miggs76 January 20, 2013 Share January 20, 2013 I currently use Red Sea coral pro but it mixes to a higher alkalinity than my tank wants to be at.....it mixes to about 12 and my tank wants to stay at 8-9. I like the salt but I don't like the spike in alkalinity when I do a water change. I'm thinking of changing to tropic Marin or h20......anyone using either of these? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaySailor January 20, 2013 Share January 20, 2013 Funny, I just tested my tropic marin for alkalinity and it was about 8 or 9, so I guess you should try it. I'm tryiing to maintain mine at 11 and its a pain, but I want some coraline growing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohaverd January 20, 2013 Share January 20, 2013 Ive seen and heard about a few large aquariums like the kind you pay for and visit, use Instant Ocean. If its good enough for them, its good enough form me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldReefer January 20, 2013 Share January 20, 2013 I didn't like the Alk swings I would get with Reef Crystals, so I went with H2O Ocean Pro. It mixes up exactly to the chemistry I like to run my tank at. That being said, Instant Ocean with some additional calcium added is a decent alternative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosco's Reefs January 20, 2013 Share January 20, 2013 Funny, I just tested my tropic marin for alkalinity and it was about 8 or 9, so I guess you should try it. I'm tryiing to maintain mine at 11 and its a pain, but I want some coraline growing. Is this true? Higher alkalinity leads to better coraline growth? Please advise. This fits in with a project I am doing. Thx in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaySailor January 21, 2013 Share January 21, 2013 (edited) Well I'm not a chemist, but i've always found that corraline algae growth does relate to high alk. When I was running my tank at about 8 or so DKH, it all disappeared only to return when I brought it back up to 11. I pretty much keep Calcium at 425. Just my experience, but it seemed to be a pretty clear cause and effect. Edited January 21, 2013 by BaySailor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decadence January 22, 2013 Share January 22, 2013 I use Kent's reef salt and dose to maintain alk and calcium. I only change a few gallons of water per month (algae scrubber) so the water changes don't affect much. I got Kent because it had the highest magnesium levels which is something that I don't dose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curtis Scott January 22, 2013 Share January 22, 2013 +1 for Reef Crystals Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami January 22, 2013 Share January 22, 2013 Instant Ocean here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT January 22, 2013 Share January 22, 2013 instant ocean and add some MG to it if im so inclined Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country January 22, 2013 Share January 22, 2013 Since your tank is already used to the Red Sea Salts why not use the regular formulation instead of the Coral Pro? It mixes up to a Alk of 7.7dkh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miggs76 January 24, 2013 Author Share January 24, 2013 I ordered a small bucket of H20 pro....I'm going to give it a shot and I'll post up my results in a few weeks. For now I'm going to split the water changes between that and the red sea coral pro....I've heard that switching over abruptly can cause some damage to a tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bshriver January 24, 2013 Share January 24, 2013 I use IO or RC and have recently tried the tropic marine bio pro (or something like that). I did not notice the advantage of the pro but I did not use it long enough to tell nor were my water changes frequent enough to see any benefit so I will reserve judgement on whether their Bio grade salt is worth the extra money. That being said, regardless if what salt I use, I keep magnesium chloride,(or sulfate) calcium chloride and soda ash on hand to adjust the ca mag and alk levels of every new salt batch to where I like them before I use it. I find this method to be the best. It takes a small amount of extra effort but it is worth it to have full control over those levels. I use the online reef calculator to determine how much of each supplement to add after I test the new mix. Tons of TOM winners use instant ocean and reef crystals so that is my norm too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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