which sea salt mix

Sidewaze67

New member
Ok getting things together but not ready yet still doing homework. I'm curious which sea salt to get and price isn't an issue when you're talking 12-18 dollars difference. What I have available to me locally is Instant Ocean, Top Fin and a shop not far has IO, H2 Ocean Pro+ and Crystal Sea Marine. Which of these are best and why or feel free to recommend something else as I can run states side easy and gives me a reason to shop elsewhere. All help is really appreciated. I should say I did search and seen nothing positive about top fin so its basically out.

Thanks,
Scott
 
You are going to get 1000's of different answers to this question. There is a poll thread there on RC that I would suggest looking at. It comes down to a few things in my opinion:
1. What are you going to keep in the system? Coral or just fish etc.
- regular salts are ok for fish, but its really good to get a reef special salt for coral systems
2. What is available to you locally?
- you already provided, but salt is heavy and costs money to ship. I get it locally only
3. How much money are you willing to pay?
- I think this is probably the least important of the 3

I personally use IO reef crystals. I can get it locally in Oklahoma City for a SUPER good price and its generally pretty good salt. When it comes to brand, there are many and most provide a perfectly acceptable product. That said, when in the business of mixing vast quantities of salt it is not surprising that from time to time a non-homogeneous mixture happens and one gets a bucket of salt with a parameter out of wack. Another suggestion I would have is to get the 5g buckets of salt for a while, no smaller quantity, and after you have a large collection of buckets for general aquarium use, go with larger quantities (like boxes of bags). Hope this helps
 
I plan to have both in my 90g. I have to travel an hour to get anything decent. I looked and they carry the following for reef
I/O reef crystals
Tropic Marin Reef Pro
 
Like Dolmo5000 said everyone will have a different answer, but here's my two cents. I've used a few different salts, and for the most part (couple exceptions) the only difference was the cost. I pretty much use I/O Reef Crystals and have been happy with the results. As for having to buy local, I never buy salt local. I buy my salt from:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/fish-supplies/saltwater-aquarium-salt-water-mix/ps/c/3578/4685

The shipping is FREE on all orders over $49. I just buy the 200 gal box of Reef Crystals. It normally arrives within 2 or 3 days.

Happy Reefing
 
I would just go with regular Instant Ocean. Really not too much of a difference between salt brands. I used to use reef crystals, but didn't like the super high alk and added price.
 
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