Nitrates 0-5???

[new2betas]

After my PWC a little while ago I tested my parameters and they were:
pH 6.5
ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 0-5 (closer to 0)

Is this good? I thought nitrates were supposed to be in the low range, above 0? Is it bad that mine are so low????

 

[new2betas]

Silly me....I know what I did wrong....I forgot to shake that second darned bottle for 30 seconds prior to adding the 10 drops to the tube.....I just redid the test and got a reading of 10! Whew!!!

 

[neilanh]

it's always in the details.

But, just for reference, unless you have a planted tank, low nitrates isn't a bad thing at all. The lower the better, but it's almost impossible to get to and stay at 0.