Yes, I agree the color variance is very difficult. Looking through the side on the Salifert you have to take that reading/number and divide by 10. Yesterday mine was just above the 25 color mark; which is actually 2.5 +/-. I ordered the kit yesterday from MD and it usually takes 3-5 days to get to the east coast. I will post late next week. I am hoping the color variation is more distinctive than Salifert; which is about the only thing I like about API.
The best Nitrate Test Kit
- Thread starter tegee
- Start date
Billybeau1
Premium Member
Well, the only problem with API is once you get below 20 ppm or so, it is very difficult to distinguish the actual reading. I like it for high range testing though.
I think I'll get a fresh API, a Salifert, an Elos and a Seachem (why I do not know) :lol:. I've already got a Red Sea and a Sera. That is six brands. I'll have to pass on the LaMotte as the price is a bit much for me to swallow at this time. I really do not want to get into any nitrate kits that come in multi packs.
I think I'll get a fresh API, a Salifert, an Elos and a Seachem (why I do not know) :lol:. I've already got a Red Sea and a Sera. That is six brands. I'll have to pass on the LaMotte as the price is a bit much for me to swallow at this time. I really do not want to get into any nitrate kits that come in multi packs.
rsuplido
Member
+1 on LaMotte. Yes you have to multiply by 4.4 but it can measure down to to 1.1 (0.25 x 4.4) ppm. The kit sounds expensive at $57 but you can actually buy refills for about $23 (~50 tests).
Note however that the last step of test includes waiting for 10 minutes. This is why I test for Nitrate first and test for others on the wait-for-10-minutes stage.
Btw, if you are doing the vodka thing, I've managed to get Nitrates down to less than 4.4 ppm but never to 1.1 ppm. I can't even reach 2.2 ppm.
Note however that the last step of test includes waiting for 10 minutes. This is why I test for Nitrate first and test for others on the wait-for-10-minutes stage.
Btw, if you are doing the vodka thing, I've managed to get Nitrates down to less than 4.4 ppm but never to 1.1 ppm. I can't even reach 2.2 ppm.
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+1 and they have refills
LMAO! This is what I do as well. I test nitrate, then alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium...then I read nitrate, then test phosphate.
Yep, refills are about $20/each....tough to beat on price and very easy to read. Low range from a quality company....you can take all the rest and test them all you want, I know I have a great test kit that not many know about or use...no biggie that it isn't super popular to me either
Interesting observation. My experience with vodka,is the same. \It holds nitrates in the sub 5ppm range but not much lower. Maybe it would if I dosed more but more than 24ml per day of 550g gives me too much mulm and stringy bacteria.
No, and I do not want to dose unless absolutely necessary. I may consider it in the future though if nitrates do not improve.
:fun2:No I seem to have plenty.
Billybeau1
Premium Member
Yep, refills are about $20/each....tough to beat on price and very easy to read. Low range from a quality company....you can take all the rest and test them all you want, I know I have a great test kit that not many know about or use...no biggie that it isn't super popular to me either
I perform these tests and publish them to educate our members who have little experience with these products. I'm glad you have satisfaction with your product. This, like so many other products, has its pluses and minuses. Popularity has nothing to do with my testing as I have no affiliation with ANY company that sells products to our members. I simply try and provide our members with a snapshot of what they can expect before spending bucks & bucks on products that they may or may not need. Lord knows, this hobby is expensive enough already.
You'd be surprised how many questions we get on which test kit is the best. Kinda like which salt mix is the best, or which carbon is the best, or which GFO is the best. The list goes on and on.
I went ahead and purchased a LaMotte kit for my study and am looking forward to the results. I, personally, do not mind spending a extra few dollars for a product IF it is worth it. We shall see.
The only reason I decided to do this test is because of all of the vodka threads out there and the necessity to monitor nitrate levels while dosing. Otherwise, IMO, nitrate levels should only be tested every now and then in an established aquarium.
How long you guys been dosing vodka ?
Billybeau1
Premium Member
I just started a few days ago. I tried it once before but became very negative because my fish got skiddish and I panicked and stopped. Turns out I was dosing way too much initially so I am trying it again with the dosage recommended by a recent article in Reefkeeping Magazine.
reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php
I am on day 4 and keeping records of all parameters and dosing.
My thanks to Dave for waking up an old man.
reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php
I am on day 4 and keeping records of all parameters and dosing.
My thanks to Dave for waking up an old man.
I just started a few days ago. I tried it once before but became very negative because my fish got skiddish and I panicked and stopped. Turns out I was dosing way too much initially so I am trying it again with the dosage recommended by a recent article in Reefkeeping Magazine.
reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php
I am on day 4 and keeping records of all parameters and dosing.
My thanks to Dave for waking up an old man.
Iam just thinking of the effect that TMZ and Tegee are having dosing Vodka and not getting to lower there nitrate lower than 1.1
Could needing a source of a bacteria will help to lower these parameters or skimming wet, control fedding
Maybe they have big fishes that poop to much and could be the effect of not getting lower nitrates
Also Billy correct me if iam wrong the Lamotte test kits reads Nitrates Nitrogen thats the last process of nitrates
so the reading will be the lowest side of the nitrate
Billybeau1
Premium Member
With hobby grade test kits, If one could actually measure 1 ppm of nitrate, I'd say that is about as good as it gets. I'm sure most reefers would be very happy with 1 ppm nitrate.
I do not think adding any extra bacteria would be beneficial to a tank.
On the LaMotte, yes it reads NO<sub>3</sub> -N and not NO<sub>3</sub>.
So if you measure 0.25 ppm (which I understand is the lowest reading), you would multiply that result by 4.4 to get your actual nitrate reading. In this case 1.1 ppm.
In any case, if your nitrates are that low, I suspect you have nothing to worry about.
I do not think adding any extra bacteria would be beneficial to a tank.
On the LaMotte, yes it reads NO<sub>3</sub> -N and not NO<sub>3</sub>.
So if you measure 0.25 ppm (which I understand is the lowest reading), you would multiply that result by 4.4 to get your actual nitrate reading. In this case 1.1 ppm.
In any case, if your nitrates are that low, I suspect you have nothing to worry about.
I want to reenforce that I have not tried dosing vodka and I am trying like heck to not at this point for the simple fact I just do not want to dose another product until I get my nitrates under control. I have upgraded my skimmer, added a fuge with chaeto and trying to feed very judicially. I am not against vodka, but want to try to attack it at this level for know. The purpose of the nitrate test kit issue is I have not been lucky with consistent reading from Saifert and API in a comparison and needed to know about others out there that may be more accurate. I have purchased an Elos and will compare all three and report back asap. Unfortunately MD on the west coast takes forever to ship to NY and I am hopeful to have by weeks end.
Hope this helped.......
Oh yeah my bad it was rsuplido and TMZ
Anyway tegee I think nobody has gotten to ULN just using chaeto and a fuge as chaeto and fuge will absorbe some nutrients but you have to be cleaning it constantly , and doing weekly water changes to help it
With hobby grade test kits, If one could actually measure 1 ppm of nitrate, I'd say that is about as good as it gets. I'm sure most reefers would be very happy with 1 ppm nitrate.
I do not think adding any extra bacteria would be beneficial to a tank.
On the LaMotte, yes it reads NO3 -N and not NO3.
So if you measure 0.25 ppm (which I understand is the lowest reading), you would multiply that result by 4.4 to get your actual nitrate reading. In this case 1.1 ppm.
In any case, if your nitrates are that low, I suspect you have nothing to worry about.
I think this is the lower we could get with any carbon source system to reading more clear than the color chart as i have tested and still do with the lamotte test kit getting lower to the color of the chart
On the bacteria. Adding more bacteria wont it benefit to lower more nutrients cause adding more vodka will only give you more of a carbon source but if there is a limited group of bacteria and not the enough of them What will consume the extra carbon source ?
Anyway tegee I think nobody has gotten to ULN just using chaeto and a fuge as chaeto and fuge will absorbe some nutrients but you have to be cleaning it constantly , and doing weekly water changes to help it
With hobby grade test kits, If one could actually measure 1 ppm of nitrate, I'd say that is about as good as it gets. I'm sure most reefers would be very happy with 1 ppm nitrate.
I do not think adding any extra bacteria would be beneficial to a tank.
On the LaMotte, yes it reads NO3 -N and not NO3.
So if you measure 0.25 ppm (which I understand is the lowest reading), you would multiply that result by 4.4 to get your actual nitrate reading. In this case 1.1 ppm.
In any case, if your nitrates are that low, I suspect you have nothing to worry about.
I think this is the lower we could get with any carbon source system to reading more clear than the color chart as i have tested and still do with the lamotte test kit getting lower to the color of the chart
On the bacteria. Adding more bacteria wont it benefit to lower more nutrients cause adding more vodka will only give you more of a carbon source but if there is a limited group of bacteria and not the enough of them What will consume the extra carbon source ?
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I know about feeding and wet skimming. I have plenty of fish poop with over 40 fish in the 550gallon system along with plenty of mixed corals including sps. .If I didn't or wanted to have skinny fish or less fish I wouldn't need to dose carbon and could manage quite well with more conventional methods alone and wouldchoose them first. I have been dosing vodka/vinegar for over 9 months this time and logged every day. I tried it for about 6 months 4 years ago as well.
I don't think dosing bacteria is necessary .There are plenty of viable bacteria in the tank. What particular strains of bacteria are you dosing btw?
I don't think 0ppm nitrate is necessary Nor are pricey nitrogen supplements employed in the so called ulns systems. If I did I could get to 0ppm nitrates faster by putting my sulfur denitraor back on line. I do not want to dose more than the 24ml of vodka daily because I don't want more harmful extra organic carbon in the tank wether it's free ethanol, acetic acid, glucose.etc or in the bacteria that consumed it. I do not believe that wet skimming alone will export it all.
Anyway,this whole vodka discussion is better left to one the many vodka threads since I don't wan't to participate in hijacking this thread beyond politely answereing your questions and responding to statements about my methods.
So Billy, I'm looking for ward to your test results on NO3 test kits. Glad you took this on.
I cant see why not dosing any other bacteria to the systems are not need as looking to Sunnys thread and his great tank and the succes he has have dosing vodka with bacteria strains. Bacterias has there depredators also so they will tend to disbalance one way an other. Thats the reason i think you should dose more bacteria. Because it will add to your exsisten population and lower more your nutrients with you current vodka dosing
Anyway looking to see how the Billys no3 test come out with the diffrent brands i think lamotte will come out good on the test and easy color chart to determine the amount of nitrates
But maybe bad on the process of waiting time. Witch I dont consider it bad
Anyway looking to see how the Billys no3 test come out with the diffrent brands i think lamotte will come out good on the test and easy color chart to determine the amount of nitrates
But maybe bad on the process of waiting time. Witch I dont consider it bad
Eggiel, My tanks are doing fine. Dose bacteria to your tanks if you want.
What particular stains bacteria do you think are better than others and how do you know those in a commercial product are better or different than those in your system? Why should they be? There are plenty of heterotrophic bacteria in my reef system as in most via livestock , rock, etc. Most of which comes from natural bacetrial habitats.
Dosing a commercial concoction to a cycled system won't decrease nutrients unless you dose more carbon for them to consume along with the nitrogen and phosphorous. The basis for carbon dosing is an assumption that a tank is organic carbon limited relative to phosphorous and nitrogen content thus slowing the growth of heterotrophic bacteria. When you add more organic carbon bacteria grow until carbon, nitrogen or phosphorous are limited by consumption and export. Just adding more bacteria will not result in more consumption since there is inadequate organic carbon for the bacteria already there. Adding more organic carbon alone will result in N an P reduction.
As for diversity of bacteria , that has to do with the variety of carbon sources(ethanol, acetic acid, ascorbic acid, glucose, commercial mixes,etc.) since certain strains of bacteria prefer different types of carbon sources and may get an edge or disadvantage if a single type of carbon is dosed..
I'm not totally opposed to adding some proven bacterial strains that would remain viable but I don't think that's the case at all with most if not all commercial products. if it was you wouldn't have to keep dosing them.
Finally, I would not ever tell you what to do with your tank unless you asked and expect the same courtesy.
What particular stains bacteria do you think are better than others and how do you know those in a commercial product are better or different than those in your system? Why should they be? There are plenty of heterotrophic bacteria in my reef system as in most via livestock , rock, etc. Most of which comes from natural bacetrial habitats.
Dosing a commercial concoction to a cycled system won't decrease nutrients unless you dose more carbon for them to consume along with the nitrogen and phosphorous. The basis for carbon dosing is an assumption that a tank is organic carbon limited relative to phosphorous and nitrogen content thus slowing the growth of heterotrophic bacteria. When you add more organic carbon bacteria grow until carbon, nitrogen or phosphorous are limited by consumption and export. Just adding more bacteria will not result in more consumption since there is inadequate organic carbon for the bacteria already there. Adding more organic carbon alone will result in N an P reduction.
As for diversity of bacteria , that has to do with the variety of carbon sources(ethanol, acetic acid, ascorbic acid, glucose, commercial mixes,etc.) since certain strains of bacteria prefer different types of carbon sources and may get an edge or disadvantage if a single type of carbon is dosed..
I'm not totally opposed to adding some proven bacterial strains that would remain viable but I don't think that's the case at all with most if not all commercial products. if it was you wouldn't have to keep dosing them.
Finally, I would not ever tell you what to do with your tank unless you asked and expect the same courtesy.
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