what brand is best test kit

[anthonys51]

what is the brand most people use

LaMotte Test Kits
Red Sea Test Kits
Salifert Test Kits

[anthonys51]

because my api test kit is saying i have ammonia .25 and phosphate .25 although everything is opening and tank is almost 3 months old. no nitrites or nitrates

[cloak]

Out of those three, Salifert is probably the most popular. Then Red Sea & LaMotte.

[Zacharoo]

I use Red Sea. A little spendy but is say it's worth it.

[Tzwizzle]

Ive used API and salifert. IMO API is easy and cheap. Salifert is a bit more pricey but more scientific IMO. Only complaint I have about salifert is the nitrate test is hard to read on the low end. Fyi all test kits have a level of inaccuracy. If one is in question its always good to have a different brand for a second opinion.

[whiteshark]

I've used API, Salifert and Red Sea Pro. My go to is Salifert. I have the easiest time with those kits. The color changes are obvious and the instructions are super easy to follow. The Red Sea kits aren't bad either, but are a bit more cumbersome to use. I also have Hanna checkers, and I prefer the Salifert kits to them as well.

[Fogvalley]

Red sea and nyos I like it

[whosurcaddie]

Salifert

[jrr98002]

FWIW I started out using API (didn't like) then tried Red Sea and switched to Salifert after that. No particular reason, I liked the last two both, although I do like Salifert slightly better. But that's just my personal preference. I got good results with Red Sea and Salifert both.

[d2mini]

I tend to have a preference depending on what I'm testing for.
I have never found a single brand where i prefer all their kits.

[kurfer]

I prefer Red Sea, only because their little scoop spoons are easy to level off. :)

Dem lil Salifert spoons be makin me crazy!

[Bman562]

i've had luck with both Red Sea and Salifert test kits. Can't say i prefer one over the other. Both read pretty consistent when comparing them against each other

[Cdodge1]

I like Red Sea. Comes in a sturdy kit, you can really feel the quality. Worth the extra couple bucks.

[heritage]

I tend to have a preference depending on what I'm testing for.
I have never found a single brand where i prefer all their kits.

This^^

I use Red Sea for calcium, magnesium and nitrate. Hannah for Alkalinity and phosphate ULR
Plus you can buy refill kits for the red sea and not have to buy the whole kit again.

[Cujo]

Salifert for the basics (N,P,Alk,Ca)and Red Sea for the advanced (Potassium, Iron, etc..)

[anthonys51]

thanks i just got a red sea test kit for cal, mag, ak. my numbers where a little different from the api test kit. thanks everyone for there help. just one question. when adding new lps corals to your tank. how far away for one another do you have to put them. i have a hammer coral and its about 5 inches away form this bright lime green piece (not sure of name) looks a little like an open brain with a band of tiny poylops around the rim) i had to move this piece 3 times in 4 days its been in the tank because my stupid hermits keep knocking it over. they filly knocked it to a place that seems to be its home, but its close to the hammer. i dont want to move the lime green piece, for stress reason and i can oe the hammer, but its doning well too both pieces are in the tank for 4 days. anyone got any idea. i been keeping fish both salt and fresh for over 25 years, this is my first try with reef tank thanks for the help

[Mishri]

When choosing a test kit the most important thing is accuracy. In saltwater tanks precision isn't very important.

The only way to be sure your test kit is accurate is to get a solution with a known quantity to test against. You can't compare 1 test kit to another and say, well this one must be right, it has the readings I'd expect!

I've used salifert, red sea, and api. Right now I'm using api, because I don't believe salifert is worth the cost... I still have a bunch of salifert tests I didn't use that expired (because I went 3 years without a saltwater tank) Tempted to see how far off they are...

My recommendation to test if your API is testing ammonia correctly would be to mix of a fresh batch of saltwater with RO/DI water and check ammonia in that.

3 months old.. what do you have for livestock? If you are still seeing ammonia it can be from changes in feedings/livestock/things dying on your rock. Your tank will cycle anytime there is a change in ammonia output... as the bacteria in your tank naturally dies off/grows for what is in your tank.

[anthonys51]

i will be doing a water change tonight will test that. first 6 weeks, not fish, added snails crabs, and mushroom coral. then added cutting of leather and kenya form friends tank. they havent fully opened since i put them in, but they do puff up. at 2 months i added pair of clowns. i feed then hitaki spirlianna loaded brine shrimp and mystis shrimp cubes. i melt the cube and pour a little in the tank, one cube noramlly last 4 feeding. i added a hammer and another piece last week. hammer doing great other piece ok

[coralsnaked]

So there you have it the definite choice is Salifert...no Red Sea...errr...API...but everyone knows LaMott is best because its the pricey one...

Use what you want but just be consistent and stay at the middle of the road on your parameters to account for any testing noise and you'll be fine.

[Mishri]

I like that advice coralsnaked :)

The only problem with my recommendation of using fresh mixed salt mix to test for ammonia, is what if something you are using is contaminated? the salt mix you are using is adding ammonia.. then it could be giving a true reading of .25ppm and you'll think it's wrong hehe.. so even if it tests .25, it might not be wrong. but if it tests 0, you'll have a good idea that it is correct.

[Mark426]

Used to be Salifert but Red Sea is pushing hard into their market and probably has surpassed it due to its availability in most LFS. My brand of choice is Salifert due it my long history of it providing fairly accurate measurements and familiarity. As for the most accurate, I give it to LaMotte, but some of their kits are a pain to use.

[AZRippster]

I just received the Calcium and Carbonate Hardness test kits this week. I gave them a run last night and my first impression is not good. I have used and continue to use both the Salifert and Red Sea kits. I picked up both of these new NYOS test kits more of a test to see how easy they are to use and how accurate they appear to be.

They are easy to use except the titrator that comes with the Red Sea kit makes things MUCH easier. NYOS emphasizes to continually swirl the calcium testing vial while trying to drop the final regent. To effectively do this with ease and accuracy you need one more hand. The Red Sea makes it a snap with their titrator which can also be used with other manufacturer's kits.

The carbonate hardness (alkalinity) test only provides results in full carbonate hardness degrees. In other words, when dropping the final component, 1 Drop = 1 Degree of hardness. So at the color change if you have dropped 9 drops, your alkalinity is 9. There is no way to measure increments between degrees. Not that this is a huge deal, just not as granular as other test kits.

Here is my results from last night's testing on my display tank:

NYOS Carbonate Hardness (Alkalinity) = 11, drops (Whoa, holy crap, is that right?.....)

This freaked me out so I pulled out my Salifert and it tested at 8.6. I wanted to ensure the Salifert was not off, so I ran a test using the 6.7 calibration solution. I came out with 6.5, so pretty darn close. Not looking good for NYOS.

NYOS Calcium = 500+ (It took the entire syringe, 1ml, and it still had pink in the color, especially after 30 seconds)

OK, so let's see what the Red Sea results are... 460, rock solid.
How about Salifert... a high 440.

So, your mileage may vary, but at this point both of the kits I purchased are looking like they'll expire on the shelf as I'm pretty certain they are both testing high, the alkalinity by a considerable amount. I had high hopes for these kits as I would like to find one manufacture's line I really like over all others. Right now if I were to stick with NYOS, I would continually be keeping my tank on the low side of alkalinity and calcium.

[shred5]

I use a hanna and double check with redsea test kits if something feels off.
The problem with hobby grade kits is they are not very accurate.
I always like salifert because of ease of use but will never use them again. I have had some really inconsistencies from batch to batch.. So different sometimes they could wipe out a tank.

[SLOW1]

Red sea gets my vote.

[DiscusHeckel]

Salifert (Mg, Ca, KH, K)
Elos (read it as Rowa Merck) (PO4)