sea water or artificial saltwater

[madmac]

And as for using NSW in SG, we may want to be a bit more cautious as:

http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/makeupwat...aoceanwater.htm

mentions that

SG is a small island and we don't exactly have the most pristine water available. Also, our coastal water quality fluctuates with rain run-off, silt, waste-water effluent and location. NSW in other countries is sold as quoted from http://www.catalinawater.com/Cat4.htm

. Our NSW is not that highly treated, though I do not mean to say that it is not usable

It is a shortcoming of the salt mix if it lacks sufficient levels of a particular essential element. Nonetheless, dosing essential elements like potassium to make up the difference is not that big an issue. As the SPS corals use up potassium, calcium, and magnesium, do we not top these up with supplements and calcium reactors? It is a fallacy to think that NSW will maintain levels of such elements for far longer than a salt mix when these are being used up at the same rate. Same with Sr, Mg. It is not about NSW (esp our local NSW) having the perfect levels of each element but rather about finding the optimal levels of these for coral growth. NSW happens to be a good guide because corals manage to grow in it, nuff said.

Sg NSW... well I use them... I speak for myself here and for several yrs... maybe 3 yrs only. I don't have algaes in my tank or ich on my fish... I don't use Phosphate sponge or carbon or UV.... what I'm trying to get at... to those who think its not good enough, is it is. Good enough to keep SPS, enough to prevent algae or diseases. It comes with the right enough composition from the word get go. Sure it is a personal preference for me... but where gets it bad is when ppl say NSW is not good because I have to carry it up 34 flights of steps and its not light.... or that its bad because we can't measure some stuffs in there, so they must be bad. Hv they ever thought they it may be because of something/s else that algae or ich come about.

Dosing becomes a pain esp.. if you don't hv to do it at all. NSW comes with most right there, better than most salts can offer. Because of what they lack, you'll need to constantly source for the right type of salts to cater for what other salts lack... and thats even before you talk about maintaining consumption.

[hongqixian]

Whoa, 34 flights of steps?! You're dedicated indeed!

"Hv they ever thought they it may be because of something/s else that algae or ich come about." this point is very true - most people may be too quick to jump to conclusions with insufficient evidence.

The salt content of the sea is essentially the dissolved mineral runoff from the land; a rojak of calcium magnesium uranium vanadium and whatever metals and minerals available. The chemical difference between NSW and salt mixes may not be very significant to marine life in the reefing context because not every element is essential. Eg, normal air contains carbon monoxide, soot, sulphur dioxide and other pollutants. We can breathe air like that, but they are not necessarily essential or beneficial to our health, correct?

I feel that dosing is still an issue with both NSW and salt mixes, unless the reefer does many frequent water changes or has a very low bioload. But I do agree with your point that "or that its bad because we can't measure some stuffs in there, so they must be bad". It's a fact that NSW does work. We all know that salt mixes work too, for general use. It's just not very fair to bash one or the other and say that one absolutely can't be used, only stick to the other. So we are actually in agreement that it's fine to use either. thanks for the detailed counter arguments! Quite thought-provoking.

[Matt06]

Greetings,

To be sure, it is always good to be caution when using our local sea water, unless you are living in some islands with clean NSW supply, else, it is always good to check before you use. Test them. Remember that NSW might also contain harmful stuff in it, especially those from Singapore.

Just to share, when I was having my 3ft tank, I visit St John or Kusu Island sometimes to collect sea water from there, as it is "cleaner", since it is able to support some reefs there. I use that as my reference.

Matthew