Any word on water testing from yesterdays meeting?

[MikeG]

wow..those results are quite interesting!!! Are all the test kits that off???

My 2 alk kits were pretty close +/- 0.5 dkh with Salifert and Elos. My salifert mag was 300ppm low while my red sea mag kit was right on.

 

[stingythingy45]

This is why I haven't payed the extra $$$ for Salifert for calcium test.
If i'm going to buy a test kit that's off,it might as well be API that's half the price.

 

[Dave]

My 2 alk kits were pretty close +/- 0.5 dkh with Salifert and Elos. My salifert mag was 300ppm low while my red sea mag kit was right on.

Both the Salifert Mg and ALk test were close to Greg's results. The Salifert Ca test kit is new an off by 100ppm. The Ca kit I just replaced (also Salifert) would agree with the tests I had done at BRS in the past.

 

[JohnK]

My elos alk kit read the same.

My salifert mg kit read 100 lower.


I'm starting to lose confidence in anything but elos kits and Greg

 

[Miller]

The BRS going to start marketing their lab prepared test kit by Greg Hiller?

 

[Dave]

My elos alk kit read the same.

My salifert mg kit read 100 lower.


I'm starting to lose confidence in anything but elos kits and Greg

The difference of 100 ppm with Mg isn't significant, I can live with that. The Ca results are another matter, 100 ppm difference in that test is huge. In my case I am actually at 360 when I am dosing based on a Salifert test reading of 460.

 

[reefsmurf]

Some of you guys probably already know this, but there was a big bru-haha about recent batches of Salifert test kits being completely off - so much so that they had to pull their forum off ReefCentral.

Also, see this other thread on some test kit comparisons:
http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums/showthread.php?t=62176

 

[MikeG]

Some of you guys probably already know this, but there was a big bru-haha about recent batches of Salifert test kits being completely off - so much so that they had to pull their forum off ReefCentral.

Also, see this other thread on some test kit comparisons:
http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums/showthread.php?t=62176

Well aware of that, the kits I am using predate any of the issues but are not expired I believe. I had started moving away from Salifert kits but was finishing up what I had left and noticed some discrepencies between other kits. My kits have always been consistent but could have been consistenly wrong

My results track pretty well with the the ones you linked. Would have been really useful if they had also tested a known reference as well and not just tank samples.

 

[Greg Hiller]

>The BRS going to start marketing their lab prepared test kit by Greg Hiller?<

No, of course not, but I did offer to make the reagent available for free. All people had to do was purchase the Hach kit themselves. No one was interested last time I brought this up.

 

[Richard]

I needed some reagent for the Hach kit. I missed the boat again?

 

[Miller]

>The BRS going to start marketing their lab prepared test kit by Greg Hiller?<

No, of course not, but I did offer to make the reagent available for free. All people had to do was purchase the Hach kit themselves. No one was interested last time I brought this up.

Is this the company you are referring to?
http://www.hach.com/hc/static.template/templateName=HcGuides.HcTestKitsGuide.html/PREVIOUS_BREADCRUMB_ID=/SESSIONID|AkpaUXpFeU1EazFOekV4TXpnd05qZ21aM1ZsYzNSYVRRPT1BbA==|

Is the Hach test kit what the BRS uses when they do water tests at the meeting? There is seemingly constant debate about test kits produced by aquarium companies about there reliability/accuracy. I was starting to wonder if one you could use other test kits such as these and get better results.

 

[Reefried]

Alk in meq/l

Crib - 2.25
refried - 1.75
rosey - 3.65
reef55 2.5
Glenn King - 3.9
Mstrassb - 3.0
Skydolphan - 3.5
Reefsmurf - 2.75
Mike G 3.5
JimmyJ 3.9

Wow an alk reading of 1.75meq/l, OMG!...I run my alk low, between 7 and 8, but I've never had a reading that LOW....I just tested alk twice (salifert), and in between the two tests I checked the test with the check solution which is 7.0dkh + or- 0.3 and it was dead on....so the first time I got 6.4dkh, the second time I got 6.7 which are both low for where I keep them, but not as low as the 4.9dkh that Greg got....I dont know how to explain it but is there any way my kit could be off and the check solution is dead on???....I just dosed to raise the alk level, but I still can't figure it out, my other levels are right on...Calcium-459, Mag-1457, and Po4-0.02, with a S/G-1.026.....any explainations??

 

[Greg Hiller]

>Is the Hach test kit what the BRS uses when they do water tests at the meeting?<

Yes, the BRS kit uses the Hach kit as a starting point. We dilute the samples to 1/7 their original concentration and we also use lab prepared EDTA reagent to save a buck on materials. The Hach kit is used for calcium and magnesium.

 

[Dave]

Wow an alk reading of 1.75meq/l, OMG!...I run my alk low, between 7 and 8, but I've never had a reading that LOW....I just tested alk twice (salifert), and in between the two tests I checked the test with the check solution which is 7.0dkh + or- 0.3 and it was dead on....so the first time I got 6.4dkh, the second time I got 6.7 which are both low for where I keep them, but not as low as the 4.9dkh that Greg got....I dont know how to explain it but is there any way my kit could be off and the check solution is dead on???....I just dosed to raise the alk level, but I still can't figure it out, my other levels are right on...Calcium-459, Mag-1457, and Po4-0.02, with a S/G-1.026.....any explainations??

What are you using to maintain your alk?

 

[Reefried]

I'm using Randys two part, but I dont dose daily. I use the two parts to adjust either calcium or alk, to maintain alk and calcium I really just rely on regular water changes with oceanic salt adjusted to where I keep my levels, and all top off is Kalk....I used to keep my alk higher between 8-9 and now I like it between 7-8.....also my ph is always between 7.8-8.2 depending on time of day or night, and I keep mag between 1400-1500...I actually think I'm going to lower my mag range to between 1250-1350, but I dont think that a high mag should have anything to do with a low alk??

 

[Greg Hiller]

>I dont think that a high mag should have anything to do with a low alk??<

Correct.