Some time ago MDP told me that baking soda was not a good idea because of the anti caking agents in it. I am one of those people who will test the things I hear to make sure it is true (or else I am like the mom and dad in the movie "Time Bandits"). I promptly read the ingrdients on a box of Arm and Hammer Baking Soda. It listed Sodium BiCarbonate only. So I added it into my 20 gallon quarantine tank with a power head and a couple of pieces of base rock. The "Q" tank has been in operation for about a year and gets no light and regular changes of NSW. The ph rose slightly (the buffering capacity of the water was low since it was NSW) but the kicker was this: Within a week, the outbreak of cyanobacteria was jaw dropping. In 20 years of maintaining reef tanks, I had never experienced cyano. I had never used baking soda either. It appears that the FDA does not require Aluminum Silicate to be listed as an anti caking ingredient either because it is not considered an ingredient in food or it is chemically inert or not reactive. After doing a large water change with NSW, the pH went back to normal and the cyano went away. I have not seen it since. I realize this is anecdotal but it is also demonstrative.
I still use Baking Soda extensively though......as a nasty tasting antacid.
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