any thoughts on premixed salt water?

[copi]

Setting aside cost, for the moment, what's the consensus on using premixed salt water from LFS? The kind that you basically warm to the correct temperature and add directly?

Is this better / worse / the same as mixing your own?

[grimlock3000]

If they are using RO/DI water and you are not, it would be better than mixing your own with tap water. Other than the source of water they use, its just water and salt mix, same thing you can do yourself

[copi]

What about a commercially available product advertised as ocean water (not mixed but actually taken from the ocean), that is sterilized & filtered?

[Phyl]

The things that I don't like about store bought pre-mixed SW are the things that I can't control. What kind of salt do they use? What is the SG they mix it to? What is the TDS of their "RO/DI"? I'd just as soon mix it myself. Pick the brand of salt I want to use, know that I'm starting out with pure water and not have to add salt to get the water up to the SG that I want to keep my tank at. Inconvenience is a big factor too. I'm probably in the minority here, but I'd use tap to mix my own over LFS bought water (and did for a few months until we got our RO/DI installed).

[sirfishmaster]

i have used lfs store sea water before, they say its direct from the ocean and its filtered, when i used it i had great results, but at a hefty 9.00 per 5 gallons....i recently switched to pre-mixed ro/di water from my other lfs at 1.00 a gallon at 1.022 salinity...this is only temperary as in Aug ill be buying my own system...



doug

[BDAWG]

When I first started my 10 gal. nano reef I bought some of that stuff that comes in a box and says it's straight from the ocean. IMO, it's way too expensive and only good if you're lazy (and yes I was lazy) and have a nano tank.