Red Sea Salts
Unique combinations of natural ingredients formulated for 4 aquarium types, guarantee coral health & vitality
The new formulas of Red Sea Salts the result of years of research into the physiological demands of corals in the reef aquarium environment.These formulas are made with natural sodium chloride from the Red Sea that provides an unparalleled formulation and homogeneity of all trace elements, with part of the living reef in every harvested grain. Red Sea Salts unique combination of the formulas and natural ingredients guarantees coral health and vitality.
The new Red Sea salts formulas are a fundamental part of Red Sea’s new Reef Care Program, providing you with the ability to maintain advanced reef keeping results.
Red Sea Salts Harvest
From the pristine waters of the Red Sea, seawater is taken and transferred through a number of shallow ponds undergoing a natural evaporation process under the dry heat of the desert sun. In the first pond, the seawater evaporates from its natural salinity level of 40 ppt to a salinity of approximately 250 ppt, removing all of the calcium and heavy metals from the water in the process. In subsequent ponds, further evaporation leads to the formation of sodium chloride crystals leaving other ions such as magnesium and potassium, in concentrated brine. At the end of the evaporation process, this brine is drained away. The remaining crystals of raw sodium chloride undergo a proprietary process of washing and drying to remove organic and any other impurities.
The end result is pure, white, food grade crystals of sodium chloride that comprises 47 of the other elements which are naturally present in the Red Sea. This element- enriched sodium chloride forms the basis for both of Red Sea’s salts mixes and provides a blend of science and nature with the living reef in every harvested grain. Free from excessive levels of heavy metals or organics, this sodium chloride, with its natural array of minor and trace elements represents over 72% of the contents of Red Sea Salts delivering a level of quality and homogeneity almost impossible to match artificially. The final stage in the Red Sea salts process is to add a mix of calcium, magnesium, potassium and other elements consistently to the sodium chloride. This is done by working in small batches with strict quality control measures. The absence of excessive levels of heavy metals in our Red Sea Salts materials prevents the need for chemical binders that adversely affect the function of protein skimmers.
Technical notes:
Skeletogenesis:
Corals build approximately 90% of their skeleton by combining calcium and carbonate ions from the water to form aragonite (CaCO3). The rest of the skeleton is made up from magnesite (MgCO3), strontianite (SrCO3), calcite (a more brittle crystal structure of CaCO3), CaF2 and other minor and trace minerals. The foundation elements complement each other in the formation of coral skeleton and, if not available in the correct ratio, one of them will quickly become the limiting factor of healthy coral growth.
Accelerated Coral Growth:
Corals need to invest energy in transporting the foundation and other elements necessary for skeletal growth from the surrounding water through their soft tissue. Elevated levels of the foundation elements create a more positive ionic pressure making this process much more efficient (less energy required per gram of skeleton). Therefore balanced, elevated levels of the foundation elements will result in accelerated coral growth rates.
Effects of unbalanced Foundation elements:
In low levels of Mg² and/or Sr² coral skeleton will develop with a higher proportion of calcite making it more brittle and more susceptible to damage. Low magnesium or high calcium levels can lead to alkalinity drops. High alkalinity with calcium at saturation levels will cause precipitation, leading to low calcium levels.
