testing?

[ca161406]

just wondering what everyone does for their water testing schedule? like how often and what you test for.
my tanks been set up for about 5months and ive gotten to the point where i dont even test the water anymore. i check the salinity every 2 days and check the temp several times a day, but nothing else.
does anyone else do this? or is it something looked down on?

 

[aquarium125g]

you should test for amonia,nitrite,nitrate,ph and if you have a reef add phosphate,calciun,carbonate hardness, at least weekly if you have a large aquarium or twice weekly if its small.temp should be check every time you feed.

 

[ca161406]

its mainly aggressive but i have corals too. its a 125 with a 45 sump.
i should of mentioned i test for calcium with every water change. i do about a 40 gal water change once a month and dose calcium the alternating 2 weeks.
week:
1.
2. w/c
3.
4. dose
5.
6. w/c
7.
8. dose
that kinda pattern.
i use to test ph amn trites and trates once a week for the first few months. then would randomly test just to see what is at(still do occasionally). and it never fluctuated. so thats why i kinda stopped testing.
the only time i do test on schedule is every day after i add a new fish for about a week

 

[nitschke65]

I truly believe that, if you're watching your tank; and I mean really observing your livestock, and corals, and inverts, and live rock; there's no need to test more that what you're doing. IMO, regular checks for ammonia in an established tank is like getting up every morning and checking your stove for a gas leak.

 

[veni vidi vici]

Temp check daily.I test calcium ,alkalinity and SG every 2 weeks.Magnesium monthly.And thats it unless tank and or inhabitants look off...discoloration ,algae,livestock acting strange or a death.Then ill test nitrate ,nitrite,ammonia,ph,phosphates......
If its a new tank and your new to the hobby i would test weekly all of the above ,just to get used to your test equipment and make sure your young tank is stable.