Not as slam-dunk as you might think.
When they say 'teaspoon' or 'tablespoon' it's NOT one from the silverware drawer: it's a special spoon (comes in a set) that has a flat edge. When you fill it, level it with a knife or stiff piece of something scraped across it. Now you have a teaspoon official measure. You can also find calculators online that will convert any dry or liquid measure into another kind of measure. Eg, 3 teaspoons make one tablespoon. You don't have to remember these conversions: the question 'teaspoons to tablespoons' will google the answer.
Same thing with cups, quarts, gallons. Go for the line, on a marked cup. On a flat-topped cup, use a cardboard piece or knife to level it. A measuring cup has marks on it; or there will be a set of flat-topped cups that are specific as to size. We are not talking about teacups or coffee mugs.
For jobs that have to be done repeatedly, like saltwater mixing, get some dedicated plastic containers and magic marker. Mark your desired precise gallonage on the water container: I need 32 gallons, so I bought an outsized Brute trashcan and marked the 32 gallon level. How did I determine it? I hand-filled it once, and counted. NOW I have the mark and don't need to count gallons again. Same with the salt. Measure out the salt that doses that volume of water---whatever your typical water change is---into ONE container that will hold that amount, and mark it with magic marker. Permanent. Hereafter, hit one mark with the salt, one mark with the water, pour salt into the water, turn on the mixing pump, and viola! 24 hours later, you're good to go. It took a little time the first time, and saved you bunches of time and aggravation forever. (my own 32 gallon water tank takes 1 gallon of reef salt to produce 1.024 salinity.)
Re syringe measurements: count the LIQUID in the syringe, plus the airbubble your test syringe says is ok, and do not count the plunger. If you use Salifert tests this will make perfect sense. The measure in these is usually in milliliters, ie, thousands of a liter. Metric system.
Hope that helps.
When they say 'teaspoon' or 'tablespoon' it's NOT one from the silverware drawer: it's a special spoon (comes in a set) that has a flat edge. When you fill it, level it with a knife or stiff piece of something scraped across it. Now you have a teaspoon official measure. You can also find calculators online that will convert any dry or liquid measure into another kind of measure. Eg, 3 teaspoons make one tablespoon. You don't have to remember these conversions: the question 'teaspoons to tablespoons' will google the answer.
Same thing with cups, quarts, gallons. Go for the line, on a marked cup. On a flat-topped cup, use a cardboard piece or knife to level it. A measuring cup has marks on it; or there will be a set of flat-topped cups that are specific as to size. We are not talking about teacups or coffee mugs.
For jobs that have to be done repeatedly, like saltwater mixing, get some dedicated plastic containers and magic marker. Mark your desired precise gallonage on the water container: I need 32 gallons, so I bought an outsized Brute trashcan and marked the 32 gallon level. How did I determine it? I hand-filled it once, and counted. NOW I have the mark and don't need to count gallons again. Same with the salt. Measure out the salt that doses that volume of water---whatever your typical water change is---into ONE container that will hold that amount, and mark it with magic marker. Permanent. Hereafter, hit one mark with the salt, one mark with the water, pour salt into the water, turn on the mixing pump, and viola! 24 hours later, you're good to go. It took a little time the first time, and saved you bunches of time and aggravation forever. (my own 32 gallon water tank takes 1 gallon of reef salt to produce 1.024 salinity.)
Re syringe measurements: count the LIQUID in the syringe, plus the airbubble your test syringe says is ok, and do not count the plunger. If you use Salifert tests this will make perfect sense. The measure in these is usually in milliliters, ie, thousands of a liter. Metric system.
Hope that helps.
