Marine Salt Question, "Red Sea Coral Pro Salt"  3/23/07
Hi WW Crew:
<Bonnie>
I was wondering if anyone had experience or an opinion on the new product "Red Sea Coral Pro Salt"?
<Mmm, nope>
The company states it is specifically formulated for use with reverse osmosis water.
<Mmm...>
They also give some stats such as:
With a salinity of 1.025 the Calcium level is 480ppm at 75 degrees.  I use R/O water and was wondering if it might be good for me to use.
<Worth trying... though am a stead user of the two long-standing best brands in the trade...>
  I have been using Instant Ocean Reef Crystals.  Was rather surprised that the calcium level would be that high (480ppm).  What do you think?
<Is artificially boosted (relative to NSW...) but not a big deal (all good synthetics are). Do take a read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/seawater.htm
and the linked files above>
Thanks for your opinion.  Bonnie
<Thanks for asking. Bob Fenner>

Salt Mix Opinion  - 5/18/2006
Hey guy and gals!
<Hello Christine>
I was wondering what you guys thought about 'Red Sea Pro Coral Salt'.  It is supposed to be for use with RO water.  Here is the description:
"With the increasing popularity of Reverse Osmosis water filtration systems Red Sea addressed the special needs of this advanced hobbyist with the development of Coral Pro Salt. Unlike traditional water filtration systems Reverse Osmosis filtration strips the water of several essential elements, which were never factored into the salt formulas available today. Since the reverse osmosis process strip virtually 100% of the calcium from the “tap water” the hobbyist is left with a seawater mixture that is significantly low in calcium from the start. In addition to calcium there are a few other natural minerals and chemicals left at inadequate levels such as magnesium.
Coral Pro salt when mixed with Reverse Osmosis water faithfully replicates natural seawater and has the desired calcium and magnesium content to support delicate reef life. Chemically balanced formula to support the most delicate corals and other marine life. Free of nitrates and phosphates."
Does this eliminate the need for RO right/other buffers?
<Not familiar with this new product.  Why don't you talk to the horse at Red Sea.  Email "Pinky" here:  redseainfo@redseafish.com>
Thanks!
<You're welcome.  James (Salty Dog)>
Christine

Re: Salt Mix Opinion - anyone but salty dog  - 05/19/2006
Thanks for the email address, but I was really hoping to get an objective opinion on the salt mix.  My previous email is repeated below:
Hey guy and gals!
I was wondering what you guys thought about 'Red Sea Pro Coral Salt'.  It is supposed to be for use with RO water.  Here is the description:
"With the increasing popularity of Reverse Osmosis water filtration systems Red Sea addressed the special needs of this advanced hobbyist with the development of Coral Pro Salt. Unlike traditional water filtration systems Reverse Osmosis filtration strips the water of several essential elements, which were never factored into the salt formulas available today. Since the reverse osmosis process strip virtually 100% of the calcium from the “tap water” the hobbyist is left with a seawater mixture that is significantly low in calcium from the start. In addition to calcium there are a few other natural minerals and chemicals left at inadequate levels such as magnesium.
Coral Pro salt when mixed with Reverse Osmosis water faithfully replicates natural seawater and has the desired calcium and magnesium content to support delicate reef life. Chemically balanced formula to support the most delicate corals and other marine life. Free of nitrates and phosphates."
Have any of you tried this product? Does this eliminate the need for RO right/other buffers?
Thanks!
Christine
<Mmm, did see the original response (and query). For my part I have not used this product (is relatively new), but am familiar with the company's main brand and this has proven inconsistent and inferior. I would post your query on some of the various specialty BB's (ReefFrontiers, ReefCentral...) for a broader, user-based response here. Bob Fenner>

Salt Mix Opinion Query  - 05/19/2006
Another irritating querier.  I gave her my answer stating I'm not familiar with the product and even gave her an addy to Red Sea.  How can I give an "objective opinion" when I never used the product or am familiar with it.  She doesn't want me to respond and I won't, already gave her all she should need.  ARRGGHHH.  
James
<Thought about this as well... I'd've given about the same response... I have no experience with this salt... but their main brand is inconsistent, inferior... I would next, perhaps will refer this person to the specialty BB's for a wider net of experience, input. BobF>

Salt Brand Change 8/5/03
Sorry to trouble you once again, but I have a quick question as I am about to run out of salt. I have been using Red Sea since starting my tank 9 months ago because I got several buckets for $30 each at Petco. I have been somewhat dissatisfied with it's performance, especially since one ff the buckets kept mixing up with an ammonia level of 0.5 using ammonia-free RO water.
<I will tell you that for some time I have heard complaints monthly or better with this salt... not so much quality issues... but consistency>
Anyway, I am considering a switch. I gather that most of the crew prefer Tropic Main or IO over Red Sea. Is this correct?
<for me at least... Bob is agreed too I'm fairly certain><<Yes. RMF>>
Might I ask why?
<long-standing QC... Tropic Marin is arguably a better salt... IO is perhaps a better value. Both are extremely reliable and consistent>
I've tried to read up on some of the issues, including the famous article by Ron Shimek in Reefkeeping Online.
<ughhh... for neither love or money, I - nor many other industry professionals I know - can explain why he made this statement or how the heck he came to those conclusions. The backlash on it is already coming back. Sorry to see it for all>
He seems to strongly favor Crystal Sea Marinemix.  
<do read the message boards and our archives re: issues with this salt in particular from less than pleased folks that made the switch. Seems to be some concern for gastropods and echinoderms in particular as I recall (stunned snails and starfish). I personally would not take it for free.>
If I do change, should I just start using the new brand for water changes (say 5% per week)?  Thanks, Steve Allen.
<do opt for 10-20% weekly water changes minimum please... and you will not go wrong with TM, IO or Omega salts IMO. Best regards, Anthony>

Salt Mix Quality Questions
Dear Sir,
<No "sir"- just Scott F. here today!>
I have used Tropic Marin, HW Marinemix, Instant Ocean and Sera Meersaltz for my marine fish hobby over 5 years.
<All good salts; I'm a Tropic Marin fan, myself>
Recently, I tried Red Sea salt because it was cheaper which unfortunately resulted in the death of many of my fishes in my aquarium! 
<Sorry to hear that...Are you sure that it was the salt mix?>
I went back to the shop and found out that the shop owner himself uses Sera Meersaltz for his magnificent showcase tanks. What about the Red Sea then? He said he is aware of blending quality problems last year but thought the problem had been rectified.
<Perhaps if this was the problem, maybe you purchased a leftover bag from one of the troubled batches?>
He is no longer stocking Red Sea salt mix after my complaint and says Instant Ocean would be the replacement for the budget conscious (Sera Meersaltz for the serious high-end fishkeeper) as he had some similar complaints from others as well.  My question is why has there been a lack of emphasis on the quality of many brands of seawater mix available especially where blending of the formula matters so much?
<Well, I suppose that there has been a lot more placed into marketing and packaging in recent years than into research and development by many companies. Some formulas have been established so long that little, if any expense has been put into refining them.  The SF15 report, while appearing biased towards Aquacraft products and somewhat understandable (their products did better in the tests after all is said and done) is about the only thing I have seen so far.
<Agreed...there are not too many independent tests out there. However, a number of advanced hobbyists and authors have done some limited research into salt mix over the past couple of years, and have published this information on the 'net. Just requires a bit of research on your part. Some of the findings might be interesting, others seem to be a bit unusual, but it's always worth looking at. I think the real problem is that it is rather expensive to perform a completely unbiased, accurate, and thorough analysis of al of the salt mixes on the market today. I suppose the best bet for the hobbyist is to see what your fellow successful hobbyists have found to be effective, and try the salt in your own system. If the salt works for you- stick with the brand. Consistency in all things, including salt mix- is very vital for marine systems, IMO. Hang in there! Regards, Scott F>

Seawater Mix Product Issues 4/9/04 
Dear Sir, 
<Wow! No need for such formality. We are a very laid back bunch!<g>.> 
I have used Tropic Marin, HW Marinemix, Instant Ocean and Sera Meersaltz for my marine fish hobby over 5 years. Recently, I tried Red Sea salt because it was cheaper which unfortunately resulted in the death of many of my fishes in my aquarium! 
<Very bad news indeed!> 
I went back to the shop and found out that the shop owner himself uses Sera Meersaltz for his magnificent showcase tanks. What about the Red Sea then? He said he is aware of blending quality problems last year but thought the problem had been rectified. He is no longer stocking Red Sea salt mix after my complaint and says Instant Ocean would be the replacement for as he had some similar complaints from others as well. 
<I have not heard of this problem. Perhaps it is limited to certain areas. Tropic Marin and Sera are very highly regarded salts (which unfortunately are not widely available in the US) and Instant Ocean is so widely used that serious problems with it would be well known.> 
My question is why has there been a lack of emphasis on the quality of many brands of seawater mix available especially where blending of the formula matters so much? The SF15 report while appearing biased towards Aquacraft products and somewhat 
understandable (their products did better in the tests after all is said and done) is about the only thing I have seen so far. 
<The results of the S-15 report is widely considered to be very questionable. Your observation that one brand of salts vastly outperformed others is very keen. You might have also noted that the criteria used to judge the salts seemed a bit odd and obviously favored the same brands of salt produced by the folks who performed the testing. 
Dr. Ron Shimek performed some testing of salt mixes using sea urchin larvae. Although his results were quite dramatic, it is my strong opinion that not many useful conclusions can be drawn from his results and that much more testing is required. 
I think the biggest reason for lack of testing of salts is primarily cost. No one has any way of recovering their testing cost, let alone profiting from performing unbiased testing. Another important reason is that it is only in the last couple of years that husbandry has advanced so far that the life expectancy of our animals may be limited by the quality of salt mix rather than poor husbandry. 
Lastly, very pure chemicals are very expensive. To give a very crude example, a 95% pure chemical may cost $1.00 per kilo, the same chemical 99% pure may be $3.00 per kilo, the same chemical 99.99% pure may cost $15.00 per kilo. So, the cost goes up very rapidly to achieve the very highest level of purity. I hope this information is useful to you. Adam>

Questions (salt mix brands, spg, sponge diet)
Hi Bob !! If you're given a choice of salt mix, which one would you go for:
Instant ocean or Red Sea ?
<Instant Ocean by a few percent... with Tropic Marin a few points ahead of them...>
Secondly, for a fish only tank with live rocks, can I maintain the SG level of 1.017 permanently? 
<Actually, not a good idea... more "stressful" than it's worth/gain IMO/E... would re-raise to NSW (near seawater), 1.025 over time>
Lastly, my 6 inch queen angel which refuse to eat for 2 weeks, now begins to feed on sponge which I bought specially for her. 
<Yes, a major component of Holacanthus of many species in the wild>
Is it ok for her to feed only on sponge or will she suffer from malnutrition from consuming sponge only? Please advice. Thanks.
<Best to add other foodstuffs to this animals diet. Bob Fenner>