History Main / SaltSolution

Sodium Chloride. Its serves as a preservative for food, a kitchen ingredient, and as a [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers weapon against misfortune.]] In fiction, salt or saltwater may be used to defeat antagonistic forces or to avert disaster.

[[quoteright:298:[[Anime/DigimonAdventure https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/salt_solution.jpg]]]]

* ''Film/TheDayoftheTriffids'' (1962): Seawater is found to destroy the titular ManEatingPlants, which leads to some FridgeLogic as most of the chemical salts within are found (albeit in much lower concentrations) in the people they've been feeding on. Assuming ''sea''water is the key and not just [[KillItWithWater water in general]], which was ambiguous enough to generate a great deal of {{natter}} on the main page at one point, but that would make even ''less'' sense.

* ''Franchise/OnePiece'', "Thriller Bark" arc. The zombies' weakness are being fed by salt (as well as getting immolated or falling into the ocean). This is because [[OurZombiesAreDifferent the zombies are powered by shadows of]] [[CastingAShadow Gecko Moria]]'s victim of shadow-cutting. Since Moria's source of power is a Devil Fruit (like many other people in the verse), one of Devil Fruit users' weaknesses being the ocean itself, and salt mainly comes from the seas... You get the idea.

* ''Webcomic/CritterCoven'': Florence uses a bag of all-natural sea salt to make a protective circle when they try contacting a ghost, but doesn't have enough to make it wide enough [[http://crittercoven.com/comic/chapter-2-page-36/ for all of them]]. [[spoiler: And then the possibly-supernatural wind goes and breaks the circle anyways.]]

* Aside from common salt, Sodium Chloride, there exists a large range of chemicals collectively referred to as [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_(chemistry) salts]]. Common salt is the most well-known example of this category though others are used in a variety of applications.
* Salt on roads before ice storms causes a freezing-point depression, yielding more navigable roads with less ice accumulation. The salt dissolves into the water and interferes with the freezing process.
** While Sodium Chloride is the most well-known de-icing salt other salts can be used such as Magnesium Chloride.

* ''Film/{{The Day of the Triffids}}'' (1962). Sea water is found to destroy the man-eating plants. Which leads to FridgeLogic as the plants feed on dead bodies which would contain salt as well.

* Used to great effect in the "Bakeneko" segment of [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Anime/AyakashiSamuraiHorrorTales Ayakashi: Samurai Horor Tales]]. With the help of Kayo and the samurai Odajima, the mysterious Medicine Seller spreads curing salt through the halls surrounding the survivors, creating a barrier the mononoke initially can't cross. The demon eventually breaks through, leaving the Medicine Seller struggling to subdue it — until Kayo resorts to chucking the ''entire'' pot of remaining salt into its amorphous form, sending it yowling away in pain.

* Used to great effect in the "Bakeneko" segment of Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales. With the help of Kayo and the samurai Odajima, the mysterious Medicine Seller spreads curing salt through the halls surrounding the survivors, creating a barrier the mononoke initially can't cross. It eventually breaks through, leaving the Medicine Seller struggling to subdue it — until Kayo resorts to chucking the entire pot of remaining salt into its amorphous form, driving it away once more.

* One of the things added by ''[[VideoGame/{{Witchery}} Bewitchment]]'', a GameMod for ''VideoGame/Minecraft'', is salt. It can be placed on the ground like redstone to form a barrier that keeps demons, undead, werewolves, and endermen from crossing it, and it is a necessary reagent in several rituals and crafting recipes that [[SupernaturalRepellant repel or harm supernatural entities]].

* One of the things added by ''[[VideoGame/{{Witchery}} Bewitchment]], a GameMod for ''VideoGame/Minecraft'', is salt. It can be placed on the ground like redstone to form a barrier that keeps demons, undead, werewolves, and endermen from crossing it, and it is a necessary reagent in several rituals and crafting recipes that [[SupernaturalRepellant repel or harm supernatural entities]].

* The legend has it that if you feed salt to a VoodooZombie, it restores his soul and/or allows him to die.

Sodium Chloride. Its serves as a preservative for food, a kitchen ingredient, and as a [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers weapon against misfortune.]] Even in fiction, salt or saltwater is used to defeat antagonistic forces or at least to avert a disaster.

Sodium Chloride. One of man's greatest discoveries. Its uses are, but not limited to, as a preservative for food, a kitchen ingredient, and as a [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers weapon against misfortune.]] Even in fiction, salt or saltwater is used to defeat antagonistic forces or at least to avert a disaster.

Salt's ability to absorb water makes it a lethal compound for many organisms. It's also a good repellent against supernatural creatures, [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampires]] in particular.
However this trope is generally about salt as somehow used in the downfall of a villain, not necessarily salt used to defeat the villain directly.

Salt is also known to make a wound more painful -- the saying "rubbing salt in the wound" is based on that.

* ''It Came from the Late, Late Show''. Mobile Carnivorous Plants are Monsters that are five feet tall, form large groups to hunt and throw poison thorns. They are killed by a salt overdose.

* The monsters in the film ''Film/TheHorrorOfPartyBeach'' die when Sodium touches them.

* ''Series/UltramanMebius'' has an episode involving the invasion of the Serpent Aliens, whose extremely high HealingFactor no-sells all of Mebius' attacks. However, Team GUYS analyzed that the Serpent Aliens' body strucyure are based on slugs and are therefore weak against salt, at which point they end up assisting Mebius with a pair of salt-loaded missiles. It works, the salt greatly weakens the Serpent Aliens allowing Mebius to eliminate them with ease.

* In a Silver Age ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' story, a so-called magician tries to frighten the Girl of Steel by claiming that spilling salt causes bad luck and the only way to prevent it is to throw some of the salt over his left shoulder. Kara doesn't believe one single word.

* On two separate occasions in ''Manga/ShokugekiNoSoma'', Soma has suggested throwing salt over the door after the departure of a particularly unpleasant visitor (a corrupt real estate agent the first time and [[BigBad Azami]] [[AbusiveParents Nakiri]] the second time). On both occasions he is stopped by an adult (his father the first time, dorm supervisor Fumio in the second) from wasting perfectly good salt.

* ''Film/{{Warlock}}''. The title BigBad is killed by having salt water injected into him (apparently witches are harmed by salt). In the final scene the heroine buries the Grand Grimoire in the middle of the Bonneville Salt Flats where the Warlock will presumably be unable to retrieve it.

* ''Film/{{The Day of the Triffids}}'' (1962). Sea water is found to destroy the deadly plants.

SuperTrope of SaltTheEarth. Overlaps with SupernaturalRepellent when used to, well, repel supernatural beings. Not to confuse with any salt dissolved in a liquid solvent, although this trope is almost guaranteed to involve or result in this.

SuperTrope of SaltTheEarth. Overlaps with SupernaturalRepellent when used to, well, repel supernatural beings.

* TheFairFolk of Europe have two most common weaknesses: Bread, salt, or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs bread and salt combined,]] which represents either SacredHospitality or the mainstays of civilization.

* TheFairFolk of Europe have two most common weaknesses: Bread, salt, or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs bread and salt combined,]] which represents SacredHospitality.