What Test Kits Do You Use?

[Guyb93]

You are far from being a weirdo. I've been sniffing my tank water for years, I know others who do and was advised to do so by an old timer many years ago. I too love the smell of pet shops. I love that cedar smell of the hamster cages and the birds and that sweet humid smell of the fish room. It's like going to a garden greenhouse. The little pet shop I frequent has a separate fish room next to the lizards and I get higher than a pine tree from that smell.

That’s the smell ! Used hay and dust lol it has a real charm of an odour ?

 

[Essjay]

I have the API master test kit. I rarely use it but I want to have a test kit in the cupboard so that if the fish start to behave oddly I can test immediately.
In my opinion, testing is important for a brand new tank to keep an eye on things to make sure it's all OK. But when a tank has been running some time we don't need to test very often.

All liquid reagent nitrate testers have one bottle which contains a reagent which settles on the bottom of the bottle. All that shaking in the instructions is to get this reagent back into the liquid. Some nitrate testers use powders and these are supposed to be more accurate. Salifert make a powder nitrate tester.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I'll be sure to save up for that one!
To be honest I was just wondering what THAT test kit was called, since I see it everywhere and it seems pretty nice.

It’s just highly recommend, that’s why I got mine.

The tests are easy and take around 5 minutes each.

I would definitely save up for one.

 

[Naughts]

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the API master kit to a beginner but after that I found it a waste - of money, of plastic and of chemicals. Straight away you don't need one of the pH testers, then one ammonia reagent runs out way before the other so you throw that away, then you run out of one of the nitrate reagents because that's the one you use more than the other tests.

I've tried a few nitrate tests and prefer the Salifert because it only has two steps, it doesn't need shaking and the levels are not too broad (0, 25, 50...). I'd prefer the increments to be smaller for accuracy though.

Many people object to strip tests but I think they're fine - I find the API strips match the readings of liquid tests and the increments are on a par with most other tests. Again, beginners would need to be aware of the need to test ammonia but this is rarely needed after establishing a tank.

 

[FishGuest5123]

I know what you mean , small local pet shops have a smell that reminds me of being small the big ones don’t have the smell probably because they are cleaned and stuff lol

Funny, I took my grand daughters to my lfs. Thought it would be a treat for them (and me too). They said it stunk in there. Smelled like a regular pet shop to me. Then I realized, they had probably never been in a “real” pet shop before.

 

[Slaphppy7]

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the API master kit to a beginner but after that I found it a waste - of money, of plastic and of chemicals. Straight away you don't need one of the pH testers, then one ammonia reagent runs out way before the other so you throw that away, then you run out of one of the nitrate reagents because that's the one you use more than the other tests.

I've tried a few nitrate tests and prefer the Salifert because it only has two steps, it doesn't need shaking and the levels are not too broad (0, 25, 50...). I'd prefer the increments to be smaller for accuracy though.

Many people object to strip tests but I think they're fine - I find the API strips match the readings of liquid tests and the increments are on a par with most other tests. Again, beginners would need to be aware of the need to test ammonia but this is rarely needed after establishing a tank.

" then one ammonia reagent runs out way before the other"

How so?

OP, get the API Freshwater Master Test Kit, strips aren't reliable, especially if they're aged...

 

[Naughts]

" then one ammonia reagent runs out way before the other"

How so?

Must have had different sized apertures?

 

[Slaphppy7]

Must have had different sized apertures?

One reagent's drops are a bit smaller than the other, but not enough to make significant difference in one going empty before the other....8 drops each bottle per test...there could be the odd case of one bottled not being fully filled @ the manufacturer, I suppose

That being said, I've never run out of any of the test kit solutions, when not cycling tanks, which I haven't done in a very long time...I don't use them with my established tanks, no need to...I've replaced mine because of expiration only....and only once

For the beginning fishkeeper, or those starting new tanks, it's a must-have piece of equipment, IMO

Easy to use and monitor water params, regardless of source water or tank water condition, in the beginning and later

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

How much of the preferences for sticks vs. liquid drops down to just personal preference and how much is down to actual scientifically-tested preference?

I'm just past my first week of cycling a new tank, (with old gravel) and am trying out both a 5-in-1 test strip set and Ammonia test strips, alongside a liquid drop test for Ammonia, all from API. So far, the results are the same, but I read a lot of negativity towards test strips, with the drop tests seemingly favoured.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

How much of the preferences for sticks vs. liquid drops down to just personal preference and how much is down to actual scientifically-tested preference?

I'm just past my first week of cycling a new tank, (with old gravel) and am trying out both a 5-in-1 test strip set and Ammonia test strips, alongside a liquid drop test for Ammonia, all from API. So far, the results are the same, but I read a lot of negativity towards test strips, with the drop tests seemingly favoured.

My personal preference is liquid test kits. I've used strips before and they're good for a quick reading, but I wouldn't rely on them as my one and only method. Liquid takes a little longer but it's more precise.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

How much of the preferences for sticks vs. liquid drops down to just personal preference and how much is down to actual scientifically-tested preference?

I'm just past my first week of cycling a new tank, (with old gravel) and am trying out both a 5-in-1 test strip set and Ammonia test strips, alongside a liquid drop test for Ammonia, all from API. So far, the results are the same, but I read a lot of negativity towards test strips, with the drop tests seemingly favoured.

Liquid are far more accurate. And not color-match, I’m talking digitally scanned. (Aka Hanna digital testers)

 

[Essjay]

Disadvantages of each one.

Strips -
5 or 6 in one strips don't test for ammonia - you have to buy them separately. There have been many people new to the hobby who did not realise testing ammonia is important since it isn't on the strip.
Strips usually include GH - but many brands don't test higher than 180 ppm misleading people with hard water into thinking they have middling hardness.
If they get damp, they don't work properly (one of the causes of "liquids are more accurate than strips")

Liquids -
They expire 12 months after opening the bottle and should be replaced.
Liquid nitrate testers have one bottle which needs to be well shaken - failing to shake gives inaccurate results.
You have to use several tubes to test everything, and it takes time for the colour to develop.

 

[Slaphppy7]

I've read that the paper strips become unreliable with age, as well as after being exposed to light for a certain amount of time

 

[Essjay]

Strips are supposed to be kept in an air tight container, which most of them come in, which will protect against both dampness and light.

 

[Boundava]

Funny thing is the strips don't have anything like silca gel to help keep moisture out of the test strip containers. Plus they don't test for ammonia. I prefer the liquid API test kit, and also haven't has any issues with one reagent/solution running out before another for those kits with a two part test.