Test kits

[loismustdie]

Seriously now... I keep seeing people here talking about their water parameters and they always say that their NO3 and PO4 are undetectable, yet they are having problems and asking for help. What kits are you guys using that they show nothing at all?
I've been around some of the best guys on this site and I've never seen undetectable, even on their tanks which are 10X better than mine.
Deanos and I had a discussion on nitrates while he was at my house and both of us came to the same conclusion... people say "undetectable", even if they don't test. Yeah, If you don't test, than theoretically, they are undetectable.
I've been honest. My nitrates were over 100 ppm and my PO4 was so high that even on a crap Salifert test kit, there was not a shade of blue dark enough to figure out exactly how high my PO4 really was.
Be honest with your water quality readings. It makes it easier for others to help you.

 

[deelucky]

i for one have off the charts nitrates and for the life of me i cant tell why i check high and low and could not find the source.everything in my tank (no sps) are doing great,nice color and growth.so i decided if its not broken dont fix it. i would love to know the secrets to having zero nitrates.

 

[ming]

After having a freshwater planted tank, I've always preferred getting rid of NO3/PO4 with plants. Just setup a good sized, nice looking fuge and it'll absorb nitrates continiously.

 

[deelucky]

After having a freshwater planted tank, I've always preferred getting rid of NO3/PO4 with plants. Just setup a good sized, nice looking fuge and it'll absorb nitrates continiously.

i had cheato(i lost it when my striplight bulb broke and was kinda dragging my feet on replacing it)but i never seened any difference maybe i just didnt have enough but it never helped.

 

[loismustdie]

After having a freshwater planted tank, I've always preferred getting rid of NO3/PO4 with plants. Just setup a good sized, nice looking fuge and it'll absorb nitrates continiously.

off topic, but as I said to jon, most hobbyists set up their fuges with such low flow that their fuges become settling chambers which build and release more nutrients than some macro algae can take in. My fuge was a major factor in my high nutrients.
Greens, FW and SW, go for ammonia first. Not nitrate. Even cheato needs iron before it takes in anything else.
Back on topic... what test kits are showing NO3 and PO4 as undetectable?

 

[ming]

Did you see your cheato growing extremely fast?
I'm using T5 HO bulbs with individual reflectors on my fuge and my cheato is pearling like crazy. Its a 50 breeder

And greens will go for ammonia, but it will uptake NO3 in larger quantities. When I had my freshwater tank, I used to dose the tank to 10ppm in NO3 which would be 0 the next day. Although I also injected CO2 into the water to speed up the growth.

 

[loismustdie]

My cheato went from a small handfull I got from Ronen, to filling up it's entire enclosure 12L X 10W X 16H. No effect whatsoever on my NO3/PO4.
Again, Ming... off topic. What test kits are being used to find undetectable NO3/PO4?

 

[ming]

How long did it take to fill that up? And unless you were putting lights on the sides and bottom of the glass, the light wont penetrate through 16" of cheato.

The undetectable NO3 was on the freshwater tank, test kit was red sea. They're fairly accurate, to about 6 months, the shelf life wasn't the best.

The PO4 was hardly ever undetectable because the plants absorb it much slower and is replenished by fish food for the most part. I seldomly dosed it.

Going far off topic, people with planted tank aim for 10ppm NO3, 1ppm PO4, and 20ppm K. Iron is more like a trace element.

 

[herman]

Not to many people testing. Most dont even have proper test kits. When people have problems they generally just say undetectable to avoid getting flamed. Its almost always the husbandry at fault. Ive been there before where i have gotten lazy nd things went wrong.

 

[DonCisco]

I know a lot of ppl think they are crap (they might be) but I use API. When I started it was the most complete set they had at Petsmart (I was a newbie), and haven't had an issue with it, I have had my water tested and the numbers seem consistent. I also have a Seachem ammonia monitor, I know that seachem is a good company and this thing changes color with a small increase of ammonia. I also have some Red Sea tests.
I test for PH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphate, Calcium, dKH, MG, and I have a hydrometer for SG.
I test the water about once every week for the most part.
Since I am fairly new, I want to make sure that things that I do are not having any adverse effect on my tank.
And with water changes, cheato in my fuge, and care I still have 20ppm Nitrate.