Look at this photo... is this 2 or 4 ppm of ammonia?!

[Gnarls Gnarlington]

I am doing a fishless cycle. Well, trying to anyway.

I have a 50 gallon tank. About 20 minutes ago I added one teaspoon of Ace ammonia. (Man, this stuff is potent!)

Look at the photo. Is this 2.0 ppm or 4.0 ppm? I honestly can't tell and I looked at it under different lights.

To me I'm leaning towards something in-between.

Should I add more ammonia or stop right here? The instructions say, "With the ammonia purchased, and your test kit handy, dose the tank to ~5ppm ammonia. If you add too much, do a Partial water change to reduce the level, if you add too little, dose more. It doesn't need to be exact, but just aim for 3-5ppm."

What do you think?

(And did I buy the wrong test kit? Is this one not sensitive enough? It's the API Freshwater Master Test Kit.)

 

[jetajockey]

The photo isn't showing, but if it's showing between 2-4 imo it's good, it's not an exact science by any means.

 

[Gnarls Gnarlington]

The photo isn't showing, but if it's showing between 2-4 imo it's good, it's not an exact science by any means.

Try it now. I had a brain fart on my end.

 

[alLexX]

i wouled say 2

 

[jetajockey]

looks somewhere between the two to me

 

[librarygirl]

Looks about 3 to me too. The API test is supposed to be one of the best but I sure wish they'd make the colors more differentiated between levels, they can be very hard to read!

 

[jetajockey]

Well these type of tests aren't exacting, I mean they are fairly accurate, especially compared to strips, but the whole color chart thing allows a lot of wiggle room.

 

[adeian]

I'm colour blind and it's really hard for me. I wish there was something that displayed the results on a scale or some such. I've got a problem paying hundreds of dollars for the digital types.

 

[librarygirl]

I'm colour blind and it's really hard for me. I wish there was something that displayed the results on a scale or some such. I've got a problem paying hundreds of dollars for the digital types.

Actually it would be really nice if a voice could just tell you what the results are. "You have..[calculating]...3 PPM of ammonia."

 

[fort384]

The photo isn't showing, but if it's showing between 2-4 imo it's good, it's not an exact science by any means.

This is the key here... it doesn't matter if it is 2 or 4... so long as it is somewhere in that range.

Conversely, once you add fish, it doesn't matter what it's really reading, if it is above 0. Anything over 0 is too much, and means a tank does not have a properly established biofilter. So, it's either 0 (good), or {something} (bad). No sense getting wrapped around the axle about exact readings, I guess, is my point.