Friggin testers ARRRRGGGHHHH!!!!

[Salty D-O-G]

Again with the nitrates. I have been slowly removing the bio balls and I have been using Mardel(the lazy mans way)tests strips for checking parameters. I check these once or twice a week. Well tonight Nitrates were pegged STILL and my PH dropped out. So instead of panicing I got the old chemical tests out and my PH was at 8.4 and Nitrates/Nitrites at 0 PPM but the alkilinity was a little low. Ca was 440 PPM and ammonia was crystal clear. What are your ways of testing and is there another test I should be doing? Thanks in advance....


Jerry

 

[jezzeaepi]

Step one, throw out your test kits.
Step two, buy salifert.
Step three, well there is no step 3 =P


Salifert is one of the most trusted brand. The "Strip" testers suck. I would run a tank without test kits before I trusted them.

 

[Cwazy Clown]

f- salifert. that stuff is 20$ a pop. i use aquarium pharm.

 

[moortim]

Good test kits can be one of the most important things you buy for your tank. Who cares if Salifert costs a bit more, just buy a test kit instead of a new fish.

 

[Krish]

SALIFERT That is the only test kit I trust. The odds are more in favor of it giving you accurate results which means less headache

 

[DonW]

I'm anil about test kits. I buy 4 of each salifert ca alk mg. I test a water sample with each then have my sample tested at the local lab. I then know how far off each kit is. They are always off one way or another.

Don

 

[Scooterman]

Hey if your crabs are still alive then your not too far off LOL!
sorry had to jump in

I had to trash so many cheap test kits it is crazy, unless your doing like Don or taking it to a lab you will find it difficult to get an idea of what is going on, the Saliflert is usually good enough to get the results you want, worth the extra. When you have alk & Ca troubles you will understand that. Also 440 is high for ca, I see no reason to keep it that high!

 

[twilliard]

Hey Don what has been your biggest swing? Are the kits we use off a lot?

Oh and I vote for SALIFERT!
I check
PH
Cal.
Alk.
Phos.
Org.
Nitrates

 

[DonW]

Hey Don what has been your biggest swing? Are the kits we use off a lot?

Oh and I vote for SALIFERT!
I check
PH
Cal.
Alk.
Phos.
Org.
Nitrates

The ones I'm using now are ca 51ppm low, alk 3dkh low, mg 50 high.
The next set are ca 40ppm low, alk 2dkh low mg 100 high.
I can remember the other two they are gone.

 

[twilliard]

Wow that seems like a bit of a difference.
Thanks for the info

 

[balogh03]

Never had salifert, but i do love ELOS (thanks cy)

By the way cwazy....AP suck. It said my tank was fine when elos read 65 on nitrates :shock:

-augustus

 

[DonW]

Wow that seems like a bit of a difference.
Thanks for the info

Thats why I have them tested. Ive never seen one be dead on.

Don

 

[vwmoneypit]

YEAH i USE FOR NOW THE QUICK DIP BY JUNGLE WHEN i HAVE TAKIN IT IN TO ANALIZIED THEY ARE ONLY CORRECT WHEN THE NITRATES ARE REALLY LOW AND i DONT THINK THE NITRITE EVEN REGS.WHAT CAN I BUY AT THE STORE FOR TEST THANKS

 

[twilliard]

Only at the better shops you can find salifert kits.

When I first started I used red sea I think. It worked but not acurate.
If you can find salifert thats what I would get.

 

[matts125]

f- salifert. that stuff is 20$ a pop. i use aquarium pharm.

you would be smart to re-consider that if you plan on keepin those sps, Aquarium Pharm. is a toy and not accurate at all, there is no way I would trust my investments (live stock) to those generic (fresh water quality) test kits..

Just My 2cents..

Matt

 

[Salty D-O-G]

Well by the majority Salifert wins. I've never checked phospates. Why is that important? My kits now are Red Sea.

Jerry

 

[DonW]

Well by the majority Salifert wins. I've never checked phospates. Why is that important? My kits now are Red Sea.

Jerry

Algae feeds on P and N. P inhibits coral growth. P makes brown corals.

Don

 

[krisfal]

The better quality test are worth the higher price if you really want to know what is going on with your water quality.

I started with AP and it showed the nitrates at 0 in all 3 tanks. After being convinced by reading many opinions here I forked out the money for salifert and 1 tank tested nitrates at 50 (high bio load), one at 25 (FOWLR running canister filter and carbon) and the third at 0 (about 8 week old 130g with low bio load, 1 fish).

With the money we invest in livestock it seems silly to scrimp on the test kit. While I am not ready to go to lengths Don W is willing to do, I can understand why. If your livestock requires exacting water parameters you need to know the accuracy of your test, no matter the brand.

For now I am trusting the experience of others here and their reccomendations on Salifert and I feel better that I actually see differences in test results that correspond to changes in my tank and differences between the tank (I never see 0 nitrates in my FOWLR, but I don't expect to see it because of the set-up)

 

[dragoneggs]

For system setup I'm checking salinity with refractometer, alk, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, and calcium using Salifert, and pH with ELOS. I do like the Salifert and now the ELOS but not enough experience to compare those two. Once stable and mature I will drop the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate unless some major change is done. Your pH, hardness, and calc levels seem to be the pulse of your system.

 

[dragoneggs]

:idea: Phosphates... maybe I should add that to my list