Tropic Marine Question

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Hi all am in the process of changing over from Real Ocean to Tropic Marine but am now stuck decidening which one to use the guy at the LFS said I should use the Pro as it has been made for reef set-ups but while chatting to some other reefers they say I should use the normal one as the Pro is low in KH and Cal and should only be used if you have a Cal reactor.Have also read on some of the oversea's forums that the kh and cal in the pro is fine, so wich way do I go, what do you all feel,think and know...
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Hi Pete - I have read (I don't use salt - I use NSW), that the PRO version of the TM salt, is for people who have calcium reactors. The alkalinity is FAR FAR lower of the PRO, otherwise the CaRX machines would increase the alk far too high.

Lanzo tried using the Pro - but his alk dropped tremendously when he used the Pro...

Rather go the "standard" TM salt.
 
Jacques is correct. Just to add, according to some reading i did some time back on the salts, the standard TM salt is higher in P04 as compared to the Pro. The Pro also contains more trace elements as compared to the standard salt.(Dont know which trace elements though).
 
Thanks guys have had a chat with Lanzo earlier but just wanted to get the views of some of the other reefers, read on another site oversea's that this guys newly mixed TM pro had a KH of 10.5 and a Cal of 400 that's one of the reasons for the question
 
10.5 and 400 are great numbers, less PO4 is great, higher trace elements also good. ( I would assume an established co like TM knows which trace elements to increase)

If budget is no an issue for salt ( either that or u have a small tank ) then go with the pro and get a CARX if that your reservation....
 
What did ur alk drop from? What % waterchange did you use? before.... What was ur Tank pH at the time, what was ur Mg, Ca and temp at the time. What were all they for mixed water. How long did you mix for?
 
Sorry for all the questions...................BUT you wanted an answer......
 
Pete - to add to this thread - I did find a thread on MASA that said that Alk was low in the Pro - and then they tested it at 10 dKH so that was that out the window - I will try find the thread

Marc

Thanks will see if I can find it too
 
so why did my alk drop when i used the pro-MARC?

No idea son.

Alk can be fixed - if it has a much higher Ca, Mg and Sr as is indicated I think that it worth the effort of dosing with buffer.

I have read conflicting reports, here for example, a chap finds the Alk at 10.8 dKH Report on Tropic Marin Pro Reef Salt - Page 2 - The Reef Tank but there is also a chap that says it was low - 2 dKH but without proving it. the Ca is very high.....

Another one says that its at 8dKH

The most definitive answer I have found so far is here:Tropic Marin VS. Tropic Marin Pro Reef?? - Reef Sanctuary

Note the chaps says the following - seems that the Alk is low because it is aimed at folks that have a high Alk, BUT Lanzo he also notes that it will not bring down your alk.

"Tropic Marin at a specific gravity of 1.024 has:

* 9-10 dKH
* 380 ppm Ca
* 1100 ppm Mg

Tropic Marin Pro Reef at a specific gravity of 1.024 has:

* 6.5 – 7.0 dKH
* 420 ppm Ca
* 1350 ppm Mg

Tropic Marin Pro Reef was designed for reefs that tend to acquire a high alkalinity after years of using calcium reactors and kalkwasser. Keeping a lower alkalinity has been found to allow corals to better absorb calcium. Depending on the values of alkalinity in your reef , it might be best to use Tropic Marin instead of TM Pro Reef, or vice versa.

In slightly different terms, the ONLY good reason for using Tropic Marin Pro-Reef is if the alkalinity in your tank is continuing to rise to an undesirable level and you don’t want to contribute to that rising level with water changes. It is important to note that using Pro-Reef will not lower your alk but will not contribute to the rise as the original formula might. That slightly higher levels of Mg and Ca in the Pro-Reef are NOT a reason for using it because you are adding so much Ca and Mg on a daily basis anyway to your tank."

Pete, this is pretty cool as he lays out why you should/shouldn't do Pro reef, for the addition R70 you pay extra for the Pro Reef and a 40ppm rise in Ca I am reconsidering the salt and will probably go back to TM standard . Also check the Tropic Marin website, has a good table that explains which you should use.

Tropic Marin
 
What did ur alk drop from? What % waterchange did you use? before.... What was ur Tank pH at the time, what was ur Mg, Ca and temp at the time. What were all they for mixed water. How long did you mix for?

dropped from 9 to 6
my tank ph was 8.2
dont know what mg was but ca was at 415ppm temp 27
i mix my water 3-7 days before i do a change
i did a 50%wc to get rid of most of my real oceans water
 
i did a 50%wc to get rid of most of my real oceans water

Over what length of time?

And the pH of the mixed batch?
params u posted just for tank or both?
 
i did a 50% wc one time...that is what adriaan from idol marine told me to do.

temp was the same s.g was the same ph was the same but didn't test the TM kh before doing the WC
 
Cant recall correctly, read it about 2-3 years back. But I think it was on Zeovit.com, when there was a discussion about TM salt being high in P04 as compared to Seachem.

Sounds like an urban myth then, I have used Seachem and TM (all 4 versions) and have never detected PO4 in the salts.
 
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