea Marinemix

    Votes: 6 0.8%
  • Marine Enterprises Crystal Sea Bioassay Laboratory Formula

    Votes: 10 1.4%
  • Oceanic

    Votes: 64 8.7%
  • Red Sea Coral Pro

    Votes: 81 11.0%
  • Instant Ocean/Oceanic 50/50 mix

    Votes: 9 1.2%
  • Tropic Marin Sea Salt

    Votes: 48 6.5%
  • Tropic Marin PRO-REEF

    Votes: 54 7.3%
  • SeaChem Marine Salt

    Votes: 4 0.5%
  • SeaChem Reef Salt

    Votes: 35 4.7%
  • Kent Sea Salt

    Votes: 23 3.1%
  • Marine Environment dual phase formula

    Votes: 7 0.9%
  • Coralife Scientific Grade Marine Salt

    Votes: 33 4.5%
  • OceanPure PRO

    Votes: 6 0.8%
  • Catalina NSW

    Votes: 12 1.6%
  • Another form of natural saltwater

    Votes: 8 1.1%
  • Other salt mix

    Votes: 21 2.8%

  • Total voters
    738
i started out using red sea coral pro(first 2 buckets)but it always got a nasty brownish biuld up so i switched to rc and no more build up.
 
I did use IO...but just changed to RC. I love the smell of Reef Crystals.

A while back I was complaining to my LFS about a fish that had died soon after acclimation. They handed me a Georgia Aquarium/ IO T-Shirt. My fish that died only cost $11.50

It's a really cool shirt because it has a picture of Ralph and Norton on the back (two whale sharks[dead now]). IO was using it for an add before they died so it has to be a limited edition shirt. The pet store owner thought it had Nemo on the back and it had not been taken out of the plastic bag yet. Says Instant Ocean Ralph and Norton swim in it too!

If it's good enough for the worlds largest aquarium it's good enough for me. :thumbsup:

I don't think it killed Ralph and Norton.
 
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<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10876609#post10876609 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by oct2274
True, it will definitely show new reefers that don't know better that IO is not a good choice unless they like supplementing or mixing with another salt. My main purpose of coming in here is because a poll like this will mislead new reefers. If i was new and wondering which salt to use I would choose IO or Reef Crystals because that is what the most people use, not knowing any better.

I was about to order 160G of I/O before reading the rest of this thread. Figured if that many people use, it must be best
Thanks for the heads up. I'll do some actual research before deciding.



Noob out!
 
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True, it will definitely show new reefers that don't know better that IO is not a good choice unless they like supplementing or mixing with another salt. My main purpose of coming in here is because a poll like this will mislead new reefers. If i was new and wondering which salt to use I would choose IO or Reef Crystals because that is what the most people use, not knowing any better.

But that isn't the reason this poll was started. Rather, the goal was to find out which salts are being used by the most people, so that those salts could be tested.

The original poster made a comment in a different thread stating that he didn't believe that anyone was using Red Sea Pro, but the poll has shown that isn't the case. I know a lot of people using it, including myself.
 
One week 7 gallons of Tropic marin pro reef only

next week 8 gallons of tmproreef/IO 50/50

Why, because I have getting rid of my old buckets of IO because it sucks for SPS. Alk is way to high, ca is way to low, mg is too low...that equals not a good salt.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10913132#post10913132 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DrBegalke
is pro reef high in Ca/Mag?

High enough for me. I posted my findings with two different buckets in the past 60 days. I remember in the latest batch, Calcium was 450 and Mg was 1380. pH was 8.2, alk was 9.7 or 10 dKH. I'd have to find my post to get those numbers for you.
 
Another IO/Oceanic 50/50. Never need to add anything. Combo has worked very well for me. I have a 550 mostly sps and a 180 with clams, lps and a few soft corals.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10889439#post10889439 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DrBegalke
Reefer Steve: Where do you get that dual phase formula from?



Northcoast pets, I cant find it anywhere else!
 
I use I/O. I tried red sea pro for awhile and it didnt work for me, not to say that it is a bad salt mix, but i just wasnt able to obtain the same results as i did with I/O. I dont know too many people that dont have to supplement their tanks in one way or another no matter what salt mix they use. my problem has always been keeping my alk and ph stable and that is with red sea pro or I/O. From what i can remember, most salt mixes on the market come from the same manufacturer, but have whatever elements that a specific company calls for added to it. my point is that everyone uses different water in their salt mix. depending on the treatment of the water, it can make a difference with the results of which salt mix works best for different individuals and their tanks.
I prefer instant ocean and reef crystals because they are what i've had good results with, not becuase they are the most readily available.
 
red sea coral pro salt is SUPPOSEDLY made for use with RO/DI treated water...but arent most of them formulated for use with RO/DI? as that is what most ppl use?

im having a hard time deciding what salt to buy!! (im a newb :( )
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10878454#post10878454 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DrBegalke
Its kind of sad that we now have to take the blame on threads opened in a public forum :(

Don't feel bad Doc. This is a very, very controversial subject.

I think people should just post what they use and let the chips fall where they may.

It doesn't surprise me that Reef Crystals is leading. It is a very balanced formula made by the same company as Instant Ocean. I personally could never understand why I couldn't get Randy to try it. I tried for a couple of years. Just stubborn I guess.

For years IO was the favorite, but with the information highway taking over, more people are judging for themselves.

I think your poll is very informative and will raise a lot of eyebrows when all is said and done. :)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10914529#post10914529 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EvilE
Anyone using Aquatic Gardens marine salt?

Yes I used it for a bit. Calcium was good (around 420), Alk at around 8 dkh and a reasonable amount of magnesium (1240 or so)

This is a little known brand sold at most Petsmarts (or Petco's) cant remember now..... But I was pretty impressed with my testing results. But, no long term recommendations.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10941127#post10941127 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Billybeau1
Don't feel bad Doc. This is a very, very controversial subject.

I think people should just post what they use and let the chips fall where they may.

It doesn't surprise me that Reef Crystals is leading. It is a very balanced formula made by the same company as Instant Ocean. I personally could never understand why I couldn't get Randy to try it. I tried for a couple of years. Just stubborn I guess.

For years IO was the favorite, but with the information highway taking over, more people are judging for themselves.

I think your poll is very informative and will raise a lot of eyebrows when all is said and done. :)

Thanks, appreciate it.
 
I'm in the process of switching from Reef Crystals to Oceanic. I bought Reef Crystals because it was popular and cheap. I've been wanting to try another salt to see how my tank reacts. I'm choosing Oceanic as it's a natural mix and seems to offer better levels of trace elements. We'll see how it goes. BTW - Every few buckets of Reef Crystals that I mixed gave me different calc and alk readings. I just buffered before my WC, but it made me do a little more quality control on my new water. Is it worth the switch? Is there a better salt that's on the opposite spectrum from RC that I should consider?
 
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