Why I don't test water parameters

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V227

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Jul 2, 2017
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Location
Oklahoma
I realize that many enjoy the hands on aspect of water parameter testing via home test kits. Personally I've never owned a test kit and never will. I'm a little embarrassed about how long I've been an aqua nerd, " 3 decades". Lol. Long before home water testing became the norm.
I experienced a negative incident yesterday regarding an errant water test at my LFS, which ensures my assessment of testing.
Yesterday, I bought 2 White Tail Acei African Cichlids from a very good LFS. The employee had a difficult time netting the Aceis, knocking over rocks and decor. During the acclimation process, I noticed one of the fish had large abrasions on both sides. Undoubtedly sustained while being netted. The noted Acei died within 2 hours. The LFS's return policy requires the corpse and a water sample. I sacked up the deceased, and filled a new disposable plastic cup with tank water, sealed with plastic wrap. The LFS test revealed Ammonia: 0, Nitrite: 0, Nitrate:
less than 20 and the PH was "5". Five! Really? The involved tank is equipped with double the required filtration, 50% WC every week w/ Gravel Vac, is not over stocked. To top it all off, the tank is scaped with over 100 lbs. of Limestone. No chance of a PH crash.
Two more tests were performed, results PH 5, PH 6. It would be a difficult to keep a Discus alive in acidic water W/ a PH of 5 let alone the hard water, high PH loving fish I keep.
I knew the test was way off; the fish in my tank are thriving, including the surviving Acei.
The LFS employee was emphatic about the validity of the PH test. After a lengthy conversation, educating the employee about aquarium water management and fish keeping, the management honored their return policy despite the "false" PH reading. The replacement Acei is doing great as well as the other 14 African Cichlids in the tank.
My point is: Whatever happened to traditional (non-testing) fish keeping skills for water quality? Recognizing irregular fish behavior, or the clean chemical-like smell of healthy BB in filter media. Why rely on test kits to maintain an aquarium. No offense meant to testers. Any thoughts?
 
Usually that is the way I kept fish. Most of the time I don't test at all.

The only reason I test now is because I have transitioned to mostly high tech planted tanks and my water sources are less than ideal.

My household uses a softener, so I get a gH of 0 but a kH of 15 degrees!

So I bypass the softener and get a gH of 17 and kH of 15. Still not ideal.... So RO water it is and therefore I must test to ensure I am consistent. I'm also a nerd when it comes to fertilizer ratios, so I track everything. This is the good thing about testing, if something is up I can "test" or check up on what I changed to cause an issue.

Anyways, I never touch the ammonia / nitrite bottles, once you get an established filter you never should have to test for ammonia / nitrite ever again anyway.

For pH the drops can be inaccurate, so I use a pH pen.

Overall I own:

Ammonia drop - Never use
Nitrite drop - Never use
Nitrate drop - Use about once a month (because of EI dosing I want to make sure I'm not over doing too much)
gH drop - use for shrimp tank and RO remineralize
kH drop - use for shrimp tank and RO remineralize
TDS pen - use for shrimp tank
pH pen - use to determine CO2 amount in planted tank
PO4 drop - use for planted tank PO4 baseline
Mini scale + nutrient calculator for measuring planted tank fertilizers


All these tests and I still have issues.... Point is, you can test all you want but its the hobbyists responsibility to notice if there is an issue. It should not rely on a cheap at-home kit.
 
Hello V...

I've always been a water change fanatic, so I've never tested the tank water either. I figured out many years ago, if I just removed and replaced most of the tank water every week, it guaranteed healthy water conditions for whatever was living in there.

B
 
Z
I was so irratated by my favorite LFS manager's inflexible attitude regarding the return policy and a bogus failed water parameter test, that I forgot about legitimate parameter testing for advanced aquagardening and fragile inverts.
Just a thought; instead of remineralization couldn't you just scape your tanks with limestone. Instant buffer, instant remineralization.
I've have three tanks with a limestone hardscape. Fish species range from S.A. Tetras & Cichlids, CA & African cichlids. They all easily adjust to the hard water and high PH; and for some unknown reason, the limestone seem to clarify the water.
 
BB
I've always thought myself to be educated and disciplined regarding water management. Info obtained from you and others has actually upped my game.
Brook
I'm not familiar with the various test kits. I watched the manager conduct the test. It was individual chemicals, with counted drops, mixed in my tank water, which was in a clear plastic
Measuring tube. When the color reaction occurred the colored water was compared to a scaled color chart. No test strips.
 
I test during the cycling process and, after that, rely on water changes.
When I kept a planted tank, I tested nitrate and phosphate so that I can make dosage adjustments as needed (plant mass affected uptake). I also tracked pH as it would fluctuate as much as 1.0 during the course of a day due to CO2 injection.
I have a blackwater tank and I occasionally monitor GH, KH, pH, and TDS. I periodically add a handful of maple, oak, and Indian almond leaves. It is interesting how the tannins and other acids released by the rotting leaves and driftwood affect these parameters.
 
That’s interesting on ph test - kh test would of been interesting. Old or cap left off maybe? Ph test kit should be pretty stable - regularly get same results between pool and tank using different kits, pens and better ph probes. Very odd. Good news they honoured the return policy!

I would say for me I enjoy the testing (that and keeping lights that use bulbs keep the local society entertained).
 
Agree that you shouldn't rely solely on test kits I tend to use mine to track numbers in case something unusual has leeches into the well. I disagree on *cheap* $50 is NOT cheap
 
I agree It's likely there was some undetermined environmental factor which altered the PH test. I've done business with that company for 20 yrs. Good operation, good stock, low prices.
What surprised me was the managers inability to accept the obvious fact that the PH test was flawed. 0 Ammonia / 0 Nitrite / less than 20 Nitrate, does not translate into a PH crash. Especially one with a PH of 5. I left on good terms.
 
We do quite a lot of rock assays here and the fun starts when an assay is repeated for wildly different result. We come back to certified standards and blanks but can get interesting! Especially gold sometimes.
 
I just use a conductivity meter to check my dissolved solids. I check nitrates and phosphates every one in a while to check that both values are still showing 0. How did fish keepers get on in the 1920s? I think they did just fine, if not better without.
 
Here’s what a fish keeping friend had to say on the subject of modern day keeping as opposed to that of yesteryear. This branches out further from test kits but I think it’s still a valid assessment. We were on the subject of oxygen......again.

‘This all goes back to the same fundamental problem with this hobby today.

The hobby has become almost totally detached from where it all began.

I’ve probably told you before that I collect old aquarium books and magazines. You would not believe the stark contrast between what was written in say the 1920s, to the mass of over-hyped crap we are all exposed to today. This hobby began as a convenient way to study nature at close quarters. By nature I mean everything aquatic, flora, fauna, and everything that goes along with it. The aim was to gain an understanding of how nature works, and work with it. Not to control it!

It therefore comes as no surprise that one of the most important, and repeated aspects of aquaria right from those early days was oxygen. It’s pretty much the first paragraph in all early publications.! So why the hell have we made it so difficult for ourselves today?

Interestingly if you look right back at the earliest days of our hobby, the first piece of equipment that truly revolutionised things was the invention of the humble air pump.
Not only did this safeguard your fish, but you were able to grow beautiful algae free plants! Btw this is long before anyone really considered connecting it to anything even vaguely resembling a filter! Oh yes and lighting was a couple of 100watt incandescent bulbs!

What I find most interesting about this era, is how unbelievably well people kept and bred what we would now consider difficult fish. It’s also a period where using old aged water was the way, and water changes were only done as an extreme measure.

Anyway I could go on and on about how the invention of tech has killed the hobby.

But air pumps are seriously underrated, oxygen is what drives life on this planet, not Co2 for gods sake. Gentle water flow ,but lots of oxygen. Not a washing machine!

When I first started everything was air driven, I honestly can’t ever recall seeing Bba, or cyano. These both came about after we all moved away from air driven equipment.

With what I know and experience today, I’m pretty convinced that tanks really don’t need any input other than fish food. It’s all about stability, bio films, microorganisms, and having enough oxygen to break stuff down faster than it’s being produced. Then its just a matter of an export mechanism to keep things from accumulating. Healthy tanks are definitely oligotrophic, and that includes plants! Although the plants grow slowly in my sand only tanks they never suffer twists, deformities etc, and the growth is ultra compact, not leggy. They just look right if you know what I mean.

Better stop before I get carried away completely.

You can do a lot worse than run a tank on nothing but an air stone!.....’

We do have some fantastic discussions.

Sorry for moving away from air kits but the bottom line here is that yes use your eyes!
 
I really like the subtle analogy comparing modern-day power filters that aggitate water like a washing machine to the gentle flow generated by an airstone. Lol.
I recently read a post where the OP had two AC 110's already installed on his 125 gal. He wanted opinions on his future plans to install two Fluval FX 6 canister filters as well. The replies mentioned nothing about "overkill". Most sounded envious, others advised that the noted enormous amount of filtration should suffice.
In my area the total up front cost of those four power filters would be approx. $800. Add a quality light to that and your going to see one gigantic electric bill.
I would enjoy reading future threads regarding old school aquarium water management methods.
 
Here's where I'm at... as caliban said TDS is my main test. I haven't really tested anything in my fw tanks in years. Now I simply look at the fish.. fish looks fine? Great.. tanks in rhythm. Something is off at times and it's usually obvious. Heater malfunction and bio filter malfunctions are my main issues and the fish are screaming help!!!!!! For a experienced aquarists the tests are redundant and more or less a waste of time. (Unless dosing ferts and co2). For a beginner? Absolutely necessary. You learn how stocking and feeding and wcs affect levels and tailor your methods based off that. Good topic though fellas:)
 
Z
I was so irratated by my favorite LFS manager's inflexible attitude regarding the return policy and a bogus failed water parameter test, that I forgot about legitimate parameter testing for advanced aquagardening and fragile inverts.
Just a thought; instead of remineralization couldn't you just scape your tanks with limestone. Instant buffer, instant remineralization.
I've have three tanks with a limestone hardscape. Fish species range from S.A. Tetras & Cichlids, CA & African cichlids. They all easily adjust to the hard water and high PH; and for some unknown reason, the limestone seem to clarify the water.

Plants first and fish second in my case ;)

Most of the plants I keep prefer softer water, nutrients are more plant available at certain pH's and I have complete control over TDS, gH, kH and pH to ensure I am reaching sufficient CO2 levels.

I have complete control over the water so I know I am providing exactly what the plants / shrimp / fish need for whatever my goals are with that particular tank.


But, for a simpler tank (low tech planted, african, SA, community etc) after the cycle I agree, perform large frequent water changes and you're off to the races ;)
 
I really like the subtle analogy comparing modern-day power filters that aggitate water like a washing machine to the gentle flow generated by an airstone. Lol.

I recently read a post where the OP had two AC 110's already installed on his 125 gal. He wanted opinions on his future plans to install two Fluval FX 6 canister filters as well. The replies mentioned nothing about "overkill". Most sounded envious, others advised that the noted enormous amount of filtration should suffice.

In my area the total up front cost of those four power filters would be approx. $800. Add a quality light to that and your going to see one gigantic electric bill.

I would enjoy reading future threads regarding old school aquarium water management methods.


My tank uses I small ehiem filter and 1 airstone. Water changes are minimal at best and when I do change water it’s with RO. You can tell just by looking at your aquarium if things are off. No need for all these gadgets.

Now I know why my 180 litre Walstad failed. 2 bags of unmineralised john innes No3 capped with gravel and minimal surface agitation to prevent co2 loss. How very stupid.
 
My tank uses I small ehiem filter and 1 airstone. Water changes are minimal at best and when I do change water it’s with RO. You can tell just by looking at your aquarium if things are off. No need for all these gadgets.

Now I know why my 180 litre Walstad failed. 2 bags of unmineralised john innes No3 capped with gravel and minimal surface agitation to prevent co2 loss. How very stupid.
What size is your tank?
 
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