i have a semi planted tank i have about 10 plants and am working my way up in that regard. No i dont have a marine tank it is freshwater, the marine salt ialong with the other ingredients are used to raise the ph, kh, gh. Cichlids like a high ph and that buffer is a home made solution to people with naturally low ph's. I want a heavly planted tank in the future, it is a work in progress, i am worried about the ph crashing which is a major concern with using co2 in a tank where the water is soft. i would like to have a good buffer ready to use if the water does crash.