Reef Salt Problem

[GioReef]

Hello,

I have a serious problem when mixing Reef Salt. I mix it with a powerhead and heater for about 12 hours. After that period, i test the water for ph, calcium, and alk. The ph is always 8.8 and calcium 600ppm. This is when mixing to sg 1.025. Did i get a bad batch? I cannot use this for my tank, ph and calcium is way too high. I have tested with several test kits and all the same result appear.

Thanks

[Tech Support EH]

We are sorry to hear that you are having an unsatisfactory experience with Reef Salt. Seachem is truly dedicated to customer satisfaction, and we will try our best to remedy the situation for you. I will begin by troubleshooting a bit, just to figure out a bit more about your situation. Since you said you are getting 600ppm of calcium, this probably accounts for the increase in cloudiness(most likely calcium precipitation). We do expect our salt to mix up with higher levels of calcium, magnesium, alkalinity and pH in order to provide you with a good chemical base for your aquarium. 600 is higher than we typically try to achieve, however. Because reef systems generally have more of a bioload due to many tank inhabitants, we add buffers to our salts to combat the inevitable decrease in pH due to excess organic acids from waste build-up.
With that said, I'll ask you a couple of questions: Do any of the test kits that you are using include reference samples with them? Our test kits include these, so that one may run the reference solution, which has a known value, in place of tank water. Doing so allows you to know that if you get the proper level, then your test kit is working properly. I know you said that you are using several kits and have even had a store test for you, but this is something to consider. We will be more than happy to test all of the parameters for you and analyze the salt, if you are willing to send us a small sample. In order to do this, we would need 2-3 cups of the salt to be mailed to our facility. If this is something that you would like for us to do, then you can send the sample to the following address:
1000 Seachem Dr
Madison, GA 30650
Attn: Tech Support

Upon receiving the sample, we would analyze it and immediately respond to you with our results. We apologize for the inconvenience, but this is the only effective way for us to determine if there are any problems. We usually compensate for any shipping costs incurred. Thanks for your cooperation!

[GioReef]

Ok... i sent a sample with 2 cups of the salt in double bagged ziplocs. What tests will you be doing?

[Tech Support EH]

We will mix the salt to a salinity of 1.024 and test the following parameters: calcium, magnesium, alkalinity, and pH. We will contact you as soon as we have the results. Thank you for taking the time to send us a sample!

[GioReef]

Please contact me via email with the results. I will not be home this week so i cannot receive phone calls.

Thanks

[Tech Support EH]

We will email you as soon as we have performed the tests.

[judgedread]

Please contact me via email with the results. I will not be home this week so i cannot receive phone calls.

Thanks

hi would you be able to let me know what the results are?
i would greatly aprieciate it.
regards

[Tech Support LK]

We received your salt this morning and sent it to the lab for testing. These are the results that we got:

1.025 sg
calcium = 440-445
magnesium 1225
alkalinity= 3.3 meq/L
ph= 8.28

clarity in a 2 gallon sample = all materials dissolved.

What were you testing the pH with? I would be glad to send you one of our calcium test kits if you would like so you can verify the calcium level. I am not certain as to why you got such different results, but as you can see, the levels were spot on. I would like to suggest removing the heater while mixing to see if this helps with the clarity issue. Please PM us your mailing address if you are interested in the kit. Thanks.