BRS vs Seachem Reef Additives

[kirkwood]

I've been using seachem Reef Builder as my buffer and seachem Reef Advantage for calcium... I'm looking at the BRS options for dosing alk and calcium, which are significantly cheaper than Seachem but I am unsure if they will be as effective. I know that Seachem Reef Advantage says it also includes Magnesium and Strontium and typical depletion ratios. BRS doesn't do that.

 

[db366]

I'd say stick with seachem, they are a local company plus you can get more at just about every fish store in Atlanta in a pinch. Consider the small amount extra as a cost of convenience.

 

[wmboots]

think you will find many of us use BRS 2 part it is much cheaper especially when bought in bulk and is just as effective. As far as the argument of seachem being readily available if you run out, I believe one will know when they are getting low on supplements and have plenty of time to re-order

 

[crewdawg1981]

Brs

 

[liverock27]

I have been using BRS 2 part and Mg for 2 years and it works great for me.

 

[racinrevo0818]

BRS 3 part here. You can make gallons for so cheap. Even cheaper if you do DIY. I think the biggest difference is your going to be dosing a little more product using brs so if your dosing without pumps might take a little longer.

 

[acroholic]

I buy my chemical supplies from BRS.

 

[snowmansnow]

I use BRS when I dose... its just a lot cheaper. Honestly, I don't test stronium and all that other stuff, so I don't add it.

B

 

[tsellers]

Brs

 

[jmaneyapanda]

I vote Seachem 1000000 million percent. Sometimes you get what you pay for.

 

[ripped tide]

Calcium reactor.

 

[skriz]

Ripped Tide;767238 wrote: Calcium reactor.

Heck yeah!

I've used both BRS and Seachem products. Seachem is better.
As a company, Seachem is better. The amount of research and testing that goes into Seachem products is unmatched in the industry.

 

[KrisDeitz]

I use Seachem when i dosed.

 

[kirkwood]

thank you for the feedback... i think both sides make valid arguments... anyone ever delve deeper into the actual differences between the two?? I mean I can see that the seachem Calcium may be a better product considering that it tops off your Mag and Strontium, however what could possible be different between BRS buffer and Seachem?? i mean its either carbonate or bicarbonate, right?? what could seachem really be adding to it??? it's all medical grade right??

 

[jmaneyapanda]

What exact search em product are you talking about? There's actually a lot of difference. This isn't just baking soda in different labelled jars. Lol

 

[ralph atl]

Acroholic;767217 wrote: I buy my chemical supplies from BRS.

Same here.

 

[jdavenp3]

I was thinking about using the BRS two part system on my 30g JBJ but I turned to Seachem's Reef Fusion 2 part.

For me, dosing is not that big of a deal and I really have no need (or money) for reactors or dosing pumps at this time.

I switched after being explained the different types of calcium, alk, and other trace elements that it puts into your tank by a sponsor of ARC. It is a very easy and efficient way for me to get a quality two part supplement system started on my tank.

 

[silver surfer]

You can get a bulk supply of seachem from Pure Reef. I purchased 5 gallons for around 80.

It's just a special order.

 

[ripped tide]

If you are considering spending 160-180 on 2 part, you may want to look into a ca reactor. If you plan on having the tank for a while, it is a nice long term investment. Keep in mind, it's all about the reactor that you buy. I have an MRC dual nano and it rocks! I am very happy with my investment, and I dont have to mess with two part anymore.

 

[kirkwood]

alcatoe;767373 wrote: Have been dosing brs two part for about a year. Was talking to Matt at Pure Reef and he said he could get 5 gal jugs of part 1 & 2 seachem for like $90. Thinking of switching over to this.... seachem has all of the trace elements and brs 2 part only has cal, alk, and mag. Brs in bulk makes 5 gal so the cost is more for seachem.

I use Seachem Salinity as my salt, so I really don't think I need to worry about trace elements in my 2-part dosing.. All I really care about in the end is my alk, cal, mag, and ph levels... i think the salt will do the rest of the work on trace elements.. for that reason I plan on going with BRS when I upgrade to my 120 next month... I have been dosing with Seachem for the past 5 months with great success, so I will see if I can maintain that same success with the switch to BRS...

One question for your guys - if I take the exact same bioload from a 55gal and move it to a 120, would I maintain my exact same dosing amounts? I was thinking YES, because although I'm changing my total water volume, I am not changing the amount of organisms that will be extracting the elements from the water column.