puntific Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Hey folks, The question of the day is... two parts... 1. What parameters to you routinely test for? 2. How often? 3. What brand of test kit do you like for each test? (I lied about the two parts...) Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LisaJill Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 I routinely test alk, calcium, magnesium, and nitrates. The first 3 I am trying to test every 1-2 weeks. Nitrates every 4 weeks or so, depending on the state of the tank. I tend to go by visuals more than tests for nitrates. I am currently way behind on testing. =/ But I'll be picking it up as I just switched salt brands. I use Salifert for my tests, and have a Pinpoint pH Probe for PH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 I test specific gravity and PH daily, calcium, magnesium, KH, nitrates weekly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 pH, temp daily SG, Alk, Ca every week or two Mg, NO3 monthly (NO3 daily now that I'm dosing sugar) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted November 5, 2008 Share Posted November 5, 2008 I check SG and temp daily. CA, MG, ALK every two weeks. Amm, No2, No3 maybe once a month. I have salifert kits ususally but I will be try a new kit for MG soon. I also have a Tetra kit that I use to double check test every so often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrgreenthumb Posted November 5, 2008 Share Posted November 5, 2008 ph and temp daily no3, po4, dkh, Ca and salinity monthly I check mg about every 6 months, doesn't fluctuate so i see no need for regular testing. I used to check weekly, even daily when i was first getting my ca and no3 reactor up and running, but now that things are dialed in a have switched to monthly. I use salifert test kits, and may switch to elos......i'll give you an answer to a question you didn't ask and tell you the params i shoot for. No3 .5ppm, Ph 8.3, Temp 77, po4 0ppm, dkh 9, Ca 420ppm, and salinity 35ppt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted November 5, 2008 Share Posted November 5, 2008 I check SG and temp daily. CA, MG, ALK every two weeks. Amm, No2, No3 maybe once a month. I have salifert kits ususally but I will be try a new kit for MG soon. I also have a Tetra kit that I use to double check test every so often. Heres what I shoot for: 1.025 SG 76-77 temp. 400-425 CA 1400-1500 MG 8-10 ALK 0 Amm., No2, No3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puntific Posted November 11, 2008 Author Share Posted November 11, 2008 OK, my Alk and Mg test kit came today. Ca Aquarium Pharm Inc kit: 320ppm Mg Salifert kit: not yet tested <------ 900! hmmm. I think I will start here. Alk Salifert kit: 10.2 dKH 1.215 SG NO3 red sea kit: 10 ppm PO4 Salifert kit: 0.25 ppm pH Red Sea kit: 8.3 So it seems to me that my Ca is low and my Alk is high. What's the suggestion? I have not run my Ca reactor in over 2 years. I just bought Ca(OH)2 for making kalkwasser. Also, clearly my NO3 is too high. I have done two water changes and have started Vodka. I'm also raising my SG gradually. It dropped over 6 months or a year while I didn't pay enough attention. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefhut Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 ph and temp daily no3, po4, dkh, Ca and salinity monthly I check mg about every 6 months, doesn't fluctuate so i see no need for regular testing. I used to check weekly, even daily when i was first getting my ca and no3 reactor up and running, but now that things are dialed in a have switched to monthly. I use salifert test kits, and may switch to elos......i'll give you an answer to a question you didn't ask and tell you the params i shoot for. No3 .5ppm, Ph 8.3, Temp 77, po4 0ppm, dkh 9, Ca 420ppm, and salinity 35ppt ...for those trying to figure out the "salinty 35ppt" ppt = Parts Per Table spoon. Just kidding! But I've never heard of anyone measureing salinity like that and it struck me funny....just a joke not trying to affend anyone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puntific Posted November 11, 2008 Author Share Posted November 11, 2008 ...for those trying to figure out the "salinty 35ppt" ppt = Parts Per Table spoon. Just kidding! But I've never heard of anyone measureing salinity like that and it struck me funny....just a joke not trying to affend anyone lower case t is teaspoon... should have spent more time in home ec... DOH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missionsix66 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Hey folks, The question of the day is... two parts... 1. What parameters to you routinely test for? Alkalinity, Calcium and Magnesium. 2. How often? Really depends on the alk reading. If this seems to change or, won't stabilize I go to magnesium. 3. What brand of test kit do you like for each test? (I lied about the two parts...) Scott My parameters are as follows. SG 1.025 Temp. 82 deg. Ca-450 Mg-1440 Parameters edited 11/04 Kh-9 PH 8.3 Nh3-0 No2-0 No3-0 Po4-0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 1.I test for calcium,alkalinity,phosphates,ph and magnesium 2.ph and temp allways displayed on my controller, calicum,alk,phos...every week magnesium....every month 3.I use API for cal,alk and sailfert for the rest My perameters are temp 79-80 ph 8.3 cal 460 dkh 8 mg 1400 po4 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted November 13, 2008 Share Posted November 13, 2008 PH,Temp, ORP displayed on controller Weekly for Alk, Salinity When I'm bored Phos,Calcium,magn Test Kits, Tunze for Alk and Cal, Salifert for the rest (which IMO are worthless) Parameters Temp 77.5-79.5 PH 7.9-8.2 (maintained by kalk thru reactor) Alk 9-10 dkh Calcium 410 Mg 1400 Salinity 1.025 - refractometer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puntific Posted November 13, 2008 Author Share Posted November 13, 2008 PH,Temp, ORP displayed on controller Weekly for Alk, Salinity When I'm bored Phos,Calcium,magn Test Kits, Tunze for Alk and Cal, Salifert for the rest (which IMO are worthless) Parameters Temp 77.5-79.5 PH 7.9-8.2 (maintained by kalk thru reactor) Alk 9-10 dkh Calcium 410 Mg 1400 Salinity 1.025 - refractometer Salifert is worthless or testing for anything else is worthless? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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