After years of testing fancy salts with complicated mixing rituals, I’ve circled back to Instant Ocean Reef Crystals like a homing pigeon. That big blue bucket? It’s my reef’s comfort food.

The first scoop always surprises me – it dissolves faster than my morning coffee. No gritty residue, no cloudy swirls. Just clear, balanced water that makes my torch corals sway like they’re at a jazz festival. The extra calcium is noticeable; my acropora bases started showing fresh white growth within two weeks of switching back from premium brands.

Here’s my ritual: I mix 20 gallons every Sunday in a brute can with two powerheads doing the tango. Pro tip – stop at 1.020 salinity initially. By next morning, it naturally creeps up to that sweet 1.025 spot without me babysitting. Saves so much headache compared to salts that demand pharmaceutical precision.

What seals the deal? My wallet doesn’t cry every water change day. At half the price of boutique salts yet delivering nearly identical parameters (just occasionally needing a calcium nudge), this lets me splurge on coral frags instead. After three decades in the hobby, that’s what I call smart reefing.