Water quality testing, before or after a water change?

[Komodo]

I know we do a water quality test whenever we suspect a problem but when it’s part of regular maintenance do you do the testing before or after a water change? I like to do everything at once if possible.

 

[Brookster123]

I havnt tested anything in months, I test gh/kh and phosphate and nitrates occasionally for the plants. Once the tanks been established for a few months and you're familiar with the stock and their individual behavior, you should be able to tell if some things amiss based on behavior alone.

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[Mebbid]

Testing SHOULD be done... however people like me and brook get lazy and skip it

However, you can test the water before hand and figure out how large of a water change you want to do. I just default to a 50% weekly change myself.

Or you can test it about an hour after to see where they are at after the change. It's not a big deal either way.

 

[Delapool]

Both, it just depends when I have time.

Nitrate and phosphate I do together as they take some time.

Kh I tend to do separate with ph another night.

 

[Yorg]

Water testing

Hi Komodo:

Every month or so I test the water about 24 hours after a routine water change. It's my preferred way of monitoring to ensure that there are no problems. Of course, after anything significant -- medication, fish death, etc. -- I test more often.

-Yorg

I know we do a water quality test whenever we suspect a problem but when it’s part of regular maintenance do you do the testing before or after a water change? I like to do everything at once if possible.