OMGoodness, never seen the aquariast community disagree like this.... salt & plants

[OrionGirl]

By "freshwater salt" I mean salt specifically made for freshwater aquariums.

Thanks!

This is rubbish. No, really, it is. Hear me out. You should never put something in your tank without a specific reason. To have a reason, you need to know what the item is. Does it have a list of ingredients? I'll be surprised if you say yes, because none of the 'aquarium salt' for freshwater products that I have looked at include a list of ingredients. They all have claims for what they DO...but no ingredients. So, how can you buy into the idea that freshwater NEEDS this salt? If you don't know what is in there, how can you monitor it? How can you tell it's doing anything?

Salt has it's place--but table salt works fine for treating parasites. Livebearers benefit from hard water more than from salt.

 

[dereks]

I have to ask why you want to add salt. To treat ich or some other suspected disease? If so regular table salt is much less expensive than "aquarium salt". I wouldn't use either on a regular basis. If it's to treat disease then be sure to add it to dosage strength gradually over a couple days (maybe am & pm) to avoid osmotic shock. Then, again, when tx is done, gradually lower it by daily (or so) water changes.

If you want to use "salt" to keep, say livebearers, in soft water; a GH & KH booster maybe be a better & safer way to go. Most plants (but not all the high maintenance kinds... not yours) can handle high(ish) GH & KH.

So what's with the salt?

This is rubbish. No, really, it is. Hear me out. You should never put something in your tank without a specific reason. To have a reason, you need to know what the item is. Does it have a list of ingredients? I'll be surprised if you say yes, because none of the 'aquarium salt' for freshwater products that I have looked at include a list of ingredients. They all have claims for what they DO...but no ingredients. So, how can you buy into the idea that freshwater NEEDS this salt? If you don't know what is in there, how can you monitor it? How can you tell it's doing anything?

Salt has it's place--but table salt works fine for treating parasites. Livebearers benefit from hard water more than from salt.

OK, I think I can respond to both of these at the same time with this:

I read an article on this topic and it sparked my interest, so basically I would say I don't want to do anything yet, we're just a group of people talkin', lol. I am more just curious on what the hobbiest's advice would be about it. Sounds like if it ain't broke don't fix it? The article points out several benefits of salt in the freshwater aquarium but from all I know the writer was a salt miner in northern Ohio with stock in his company.

 

[SnakeIce]

"Aquarium" salt is just marketing, and carries a markup to go with it. In general plants don't do well with chloride around. Some are more sensitive than others, but there is a reduced growth rate in even the toughest plants. Some plants will do so poorly that they just fade away.

This has come up in planted tank circles because some of the available macro nutrient dosing compounds (CaCl, KCl) contain the anion chloride. They had difficulty growing some plants that others found to be easy to grow until they switched to a source that had an anion other than chloride.

That said there are reasons to temporarily use salt, as it is effective against various parasites given a sufficient concentration. But it doesn't do your plants or your freshwater fish any favors, so except for the fact that it can kill parasites it wouldn't be used at all.

 

[dereks]

OK, thanks all, for the replies. I'll leave the salt out.

 

[AbbeysDad]

There are many myths in the hobby. One is that routinely adding 'aquarium salt' to the water is beneficial to fish. With the exception of using salt along with higher temperatures to kill parasites, using salt is of no real benefit...and you won't find it in most natural freshwater eco-systems. Although some plant species tolerate, if not thrive, in brackish or salt water, many do not. Don't use salt unless you absolutely need to and even then, better in a hospital/quarantine tank and not your main planted tank. Oh and as mentioned, when you do need salt, table salt is every bit as good or better than 'aquarium salt' (and cheaper)...just make sure to use non-iodized table salt.

 

[OrionGirl]

There are many myths in the hobby. One is that routinely adding 'aquarium salt' to the water is beneficial to fish. With the exception of using salt along with higher temperatures to kill parasites, using salt is of no real benefit...and you won't find it in most natural freshwater eco-systems. Although some plant species tolerate, if not thrive, in brackish or salt water, many do not. Don't use salt unless you absolutely need to and even then, better in a hospital/quarantine tank and not your main planted tank. Oh and as mentioned, when you do need salt, table salt is every bit as good or better than 'aquarium salt' (and cheaper)...just make sure to use non-iodized table salt.

Iodized table salt is fine. There isn't enough iodine to cause any damage, and aquatic organisms, like mammals, need some iodine in their system. I've used iodized table salt with no ill effects to treat ich on South american puffers, for example.

 

[Narwhal72]

Boy this is a highly debated topic. But I see a few statements that aren't really true.

1. Sodium and Chloride are not found in nature. Actually they are. And in significant concentrations. Here is data on mineral content of rivers throughout the world.
http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/T0537E/T0537E02.htm

Sodium has a concentration more than double the calcium and iron concentration of "soft water" rivers like the Rio Negro. It's considerably higher in rivers in Malaysia (where many aquatic plants we keep come from. Chloride is found in even higher concentrations.

2. Chloride is not required by fish. Not true. Chloride is a vital necessity in fish respiration. The chloride cell is the basis for gas exchange and osmoregulation in fish gills.
https://books.google.com/books?id=H...epage&q=fish respiration and chloride&f=false

As in all things, an excess of anything can be detrimental. In the case of aquarium salt (which is just straight up Sodium chloride), small amounts that produce levels close to natural water chemistry would be fine. But since hobbyists have no way to measure this accurately, and since most tap water is probably there already, in nearly all cases the salts are being overdosed compared to natural levels.

In my personal opinion, unless you are treating fish for a specific parasitic disease that is vulnerable to increases in sodium chloride content, there is really no reason to add aquarium salt to your aquarium. Unless you are using RO water, there is already plenty of sodium and chloride in your water already. If you are using RO water, small amounts of sodium chloride (in conjunction with calcium and magnesium salts) should also be added to the water to remineralize it.

Andy

 

[ustabefast]

Agree with fishorama, and, how much salt are we talking about?
I only use salt on rare occasions to treat ick or some other mysterious malady.
Your plants are crypts I believe, and they are pretty salt tolerant, but again, how much salt are we talking about?