Api Master Kit-High Rang, Low Range Ph?

[plecostomus-mad]

i bought an api master kit yesterday to make sure my water tests are spot on now i was wondering what ph test i should use, the low range ph test or high range ph test?

thanks

Mark

 

[shane87]

its self explanitory..... what ph ya water is...if its above 7.4 use the high range..if not use the low range .... sorted

 

[shane87]

also...if your keeping cichlids from the lakes use the high range because they need a high ph ...if not then just use the low range test

 

[Anna Robinson]

It depends on the pH of your water (obviously!) but you would usually use the 'normal' API pH test kit for freshwater set ups. This tests the pH range 6.0 to 7.6. The High Range pH kit tests 7.4 to 8.8, so would be more common for alkaline set-ups such as African cichlids and marine aquariums.

 

[plecostomus-mad]

It depends on the pH of your water (obviously!)

its not obvious to somebody who does not know! thats why the '' new to the hobby '' section is in the forum? no cichilds, just neons and soon to be clown pleco's x 2 and 3x Striped Dora's/Talking Catfish. ive used the AqAdvisor and my tank is 100% stocked with these fish and good filtration and no errors

so i should use the normal PH test right?

 

[waterdrop]

When you start out, you don't yet know the typical pH ranges of your tap and tank water. What you should do is carry out tests with both the low range and high range test kits on both your tap water and tank water and record all these results for a number of days in your notebook. It should quickly become obvious that one of the other of the tests will be bumping up against its low or high limit.

Lets say the high range test seems to always be bumping against the number at the bottom of its range, whereas the normal low range test is somewhere in the middle of its range. That means the water is within the normal low range and in the future you'll probably only ever need to be using the normal low range test. The high range test in that case wouldn't be giving you an accurate answer, it would just be telling you its reached its bottom limit of testing ability.

Beginners get bothered when their water falls close to the switchover point between the two tests but in truth, as you get more experienced you realize that precision doesn't matter that much with these things, you only ever need to know the general range you are in.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[plecostomus-mad]

thanks waterdrop

 

[rebrn]

Waterdrop is exactly right. My tap water measures around 7.2, but when I started the fishless cycle the ammonia shot the pH up so I have had to switch to the high range. The pH is leveling off now, closer to my tap water pH at 7.4, but as 7.4 is the low end of the high range test, I will periodically, say every 4-5 test (fishless cycling so currently testing every 12 hours)test with the low range to make sure that it is actually 7.4 and not 7.2. It can be a bit of a guessing game, espically if you are cycling and your pH isn't completely stable. I would suggest testing with regular pH and it is a bright blue colour (i.e 7.6) double check and test again using the high range. Once you have done it a few times you will get more comforatable with the test and colour charts. I had the same problem when I first started using the api kit, and even now if I have 7.4 result using the high range for a few days in a row I will go ahead and re-test using the regular pH just to double check that I am still using the right kit.