Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Hello, I have a picotope with mostly lps and one sps coral. Im not seeing growth or amazing colors and Im assuming that my parameters are a bit unstable. It seems as if alkalinity is the most important thing to check so Im pondering getting the Hanna Alkalinity checker as my lone test equipment. I also have red sea ABC liquid dosing on the way so it would be ideal to get an idea of where exactly my numbers are. I change the water once weekly. Should i avoid test kits all together? Purchase just the Hanna Alkalinity checker for ultimate accuracy? Purchase the red sea Ca/Mg/Kh test kit? I will upgrade my tank in the future but id like to perfect my current situation. Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 For the price of Hanna Alkalinity checker, you can get both Salifert Alkalinity and Salifert Calcium. Definitely get test kit before you start dosing. You may find that you only need to dose Alk and not Ca or vice versa. That's why most people will recommend dosing them separately so you can control it better. I have both the Salifert tests and Red Sea tests. I like Salifert better even though instructions are pretty much the same. Link to comment
Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 Thanks. It makes sense to get multiple test kits for the price of one. I just heard that it can be difficult to get precise measurements using red sea or salifert. Hanna checker seemed more convenient honestly lol. Really considering the red sea test kit for an all in one. Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Thanks. It makes sense to get multiple test kits for the price of one. I just heard that it can be difficult to get precise measurements using red sea or salifert. Hanna checker seemed more convenient honestly lol. Really considering the red sea test kit for an all in one. I have the Hanna Phosphate Checker, and it's not great. I find the Salifert tests easier to do, but of course they are two completely different tests. I started with the Red Sea Pro Foundation kit but for some reason, I find it cumbersome to use. I can't pinpoint it though cuz the steps are same as Salifert. Maybe it's cuz the Red Sea bottles are pain to open. Forgot to mention, the reagent for Hanna is kinda expensive. Link to comment
Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 I just wanted to make sure that I wasnt wasting my time buying a test kit. I feel like I'm at the point were I need to maintain some kind of stability to improve my system as a whole. Adding the Coral Compulsion Par 30 definitely helped over the past month. Link to comment
Cruzersoul Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I personally have found it difficult to discern the colors with the Red Sea test kits and found them to be a hassle. Decided to go with Hanna, and never looked back. The Hanna tests are more expensive, but in my opinion worth every penny. They are very user friendly as well as extremely accurate. Link to comment
Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 Decisions...Decisions... I've got alot of thinking to do! I'm leaning towards the red sea test kit but I might as well be color blind when it comes to matching up colors. Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I personally have found it difficult to discern the colors with the Red Sea test kits and found them to be a hassle. Decided to go with Hanna, and never looked back. The Hanna tests are more expensive, but in my opinion worth every penny. They are very user friendly as well as extremely accurate. yes, that's it! the color change with Red Sea was very subtle. Salifert color change is easier to see. And while the general step directions are similar, Salifert is a little easier and more efficient. Their Hanna Phosphate is not that accurate...3 back to back tests give different results. Link to comment
Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 yes, that's it! the color change with Red Sea was very subtle. Salifert color change is easier to see. And while the general step directions are similar, Salifert is a little easier and more efficient. Their Hanna Phosphate is not that accurate...3 back to back tests give different results. Maybe Salifert is the way to go! Your winning me over. Link to comment
Cruzersoul Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 yes, that's it! the color change with Red Sea was very subtle. Salifert color change is easier to see. And while the general step directions are similar, Salifert is a little easier and more efficient. Their Hanna Phosphate is not that accurate...3 back to back tests give different results. I use the Hanna phosphate also, but have never experienced three different results. I will say that out of all the Hanna tests I use, phosphate is the most cumbersome due to the stupid little packets the reagent is in. As far as the test giving different results, it could be due to any number of things. From the glass being wet/dirty to their being debris in the water sample, it is extremely easy for someone, myself included, to inadvertently introduce error in some form or another. Maybe Salifert is the way to go! Your winning me over. I've heard very good things about salifert. Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 I use the Hanna phosphate also, but have never experienced three different results. I will say that out of all the Hanna tests I use, phosphate is the most cumbersome due to the stupid little packets the reagent is in. As far as the test giving different results, it could be due to any number of things. From the glass being wet/dirty to their being debris in the water sample, it is extremely easy for someone, myself included, to inadvertently introduce error in some form or another. Yes, i think that's why i hate the hanna phosphate checker because of the packets. It's hard to know that i have emptied out the entire content of the packet. The Hanna Alk doesn't have packets so OP should disregard my opinion of Hanna =P. Link to comment
Brayreef Posted February 5, 2015 Author Share Posted February 5, 2015 I think I'm going to give Salfert a shot. I can get two different test kits for the price of one Hanna checker. I'm a broke college student and Hanna might be out of my price range at the moment. Thanks for the input. Link to comment
Admonition Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 The Hannah Alkalinity checker is a breeze to use and I have never had an issue with it. Out of all their checkers I highly recommend it and it's aquarist reviewed as their best checker. I have the ULR Phosphorous checker (not phosphate) and I haven't had any issues. I also have their calcium checker and I do NOT recommend it. The calcium checker has wildly different results and is extremely frustrating. That being said, don't let the reagent packets scare you, they are very simple to cut open and pour in. As far as other kits, I've used Red Sea for calcium and I find the color change hard to distinguish (I'm also partly color blind). I just tried the Salifert Calcium test and I love it, the color change is very apparent. All that aside, make sure you test for anything you dose Link to comment
jservedio Posted February 10, 2015 Share Posted February 10, 2015 Honestly, in a pico as long as salinity is good and your ASW's parameters are spot on, you don't need to test anything except salinity. If you are changing your water regularly and doing big water changes (as you should be with your pico), there will never be a need to test anything since you will never be more than a couple of a weeks from totally new water and it's perfect paramters. My pico was set up in October or 2013 and to this day I have never once tested anything except salinity (and I have 2 Hanna checkers, every single salifert test, and a bunch of the red sea pro kits... it's not like I don't have them and don't use them - I religiously test my SPS nano) and I haven't lost a single coral, have pretty good color, and great growth (including a few SPS). Using reef crystals (or another high alk/ca/mg salt) and changing 50% (or close to it) every week and even if your tank were full of acros, due to how little space there is I doubt it would ever get to the point you would need to dose. Maybe if you get to that point you would want to test, but I doubt any tiny little pico is going to be that dense with acros - I think flow would be the much bigger issue. Link to comment
reefernanoman Posted February 12, 2015 Share Posted February 12, 2015 I have never tested for that in my 28G and 10G tanks. No problems here. Honestly, in a pico as long as salinity is good and your ASW's parameters are spot on, you don't need to test anything except salinity. If you are changing your water regularly and doing big water changes (as you should be with your pico), there will never be a need to test anything since you will never be more than a couple of a weeks from totally new water and it's perfect paramters. My pico was set up in October or 2013 and to this day I have never once tested anything except salinity (and I have 2 Hanna checkers, every single salifert test, and a bunch of the red sea pro kits... it's not like I don't have them and don't use them - I religiously test my SPS nano) and I haven't lost a single coral, have pretty good color, and great growth (including a few SPS). Using reef crystals (or another high alk/ca/mg salt) and changing 50% (or close to it) every week and even if your tank were full of acros, due to how little space there is I doubt it would ever get to the point you would need to dose. Maybe if you get to that point you would want to test, but I doubt any tiny little pico is going to be that dense with acros - I think flow would be the much bigger issue. Same here. I actually bought a phosphate hanna checker for my nano tanks and ended up trading them for a rainbow acan. I didn't think it was necessary. Water changes, good flow, good light, good salt mix and stability is all that has helped me keep my corals and fish happy. No need to go crazy testing for a whole bunch of things! Then you can't even enjoy your tank! I just keep an eye on my salinity and temperature. Done! Link to comment
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