Salt Brands

[Gooser]

I have a fairly young tank, about a month old... 46 gal, Eheim 2213, Seaclone 100 skimmer, 25 lbs of live rock. I am currently using Instant Ocean salt which has been around for a while, and was wondering what the pros & cons are of using this senthetic salt as opposed to any of the other brands available...

Thanks!

[karlas]

ive used IO, Reef crystals, and now trying red sea salt. i think my favorite was the reef crystals, it suppoesed to have more trace elements and calcuim ,but that type is the most expensive. IO and RC are by the same company and are both good salts. i still get it once in a while. the red sea i got a really good deal on a bucket of it and have had no troubles with it at all so i might keep using it. its the cheapest of the 3 but it seems my leathers have taken off since i started using it. i really like the leather corals and the mushrooms and since there growing great with this salt ill get another bucket when this is gone.

[Gooser]

Thanks... I haven't had any problems using IO yet, so I will continue to use it... I guess one good thing about IO is that it has been around from a long time... that says alot...

[karlas]

I would say any of the 3 i mentiond are good, i know IO is the most popular of all the salts.

Kent salt is what I use now. I did use HW professional salt but the cost is high. I am not knocking it but I am on a budget ya know.

[Craig Manoukian]

I am very happy with Marine Environment 2 Part salt from AquaCraft. *It is the same price as IO here at my LFS in Reno but is a more consistent salt in my experience.

Anyone ever use Tropic Marin?
I hear it has 60 or so more trace elements in it.
LFS wants $89 for 200 gallon a bucket.... WOOOOOO thats way over my budget.

As are as being consistant Kent has not chnaged when I test it. But how does one test for trace elements anyway?
The S-15™ Report™ reveals what qualified marine chemists have know for decades. All of the above statements made by various marine salt producers are: half truths, misleading or blatantly false. The reality is that ALL marine salts have the SAME NUMBER of TRACE ELEMENTS -- ALL trace elements. The issue is not existence, but proportionality.
http://www.aquacraft.net/w0023.html

This is what HW marine has to say-

hW Marinemix Plus BioElements
Directions:

Dissolve hW Marinemix in the required amount of water* stirring actively until densimeter indicates the required density. After intensive aeration for 6-8 hours, the water is ready to use for all marine organisms.

* For achieving optimal results, it is recommended to use demineralised water or water treated by reverse osmosis. Using hard water can cause cloudiness due to the precipitation of carbonates as a result of over saturation as it occurs in nature.

hw Marinemix includes the following Bio-Elements:

Meso-Inosite: Integral part of any living cell and involved with the cation transfer through the cell membranes as well as with nerve stimulation. A growth factor for many animal cell species.

Nicotinamide: Integral part of the cell-building substance NADP(nicotine-adenine dinucleotide phosphate). An immensely important factor in the transfer of hydrogen during the biological oxidation process.

Cyanocobalamin: Vitamin B12: A coenzyme and growth factor involved with lipid and carbohydrate metabolism as well as with the formation of blood cells.

Vitamin A: Indispensible as a retinal pigment and reproduction promoter. This vitamin substance provides for stability of the lipoprotein membrane of the cells and the subcellular particles.

Alpha-Tocopherol: Vitamin E: Acts as an antioxidant for fatty acids, Vitamin A and enzymes. This substance also has an influence on the resorption of cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12) and nuclein metabolism, and is looked upon as an antisterility vitamin.

Ascorbic Acid: Vitamin C. Serves for formation of collagen and maintains its level. Acts as a reductant in tyrosine metabolism and protects organisms from deficiencies of other vitamins. Is also involved with the formation of adrenaline.

Thiamine: Vitamin B1. This functions as a coenzyme in carbohydrate catabolism.

Biotin D: Vitamin H. This represents a growth factor for nanoplankton, etc., and is also synthesized in plant-life. Biotin is a coenzyme in C02-fixation and transcarboxylationreactions in the presence and involvement of magnesium ions.

Glycin: Amino-Acetic Acid: This is a protein component for cell forming and involved with the blood pigment synthesis.

Leucin: Amino-lsocaproic Acid. This is a protein component for cell forming.

Tyrosine: an amino acid occurring in nature, is an essential component of the proteins involved in coral growth. Tyrosine is also essentially involved in pigment formation.

[Craig Manoukian]

I'm still in love with my ME2 from Aqua Craft! *Have never used Tropic Marin. *Sorry no help.

[Matt Rogers]

[quote author=Nautilus link=board=Product;num=1063914770;start=0#6 date=11/25/03 at 19:35:39]Anyone ever use Tropic Marin?
I hear it has 60 or so more trace elements in it.
[/quote]

I used it in college. Don't ask how long ago that was.
It was good salt, but I switched to Coralife at the time after getting paranoid about the phosphorous that is in Tropic Marin.