High Kh and salifert test kit...Randy!!!!!

[WessB]

I am starting to believe more and more that my test kit HAS to be bad. I have the salifert KH/alk kit, I have had this kit for maybe 4 - 6 weeks. Since I started using it my readings have been very high like 16 DKH. I run a coralife Ca reactor, which has had the Co2 turned off for more than a week now ( water still flowing through it tho ) I have done some 4 or so 10 gal. water changes in the last 2 weeks and I am still reading 15 DKH...Is this even possible??? Calcium is holding it`s own at around 450 and doesn`t appear to be lowering, but I`m not as concerned with that number. Total system is around 120 gal, runing ozone and Ca reactor, fuge with cheato and caulerpa...temp around 78Ã"šÃ‚° Ph at 8.2...zeros on ammo nitrite, nitrate, Mg is right around 1300...I use Crystal seas bioassay salt, any ideas as my corals are NOT looking real happy lately. From all I have read from your posts it should have dropped on its own ar at least after all of the water changes, I did 2 10 gal changes in 2 days and still read high.
Thanks in advance..

Wess

 

[Habib]

I would test the water change water for alkalinity. If that has a normal value then the use of the reactor might have pushed the alkalinity (especially if the calcium value was low initially).

 

[WessB]

It turns out that the test kit is in fact bad. I just returned from a LFS to have them test my readings, turns out, they were just unpacking a brand new shipment of Salifert test kits. I bought a new kh/alk kit and we tested my water right there. I knew immediately something was wrong as the bottle of KH-Ind that I had in the first kit is a deep dark green color, and the same stuff in the new kit is blue....Anyway, the new kit measured in at 10.4 dKH so that makes me feel a little better. Based on the info you provided about your occupation I would like to pm you.

Wess

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I would try the two kits side by side before concluding one isn't functioning correctly. I'm sure Habib will help you figure out what, if anything, went wrong, but the color of the indicator itself is not necessarily evidence that one of the kits was malfunctioning.

 

[WessB]

I just did the tests as you suggested, my original ( which I believe to be bad ) read a dKH of 14.7. Using the same sample jar of tank water I then repeated with the new test kit and it resulted in a dKH of 10.9...I would love some help in determining which to believe. I personally want to trust the new one obviously.

Wess

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I don't know of an easy way to tell which, if either is accurate, except perhaps checking anew batch of IO salt and assuming it is typical (about 11 dKH).

Habib should be able to walk you through the kits and see if one might have some issue that he can discern.

 

[Habib]

Wess,

I sent you pm.

Besides the pm, could you run a test using both kits but using the testvial of the newer kit (the one giving the lower reading).

I would like to exclude a vial contamination by another reagent.

 

[WessB]

I did this test.....used my original tesk kit and used only the vial from the newer kit.....dKh read 14.6. That would "appear" to eliminate the vial as the culprit.

PS....Thanks for all your interest and resolution to this situation.