Test Results

[pikashy]

I have a huge problem. I have 3 different ways of testing water (strip testing from a fish store, aquarium pharmaceutical testing, and strip testing from a pool store). All 3 have different results for example:

My tank water:
Nitrite: test tubes (aquarium pharmaceutical) = 0.75
strip testing (jungle aquariums) = 10+
pH: test tubes = 7.4
strip testing (jungle aquarium) = 6.2
strip testing (pool) = 7.4
what shocks me even more is that even though its been aerated for a couple weeks, the first few days with carbon insert, there is still 1 ppm of chlorine!

My 12 gallon aged warm tap water. I aerate it with a powerhead with attached quick filter, the quick filter has carbon inside which is used to remove chlorine.
pH: test tubes = 7.6
strip testing (jungle aquarium) = 6.2
strip testing (pool) = 7.3
chlorine = 0

As you can see, my numbers are all over the place and I don't know which one to follow. Could it be that some of my testing solutions are too old and I need to buy new ones? And I don't know why there is still chlorine inside my new tank that I am now cycling with ammonia. I added prime today to the tank.

[Carol_Roberts]

Well two out of three say in the 7.4 range for pH.

Are you teesting for nitrIte on both? could one test for nitrIte and the other test for nitrAte?

[kaceyo]

At a glance it looks like the Jungle test strips are the unreliable ones. Don't know about the chlorine. Kaceyo

[Anonapersona]

In general, the strips are bad.

I would rely on the AP test kit.

Chlorine in the tank is a mystery, however. Perhaps there is a free chlorine and total chlorine measure, I believe that only the free chlorine matters. I've used strips to test chlorine and gotten strange results, with zero total chlorine but some free chlorine, which seems impossible to me.

The nitrite strip measure may be nitrate + nitrite, not so useful IMO, unless you know that nitrite is zero, as in after tank is cycled. Check the directions carefully.

[Howie_W]

I think test strips are less reliable in general for aquarium use simply because they are designed to provide and aprox. range. They also tend to become less effective overtime.

I've always relied on the test tube results.

Howie

[Lauren]

The strips I have read in large intervals, do the strips you have read any less than 10ppm, cause if not any nitrate at all would show at 10ppm

I've talked to afew people who liked strips, but I found them to be unrealiable also and only use them for a general idea of whats going on

[pikashy]

I'm not going to rely on the strips anymore and will just be using the regular test tubes. My cycle has been pretty slow - ammonia drops when I add enough to register 3 ppm the previous day but the nitrite still lingers at .50, no matter how much ammonia i put in.

i've been researching about the difference between total chlorine and free chlorine. free chlorine is chlorine itself. it combines with ammonia, wastes, bacteria etc. in the swimming pool to make chloramines.chloramines are usless in the pool - they cause irritation and red eyes. total chlorine is the combination of free chlorine and combined chlorine.

my tank has 1 ppm total chlorine with 0 ppm free chlorine. this means that i have 1 ppm chloramines that i just can't seem to get rid of. >:(. i've added two doses of prime, stress coat, cycled the water through carbon. (my aged water was cycled with carbon and after a day, no free or combined chlorine was present)

could the presence of total chlorine be what's slowing my cycling process? i can't get rid of it though and will it hurt my fish if i put discus in the tank after the cycling's done?

[Carol_Roberts]

After the cycling is done you are going to do a 90%+ water change with fresh, aged water. Add a dechlor product if you have chlorine/chloramines in your water supply.

Your tests may be showing bound chlorine?

[pikashy]

well, my nitrate is still 5.0, the same as it was 2 weeks ago even though ammonia disappears and nitrite always stays at .50. i'm seriously beginning to think that the total chlorine has something to do with this, it's probably preventing some bacteria to grow or something like that.

jungle aquarium test trips say that nitrate is 200+, off the chart. test tube says that its 5.0. jungle aquarium nitrite is 10+, off the chart. test tube says it's .50.

i'm thinking about changing all of the water because my aged water shows no chlorine or chloramines. however, i only have a 12 gallon storage tank for my 40 gallon fish tank.

[Carol_Roberts]

If no fish in tank turn off filters, do a 95%+ water change, add dechlor product, swirl around and restart filters after a few minutes. NitrIte and nitrAte should both be zero. If test kits register nitrate, etc. they are faulty. Test kits may register ammonia and chlorine if you have chloramines (I think)

[Anonapersona]

You said at the start that you have added Prime to the tank... prime locks up nitrite but says it leaves it available for the biofilter to process. I wonder if it does it slowly, leaving only a bit out for the bacteria. In fact that might explain the different tests, if some read bound elements and others read total elements, just like the chlorine test has different values for free and total.

[pikashy]

so here's what i should do?
- remove almost all the water from the tank
- add tap water
- add dechlor (not prime, or amquel but some regular ones) will this remove chloramines also?
- let powerhead circulate water for about half an hour
- restart filter, add ammonia, test for nitrites, nitrates and ammonia.

after 95% water change and adding stress guard and ammonia
ammonia: 4.0
nitIte: 4.0

1 day aged water:
ammonia: 0
nitrIte: 2.0

is there something wrong with my nitrIte test or something?

[Carol_Roberts]

Yes, something is wrong with the nitrIte test kit

[pikashy]

I have two other tanks though, and I used them to test my nitrite tester, and they all showed 0 ppm.

hmm...my hagen cycle isn't working. i've heard that bio-spira and prime stability also work but any opinions on which biological starter is the best?

[Carol_Roberts]

I've heard that BioSpira works. Otherwise I reccomend clear ammonia to cycle a tank in 4 - 5 weeks.

[Jean]

;DHi~
I believe that all tests kits will get old and be faulty/less reliable. Keep them new and that will help. I stick with Aquarium Pharmaceuticals.

I looked at a pool supply for some strips as well and found that it was pointless to get them; mostly cuz the ranges and the variances between the different levels were too great IMO.

Carbon will not remove chloramines. Prime, Amquel and Amo Lock will. I have heard recently tho, some ppl saying that their prime was not working, when used at the recommended dosage. I think you may need to dose higher for chloramines regardless; check the bottle on that one as well; misplaced mine right now.

U may have to search awhile to find straight ammonia if that is how you choose to cycle your tank. Make sure there is not anything else in it. Even if no dyes in it, it can still contain additional additives that are harmful.

Nitrites are harmful to fish. Nitrates in that they are relatively harmless. I don't ever test for them and I don't know anyone who really does.

Jean ;D 8)

[Cosmo]

Used to get GREAT results from a produt called Tank Safe by Mardell many years ago. It disappeared from the shelfs for awhile but now I see it's back, but don't know if it's the same formula or not.

The old Tank Safe at least would get the tank setup within a few days. Now ???? who knows.

fish room almost ready and I'll have a couple of hundred gallons to get setup - did you hear about this BioSpira from a reliable source Carol?

Jim

[Carol_Roberts]

People on this board used it last spring. I don't remember who . . . .

[Anonapersona]

hmm...my hagen cycle isn't working. i've heard that bio-spira and prime stability also work but any opinions on which biological starter is the best?


Bio-Spira is the best, I've heard of many tanks started using it. It may be available again, the company was overwhelmed with sales and had to revamp the production to get more product out.

Do not mix Bio-Spira with ammonia cycling methods, it seems to mess it up. Do use it exactly as directed, bio-spira first, then full fish load in 24 hours or something like that. Do not use then wait several days as that will not work. Do not add to a tank with fish in already, either, it will work but takes a long time to catch up to the load.

If you search online, there are several boards where people write up their experiences with products, after reading about 25 of the 50 or more there, I found it was quite rare for it to not work. Those cases were; adding late in cycle, adding too early before fish, adding early then trying to maintain with ammonia.

Good luck finding it however.

[pikashy]

i just got back from oregon and i told a friend to add one cap of ammonia each day.

ammonia - 0.5
nitrIte - 1.5, came down from 5.0+

and then, guess what? i got chloramines in my water....again. i did no water changes. even though two weeks ago, when i checked it, there were no chloramines. could it be the test tube because i rinse the tube with chlorinated tap water after each test. some chloramines might get in the water, but not enough to make it like 1-3 ppm.

[Sean Buehrle]

pickashy

i have had the same problem as you are having.

prime breaks the bond between the chlorine and the ammonia molecule,(chloramines) then it turns the ammonia molecule into a nontoxic form that your bio filter will remove. the chlorine molecule is removed by a chemical in the product.
the reason you are getting a false positive is because your tests are picking up the nontoxic ammonia.
if your tank/filters were cycled they would remove the ammonia and turn it to nitrite. if it was cycled the bacteria in the filters would turn the nitrite to nitrate.
just keep what you are doing. if you want you can call marineland corp and they will explain it all to you.
then they will tell you if you were using their products that you wouldnt be having these problems,LOL.
the prime is making your water safe.