Salt mix experiment?

[reefnut]

Anyone care to take part in an experiment?
I'm out of salt and deciding if I want to stay with IO. If anyone is preparing for a water change or has previous test results, it would be interesting to see where the different salt mix levels are... as far as calcium, mag, alk, PH, etc. Temp and salinity would also need to be tested and mixing/ aeration times recorded. Any takers?
BTW, cool new Smiles :help: :flamed1:

 

[007]

I recently did a comparison between IO and -- . . . do a search for it and it has the numbers for IO and --.
I just switched from IO to -- and so far am happy but it is still too early to tell if there is any major difference.

 

[reefnut]

Thanks waterfaller1 & kip
007, your thread inspired mine :thinking:
I was hoping to get some results of other brands aswell :joy:

 

[neenie]

I just bought some new salt as well. Tropic Marin my tests were as follows:
Ph-8.2
Cal-450
Dkh- 7
Phos-0
Temp-78
Salinity-1.023
I found a really good deal on a 200 gallon mix if you want the info e-mail me giga56@carolina.rr.com
Janeen

 

[007]

I too am interested in seeing how some of the other salts stack up, however I dont think that you will get a wide variety of responses as this board as well as the hobby itself seems to be rather biased towards instant ocean.
When I told my LFS that I was switching from IO, they about fell over.

 

[hirock]

Just a quick question... Is there something going astray in your system that would warrant you to switch salts? For argument sake, it is just my opinion but if it isn’t broke, why fix it?

 

[007]

Originally posted by HIRock

Just a quick question... Is there something going astray in your system that would warrant you to switch salts? For argument sake, it is just my opinion but if it isn’t broke, why fix it?
For me . . . yes. My calcium and alkalinity levels were falling and I was haveing a difficult time maintaining them with IO. So I switched to reef crystals which is basically the same thing but with more calcium. Too early to tell if there is going to be any difference, but so far so good.

 

[hirock]

For me . . . yes. My calcium and alkalinity levels were falling and I was haveing a difficult time maintaining them with IO. So I switched to reef crystals which is basically the same thing but with more calcium. Too early to tell if there is going to be any difference, but so far so good.

In my experience, salt(s) are little or no help in maintaining Calc & Alk in a system. The required element needed to keep these 2 antagonistic elements in harmony is Magnesium. Mag will help bind these elements together and will help increase these two needed levels in your system for proper absorbtion. A simple solution can be made of epsom salts found at your local

[hr]
or supermarket. 1 table spoon per 10 gallons of aquarium water, disolved in RO/DI water is as good as any Mag product or your LFS shelf. A level of 1300 - 1600 ppm of magnesium is desired, and only should be replaced when needed. Salifert make a simple, user friendly test kit that should assess your needs.
Hope this helps you on your quest.