Mr.Fishtank
New member
So i'm a bit confused about Aquamedics results vs my own. I own a few different test kits for each of the main parameters. Two hanna checkers. The normal phosphate and the phosphorous url. Two redsea no3 kits and an api kit.Also use redsea for mag and cal. Alk is tested with hanna. All kits are newish and don't expire till the end of this year.
The results i'm having issues with are no3 and po4. All other kits are testing great and are close to AWT's results. So below is ATW's results that I just got in today.
AWT's TEST --------------------------------------------------------- MINE
04-03-2017 Ammonia (NH3-4)Good 0 ----------------------- Don't test for often
04-03-2017 Nitrite (NO2) Good 0.006 ----------------------- Don't test for often
04-03-2017 Phosphate (PO4) Good 0.24 ----------------------- URL=.002 Normal checker=.03
04-03-2017 Nitrate (NO3) Good 13 ----------------------- Redsea=2 API=undetecable
04-03-2017 Silica (Sio2-3) Good 0.3
04-03-2017 Potassium (K) Good 366 ----------------------- Buying test kit
04-03-2017 Ionic Calcium (Ca)Good 167
04-03-2017 Boron (B) NA
04-03-2017 Molybdenum (Mo)Good 0.3 ----------------------- Why so high? Always test high
04-03-2017 Strontium (Sr) Good 8
04-03-2017 Magnesium (Mg) Good 1260 ----------------------- Redsea=1240
04-03-2017 Iodine (I) Good 0.08 ----------------------- Buying test kit
04-03-2017 Copper (Cu) Good 0.06
04-03-2017 Alkalinity (meq/L)Good 2.6 ----------------------- Hanna 7.2dkh always reliable
04-03-2017 Total Calcium (Ca)High 470 ----------------------- Red sea 450-460 hard to tell
04-03-2017 Iron (Fe) NA
The reason i'm trying to figure this out is every time no matter what kit I use my no3 and po4 test low. But yet ATW alway has a much higher reading. Are all of my nutrient test kits crap? I have very little to no algae in the tank. Clean the glass every two to three days. Perform 15-20% wc every week. I also dose a very small amount of nopox. (2ml per day)
How accurate do you all think these labs are?
Should I try and lower my p04 even tho my kits will probably test 0 as soon as I put it in the tank.?LOL
Also, I should say that my sps do look a little on the brown side. But thought that once my kits were reading low that it was light related. Have raised par about 50 to each coral and hasn't made a difference in color. Growth has gone up some tho. Any suggestions/thoughts welcome.
Thanks
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