water testing questions

[Anonymous]

obie,
During tank cycling, I'd check NH3 and NO2 daily or every other day until they are zero. Check NO3 initially (to see how your water quality is) and then don't worry about that until you see NO2.

I check alkalinity weekly. I check NH3/NO2/NO3 every 2-3 weeks (I've got a 37 gallon tank, no sump--not a lot of margin for error--I think monthly is more common). I check calcium monthly (once alk and calcium are in-line, they are for the most part hitched together).

Depending on your test kit, the pH may be the same for fresh/saltwater (I have aquarium pharm. high range pH kit. It's the same for fresh). Ammonia, probably not.

Reread the instructions for the C++ test. You may have forgotten to add the endpoint indicator. Also, Ca test kits are notorius for being out of whack--take a water sample to the LFS and see what they get.

An, of course, I usually run the whole series if I have reason to believe that something may be happening.

Ty

[ October 05, 2001: Message edited by: tyoberg ]

 

[ZeroMaintenance]

I rarely do a complete round of testing. If I am adjusting the levels of something I will test every day until I hit the target. Otherwise once you know your depletion rates I only test when something looks wrong. To establish your depletion rates you will need to test at least weekly. It depends on what it is you are testing for and the draw on it. For instance, Iodine will get depleted quickly if you have macro algae, sometimes it's all gone in a couple days. Most others you can go a week or more. I would get kits for saltwater for accuracy but the fresh kits will give you an indication but may be off some. I have gotten some kits that do both, they have different color charts but the colors are very similar. Take them back if you can. As for your CA kit I would check with La Motte for advice. Possibly your CA is too low for the test to work.

 

[AnotherGoldenTeapot]

A possible problem with using a FW kit for a SW test is that SW affects the color of the test result.

I've often seen two color scales in kits - one for FW and one for SW.

Note that you can't reliably measure Nitrate if you already have Nitrite - so it may already be too late to get a base reading.

 

[fishfarmer]

When I first started my reef I was pretty regular about testing weekly, during cycling every few days just curious to see how things progressed. When I was figuring out kalk dosing I would test pH,Ca,alk every few days, now I do it weekly.

This is what I test monthly, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphorus. This is what I test weekly(sometimes every other week) pH, Calcium, Alkalinity. I am going to start running Magnesium tests as well.

 

[obie]

Thanks for taking the time to outline your standard testing practices. This will help greatly. I'll see about returning the fresh water kits. I got them at fishsupply.com.

obie

 

[obie]

I'm a newbie to reef keeping. My tank is 75G and currently cycling with 90lbs of live rock. I bought all of the equipment used and it came with several test kits. Those I didn't have, I ordered. Answers to any of the following questions regarding testing would be greatly appreciated.

1) How often should I do a complete round of testing (i.e. how quickly can I expect water conditions to change in a stable environment?)

2) I purchased a PH test kit and an Ammonia kit online, only to discover when I got home that they were labeled for fresh water. Will they still be accurate in a salt tank?

3) My tank came with a carbon dioxide kit - but I haven't read anything about when CO2 is an issue and at what levels.

4) My Calcium test (La Motte) says the water should start red, then turn purple, then blue. Mine immediately starts purple and stays there no matter how much hardness reagent I add. Anyone using this test have any ideas why?

Thanks very much.

obie
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