Clean Melt at Home Depot

[newenglandreef]

Anyone have any intel on this magnesium ice melt? I picked up a bag--nothing on RC about it that I can find. It's magnesium, but does have some additives. It's slogan is "Green," which is kind of insignificant to reefs.

Thanks.

 

[Greg Hiller]

No, I'd not use that. You need pure magnesium chloride. Usually sold as MAG flake. Even then you will need to mix some up and test it for ammonia levels, and then only use a small amount the first time with your tank to check for any adverse reaction.

 

[Turbosnail]

+1 to what Greg said.

 

[frank180reef]

wow I didnt know mag flake had amonia in it

 

[WarSea378]

I agree, it doesn't at all seem like a good idea to use Magnesium ice melt from home depot. Just out of curioustiy, what or where did you hear to pick up a bag for your tank??

 

[delta]

There are some ice melts you can use from local supplies if you take the right precautions

Randy has documented those in his 2 part articles http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php

There may be a members who still have the Dead sea works MgCl but getting them to sell it to you might be another story.

 

[newenglandreef]

I agree, it doesn't at all seem like a good idea to use Magnesium ice melt from home depot. Just out of curioustiy, what or where did you hear to pick up a bag for your tank??

I use ice melt for calc supplement--and a mag pellet ice melt for magnesium supplement, but the mag pellets are kind of far away, so I was looking for a closer solution. The one I picked up from Home Depot has about 90% MgCL--it's the 10% of impurities that make it a bad idea.

 

[newenglandreef]

I crashed my tank by using an ice melt that I thought was (and looked exactly like) calcium carbonate. Turned out to be a proprietary blend of almost straight ammonia.

 

[delta]

Maybe time for another group buy from Dead Sea Works

The only one to consider is MAGFlake but you need to test it. OR Dowflake if you are looking to add calcium

 

[Bobbofin]

The only one to consider is MAGFlake but you need to test it. OR Dowflake if you are looking to add calcium

This is why I use SeaChem Reef Builder(alk), Advantage Calcium and Advantage Magnesuim. It costs more but I am assured of it's purity.

 

[newenglandreef]

Yup--I learned the hard way. Saved all the fish at least, and some coral. Stupid.

Randy's got a list of his cleared, non-mag-flake products that are okay to use. I've been using a mag pellet for about a year without any problem (it's just not in my area). Forget the name, I can post.

 

[newenglandreef]

This is why I use SeaChem Reef Builder(alk), Advantage Calcium and Advantage Magnesuim. It costs more but I am assured of it's purity.

The difference in price is enormous though-- if a product is pure calcium carbonate per the MSDS, I don't have a huge problem using it over a $30 handful of the same thing, especially before I had a calc reactor and was using it as a primary calc source.

 

[WarSea378]

I use ice melt for calc supplement--and a mag pellet ice melt for magnesium supplement, but the mag pellets are kind of far away, so I was looking for a closer solution. The one I picked up from Home Depot has about 90% MgCL--it's the 10% of impurities that make it a bad idea.

Thanks for the answer. Yeah, it "seems" odd, but I suppose a compound is still just a compound! It would never have occurred to me to ever consider such a thing, that's why I love this site, there is always amazing things to learn!! Any idea what the impurities are? I'll never melt ice again without thinking about it's alternate usage, hahaha

**though I do know that there are several different types of ice melt! I worked at a Plant on the Charles and we needed to use alternative melts for ice, the generic salts leach into the river and the fines can be huge. Is the MgCl "safe paws" brand? Interesting post.

 

[newenglandreef]

It's all second-hand knowledge from much smarter people. Read Randy's post that Delta mentioned above http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php.

Impurities vary depending on the purpose of the product. The ice melt I bought at home depot has a dye in it (along with other impurities), which may be harmless but counterproductive to my intended use.

 

[ldam]

has anyone try this product
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
claim to be 100% mgcl

 

[IPWitan]

Re cost - you can get this stuff at Bulk Reef Supply for substantially less than a SeaChem product, but it is more than HD products. When I factored in the time of not having to search the world for the right product at the right HD, and worry, the BRS purchase gets better and better.

As far as alk, I don't see why someone would buy anything other than baking soda. It is food grade and really cheap. A bag that has already lasted me 2 years and probably has another 2 years left, cost about 10 bucks at BJs.

Re alternatives - while HD sells products, so do pool companies and spa companies. I have purchased the calcium supplement part from a spa source, and it looked clean. All spec sheets from the manufacturer seemed right on too. The cost wasn't bad either - a little more than HD price, but I could buy a 10 lbs plastic container instead of a 50lb bag.

David