Calcium testing

jessi p

jessi p

Member
So I have the Red Sea Reef Lab Master kit and it has the test for Calcium. I add so many drops and the instructions say "after adding x drops & shaking your color should be pink." Well my color is more reddish orange/mud colored and I can't get a good reading. Any ideas or suggestions?
 
aztec reef

aztec reef

Active Member
Originally Posted by Jessi P
So I have the Red Sea Reef Lab Master kit and it has the test for Calcium. I add so many drops and the instructions say "after adding x drops & shaking your color should be pink." Well my color is more reddish orange/mud colored and I can't get a good reading. Any ideas or suggestions?

it doesn't have to be "pink" is either pink/red/orange. which ever comes first..
but if you want reliable accuracy try SALIFER...
 
larryndana

larryndana

Active Member
you can always bring a sample to your lfs, mine charges like a quarter or more per test. good way to double check your results.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
sounds like mine--although mine goes from pink to blue. once it turns purple is when i stop counting cause i don't think it will ever get blue
 
hatessushi

hatessushi

Active Member
Salifert uses the same type of calcium test as red sea if the color goes from blue to a pink/red/orange color. Salifert as well as other test kits can be inaccurate if to old. I use the Salifet as well as digital testing and found both to be very accurate.
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
Thanks for the ideas guys. I will have them check it at the LFS when I take my anemone back tomorrow. He had his last meal with me this afternoon.
So it looks like Salifert is the brand to have eh? I wish I had known before my local petshop charged me $50 for the Red Sea master kit I keep seeing in catalogs for $30.00.... but that's the price of not shopping around. Live and learn - mail order is the way to go for sure in this hobby. And I thought racehorses were expensive.
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
Ren I admit I havent ever actually finished a calcium reading with my test kit - I just give up after so many drops LOL.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
yea lol if i finished mine i would be reading like 1kppm. I honestly wish there was an inexpensive electronic test out there--i'm sure there's some crazy inventor that can make one--that you could just put in your water and voila all your test parameters on the screen. i honestly cannot see how these liquid tests can be so accurate.
 
hatessushi

hatessushi

Active Member
Originally Posted by renogaw
yea lol if i finished mine i would be reading like 1kppm. I honestly wish there was an inexpensive electronic test out there--i'm sure there's some crazy inventor that can make one--that you could just put in your water and voila all your test parameters on the screen. i honestly cannot see how these liquid tests can be so accurate.
That would be nice but unfortunately all the tests need their own probes and some of them can't be located close to others so a single unit would have problems with cross interference.
 
hatessushi

hatessushi

Active Member
Originally Posted by Jessi P
Thanks for the ideas guys. I will have them check it at the LFS when I take my anemone back tomorrow. He had his last meal with me this afternoon.
So it looks like Salifert is the brand to have eh? I wish I had known before my local petshop charged me $50 for the Red Sea master kit I keep seeing in catalogs for $30.00.... but that's the price of not shopping around. Live and learn - mail order is the way to go for sure in this hobby. And I thought racehorses were expensive.

Your Red Sea testkit should be fine if it's not to old. Just make sure you are performing the tests properly. Red Sea is a decent midrange test kit I thought and should do just fine.
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
Ok, if I apply the terms "pinkish red" and "orange" loosely I came up with a reading - Ren is it possible you went too many drops and got blue? Thats what happened to me. I added 10 drops total for a 500 ppm concentration of calcium. Sound ballpark?
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
Originally Posted by Jessi P
Ok, if I apply the terms "pinkish red" and "orange" loosely I came up with a reading - Ren is it possible you went too many drops and got blue? Thats what happened to me. I added 10 drops total for a 500 ppm concentration of calcium. Sound ballpark?

nope, mine starts pink and is supposed to turn blue (i forgot to check what type it is). i have to take a sample of water, put in some chemical, put in a powder, then put in drops till it turns blue, then multiply x 15. if i get to 30 drops (like i normally do) i give up.
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
L&D I am using Instant Ocean. Not sure what kind of salt the guy who had the tank before me was using.
Ren - you're on your own then, is all I can say LOL. I dont have to add a powder to mine so we must have different test kits. I would give up after 30 drops too LOL.
 
05xrunner

05xrunner

Active Member
I have the redsea calcium test kit as well.
I never had a problem with the colors. I put the first set of drops in and it turns the proper pink color it says for start. and after 4-5drops it turns the proper orange. So since I need a little more then 4 drops and litle less then 5 drops i usually figure my calcium is around 430.
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
05xr thank you! I found out that I was expecting the colors to be exactly the same as the test kit showed - they are close but not exact. If I read it after approx 4 drops at the end stage I am closest to their orange color shown. If I keep going, it turns muddy then blue.
Thanks again!
 
larryndana

larryndana

Active Member
Originally Posted by Jessi P
L&D I am using Instant Ocean. Not sure what kind of salt the guy who had the tank before me was using.
Ren - you're on your own then, is all I can say LOL. I dont have to add a powder to mine so we must have different test kits. I would give up after 30 drops too LOL.
thats interesting, when i used IO i had low Cal....like below 300.
do you add anything to your water, buffers or anything?
 
jessi p

jessi p

Member
No, I dont add anything, but I am getting ready to start a thread about "how do I know when to add all of these extra things my test kit has for me?" ;)
 
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