problems measuring ammonium chloride with API master test kit

[laurak]

I am in the process of fishless cycling a tank and purchased Dr. Tim's ammonium chloride. I followed the instructions on the bottle to does my aquarium to 2ppm (10 gallon tank). The instructions said to add 4 drops per gallon to achieve 2ppm, so I added 40 drops. Then, I tested the water with the API master ammonia kit and got a reading of about 4-5ppm, about twice what it should have been. Any ideas on what's going on here? Does the API master kit not accurately measure ammonium chloride? If not, is there a better test to use? In the future when I'm dosing, should I put in half as many drops to get the desired concentration?

 

[SnailPocalypse]

Ok,the ammonia test kit only does ammonia,not ammonium chloride,but that is basically ammonia so,I think you may have overdosed your ammonium chloride so next time use less drops but for now let it go down on its own.

 

[laurak]

Ok,the ammonia test kit only does ammonia,not ammonium chloride,but that is basically ammonia so,I think you may have overdosed your ammonium chloride so next time use less drops but for now let it go down on its own.

Do you think I should I add half the number of drops (20) as what it says on the container? I want to make sure I'm adding enough to feed the bacteria.

 

[SnailPocalypse]

To be honest I think what you added was fine.But maybe decrease it a couple drops to get it down to 3 ppm

 

[StevenF]

Your test kit is designed to detect ammonia a gas. Ammonia chloride is a chemical salt that is a solid and not a gas. Depending on the chemistry the manufacture of the test kit uses you may or may not get an accurate reading or you might get no reading at all. Also your tank may be 10 gallons but after you add grave,l decorations, and heater your true water volume will be less than 10 gallons. And you may have simply miscounted the number of drops you added.

You can do a water change to drop it do some or leave it as is and see how it goes. The only impact I can see is the tank may take a little more or less time to cycle.