duckkbutter
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Are the strips worth buying/accurate...or should I shed out couple more bucks and get the good kit. your opinions?!
testing materials
- Thread starter duckkbutter
- Start date
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fishyrican
Aquarium Advice FINatic
I would get the good kit for two reasons. First, the liquid reagent test kits are more accurate than the test strips. Second, the per-test price can be a huge difference. The price per test with a strip test is many times more than that of a reagent test kit. In the long run, the reagent test kit will be less expensive.
duckkbutter
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
do most lfs carry these tests...or am i better off gettin one online. If online, any recommended sites?!
duckkbutter
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
another question i have, is after the tank is finished cycling...how often should you test your parameters...every week unless noted by unhappy fish or a sudden death?
Fluff
Aquarium Advice Addict
I test weekly.
I don't know what pet stores are available to you but most major pet store chains sell the liquid master test kits.
I don't know what pet stores are available to you but most major pet store chains sell the liquid master test kits.
G
Guest
Guest
Get the freshwater master kit, you will be able to do more tests and get more accurate readings.
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
The AP liquid kit is usually good enough.. it is cheaper to get it online by the way.. I wouldnt recomend test strips personaly..
Fishyfanatic
Aquarium Advice Addict
www.bigalsonline.com sells the Aquarium Pharm. Freshwater Master Test Kit for $20 (after shipping). The cheapest I have seen them at the lfs was for $40.
Fluff
Aquarium Advice Addict
Fishyfanatic said:
That's a good price
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
I got mine at a LFS for $33+tax.. I say go online!
Zagz
Aquarium Advice Addict
Anyone know a good Canadian site to get the kits? By the time we pay the exchange it is cheaper to get the kit at the lfs.
Fishyfanatic
Aquarium Advice Addict
I was naive when I first bought my AP Master Test kit. I saw one for $40 before tax at the lfs. I thought, hmm, ok, well the people on AA say I should have one, so I'll get it. Then came along Big Al's. You could buy 2 AP Kits for the price that I paid for my original one. Never again will I buy anything to do with testing at the lfs. They tried to charge $20 for a Phsophate test kit that Big Al sells for $5.99 (or something like that). 8O
BillD
Aquarium Advice Addict
Keep in mind that once the bottle of reagent is opened and exposed to air (oxygen) it starts to deteriorate. There is a useful life to the reagents, but it is not indefinite. At some point they will give false readings or be innacurate. This info is a generalization, and was provided by my neighbour, who was head of R&D for a major multinational drug/chemical company. The most accurate reagents are the dry ones that have to be mixed prior to testing. That of course is not practical for most of us. The reason I asked him about this was that it is recommended that pool testing reagents be bought new every year. Just a heads up
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
Big Al's has warehouses in canada as well.. you select wether your in the US or Canada when you go to there web-site..
wabyrd
Aquarium Advice Freak
I hate to disagree with the general concensus about the testing methods, BUT...
I like the strips. I also like the reagent kits, but not in kit form.
If I set up a new tank or have something fishy going on (pardon the pun), I like to have a test for pH, ammonia, and nitrAte. That's it. I really don't care about other stuff. Generally those two items are the cause of most problems anyway. If I need it, it's on my 5 in 1 test strip. Once the tank is established, you really aren't too worried about testing the water. Don't get me wrong, I test weekly, but it's a whole lot easier and MUCH faster to just dip a single strip in the tank and make sure everything is OK. If you buy the BIG bottles of test strips (Foster&Smith), the cost difference is minimized. I haven't had a problem with the strips yet.
I like the strips. I also like the reagent kits, but not in kit form.
If I set up a new tank or have something fishy going on (pardon the pun), I like to have a test for pH, ammonia, and nitrAte. That's it. I really don't care about other stuff. Generally those two items are the cause of most problems anyway. If I need it, it's on my 5 in 1 test strip. Once the tank is established, you really aren't too worried about testing the water. Don't get me wrong, I test weekly, but it's a whole lot easier and MUCH faster to just dip a single strip in the tank and make sure everything is OK. If you buy the BIG bottles of test strips (Foster&Smith), the cost difference is minimized. I haven't had a problem with the strips yet.
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
Im just a fan of having a little more accuracy.. what is the range and breath of your test strips wabyrd.. .1 point of ph? and scale..
wabyrd
Aquarium Advice Freak
pH is 0.4 steps and range is 6.2-8.4. I know about where my tap water lives so it's accurate enough for weekly testing.
I use Jungle 5 in 1 test strips. It does pH, KH, GH, nitrite and nitrate. It was about $20 for a bottle of 100 strips online. I thought it was foster and smith, but I don't see them listed on their site.
I use Jungle 5 in 1 test strips. It does pH, KH, GH, nitrite and nitrate. It was about $20 for a bottle of 100 strips online. I thought it was foster and smith, but I don't see them listed on their site.
duckkbutter
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
thanks for your advice...i went to bigalsonline and got the master pharm. test.
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