Tropic Marin salt woes

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I use Tropic Marin salt. I noticed that in my tank was hard to keep the kH and pH up so I decided to mix a bucket of fresh Tropic Marin with RO/DI water to 35pt. I tested the pH with a probe, it's fine... 8.2. I tested the calcium, it's over 500ppm, off the chart with my Salifert kit. The kH, with a new Aqua Test kit, is 6.

Is this normal, and if so, why? And if it's not normal, what can I do about it?
 
It's supposed to mix to a low Kh to counter the high Kh coming out of your reactor, if you use 2-part you might want to try a different salt.
C
 
It's supposed to mix to a low Kh to counter the high Kh coming out of your reactor,
Click to expand...

that really doesn't make any sense. our daily supplementations (kalk,2-part, ca reactor, whatever) are supposed to maintain set levels. so freshly mixed saltwater out-of-the-bucket should start off pretty close to our targets. that kind of statement sounds like a marketing spin to distract users and trick them into thinking it's 'better' when it really isn't- like many of the statements printed on the back-of-the-box on products made anywhere. but for some reason people's BS detectors seem to be turned off when reading *anything* from germany. if coral vital was made in germany i bet people would baptize their babies with it, based on how cool the label says it is.
 
Meg, I think we have some testing issues here.

Lets start with this. How long have you been using the Salifert calcium kit and how old is it ?
 
I bought this salt also, but found it low in all major parameters.

I tested calcium at 380ppm, alk at 3meq/l and mag at 1050ppm. I tried differnet brands of test kits for the calcium, all test kits are less than a year old, from purchase dates, and the numbers were pretty identical with the different test.

I have the same problem with Seachem's reef salt too :(
 
380 calcium is about right for TM from my testing. I got a little higher alk and mag but the mag could just be test noise.

I'm surprised you got low calcium numbers with Seachems Reef Salt. I tested it in the low 500's. :)
 
hhmm well after reading here and posting and tehn reading more n tehtwo products they offer im super confusd, probably the most confusing salt marketing approach ive ever encountered.
 
Last edited:
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11875306#post11875306 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by manderx
that really doesn't make any sense. our daily supplementations (kalk,2-part, ca reactor, whatever) are supposed to maintain set levels. so freshly mixed saltwater out-of-the-bucket should start off pretty close to our targets. that kind of statement sounds like a marketing spin to distract users and trick them into thinking it's 'better' when it really isn't- like many of the statements printed on the back-of-the-box on products made anywhere. but for some reason people's BS detectors seem to be turned off when reading *anything* from germany. if coral vital was made in germany i bet people would baptize their babies with it, based on how cool the label says it is.
Click to expand...


Haha Bravo!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11875306#post11875306 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by manderx
that really doesn't make any sense. our daily supplementations (kalk,2-part, ca reactor, whatever) are supposed to maintain set levels. so freshly mixed saltwater out-of-the-bucket should start off pretty close to our targets. that kind of statement sounds like a marketing spin to distract users and trick them into thinking it's 'better' when it really isn't- like many of the statements printed on the back-of-the-box on products made anywhere. but for some reason people's BS detectors seem to be turned off when reading *anything* from germany. if coral vital was made in germany i bet people would baptize their babies with it, based on how cool the label says it is.
Click to expand...

A conspiracy theory huh? :rolleyes:

Some reefers do not run calcium reactors and do not do daily supplements. They rely on weekly or bi-weekly water changes to maintain their levels. In this case they use a salt mix with higher than normal levels to compensate for the depletion between water changes.

Not everybody does it like you. :)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11877387#post11877387 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Billybeau1
380 calcium is about right for TM from my testing. I got a little higher alk and mag but the mag could just be test noise.

I'm surprised you got low calcium numbers with Seachems Reef Salt. I tested it in the low 500's. :)
Click to expand...

I contacted Seachem about it, and they too were suprised. I performed the tests with both API and Seachem kits which I had just purchased, and they had a difference of 5ppm. Seachem said they have a lab test the salt before being dispatched to ensure quality, but I have to rely on my test kits obviously to maintain consistency. Previous batches were good, just this one is low.

What really impressed me was the customer service. I declined the offer, but Seachem said that they would dispatch calcium and magnesium supplements to bring the levels back up. I have the supplements for dosing as my system requires it, so it's not a hassel, but I think this was a very gracious offer on their behalf. I'll definately be continuing to use their products :)

Sorry to get this thread off track, I'll let you get back on the topic now :lol:
 
Update:

I spoke to my LFS and they recommended I return with the salt so that they can mix some up and test it themselves. They also asked me what salinity I had and that led me to my next question... is it or isn't it OK to calibrate refractometers with the deionized water? He didn't know, and since my PinPoint salinity monitor and Sybon refractometer are at odds by almost 4 pts, I'll be bringing those in as well. We'll see what happens.
 
I use the Sybon refractometer as well, and I calibrate it with RO/DI water. I compared it to the calibration fluid and found that the reading was the same. I still have the calibration fluid for double checks though.

As for which is out, I can't help there, as I wouldn't have a clue which is the more accurate.
 
<<< I have the same problem with Seachem's reef salt too >>>


I think it's important to shake up the bag/bucket really good on Seachem salt (and probably all salts) as I believe the calcium tends to settle on the bottom.
 
Some reefers do not run calcium reactors and do not do daily supplements.
Click to expand...
what in the world are you talking about??? my post was a response to this comment (that i quoted):
It's supposed to mix to a low Kh to counter the high Kh coming out of your reactor
Click to expand...
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11886702#post11886702 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by HowardW
<<< I have the same problem with Seachem's reef salt too >>>


I think it's important to shake up the bag/bucket really good on Seachem salt (and probably all salts) as I believe the calcium tends to settle on the bottom.
Click to expand...

I'll give it a try. Thanks for the tip mate.

Cheers

Chris
 
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