Reliable test kits

[noobtothereef]

Im getting ready to put rock, sand and water into my 120 and need some advice, i will need to purchase some reliable test kits for the following
-calcium
-alk
-mg
-ph
-phosphate
-nitrate
-nitrite
-ammonia

what are the better test kits that are reliable? Did i miss any test kits that i will need? It will be for a mixed reef, zoo's, sps,lps etc...

[HighlandReefer]

IMHO, you will need a refractometer for your salinity measurement and a dual calibrating pH meter instead of a pH kit. Swing arm hydrometers and pH test kits are notoriously inaccurate. ;)

[bertoni]

The basics are temperature, salinity, and ammonia while getting the tank going. Lots of people have reported inaccurate thermometers, so I ended up getting a calibrated unit. A refractometer or a conductivity meter are fine for salinity.

After the tank is running, alkalinity and pH measurement can be critical. I prefer a meter for pH, but some kits are okay. I have used Salifert and IO kits successfully.

If you want to grow corals, calcium and magnesium kits are needed. I've used Salifert for magnesium, and IO and Salifert for calcium.

Phosphate and nitrate kits can be useful for trouble shooting or getting ready for touchy corals like Acropora. I don't bother with nitrite unless the tank is showing a lot of nitrate, because nitrite can confuse nitrate test kits.

[noobtothereef]

IMHO, you will need a refractometer for your salinity measurement and a dual calibrating pH meter instead of a pH kit. Swing arm hydrometers and pH test kits are notoriously inaccurate. ;)

i allready have a refractometer, and on the ph meter, im going to use a test kit for now until i get my aquacontroller which comes with a ph probe

[noobtothereef]

The basics are temperature, salinity, and ammonia while getting the tank going. Lots of people have reported inaccurate thermometers, so I ended up getting a calibrated unit. A refractometer or a conductivity meter are fine for salinity.

After the tank is running, alkalinity and pH measurement can be critical. I prefer a meter for pH, but some kits are okay. I have used Salifert and IO kits successfully.

If you want to grow corals, calcium and magnesium kits are needed. I've used Salifert for magnesium, and IO and Salifert for calcium.

Phosphate and nitrate kits can be useful for trouble shooting or getting ready for touchy corals like Acropora. I don't bother with nitrite unless the tank is showing a lot of nitrate, because nitrite can confuse nitrate test kits.

yes i will be keeping corals like mentioned above, i know what test kits i need im just looking for the better brands of test kits. I will check out the saliferts

[bertoni]

There's lots of opinions on test kits, and lots of bad experiences, which is one reason I am hesitant to get very dogmatic about which kits are best.

[sedor]

I agree the debates can become endless. IMO use something cheap like API for your basics such as ammonia, nitrite, and even nitrate. Then spend your $ on a quality test kit for the measurements you will be taking more often. How do you know what a quality kit is? Generally speaking, the more expensive brands are better quality. In this hobby this is generally the case.

[noobtothereef]

heres a little comparison between elos and salifert
im going to base my decisions on these comparisons of accuracy and also user revies

price tests per kit accuracy to ppm
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
mg elos $28 50 100ppm
mg salifert $26 50 30ppm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ca elos $30 40-50 25ppm
ca salifert $26 50-100 10ppm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
alk elos $18 60 1dkh
alk salifert $15 100-200 .1ppm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ph elos $18 ? .2 ph
ph salifert $14 50 .1ph
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
phos elos $28 ? .01ppm
phos salifert $25 60 .01ppm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
nitrate elos $28 ? 5ppm
nitrate salifert $20 50 .2ppm
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
nitrite elos $25 ? .02ppm
nitrite salifert $16 50 .002ppm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
amonia elos $30 ? .05ppm
amonia salifert $18 50 .25ppm

[noobtothereef]

im thinking of going with the salifert kits

[money_kirk]

I use elos for mag and calcium and lamotte for alk. Never had a problem with them.

[elosusa]

Not sure on the salifert but some of your chart is incorrect/outdated information for the Elos kits. I am sure you pulled those from a site that is selling the products but I just wanted to clarify. Hope this helps.
Mg- 50ppm
Ca- 10ppm
kh- 0.5 dkh
PO4- 0.05
NO3- 1ppm
NH4- 0.1

[noobtothereef]

hey thank you for updating that info for me, nice to have sponsors actually answer posts on here, thanks again!

[RickMartin]

What type of tank are you going to set up?
Personally I would skip buying ammonia, nitrite, phosphate and possibly mag test kits. If the live rock is cured then you really dont need the first two. Phosphate tests are basicly useless, use your eyes, if you have to scrape green algae off the front of your tank more than twice a week, you have phosphates and need to change your sponge. If you are going to use the 2 part suppliment then until you have a lot of coraline algae growth, that and water changes should keep your magnesium levels in a good range.

I am using the salifert tests for alk and ca and the calcium test shows the same reading I get in the first step of the Mg test from tropic marin.

Easiest tests are the best, because then you are more likely to actually do them

[vegaskid11]

As Rick says, I dont think ammonia is an expense you need. Use your LFS for that test while your tank cycles. Once cycling is comlete, you will very rarely need that test again. The test kits I use most often are Alkalinity, Calcium and Nitrate.

Not sure on the salifert but some of your chart is incorrect/outdated information for the Elos kits. I am sure you pulled those from a site that is selling the products but I just wanted to clarify. Hope this helps.
Mg- 50ppm
Ca- 10ppm
kh- 0.5 dkh
PO4- 0.05
NO3- 1ppm
NH4- 0.1

Wow Elos responds quick in this forum but has yet to respond to direct questions regarding there alk kit posted weeks ago in there own forum.

[bertoni]

I recommend keeping an ammonia kit on hand in case of problems. Ammonia is highly toxic, so it's important to know whether some disruption has caused a spike. I keep Amquel on hand, for the same reason.

Phosphate can be useful for diagnosing some sorts of problems with stony corals, since it can inhibit growth directly. Algal growth isn't always a useful indicator for that. Likewise, low magnesium can cause problems, although that's uncommon.

[vegaskid11]

Bertoni, how long would you say an Ammonia kit would be good for past its expiration date?

[bertoni]

I'd pitch it on the expiration date. If my memory is correct, the Salifert kit was good for a number of years, for example. If you want to push it, you could try testing the kit by checking a sample of RO/DI water. Most ammonia kits seem to fail by detecting ammonia in everything.

[vegaskid11]

Thank you.

[bertoni]

You're welcome!

[noobtothereef]

Not have an amonia test? This isn't my first tank, just my first tank and I do know how toxic amonia is, the tank is going to be mainy stony corals, zooanthids etc, and I will be dosing brs calc, alk, and mg so I will need the test kits for that, when I finish setting up the tank I would like to see the tank cycle by testing the ammonia levels, the the nitites and then the nitrates so I am 100 percent sure it is cycled and also so I can watch those parameters when I introduce new livestock, I don't want to be that guy that's not ready for something when something goes wrong, if there is any remote chance that I will need a test kit I'm want to have it on hand, along with different meds, quarantine tank, and a seeded sponge filter sitting in my sump waiting for a fish that might need quarantined, I don't want a tank with ridiculous algea and cyano blooms like some get, it can all be avoided by testing water param's and taking action accordingly, the question in my first post was what are the better quality test kits, not what ones do I need as I allready know what I need to test for, thanks.