I like to mix it up a bit. Last year I gave a bag of the Tunze Reef Salt a whirl. I wasn’t overly impressed with it for the cost and, though possibly completely unrelated, I experienced a considerable increase in algae growth while using this particular salt. After finishing that bag, I planned to give it one more shot, but the shop was out of stock, so I went back to the old standby that is Instant Ocean. I’ve now been using Instant Ocean for the past 6 months or so.
Old vs. New... we'll see what happens after 200 gallons...
About the same time that I picked up the Instant Ocean salt, I started reading about ESV’s new “B-Ionic Seawater System”. This immediately piqued my interest, as I used ESV’s B-Ionic two part solution for years and have always associated the name with quality products. I also found quite attractive the photos around the web of this salt being mixed up completely clear, zero residue. Anyone who has mixed a batch of most other salts can identify with at least one of the following; scum (sometimes brown), chunky leftover residue, maybe a mixing pump or heater crusted in deposits. I can attest to all of the above. Look familiar? —>
The biggest draw for me was the claim that ESV salt is ready for use very shortly after mixing. Many may not find this 4 part mix convenient, weighing or measuring separate components. However, space in the city can be at a premium. It’s just not always feasible for everyone to have a 55 gallon drum of pre-mixed saltwater taking up space. When I consider that waiting for X salt to mix up in the laundry room typically requires 24 to 48 hours of a power cord and bucket of swirling water to trip over, a couple extra steps to mix is of little consequence to me. As someone who does irregular water changes as time provides, the ability to mix a batch and use it within the hour is a game changer.
So I finally finished the sack of IO and got around to ordering a 200 gallon mix from Premium Aquatics. At $71.99 plus shipping for a 200 gallon mix, I believe this ends up roughly the same cost per gallon as Tunze Reef or Reef Crystals salts. If purchasing the smaller ESV salt mixes, of which PA happened to be out of stock when I ordered, it may be bit more pricey.
The 200 gallon mix comes shipped in two boxes. Box 1 contains a sack of Sodium Chloride. Despite the sticker on the bag that instructs to leave the bag in the box, the box is heavy and unwieldy so the first thing I did was remove it and place it in an old salt bucket with lid to stay dry. Box 2 contains the rest of the ingredients – a sack of Magnesium Chloride, 2 bottles of liquid Component A, 1 bottle of liquid component B. Also included are a plastic measuring cup (broken, in my case) and a set of measuring spoons. This set of measuring utensils is a boon for those who may find themselves replacing measuring cups and spoons stolen from the kitchen more often than they should.
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- The Goods
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- Box 1 – Sodium Chloride
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- Box 2
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- ESV’s B-Ionic Seawater
The instructions and chart are clear as to the precision in measurement for each component. I wanted to give this mix a try as soon as I got it, and opted to go by weight to be as precise as possible. You can click on the pic of the instructions to read them for yourself, so here’s the synopsis:
1: measure water / determine amount of each component to use.
2: measure / mix in #1 sodium chloride, wait till it mixes (5 to 10 min max)
3: measure / mix in #2 magnesium sulfate, wait to mix (5 to 10 min max)
4: mix liquid A, wait 1 min
5: mix liquid B, wait 1 min
Bust out the digi
Long story short, I’m impressed with this salt mix. In under 30 minutes, I had a bucket of * crystal clear * reef water. This 30 minutes included taking photos, reading the instructions carefully, and 20 of the minutes were simply waiting for step 1 and 2 to mix (even just 5 min for each would probably suffice!).
Unfortunately, I wasn’t as precise as I probably should have been. My weights were exactly on, but the initial amount of RO/DI water I started with was haphazardly measured… I knew it when I added the water to the bucket and said “___ it”. A habit from all previous salt mixes, perhaps?
My batch mixed up to 31ppt, kh of 8.5 on Elos kit, Calcium at 470 on a Salifert, and, unfortunately, as I was counting drops for Magnesium, the kit ran dry…! Despite the low salinity, I did a quick change with the water since my display tank had drifted to 34ppt anyway. What took place was a 10% water change. Nothing amazing. Nothing negative. Nothing more, nothing less. Next time, I’ll plan to do ~25% change, be a bit more precise with water measurement and get some full testing with magnesium included.
This 4 part mix is not any more annoying than mixing up a bag of Reef Crystals. That it is essentially prêt-à-porter after an hour or so, that there is no 24 hours (hardly 24 minutes!) of aeration, cloudiness, particulate matter and power head tripwires may have just sealed the deal for me. Will update in a few weeks once I get a new Mg kit and have watched a couple water changes. In the meantime, I am very pleased with this initial batch and am looking forward to using it. Here is the salt mentioned elsewhere on the web…
B-Ionic Seawater mixing pump is not just clean, it’s immaculate
New B-Ionic Seawater System, A Custom Seawater Mix That’s Ready to Use in 10 Minutes
B-ionic Seawater System is a microbatch salt mix that is perfect for nano reefers, large tanks too
ESV B-Ionic Seawater Info Sheet (PDF)
Just My Reef – E.S.V. B-Ionic Seawater System Salt Mix
stonyreef
1 year ago
Performed a 20% change within 2 hours of mixing yesterday, measuring only to match salinity and temperature. Again, mixed super clear, looks just like water. Zero closed up corals, no negative reaction, only great polyp extension after the change – even from my Archohelia rediviva that normally opens only when there’s food…
Brad
1 year ago
Nice write up! I might have to give this a shot. Did you find the measuring to be tedious at all?
stonyreef
1 year ago
I don’t find it to be the slightest bit tedious. I could see slight variations being an issue if using only the included measuring cups, but I’m using a digital scale to measure out the components so there’s not much room for error. By the time the 1st component is done mixing (I have been giving 10 min), I already have the remaining three parts weighed and ready to mix. It’s really no more work than measuring out a regular salt mix. That it mixes clear and is usable so quickly makes the few extra minutes worth it for me.
Tom
1 year ago
Do you think there will be an eventual ionic imbalance in your tank since the magnesium component is 100% MgSO4 and not a blend of MgCl and MgSO4? I tried emailing ESV before about this but never got a response.
Also, do they list the specific component concentrations on the side of the box?
stonyreef
1 year ago
That’s a great question, never crossed my mind. Though it doesn’t say specifically on the gallons of liquid component A/B that came with the salt mix (see below for what the labels read), the part B of ESV’s regular two-part contains chloride and magnesium. Perhaps this would make up for any imbalance from using straight up MgSO4? I do always have on hand Kent’s Tech M which I think contains MgCl. I haven’t used it yet since I’ve started with the ESV, but if the tank does need an Mg boost, perhaps using Tech-M would help.
As mentioned in the write up, I haven’t had an Mg kit since I started using the salt, so when I get around to ordering it after the new year, it should be interesting to see what a batch of freshly mixed ESV reads for magnesium. Also curious as to where my tank will be. It was slightly high before switching salts.
As far as concentrations, the boxes read:
Sodium Chloride (CAS no. 7647-14-5)
Magnesium sulfate heptahydrate (CAS no. 10034-99-8)
The gallons of A and B are described on the label as only “an aqueous solution” with something about “trace elements”. If they are the same as A and B of ESV’s two part solution, according to the bottles of two-part I have laying around, ionic contents may include…
A: carbonate, sodium, bicarbonate, sulfate, borate, fluoride, iodide, molybdate, vanadate, selenate.
B: chloride, calcium, magnesium, potassium, bromide, strontium, lithium, barium, rubidium, iron, zinc, nickel, copper, manganese, cobalt, chromium.
HTH and thanks for the observation!
Tom
1 year ago
Yeah I make my own mag supplement and use a 5:3 ratio of MgCl to MgSO4 based on Randy’s recipe. This is due to me using CaCl2 and NaH2CO2 (sodium bicarb) for calcium and alk additions. This keeps Na and Cl ions from building up over time as CaCO3 is put down by the corals.
I had a feeling that part A contained micronutrients like borate and fluoride since it is added in higher volume. B looks like all the micronutrients that can be difficult to dissolve. I’d be curious to see what the pH of the two solutions is. I’d bet they’re opposites, e.g. one basic, one acidic.
The chloride ions in part B are likely due to each trace element being in salt form (e.g. SrCl2, LiCl, etc.). So I wonder if that makes up for the Cl imbalance from the Mag component.
Would be neat to test the sulfate and chloride levels if we don’t hear back from ESV! I’ll try calling them after the new year.
But I definitely will be ordering a 50g kit of the water in my next order.
Nice blog btw!
stonyreef
1 year ago
Would be curious to know. right now, just speculation on the seawater mix A/B ingredients, since they aren’t listed on the seawater mix jugs (though I can’t imagine them being much different from their standard two-part A/B).
Give a holler or a link to any review if you end up with the salt. I would like to hear as much other feedback as possible, not too much out there at the moment, but those that have it seem to be happy. I think the 50 gal mix seemed a bit expensive, probably a turn off for many. I’m still pleased with it and have another 4 gallon batch warming up right now. Thus far, all signs point to another 200 gal shipment when i run out of this.
Happy ’11!
Tom
11 months ago
So I have prepped two 15gal batches now. Parameters came back as Ca 390, Alk 9.6, Mag 1280 for 65F and 1.026 (35ppt) water. The mixing has been great and I’m literally done with my water change within an hour. A lot of the time is spent waiting for it to heat up.
Definitely will keep using it unless I see any problems cropping up.
stonyreef
10 months ago
For sure, waiting for the heater is the longest part of the process. I was thinking this morning as I did a water change (had an extra hour, mixed a small 4 gal batch and did a change!), I wonder how much of each component will be left over towards the end of the products. I bought the 200 gal but haven’t been keeping track of the sizes made, I just tend to do 4 gal. Just kind of curious if the last batch or two will be a little off balance or if one component will run out before the others…
stonyreef
10 months ago
BTW – those are great numbers you got (at least in my book). Did you use the provided scoops or a scale to weigh out?
Tom
10 months ago
I used the scoops and since I’m making 15gal batches, I think there is a little more room for error.