I'm changing salt

[Snappy]

I have decided I need to change salt for several reasons. Over the years I've tried many of the salts on the market. Years ago I started with Sea Crystals but it often had too many inconsistencies for my liking, same goes for Instant Ocean which is also low on several elements. I have also tried a few others like H2Ocean, Seachem & Oceanpure Pro but in my opinion all the above brands I've mentioned are not really geared for sps dominant tanks and I've never had good luck with them. I have used Reefer's Best Salt for several years with good results but it is expensive and getting hard to find locally Calgary. In my opinion "Aquavitro - Salinity" made by Seachem is ok but in my experience mixes on the cloudy side and although they "guarantee" it is batch specific I found the buckets that I just bought on Boxing day have an ALK value way too high and caused a big spike in my system so I am not happy.

Fairly recently I found out about another high end salt that is popular in Europe and is now available in Canada called Royal Nature. It looks quite impressive and I am seriously considering making the switch to it ASAP. I know every manufacturer says they are the best but I think we all know that is not the case. Here is a link to the website, check out their video.
http://www.royalnature-reef.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=1

Here is some other info about it.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h210/Trainer02/royalnaturesalt.jpg

[Aquattro]

Greg, where is this available from?

[xiaan]

I have been using Royal Nature now for 6 months and I have had no problems with it before I was using Reef crystals and I was seeing really low ALK (6.5) now I sit nicely at around 7.5. I find it has a nicer more balanced solution.

[Myka]

I have been thinking of trying something else too. I have tried pretty much everything on the market until about 5 years ago I quit experimenting and went back to good ole IO. I was tempted to experiment again with H2Ocean seeing as it is a natural salt, so I figured if there is ever a different this should be it. I just did a year of H2Ocean, and the only difference between H2Ocean and IO in my opinion is that H2O has lower alkalinity (8-9 dKH compared to IO's 11-12 dKH), also with H2O I don't have to add calcium to the water change mix (although with both I have to add magnesium and potassium), oh and the price! I'm just finishing up my last bucket of H2Ocean, and I'm wondering if I should bother buying another bucket of it or not.

I really don't think it matters. I haven't found a bucket of salt yet that I don't have to supplement before I even use it, and why pay more for one that is more complete when it's cheaper to just supplement while mixing it up?

Argh...I wish there was a simple answer.

[globaldesigns]

Greg, I agree that Reefer's Best is very hard to find... I have told Kevin @ Red Coral to get me 2-3 boxes, but he is waiting, and from what I understand the wholesaler just doesn't have any.

Now that I am on my last box now, got enough for a couple more water changes, I too need to reconsider things... Do you really think this new salt is good? And can Kevin @ red coral get it?

[Skimmerking]

Why not just use IO and then Dose what you need, if you are dosing now , CAL RX then its not going to be a problem. and very easy to get. I have been using IO since 2002 and never had any problems with it. just my thought thou.

[Lampshade]

I use IO, add some MgCl/MgSO4, and it's pretty much good to go, my calcium reactor picks up the lower calc pretty quick. I do agree though, Salt is supposed to be a synthetic reef salt, why not have values actually match?

[VFX]

Greg, where is this available from?

Paul (Oceanic) was recommending this salt when I dropped by there the other day. He didn't have any in stock but has a load on the way.

I currently use Seachem Reef Salt but I might switch over & see.

.

[mseepman]

Right now, the only place I know of that sells Royal Nature is Oceanic Corals in Aldergrove. I was planning to pick some up when my current Reefer's Best box runs low. They don't list it on their site yet, but their blog talks about having it in stock.

[Myka]

Why not just use IO and then Dose what you need, if you are dosing now , CAL RX then its not going to be a problem. and very easy to get. I have been using IO since 2002 and never had any problems with it. just my thought thou.

The only sucky thing about IO is the high alkalinity. Better suited to FOWLRs imo. Who wants an alkalinity spike in their SPS tank on every watechange? That's the main reason I switched away from IO. H2Ocean is easy to find, it's kinda like one step up from IO I figure.

[sphelps]

The thing to consider is if Royal Nature will become more available than reefers best or will it be the same deal, readily available at first but then harder to find later on. Given that it's also from Europe I can't see the supply being anymore reliable long term.

I would stick it out with reefers best, the wholesaler might have a shortage right now but when it becomes available again just stock up. It's been around for a long time so I don't think the shortage will be permanent. Also keep checking with J&L, I purchased a few boxes from them about a year ago when it was on sale and shipped to my door it cost around $75 a box. You could also inquire about purchasing a pallet from the wholesaler or other larger retailers. Provided you tell them its for personal use and not resale you might be able to work something out.

[steve fedyk]

I read on reef central that they're some guys making there on salt. With store bought salts and additives, and saving a lot of money.
It was in the dit section,plywood biuld.

[mseepman]

I used to use Marine Enviroment salt (carried by AI in Edmonton) and it was awesome stuff. 2 Part salt which can be tough to mix for small tanks but really easy for bigger ones with mixing tanks. To save a little money, I switched to Bio Sea (same manufacturer) and was really pretty happy with that but shipping was killing me.

AI is still offering their Boxing week sales (discounts on both of those salts) until the 9th of Jan.

Just an idea for you Greg.

[fishytime]

As Mindy said.....there isnt a salt out there that you dont need to supplement.....the thing that draws me to H2Ocean(the salt Im using atm) and this Royal Nature salt is the fact that they are both naturally evaporated from sea water....now Im not saying that this is better, but it just appeals to me...now, availability is an issue...I personally am waiting for someone(hint hint) in Calgary to bring some in before I have to buy it from the competition.... Calgarians that dont want availability issues should use either IO(or reef crystals) because every store seems to carry it, or Seachem (or Aquavitro(made by Seachem)), because the distributor for it is here in Calgary.....the rest of us will always have to deal with availability because the simple fact is, its expensive for an LFS to bring in salt.....the only way it makes sense shipping wise is to bring in salt by the pallet......now customer A wants IO, customer B wants KZRB, etc, etc.... it ends up being a lot of money tied up in a product that for the most part sits around for a few months....

[Snappy]

Thanks for the ideas but I have already gone ahead and ordered a skid of the Royal Nature. I have a few people wanting some of it and I am hoping to get a few more locals interested. Everyone get's a great deal with introductory pricing.:biggrin: From the PM response it looks like I should start stocking it after the initial skid is gone.

[intarsiabox]

There was a post on here from the distributor about 2 months ago. I asked who in Edmonton was going to carry it and was told that Blue World would be a retailer for those in Edmonton who are interested. I'm still working on my current bucket of H2O so I haven't checked if Ken ever got any in or not.

[michika]

I read on reef central that they're some guys making there on salt. With store bought salts and additives, and saving a lot of money.
It was in the dit section,plywood biuld.

Just for curiousity's sake I'd love to see that. Do you know what the thread was called or anything?

[Skimmerking]

The only sucky thing about IO is the high alkalinity. Better suited to FOWLRs imo. Who wants an alkalinity spike in their SPS tank on every watechange? That's the main reason I switched away from IO. H2Ocean is easy to find, it's kinda like one step up from IO I figure.
Oh ya I didnt think tha 9 DKH was high ,but may be for SPS then that you should have between 7-8 /

Snappy was it hard to order a pallet ?

[fishytime]

You'll have to let us know how you like the salt Greg.....did some diggin and heard some rumors about this salt....

[burrows14]

You'll have to let us know how you like the salt Greg.....did some diggin and heard some rumors about this salt....

Can you share? Good or bad? I'd like to know cause I have 4 buckets of the stuff lol pm me if you would not like to share with everyone:)

[daniella3d]

I too tried a lot of different salt, and did not have a good experience with zoanthids and H2O because my zoanthids stopped growing and many shriveled as well. I returned to IO but using Reef crystal and my zoanthids grew large and healthy again and now are starting to reproduce. 25$ less for a bucket, so it's a no brainer. I still had to dose with H2O anyway, so that did not change at all. I am very happy with Reef Crystal and the way my zoanthids are growing and gaining in size again.

I have never seen that Nature salt sold here in Montreal.

[spawn]

I use reef crystals and on my last water change finally tested it. When testing the alk I stopped wasting my test fluid at 15 drops. Elos kit & the water was still baby blue. so I'm done with that. I just ordered a box of Reefers Best last night, it cost more to get it because of shipping but I'm hoping it will test better.

[spawn]

Also, I wonder if a batch tests good for Ca & Mg, but is high on alk, is there a way to bring down the alk? thanks

[MitchM]

The thing about evaporated salt water mixes is that it's not just a straight forward "evaporate the sea water then add R/O water to get the same sea water back."

As sea water evaporates the ions form insoluble compounds, like calcium carbonate and gypsum. It won't just rehydrate back into Red Sea (or where ever) seawater. The company will have to add something else to minimize the residue that would be left over in your mixing container.

I'm not saying that it's bad, just something that you need to be aware of. It's not quite as pure or simple as advertised.

[daniella3d]

I guess it's a matter of each tank because despite the Reef Crystal having high alkalinity I still have to add a full 100ml of sodium carbonate each day to my tank just in order to keep it at 7 KH, never mind raising it. The thing about salt mix is you have to pounder what is essential for your aquarium and the cost of the salt mix and how much you will need to dose. If reef crystal raise your alkalinity too much then you should definitly go with a salt that has lower alkalinity. I am also wondering what salinity you use and how you mesure it because I never really got that high alkalinity with Reef Crystal and I use 1.025 with a refractometer. Are you mesuring your salinity with a hydrometer or a refractometer?

I use reef crystals and on my last water change finally tested it. When testing the alk I stopped wasting my test fluid at 15 drops. Elos kit & the water was still baby blue. so I'm done with that. I just ordered a box of Reefers Best last night, it cost more to get it because of shipping but I'm hoping it will test better.

[mattdean]

I just bought 4 pails of Royal Nature Salt. Oakville Reef Gallery had it on sale for $45 a pail! There are a few local guys using it and they love it. I've been using H2Ocean and have had no problems, however, I have had several small Zoa colonies shrivel up on me, and i LOVE my zoas! I wonder if it's the same problem Dniella3d had.

Hoping this new salt is good. I don't like changing and would hope I can stick with this for a long time.

[spawn]

Testing with a refracometer @ 1.026 & tested the Alk twice because I couln't believe it. So is there anything to do to drop it in that case? Greg if you are stocking that salt I'll give it a try. I think I'm going to try mixing it up a bit going forward, in terms of water changes. I do them weekly, but only 10% so I think I'm going to rotate through a few types based on the Awesome TOM salt theory. It sounds right & looks even better. cheers

[daniella3d]

Could be. I went with the reef crystal because I went to visit a zoanthids collector in the USA and bought a few rare zoa from him and I had never seen such huge polyps with such great coloration. He was using reef crystal from the begining and had good success with it. when I first started I was using Instant Ocean and my zoanthids were growing really well.



I just bought 4 pails of Royal Nature Salt. Oakville Reef Gallery had it on sale for $45 a pail! There are a few local guys using it and they love it. I've been using H2Ocean and have had no problems, however, I have had several small Zoa colonies shrivel up on me, and i LOVE my zoas! I wonder if it's the same problem Dniella3d had.

Hoping this new salt is good. I don't like changing and would hope I can stick with this for a long time.

[Magma]

im using IO Reef Crystals and my zoas seem to be growing, also my mushrooms and acans have been growing like mad.

I think I will have to invest in a good test kit soon (just have a API kit) and figure out if I should start dosing my tanks or not.

[cwatkins]

Right now, the only place I know of that sells Royal Nature is Oceanic Corals in Aldergrove. I was planning to pick some up when my current Reefer's Best box runs low. They don't list it on their site yet, but their blog talks about having it in stock.

I just picked one up yesterday for the $60 boxing day price from OC in Aldergrove. From what I have heard and read, it's very similar to H2Ocean. It may even come out of the same salt facility in Israel.

The plastic bag and zip tie inside the bucket are exactly the same as H2Ocean as well.

The bucket will last me 6mos. I'll see how it works out. :)

He had a dozen or two buckets left if anyone is interested.

[mattdean]

I have a bucket of H2Ocean that I am mixing with Royal Nature to ease into the switch to Royal Nature salt. the two are nothing alike. H2Ocean is much finer - more like powder. Royal Nature is like salt. Much grainier and course.

So, I doubt they are from the same process. Just MHO.

[Tracey2]

I thought sps like higher alk?? I have a hard time keeping my dkh above 7 and have switched from H2O to IO to help bring it up. I thought the target should be 10 and my new salt tests 10-12.

[cwatkins]

My Alk always 7 or 8 with Sps. I don't worry too much. I automatically dose 66mils of both parts daily.

[Snappy]

I thought sps like higher alk?? I have a hard time keeping my dkh above 7 and have switched from H2O to IO to help bring it up. I thought the target should be 10 and my new salt tests 10-12.
Natural salt water is closer to 7 DKH.