|
|
|
11/27/2012, 10:28 PM
|
#1 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 274
|
Which test is accurate??
So ive tested my nitrates with an API kit, a salifert kit, and with test strips. API is coming in at 40, salifert and 25, and strips 30ish (clearly between 20 and 40). Which one do you think is most accurate?
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 10:32 PM
|
#2 |
|
-RT * ln(k)
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Little Rock
Posts: 9,705
|
Those numbers are all within testing noise. Your nitrates are somewhere between 20 and 40. You need to work to bring it down no matter which one of those numbers you pick.
__________________
David Current Tank: Undergoing reconstruction... |
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 10:32 PM
|
#3 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Ahwatukee
Posts: 601
|
I don't trust API. I prefer Red Sea. Never used the other two so I can't speak about them.
__________________
180 DT peninsula with 90 gallon sump. Three Radion Pro's and two Tunze 6105's. bubble magus curve7 and two Jager 300 watt heaters. Temp probe, PH probe and ORP probe. ATS. Mag5 return. BRS dose for CA |
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 10:37 PM
|
#4 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 274
|
Yes Ive been doing 10% water changes weekly to bring them down! I just dont know which test I should be relying on most haha
|
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 10:40 PM
|
#5 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 274
|
also by 10% i meant 20%
|
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 11:00 PM
|
#6 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 1,803
|
All things being equal, a 10% water change would bring nitrates down 10%. Ten percent of 40 ppm nitrate is a drop in the bucket and won't even matter by the next time you do water change. Ten percent is basic water change maintenance, not a reactive solution to nitrate reduction. You would have to do some very large (40-50 percent) water changes on consecutive days to bring them down to anything you could see a difference when testing.
__________________
72x26x24, custom sump, BK SM 200, 4 Vortech MP40s, 1 Tunze 6105, (3) 250 Watt Radiums in Lumenmax Elite Reflectors, Galaxy ballasts, (2) 60" Super Actinic VHOs, 2 Kessil a150s, Apex controlled. Current Tank Info: Currently in reboot mode |
|
|
|
|
11/27/2012, 11:46 PM
|
#7 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2,037
|
Not the strips. Also for most accurate reading test in the morning. Readings can change from daily tank activity.
|
|
|
|
|
11/28/2012, 09:12 AM
|
#8 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Washington State
Posts: 1,746
|
API is far more accurate than salifert when you are high in nitrates. API is not accurate at all <10PPM. API is great for FOWLR salifert is designed for <10 ppm nitrates. So for a reef Salifert will be better. Not sure on the test strips, there was a great thread on this issue years ago but I can't find it. A member purchased six different kits along with a probe and compared all of them at three different levels. Salifert was significantly lower on nitrates over 20ppm. API was always at zero at the lower levels (very difficult to tell the difference in 0 and 5)
|
|
|
|
|
11/28/2012, 09:14 AM
|
#9 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Albany, NY
Posts: 1,934
|
It depends on the tester and his\her eyes and interpretation of colors....
__________________
SALINITY NOW.... |
|
|
|
|
11/28/2012, 09:15 AM
|
#10 |
|
Registered Member
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Wichita KS
Posts: 2,621
|
I use Salifert kits. Not perfect but they seem to be accurate enough. The key is to use the same end point every time and accept the results as long as they are reasonable. The question I try to answer when testing is not what the exact number is but whether the value is higher, lower, or about the same.
I'd go with the 25 ppm reading from the Salifert kit and proceed based on that reading.
__________________
John, Current Tank Info: In-process, 90 Gallon SPS Reef |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
