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refractometer. drsfostersmith has a cheap one that is fine, and well worth it over a hydrometer. ph, amm, ite and ate are your main ones. it depends on what you want to keep
my 33gal will have:
2 perc clowns, royal gamma, yellow watchman, and a flame or coral beauty
will also have inverts like shrimp, crabs, snails
I'm thinking a test kit for ph, nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia will be enough?
U should test the water often if ur tank is newly set up to see if the chemistry is stable. After awhile, u can test less often to check if everything is going fine. That is totally up to u. As for additive tests, test before u dose anything. Also, if u see ur livestocks start acting abnormal, test the water to see if the water is the cause. HTH
All levels should be the same for all sizes of tank:
NH3: 0
NO2: 0
NO3: 0 - 20 (the lower the better)
Ca: 350 - 500
SG: 1.019 - 1.027 (1.025 is optimal for a reef tank. lower SG is better for fish only tank)
PO4: this doesn't hurt anything but the lower the better. Higher levels will encourage unwanted algae growth. I would say keep it from 0 - .5 is great
Salinity is the amount of salt to water....SG is specific gravity, I think they have a direct relation.
Some one more chemically inclined might chime in and explain it better.