Thank you for pointing out the difference between same day mix, and storage mix salts. Knowing which salt is better for which purpose alone is great to know.
In my opinion, this is for nano/smaller reef tanks who need to manually dose trace elements. If you have a larger reef tank, you're better off getting a cheaper/lower trace element salt and combining with automated dosing.
For sure. I imagine it would be easier to mix on the day if you're only changing about 20L. I can't imagine having to do this on a larger tank. If maintaining elevated levels and using a mix with lower levels, would you dose the new water to match your desired levels before changing the water?
@@Sammy31Dee it isn't. theres evidence of higher alk and ph causing faster growth. the blue box is only like 8.5dkh that isn't "too high" at all and the red box which i use is between 10-12dkh i try to keep mine over 11 but it's a brand new setup just 7 weeks old so no corals for a few more months
I just read that 35ppt is approximated to be 35 grams of salt in 1 liter of water. Wish I new on my first water change because I sat there adding salt, recording how much salt was added, testing between additions and calculating the total salt I put to a 20% water change. I actually did it like 5 times to get a decent idea on the average amount of salt it takes for Kirby's Premium SPS Sea Salt to 18L. Around 720 grams of salt to 18L of matched temp Tank water gives me around 32ppt.
I have stopped mixing my own saltwater in favour of getting already mixed saltwater from my LFS, the shop has great healthy corals and superbly coloured fish, along with my red sea recipe my tank SPS corals starting to look great (in my opinion, early days). I take out 10 gallons and add 10 gallons every week sometimes twice a week. Simple.
Every time I mix this salt It mixes to around 20 alk or sometimes go all the way to 6 i’m following all the correct instructions but I can’t get a consistent mix
I can never get it mixed to where it's clear. If I use when it's cloudy white it leaves a terrible residue all over the bottom of my sump and the equipment there that if left literally feels like a coating of cement and needs to be scraped off the bottom and the equipment needs to be removed and soaked in vinegar.
I buy my premixed water for my 75 gallon reef at the LFS and they say they use Red Sea blue bucket. Thing is I buy this water and use it the next day. I never knew I had to use it same day. 😢
Took me a while to come to this conclusion, but the Tropic Marin is a better salt. I used the Read Sea Coral Pro for years, but my Alk was always a bit too high for a happy mixed reef tank. Reports of how they extract and process their salt are a little unsettling. For me, it was a bad batch of the Red Sea coral pro salt that helped fuel a massive red slime outbreak in my tank. Other users have had similar reports. I'd offer that the quality of the salt you use is the easiest variable to control in your tank. Why's spend thousands on fish and coral and not use the best. IMO, Red Sea products are mostly good, but not great at the price point.
I may be a noob here, but take out the storage feature and focusing just on the elevated levels of alk, cal and mag..and this salt leads to faster growth..are they really relevant levels and more the ideal range for growth? So other salts with lower levels aren't ideal as they won't achieve the growth and require dosing to increase the levels?
This is a double edged sword. Lower levels are generally "safer," but the elevated elements can lead to faster coral growth. We actually did an investigates on this a while back. Here is a link to part 1: ua-cam.com/video/Ar_EU5lLlIs/v-deo.html
The is hands down the best salt you can use. I have used them ALL. Everyone that complains about this salt either mixing cloudy or leaving behind film, particles, etc. is because you are mixing it with warm water. You can't store your water in a non climate controlled environment and expect it to mix clean. The water should be COOL, as it a 70 to 72 degree home with AC on and fresh RODI water. Not water you've had sitting in 85 degrees. Cool water equals perfect mixing of Red Sea Coral Pro.
I am so confused as to which salt to buy! I have always bought IO reef crystals and last batch I got off amazon just mixed up to 6.2 alk! I dont know if its because I got it off amazon way cheaper than you guys. I used to get 160 gallon bucket for 35 bucks but they went up quite a bit. I never had problems with it except when I would get near the end I would trash it because it would get moist. Maybe humidity if florida so last time I bought it in 200 gallon,3 separate bags so I could keep it fresher and hopefully not get moist. I also moved it in from hot garage! LOL Maybe that was the problem. Since getting the 6.2 dkh I want o try a different mix but I do like the xtra calcium and magnesium reef crystals provides! I was thinking tropic marin classic. I noticed on your study from 2019 that they all are basically 49 cent a gallon and when everyone speaks of how cheap IO is they are speaking of purple on e that I dont use! I like that tropic marin is the same dkh I keep at around 9.5 but the mag and calcium seem to low at average 380 and 1260. Would I need to dose to bring those up since my corals are used to higher numbers. Are the numbers they have sufficient? I would choose this but the alk is to high! Just cant find the perfect one! What do you recommend?
The first thing that I would suggest deciding on are your target alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium levels. From there, you'll be much better able to pick out a salt that meets your needs. We usually recommend Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt mix. It has a dKH around 7, so if that's lower than you'd like, you can either add some sodium bicarbonate to bump it up or go with another salt like HW Reefer.
I remember the first gen salt they've brought out...it was terrible to dissolve and it actually had traces of ammonia and nitrate levels! I haven't tested this new gen salt from them, and probably not going to.
If you're measuring by volume, start out with about 1/2 cup per gallon, mix, then test. You'll likely need to add a bit more, but 1/2 cup per gallon will get you close. Alternatively, pick up an inexpensive digital kitchen scale and use 148 grams per gallon of freshwater.
I use this salt. It's fine but doesn't mix anywhere near as good as they claim. Always has flakes left behind that look like limescale (probably minerals/metals packed pre mixing)
It wouldn't if you would mix it with cooler water. If your water is hotter because you don't run AC or keep the water in a non climate controlled garage, you will get cloudiness and what you are experiencing.
A lot of factors go into coral coloration vs growth! Available nutrients & overall nutrition, light, flow, major and minor elements, etc all play a role in how much color our corals can display for us :)
@@jdamommio mixed really really clean....no local fish stores carry it....never saw the growth I did with reef crystals...I wonder if it's almost too pharma clean....me and a buddy had similar xp....he's on a calcium reactor 300g system and I'm on 2 part 75g...I use reef crystals and never really get crud....just don't preheat your water for a month before use
I so agree! They are all either crazy high or crazy low! I dont get it! I thought most people keep dkh at about 9.5! I have always used reef crystals myself but also have had poor growth. Could be cyano battle at least it looks like cyano but dosnt respond to chemiclean! the last batch of reef crystals I got I just mixed up and the dkh was 6.2! I think I am going to trash it! I did up the alk but I dont dose so I figure if the alk is low then the whole mix is out of whack! I always ordered of amazon but never again! I also bought 160 gallons for 35 bucks! Crazy cheap! Maybe its fake or something. Since I have small frags and dont usually check kh before adding it but i always have around 9.5 dkh so must have been the only bad batch. They dont say on label what their dkh is but BRS has said it was 13. I was always around 9.5 until recently with the cyano must be consuming more or something!
Considering how Red Sea is one of the biggest reef companies out there. You’d think their salt wouldn’t be garbage. It’s awful. Tropic Marin has my vote all day long.
Thank you for pointing out the difference between same day mix, and storage mix salts. Knowing which salt is better for which purpose alone is great to know.
In my opinion, this is for nano/smaller reef tanks who need to manually dose trace elements. If you have a larger reef tank, you're better off getting a cheaper/lower trace element salt and combining with automated dosing.
For sure. I imagine it would be easier to mix on the day if you're only changing about 20L. I can't imagine having to do this on a larger tank.
If maintaining elevated levels and using a mix with lower levels, would you dose the new water to match your desired levels before changing the water?
I am just miting this salt Right Now !! 🤣🤣
i use fritz primarily but used about 20 gallon of this coz my fritz was taking too long to arrive and i didn't wanna see less water in my tank hehe :D
I wish red sea would make a salt with the same elevated levels but with an alk of 9 to 10......surely 11.5 to 12.5 is too high for most.
Agreed
It's all based on the reefing methods from 1999 ...time for an update by all salt mixes available...
use fritz red box rpm for high alk
@@MrDon967 it's too high...even blue box is
@@Sammy31Dee it isn't.
theres evidence of higher alk and ph causing faster growth.
the blue box is only like 8.5dkh that isn't "too high" at all and the red box which i use is between 10-12dkh i try to keep mine over 11 but it's a brand new setup just 7 weeks old so no corals for a few more months
ive used this salt for years and has worked great so far?
Very interesting.
Could you please do a review on iQuatics Ocean Reef Pro Coral Salt as they say its fully ready in just under 13 minutes!!!
I just read that 35ppt is approximated to be 35 grams of salt in 1 liter of water. Wish I new on my first water change because I sat there adding salt, recording how much salt was added, testing between additions and calculating the total salt I put to a 20% water change. I actually did it like 5 times to get a decent idea on the average amount of salt it takes for Kirby's Premium SPS Sea Salt to 18L. Around 720 grams of salt to 18L of matched temp Tank water gives me around 32ppt.
I have stopped mixing my own saltwater in favour of getting already mixed saltwater from my LFS, the shop has great healthy corals and superbly coloured fish, along with my red sea recipe my tank SPS corals starting to look great (in my opinion, early days). I take out 10 gallons and add 10 gallons every week sometimes twice a week. Simple.
Every time I mix this salt It mixes to around 20 alk or sometimes go all the way to 6 i’m following all the correct instructions but I can’t get a consistent mix
I can never get it mixed to where it's clear. If I use when it's cloudy white it leaves a terrible residue all over the bottom of my sump and the equipment there that if left literally feels like a coating of cement and needs to be scraped off the bottom and the equipment needs to be removed and soaked in vinegar.
I buy my premixed water for my 75 gallon reef at the LFS and they say they use Red Sea blue bucket. Thing is I buy this water and use it the next day. I never knew I had to use it same day. 😢
Is there a salt that does not leave crud in mixing container?
Tropic Marin
Took me a while to come to this conclusion, but the Tropic Marin is a better salt. I used the Read Sea Coral Pro for years, but my Alk was always a bit too high for a happy mixed reef tank. Reports of how they extract and process their salt are a little unsettling. For me, it was a bad batch of the Red Sea coral pro salt that helped fuel a massive red slime outbreak in my tank. Other users have had similar reports. I'd offer that the quality of the salt you use is the easiest variable to control in your tank. Why's spend thousands on fish and coral and not use the best. IMO, Red Sea products are mostly good, but not great at the price point.
I may be a noob here, but take out the storage feature and focusing just on the elevated levels of alk, cal and mag..and this salt leads to faster growth..are they really relevant levels and more the ideal range for growth? So other salts with lower levels aren't ideal as they won't achieve the growth and require dosing to increase the levels?
This is a double edged sword. Lower levels are generally "safer," but the elevated elements can lead to faster coral growth. We actually did an investigates on this a while back. Here is a link to part 1:
ua-cam.com/video/Ar_EU5lLlIs/v-deo.html
The is hands down the best salt you can use. I have used them ALL. Everyone that complains about this salt either mixing cloudy or leaving behind film, particles, etc. is because you are mixing it with warm water. You can't store your water in a non climate controlled environment and expect it to mix clean. The water should be COOL, as it a 70 to 72 degree home with AC on and fresh RODI water. Not water you've had sitting in 85 degrees. Cool water equals perfect mixing of Red Sea Coral Pro.
I wanna try this salt but i was worried about the alk dkh level 11 to 12? because my tank alk is 8.5 and i want to stay on to that level.
If you're interested in the Red Sea salt, but 11-12 dKH is too high, I'd suggest checking out their "blue bucket" salt, which is usually around 8 dKH.
I am so confused as to which salt to buy! I have always bought IO reef crystals and last batch I got off amazon just mixed up to 6.2 alk! I dont know if its because I got it off amazon way cheaper than you guys. I used to get 160 gallon bucket for 35 bucks but they went up quite a bit. I never had problems with it except when I would get near the end I would trash it because it would get moist. Maybe humidity if florida so last time I bought it in 200 gallon,3 separate bags so I could keep it fresher and hopefully not get moist. I also moved it in from hot garage! LOL Maybe that was the problem. Since getting the 6.2 dkh I want o try a different mix but I do like the xtra calcium and magnesium reef crystals provides! I was thinking tropic marin classic. I noticed on your study from 2019 that they all are basically 49 cent a gallon and when everyone speaks of how cheap IO is they are speaking of purple on e that I dont use! I like that tropic marin is the same dkh I keep at around 9.5 but the mag and calcium seem to low at average 380 and 1260. Would I need to dose to bring those up since my corals are used to higher numbers. Are the numbers they have sufficient? I would choose this but the alk is to high! Just cant find the perfect one! What do you recommend?
The first thing that I would suggest deciding on are your target alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium levels. From there, you'll be much better able to pick out a salt that meets your needs. We usually recommend Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt mix. It has a dKH around 7, so if that's lower than you'd like, you can either add some sodium bicarbonate to bump it up or go with another salt like HW Reefer.
I remember the first gen salt they've brought out...it was terrible to dissolve and it actually had traces of ammonia and nitrate levels! I haven't tested this new gen salt from them, and probably not going to.
could anyone tell me how much coral pro salt I should use per gallon for a mixed reef
If you're measuring by volume, start out with about 1/2 cup per gallon, mix, then test. You'll likely need to add a bit more, but 1/2 cup per gallon will get you close. Alternatively, pick up an inexpensive digital kitchen scale and use 148 grams per gallon of freshwater.
@@BRStv thank you
I use this salt. It's fine but doesn't mix anywhere near as good as they claim. Always has flakes left behind that look like limescale (probably minerals/metals packed pre mixing)
It wouldn't if you would mix it with cooler water. If your water is hotter because you don't run AC or keep the water in a non climate controlled garage, you will get cloudiness and what you are experiencing.
You'd think they would have perfected salt mix by now.
where can I get that hat?
BRS merch is available on the website, and often times, are parts of promos and deals!
@@ThomasBReef under what category? I have never see a merch section.
You can find all of our BRS swag here: www.bulkreefsupply.com/brands/bulk-reef-supply/brs-swag.html
If you use AWC and this salt, prepare for failure, this salt mix is not for storage purposes
Definitely not! I go over that in the video too.
I thought its shaked in the box 😅
Been using this salt, noticed really increased growth but colours were poor / not the best
A lot of factors go into coral coloration vs growth! Available nutrients & overall nutrition, light, flow, major and minor elements, etc all play a role in how much color our corals can display for us :)
Coloration can also be achieved through feedings. Try ab+
Why can't anyone make a salt with a 9dkh
Just do that and you'll be number one in the advanced reefer arena ....
@@jdamommio tried and wasn't all that happy with it
@@jdamommio mixed really really clean....no local fish stores carry it....never saw the growth I did with reef crystals...I wonder if it's almost too pharma clean....me and a buddy had similar xp....he's on a calcium reactor 300g system and I'm on 2 part 75g...I use reef crystals and never really get crud....just don't preheat your water for a month before use
I so agree! They are all either crazy high or crazy low! I dont get it! I thought most people keep dkh at about 9.5! I have always used reef crystals myself but also have had poor growth. Could be cyano battle at least it looks like cyano but dosnt respond to chemiclean! the last batch of reef crystals I got I just mixed up and the dkh was 6.2! I think I am going to trash it! I did up the alk but I dont dose so I figure if the alk is low then the whole mix is out of whack! I always ordered of amazon but never again! I also bought 160 gallons for 35 bucks! Crazy cheap! Maybe its fake or something. Since I have small frags and dont usually check kh before adding it but i always have around 9.5 dkh so must have been the only bad batch. They dont say on label what their dkh is but BRS has said it was 13. I was always around 9.5 until recently with the cyano must be consuming more or something!
Considering how Red Sea is one of the biggest reef companies out there. You’d think their salt wouldn’t be garbage. It’s awful. Tropic Marin has my vote all day long.