Testing Equipment

[burnsie2005]

Hello all,
I'm a saltwater tank newbie. I'm aware of the importance of testing the water to monitor the ph, nitrate, and ammonia levels. I purchased a testing kit, but I'm wondering if there is better (and easier) tests to get. I've seen the digital ph tester, and ammonia strips. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I'm still in the cycling phase of the tank. Only had the tank 3 weeks. We currently have 4 damsels that seem to be doing very well.

 

[who dey]

i feel salifert tests raise the bar when it comes to tests. They are a little pricey but i feel more $ spent = greater accuracy

 

[yomommasmom]

ok strips work very good for me

 

[f14peter]

I've gone with the Salifert kits. As WhoDey said, a bit pricy but I feel that getting as precise as possible is what I want out of my test gear. Besides, it's kind of fun to fiddle with the scrynges, vials, powders, etc.
I haven't used test-strips (other than to check the hot-tub), but are they precise enough? I have heard of people using strips to get a "Ballpark" figure and then going to a more precise kit for a more accurate reading.

 

[lion_crazz]

Test strips are usually pretty inaccurate. I would also go with the Salifert kits for the most accuracy. If you want a cheap kit that is still reliable, I like the Aquarium Pharmaceuticals brand.
Make sure you have a pH, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and kH test kit. I would also strongly recommend purchasing a refractometer. This site sells an excellent one for a very cheap price.
https://www.saltwaterfish.com/site_11...ot_parent_id=6

 

[gwh57]

You will not need the Nitrite and Ammonia kits after yout tank has cycled. You should not need to test for those again. GENERALY i have found that the more pricy the test kit the more accurate it is. IMO

 

[who dey]

Originally Posted by gwh57
You will not need the Nitrite and Ammonia kits after yout tank has cycled. You should not need to test for those again. GENERALY i have found that the more pricy the test kit the more accurate it is. IMO
:notsure: :notsure: :notsure:

 

[gwh57]

Is their something here that you don't understand?

 

[peckhead]

you should always test amm. and nitrite. even after cycle. you are mistaken to think that your amm or trite wont go up after cycle..

 

[gwh57]

Most experts agree that there is no need to test for ammonia or nitrites in an established tank. You may test for anything you like, but you will not have testable amounts of either unless you have a major tank event or failure. If you have several large fish die, do nothing and you will have a problem. Remove them and you will have no problem.
peakhead I think if you do some research on this issue you will find you are mistaken. Don't just repeat what someone has told you. Research it yourself.

 

[craig7220]

I have researched it, and you should not stop testing for ammonia and trites. The basis behind it is to prevent possible problems by catching them before animals start to suffer and die. I"ve been in this hobby for a long time and test my water at least once a month. Biological filters can and do fail at times. I'd sooner know something is amiss before it becomes a major problem.

 

[gwh57]

Originally Posted by craig7220
I have researched it, and you should not stop testing for ammonia and trites. The basis behind it is to prevent possible problems by catching them before animals start to suffer and die. I"ve been in this hobby for a long time and test my water at least once a month. Biological filters can and do fail at times. I'd sooner know something is amiss before it becomes a major problem.
That is a ridiculas statement not based on any facts. Ammonia and nitrites are a part of the cycling process and will not reappear in an established tank unless something to cause an ammonia spike is reintroduced to the tank. A hugh dead fish left in the tank could cause an ammonia spike, but I think most people know that is a problem and would not allow that to happen. Nitrites are a product of the ammonia. They don't come into the the picture unless there was an ammonia problem.
Again, you can test for anything you like, but testing for ammonia and nitrite in a tank that has properly cycled is a waste of time.

 

[craig7220]

I'll just be wasting my time then..... and notice that I didn't state your statements were ridiculas.....just said what I did and what I do..... thanks for your kind response.

 

[gwh57]

The point is that you are giving inaccurate information to others who believe it because they read it.

 

[ophiura]

When I worked at a public aquarium and did the water quality (31 systems, every day with far more involved tests than our home kits - which puts things into perspective!), I regularly tested ammonia...nitrite not so much. But ammonia in an established system was a sign of a problem and we DID see ammonia in many "cycled" systems that had been up well over a year.
To think that no problem will occur simply because the tank is established can be a mistake, and with such an easy test, it would be unfortunate to miss it. We see ammonia in overfed, overstocked tanks that were exceeding the biological capacity of a tank. These were tanks that were properly cycled but the bioload or feeding exceeded the biological capacity resulting in ammonia. Also if treatment for a disease had impacted the biological filter. Depending on what filtration was available in the tank, it, along with pH, could also indicate a failure of water flow through the system which you might not otherwise be aware of.
I never assume that a hobbyist keeps a system exactly as I do...that their filtration is checked and proper for their needs, that their stocking and feeding is fine. I would suggest to anyone, especially with less than a year in the hobby, that they regularly test ammonia - even if their tank is cycled. It does not need to be tested DAILY after cycled. But I would say weekly at least if you are stocking the tank.
If you have a simple system, add no fish, are consistent with your feeding, then I suppose you can say you do not need to test it. I rarely test it in my tank - but I do have the kits to do it now and then, if I see corals not opening right, etc. It is one of the first questions I would ask and eliminate if there are problems in the tank.
I believe the following basic kits are needed for a reef system: ammonia, nitrate, pH, alkalinity and calcium. If you dose, for example iodine, you should have that. For all the information they can provide - and problems they can eliminate - relative to the overall cost of livestock and equipment in this hobby? Don't cut corners.
IMO test strips are inaccurate, as are many of the "master test kits" such as aq. pharm. brand. Digital readers are quite nice, but they don't eliminate some things- digital testers need to be calibrated for example.

 

[gwh57]

I agree with most of your information and reasioning, but a home aquarium is much different than public aquarium. I too have an ammonia test kit which I have used once or twice in the past 12 months. Yes, in a hugh public aquarium you might have an ammonia issue which would be difficult to know untill it had turned into another larger problem. Yes, over feeding etc. will cause ammonia spikes too, but the home aquarium would show signs of this in other ways also. I stand by my statement that most experts, which I am not, agree that regular testing of ammonia or nitrites is not nessessary in an established home aquarium.

 

[ophiura]

I would agree on nitrites. I don't know how you define "regular" testing. The conditoins that affect large public displays are not all that much different than small systems. If your filter is clogged, you will have pH and ammonia problems. If you add a bunch of fish, treat for a disease, or overfeed...these are the same issues, and you have a FAR smaller safety net in a home aquarium than systems designed to house hundreds or thousands of fish.
Most people who are new to this hobby, stock too rapidly, feed too much, and probably don't have quite the capacity to hold what they think they can fit. THis was a lesson from the LFS world as well. I would encourage new hobbyists to regularly test. Once the tank is established, you are not adding fish - and you have learned some hard lessons most likely - then testing ammonia may not be all that necessary.
But this is a "new hobbyits" forum and the initial poster is admittedly a newbie with a new tank. IMO, he should be regularly testing ammonia until, again my opinion, he has stopped stocking the tank. At that point it may be less necessary. But to each his own. To me, it is a low cost security blanket for a very expensive hobby where things can go really wrong, really fast.

 

[craig7220]

I guess this could go on forever, but the experts that I have read suggest that ammonia and nitrite testing occur everyday during cycle and then once every 3 to 4 weeks. As stated this is a new hobbyist forum and I stand by my previous statements. Nothing that I stated previously was inaccurate. But I understand that in any endeavor, one can find experts to sound off to their thinking. Overfeeding and overstocking can cause ammonia spikes and it would be good to know of the spike before damage. I can see when, after a tank is cycled and nothing new is introduced, that biological filtration stabilizes and should not change, but......

 

[gwh57]

Originally Posted by ophiura
I would agree on nitrites. I don't know how you define "regular" testing. The conditoins that affect large public displays are not all that much different than small systems. If your filter is clogged, you will have pH and ammonia problems. If you add a bunch of fish, treat for a disease, or overfeed...these are the same issues, and you have a FAR more narrow safety net in a home aquarium than systems designed to house hundreds or thousands of fish.
Most people who are new to this hobby, stock too rapidly, feed too much, and probably don't have quite the capacity to hold what they think they can fit. THis was a lesson from the LFS world as well. I would encourage new hobbyists to regularly test. Once the tank is established, you are not adding fish - and you have learned some hard lessons most likely - then testing ammonia may not be all that necessary.
But this is a "new hobbyits" forum and the initial poster is admittedly a newbie with a new tank. IMO, he should be regularly testing ammonia until, again my opinion, he has stopped stocking the tank. At that point it may be less necessary. But to each his own. To me, it is a low cost security blanket for a very expensive hobby where things can go really wrong, really fast.
Again, I agree with most of your post, and that new aquariums should by all means be tested. My point was directed at established tanks. Most of the issues you mention in this response are not normally incountered in established tanks. I think we both understand this. The intent of the original post was to get accurate information, like this, to the "new hobbyist". And to get them to research on their own and not just take everything they are told for the truth.

That is why you and I posted here correct?

 

[jdecter]

I hate to say this but you might not want to give advice until you've been in the hobby a LOT longer.
You should test Ammonia, Nitrates, Nitrite, Calcium (once you get some frags for sure), Phosphates, and PH. You should test all these regularly, at least before each water change and maybe after to make sure your change is doing as you wish. Plus you check them when you notice any issues at all, either algae growth, recession and strange fish behavior. Also watch temperature.
Anyone who doesn't in my opinion for one should never advice it.
Is just playing with fire and creating a very bad habit and again something you shouldn't advise or brag about.
And no there is no "easy tests" there are either more accurate quality testers as the ones stated above or not so accurate testers.
HOWEVER there are a few testers that make things easier more of an upgrade really.
Such as switching from a hydrometer to a refractor, to me its way way more accurate and so simple you can't possibly not upgrade after you've been in the hobby a while. Plus if you get one with a temperature gauge built in you got two tests in one.
I actually speed up my tests which I do weekly during as part of my saturday morning maitenance. I did this by tapeing all my vials together (or you can buy the ones with like 5 in a row all stuck together) Then I have on my tape the symbol of each test like PH A (ammonia) Ni Na (nitrite and nitrate) and so on. Then I just dip that in fill it up tap out the extra put my drips of chem test in and cap em, and shake wait 5min and I'm done, record in my fish journal and if need to make changes I do.
I thought about not going into the whys but the guy above spouting off the very bad advice tells me I should make sure you listen to good advice from those above and heres why:
If you have any issue and you test regularly, you'll see usually far in advance the problem coming up, and because you have become intimate with what is your tanks normal statistics you'll easily be able to adjust whatever the problem is.
For example a protien skimmer clogging up and needing a good cleaning, would never be detected until a huge issue if you didn't notice your ammonia or trates going wacky. Your heater burning out may never be noticed down in the dark sump if you didn't watch your temps daily until wipe out of a whole tank even. Your PH can easily go out of wack and never be noticed if you didn't check it regularly from something as simple as a "off bag" of salt. The list goes on every single parameter can easily kill or keep your tank perfect and not monitoring them is just begging for you to miss a simple sign and find yourself with a crashed tank.
5min a week or loss of 1000.00 of dollars and endless time from frag/fish death...hmmmm seems like a no brainer.