What do you test for and how often do you test

[Jeremy Brito]

Hey guys as i keep advancing in this hobby, i learn more and more about water chemistry and its cause and effects on the eco-system in our tanks.
But i am curious what you guys test for and how often you test for it.
I have compiled a decent size test kit of a mixture of Salifert, Red Sea, Seachem, API, and Nyos test kits.
The test kit i have gives me the ability to test for the following.
Ammonia
Nitrate
Nitrite
Phosphate
Ph
Calcium
KH/Alk
Potassium
Magnesium
Iodine
Iorn
Silicate
Temp and Salinity
I am currently considering purchasing a Dissolved Oxygen and Strontium (believe i spelled that right) test kit
did i miss anything?
any ways lets here about your test kits

 

[dan_k]

PO4
Cal
Alk
That’s all you should have to test For

Nitrite
Ammonia
shouldn’t be in the tank at this point

 

[joe b]

I test Alk @ 5x per week
Calcium 1x per week
Magnesium @1x per month
salinity 1x per week

 

[Jeremy Brito]

PO4
Cal
Alk
That’s all you should have to test For

Nitrite
Ammonia
shouldn’t be in the tank at this point

I dont test for ammonia or nitrite regularly i have them in the kit and will test for them if something seems off in the tank. Yes they shouldn't be present in the tank.. but that statement should read they shouldn't be in detectable levels in the tank. Ammonia nitrite and nitrate are part of the nitrogen cycle so while we consider the tank cycled when we get trace or zero ppm readings on are test kits that doesnt mean they are gone from the tank it just means the tank is properly handling there build up and is at a stable point in the cycle in which there is enough good bacteria to break them down. But this Stable level is easily off set and could change with factors like a heavy feeding or the introduction of new fish or the death of a fish that goes unnoticed, in a healthy tank when the balance is offset it may only take a few hours to a day to re-balance but until that happens you will find ammonia and nitrite readings.
An Ammonia & nitrite test are a helpful indicator when there is an issue in the tank and can point out the difference between a water chemistry issue causing and illness or a bacterial/fungal/parasitic problem

As for the PO4, Cal, ALk being the only thing you need to test for.. well thats a tough statement to back. Sure those tests are all that needs to make sure the water is healthy for lets say a fish only tank but for people keeping a wide range of coral and like to dose or adjust the water to be more like sea water to promote better coloration and growth tests for nitrates, magnesium, iodine, iron, and strontium hold up a strong argument in there importance since they each play a critical role in coral biology

 

[jmags080307]

Sps tank
Alk - 3 to 4 x a week
Calcium, ph 1x week
Nitrate, phosphate every other week
Magnesium 1x a month
Salinity Every water change

Zoas, lps tank test alk 1 x week. Everything else 1x month.

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[Mark_C]

Alk and Ca if something looks off with the tank (last I tested was about 3 mos ago, all was well).
Salinity if I've added anything that's messed with the water level (though I'll check it bimontly or so anyway during a water change).
Also have a Weber steak thermometer I stick in the tanks if it seems the temp is off (accurate to 1 decimal with an instant read).

 

[dan_k]

I will have to disagree but no big deal

If Cal and alk are constant levels then mag would be as well so no test needed.
Iodine really have you ever dosed iodine I have yet to meet a reefer that has.
Please do not take offense but really any book is going to tell you that you have to test for that but I have been keeping reef tanks for many years mixed reefs and good salt a good 2 part dosing solution and a test here in there sit back and watch life happen the more you play around with things the worse it gets

 

[Mrx7899x]

I test alk every other day calcium once a week and magnesium once a month. Phosphate and nitrate once a month. Also send a Triton test out every 3 months or so to really see what's going on.

 

[Jeremy Brito]

I will have to disagree but no big deal

If Cal and alk are constant levels then mag would be as well so no test needed.
Iodine really have you ever dosed iodine I have yet to meet a reefer that has.
Please do not take offense but really any book is going to tell you that you have to test for that but I have been keeping reef tanks for many years mixed reefs and good salt a good 2 part dosing solution and a test here in there sit back and watch life happen the more you play around with things the worse it gets

Cal and alk are constant?? You couldn't be more wrong calcium directly effects alk and calcium is something that gets depleted by your corals .. Hence why people have calcium reactors and dose calcium same reason they dose alk when they dose calcium. If they were constant then we would have no need to dose and are corals would always be happy. so you Maybe one of those people who prefers to buy high grade salt that has a good balance of elements and just sit back and do a water change every now and then and let nature do its thing.. But for the rest of the world who does dose understanding absorption rate and testing for the elements we dose is important to make sure we dose correctly. The reason we do so is cause unless your using actual sea water the artificial salt water we make is only so close to the real thing and its been proven the closer you are to the real stuff the better your coral grows so by doseing we fill in the blanks. I actually have an app that tracks my water chemistry and tells me what my tank consumes from the water weekly with that info I can now dose regularly to make up from that lose. Now do we all have a great understanding of how the Diffrent elements effect each coral unfortunately science hasn't come that far but we are getting close some will argue that doseing of things like mag or potassium strontium ECT.. Don't make much diffrence others will sware they do as for me idk yet but I do know that the goal is to mimic nature to get the best results.
Any ways congrats by the way cause you meet a reefer that does dose iodide in fact I dose a lot of Diffrent things but I don't do it blindly I test first.
You may have your approach but to say "that's all you have to ever test for" is misleading to those striving to get higher results

 

[horseplay]

Water testing is for noobs, just saying

 

[kschweer]

Cal and alk are constant?? You couldn't be more wrong calcium directly effects alk and calcium is something that gets depleted by your corals .. Hence why people have calcium reactors and dose calcium same reason they dose alk when they dose calcium. If they were constant then we would have no need to dose and are corals would always be happy. so you Maybe one of those people who prefers to buy high grade salt that has a good balance of elements and just sit back and do a water change every now and then and let nature do its thing.. But for the rest of the world who does dose understanding absorption rate and testing for the elements we dose is important to make sure we dose correctly. The reason we do so is cause unless your using actual sea water the artificial salt water we make is only so close to the real thing and its been proven the closer you are to the real stuff the better your coral grows so by doseing we fill in the blanks. I actually have an app that tracks my water chemistry and tells me what my tank consumes from the water weekly with that info I can now dose regularly to make up from that lose. Now do we all have a great understanding of how the Diffrent elements effect each coral unfortunately science hasn't come that far but we are getting close some will argue that doseing of things like mag or potassium strontium ECT.. Don't make much diffrence others will sware they do as for me idk yet but I do know that the goal is to mimic nature to get the best results.
Any ways congrats by the way cause you meet a reefer that does dose iodide in fact I dose a lot of Diffrent things but I don't do it blindly I test first.
You may have your approach but to say "that's all you have to ever test for" is misleading to those striving to get higher results

What was being stated is that if you are keeping your calcium and alkalinity stable via dosing or whatever method a safe assumption is that your magnesium falls in line as well.

As far as testing I would test alk abut 5 times a week and calcium 2 times a week. While the other kits may have a place for some reefers in my opinion they just complicate things. Trace elements like iodine, strontonium etc are used in such small quantities that any decent (not necessarily expensive) salt and a good waterchange routine will take care of those. Once people start testing and dosing everything possible it becomes a chase the numbers game and a lot of times this isn’t good. In my experience stable alk, cal and mag is better than dosing this and that to get the “perfect numbers”. A reef can be as simple or as complicated as one wants to make it, the choice is up to you. I have done both and the simplified tanks always looked better and more importantly had less issues and healthier livestock. Of course this is all just my opinion.

 

[Mike S]

Curious if those that are testing calcium more frequently are dosing 2 part? I run a calcium reactor and find I don't need to test for calcium more than once a month. Even then it rarely varies by much. Its been in the 420 to 450 range for the past year.

I normally test alkalinity every two to three days and every day if I'm adjusting my reactor. Can't wait for the Neptune Trident to come out! Salinity at least once a week. Phosphate is tested about twice a month. Used to test nitrate a few times a month but have gone from running around 15 to 30 pom down to zero and have started dosing no3 and aminos so I'm testing several times a week. Trying to get it to around 5 to 10 ppm. Magnesium gets tested every other month or so.

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[jkapit]

I test weekly...

PH - API kit
Salinity- Refractomer
Alk - Hanna
phosphate - ULR Hanna
Calcium - Hanna
Nitrate - Red Sea Pro or Salifert
MG - Salifert

Probably could do, MG and Calc Monthly but playing it safe for now since my tank is only a year old.

 

[dan_k]

Cal and alk are constant?? You couldn't be more wrong calcium directly effects alk and calcium is something that gets depleted by your corals .. Hence why people have calcium reactors and dose calcium same reason they dose alk when they dose calcium. If they were constant then we would have no need to dose and are corals would always be happy. so you Maybe one of those people who prefers to buy high grade salt that has a good balance of elements and just sit back and do a water change every now and then and let nature do its thing.. But for the rest of the world who does dose understanding absorption rate and testing for the elements we dose is important to make sure we dose correctly. The reason we do so is cause unless your using actual sea water the artificial salt water we make is only so close to the real thing and its been proven the closer you are to the real stuff the better your coral grows so by doseing we fill in the blanks. I actually have an app that tracks my water chemistry and tells me what my tank consumes from the water weekly with that info I can now dose regularly to make up from that lose. Now do we all have a great understanding of how the Diffrent elements effect each coral unfortunately science hasn't come that far but we are getting close some will argue that doseing of things like mag or potassium strontium ECT.. Don't make much diffrence others will sware they do as for me idk yet but I do know that the goal is to mimic nature to get the best results.
Any ways congrats by the way cause you meet a reefer that does dose iodide in fact I dose a lot of Diffrent things but I don't do it blindly I test first.
You may have your approach but to say "that's all you have to ever test for" is misleading to those striving to get higher results

If you look at my post I said “If your cal & alk are constant ” which should be achieved from dosing 2 part or having a cal reactor then there is no need to check mag. So far none of the responses here include iodine because all those trace elements are in salt. Listen you asked a question I answered i wish you all the luck with the tank

 

[Mrx7899x]

Curious if those that are testing calcium more frequently are dosing 2 part?


I dose kalk in my auto top off so if alk is good then my calcium is usually good but I test it anyways only takes a couple minutes

 

[Trio91]

Mostly Alk for me using a Hanna checkers, about 1x per week. Then my salinity after each weekly water change.

Calcium not too often, maybe 1x per month

I lost parts of my Salifert Mag test kit so I don't test for Mag (though I know I should)

 

[MadReefer]

Only test if tank seems off.
Alk
Calc
PH
Ammonia

 

[jazeel50]

Tested maybe 3 weeks age but prior to that I haven’t tested in many 3-4 Months. Testing is over rated If your tank is balanced right.


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[9supratt4]

I use Salifert. or should I say don't use. I never test.

 

[etmanning1]

I use Salifert. or should I say don't use. I never test.

Same her e hit Red Sea pro


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