Urgent help required: Artifical Seawater salt

[Mark]

I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right knowledge
without putting down the information, someone else has told me.

What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use and
can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live in
Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't going
to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we survive
on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.

I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
without so much.

Is there no general consensus on the best product?????

Please help.

Regards
Mark

[ReeFeR_MaN]

Mark

If you live in Perth you should be close to the Ocean.....just use natural
seawater, its the best for your
livestock and its also got the advantage of being free!





"Mark" > wrote in message
...
> I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right knowledge
> without putting down the information, someone else has told me.
>
> What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use
and
> can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live in
> Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't
going
> to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we
survive
> on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.
>
> I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
> without so much.
>
> Is there no general consensus on the best product?????
>
> Please help.
>
> Regards
> Mark
>
>

[richard reynolds]

> What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use and
> can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live in
> Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't going
> to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we survive
> on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.

I on the other hand am going to stear you away from natural sea water, while it is cheaper
to start, seahorses are prone to bacterial infections and parasites that are not as easy
to remove as the more normal reef fish, while you can still go down that road, you will
want to do a few things before using the water, including keeping it in a dark container
for 4~6 weeks. that and a UV steralizer wouldnt be a bad addition, though if you move
around your holding water just a UV light will do the job but MAKE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that
no one will ever see that light, the cost of a UV light in the correct spectrum and half
descent wattage will only run about $6usd when we buy UV steralizers for tanks they dont
use the cheapest bulb, or even the best bulb, they are required to work in confines you
wont be required to work with. though as a reminder I am sugesting you stay away from NSW

> Is there no general consensus on the best product?????

no there is no such thing as a general consensus of a best seasalt mix, so pick the
cheapest for where you are, buy it, and sit back and watch the seahorses :), the end
reality is if you buy any sea salt mix, they will do just fine for seahorses, maybee not
the best for certain corals, but seahorses will do fine.

> I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
> without so much.

as for budget concerns if you havent started may I suggest dwarf seahorses, there much
easier to care for, and require much smaller tanks, I dont know of availability in
austrailia, but they are much cheaper here also at bout $6/12(WC/CB) each course that is
in USD.

> I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right knowledge
> without putting down the information, someone else has told me.

unfortunately no one can tell you something, without risking "putting down the
information, someone else has told me" because you havent told us what that someone said,
that someone might have very well given you acurate data, that people in the US cant
consider for there own use.

HTH

--
richard reynolds

[area 51]

"Mark" > wrote in message
...
> I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right
knowledge
> without putting down the information, someone else has told me.
>
> What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to
use and
> can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I
live in
> Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't
going
> to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we
survive
> on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.
>
> I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they
do
> without so much.
>
> Is there no general consensus on the best product?????
>
> Please help.
>
> Regards
> Mark
>
Starting with sea horses is not ideally the best way forward. They need
special condititions, but if you must, get on the search engines and
research their needs..best of luck.

[logan]

I would not recommend a seahorse unless you get an www.oceanrider.com
shipped to you. They are too difficult to keep.

"Mark" > wrote in message
...
> I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right knowledge
> without putting down the information, someone else has told me.
>
> What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use
and
> can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live in
> Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't
going
> to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we
survive
> on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.
>
> I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
> without so much.
>
> Is there no general consensus on the best product?????
>
> Please help.
>
> Regards
> Mark
>
>

[Grant]

Mark:

Ahh, Perth! I lived there for a couple of years. Why not just go
to one of the cleaner places and collect it. There are some super
nice remote beaches there.

What part of Perth do you live in? I lived in Scarboro, Belmont,
and even lived as far south as Esperence.


Grant



On Mon, 11 Aug 2003 13:25:02 +0800, "Mark" >
wrote:

>I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right knowledge
>without putting down the information, someone else has told me.
>
>What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use and
>can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live in
>Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't going
>to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we survive
>on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.
>
>I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
>without so much.
>
>Is there no general consensus on the best product?????
>
>Please help.
>
>Regards
>Mark
>

[Derek Holzhauser]

Hi Mark

I live in Sydney and set my seahorse tank up with Aquasonic Ocean Nature
salt (an Aussie brand). Have had no problems with it.

Cheers

Derek

"Grant" > wrote in message
...
> Mark:
>
> Ahh, Perth! I lived there for a couple of years. Why not just go
> to one of the cleaner places and collect it. There are some super
> nice remote beaches there.
>
> What part of Perth do you live in? I lived in Scarboro, Belmont,
> and even lived as far south as Esperence.
>
>
> Grant
>
>
>
> On Mon, 11 Aug 2003 13:25:02 +0800, "Mark" >
> wrote:
>
> >I need some help as no-one I have spoken too can offer the right
knowledge
> >without putting down the information, someone else has told me.
> >
> >What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use
and
> >can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses, I live
in
> >Perth Western Australia and am desperate to find something, that isn't
going
> >to cost me an arm and leg, I'm am married with three children and we
survive
> >on a disability pension, we do not have very much disposable income.
> >
> >I want to set this up for my family as a special present, because they do
> >without so much.
> >
> >Is there no general consensus on the best product?????
> >
> >Please help.
> >
> >Regards
> >Mark
> >
>
>

[Dr Engelbert Buxbaum]

Mark wrote:

> What is a good product to make artificial seawater, that is easy to use and
> can be used buy a moron like me. I want to use it for seahorses

Seahorses are very sensitive animals which requiere special food (live
shrimp, each sea horse species specialises in a shrimp species). Some
can survive for a short time on non-appropriate food, but sooner or
later they die, usually sooner.

Additionally, many sea horses are threatend species and may be added to
CITEX in the near future. Most species have never been bred in
captivity, so each one you buy in the shop has been taken from some
reef.

So in summary, although they really look nice (I feel tempted each time
I see one), sea horses should not be kept in aquaria.

If you want to keep salt water species (fresh water is easier for a
beginner) you can either get any of the sea salt preparations sold in
the shops, or just use filtered sea water, as you are not too far from
the shore.

[Phil]

Here's an Australian company that supplies a lot of LFS stores over here
http://www.oceanoddities.com/seahorse/domestic.html
you'll be interested to read they captive breed all thier stock and raise
them on frosen shrimp available at any LFS.