bought this kit only a month ago and the NitrIte test seems to be giving me bogus numbers.
First off, the lot number is 26A0511, so I assume that means it was made in May of this year, so I don't think that's it. I also shake the test before I use it each time even though it does not call for it.
Anyway
For the last 2 days my nitrIte has been high so I've been doing massive water changes. I did a test today when I got home from work and it turned purple before I even started shaking it. It was a deep purple after a few minutes.
I checked my COLD tap water (well water) and it shows 0 nitrIte. I also checked my bottled water and it showed 0. I checked my WARM and HOT tap water and it turns deep purple. Checked COLD again and it's 0ppm
I did only a 20% water change because I had to use cold water, then waited an hour or so and tested the aquarium water and it shows 0 nitrIte. No way it went from deep purple off the chart to 0 with only a 5 gallon change on a 29 gallon tank!
What on earth could be going wrong here? I don't seem to have any issues with the other tests, and don't think I had issues with this test before now. I'm using 5 drops, and the nitrIte is only 1 part to mix.
First off, the lot number is 26A0511, so I assume that means it was made in May of this year, so I don't think that's it. I also shake the test before I use it each time even though it does not call for it.
Anyway
For the last 2 days my nitrIte has been high so I've been doing massive water changes. I did a test today when I got home from work and it turned purple before I even started shaking it. It was a deep purple after a few minutes.
I checked my COLD tap water (well water) and it shows 0 nitrIte. I also checked my bottled water and it showed 0. I checked my WARM and HOT tap water and it turns deep purple. Checked COLD again and it's 0ppm
I did only a 20% water change because I had to use cold water, then waited an hour or so and tested the aquarium water and it shows 0 nitrIte. No way it went from deep purple off the chart to 0 with only a 5 gallon change on a 29 gallon tank!
What on earth could be going wrong here? I don't seem to have any issues with the other tests, and don't think I had issues with this test before now. I'm using 5 drops, and the nitrIte is only 1 part to mix.