i am in need for solid advice

[swiftysfish]

I am new to the saltwater hobby but very eager to learn as much as I can about.i had my tank set up for about a year now and everything seems to be going good.I never joined any club or forum before but I figured I would give it a shot.every time i needed advice i would read about it in my books or magazines or ask the local fish stores.but most of the local fish stores around me barely know more than I do which isn't saying much. That or they are jaded by their own egos and products to give me the truth. Im not trying to bash the LF stores but this is too expensive of a hobby to go thru it completely ignorant. I don't know anyone in my life that has this hobby so I have to talk to my wife and family about it. They don't mind having long boring conversations about crap they have no idea what im talking about, but I would like to be able get sound advice from all over the board to make the right choices for my fish' s enviroment.
first I would like to ask anyone that has used the nutrafin ph wide range test. I had bought test kit the other day at the lfs test my water only to find it reading 7.5 now I had added buffer agents to raise it between 8.0 and 8.2. I tested it several more times and the surprise same thing 7.5 my other test kit red sea ph was reading 8.0 now its 8.4 alittle high for me I think. So I brought test kit back to the store and check my water sample the same brand (nutrafin) and hers is reading 7.5 and she said keep buffering . Should I trust this kit or stick with the red sea kit. Im afraid if I keep raising the ph and nutrafin kit is bogus then I will start killing my corals. Im counting on you guys to help me with my dilemma. Thanks

[fataldart]

hello and welcome to aa i am also new here and know nothing about salt water tanks as i have only had tropical fresh water and didnt realy know much about them it was all trial and error but salt water as you said it very expensive and definatly a need to know hobby i hope you get the advise you need i will be interested to read what is said as i am toying with the idea of getting a salt water setup my self but was put off by none of the fish shops near me knowing much about them

[ChelseaLake]

Hi there!

I don't know much about saltwater either. You would think I'd be an expert as much money as my mother has spent on hers throughout the years.

Have you posted in the saltwater part of the forums? I just KNOW there are some experts here that can help you!

[pat8you]

I would be careful about continueing to buffer up your water. If you didn't see any change when you added buffer last time that makes me a little suspecious of the test. If your LFS has a liquid PH test i would take a water sample into them and have them check it with their kit to try and help rule out the possibility of a bad test before you go crazy with the buffer. I have found that many coral are sensative to fast changes in PH.

[swiftysfish]

Yeah that's what im worried about. I need to bring a sample to a differant store. Since the other store that's the only brand they carry I can't tell if it is crap

[pat8you]

PH can be difficult to measure because there is a lot of guess work in the color scale. If you have a lot of coral or plan on keeping a lot i would suggest getting a PH monitor. I've heard they are not that expensive and will save you a lot of water tests. Much more accurate.

[swiftysfish]

But don't I have to tweek the monitor before its accurate. In which case wouldn't still need an accurate test kit