how often do you check your parameters

[kevinsimons]

I check every week - recently purchased API strips - just swab them in the water and they give you pH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia, and Alk - not sure how accurate they are, though (bought them because I didn't believe my other Red Sea test which ALWAYS says my nitrates are near zero - this one did too. Anybody have any thoughts on these API strips?

 

[RyanG]

Test strips suck. They just arent accurate enough, ive only use freshwater ones, but if they suck for fresh I can only immagine how bad they suck for salt.

 

[sen5241b]

Once or twice a week. Recently, I started using 2 different tests for the same thing and comparing --they both said the same thing. Those little ammonia alerts you hang in the tank work well too. I put one in a glass and added ammonia and --yes-- it turned blue as it should.

 

[Bifferwine]

Kevin, the test strips aren't as accurate and other types of test kits, but they do well for routine checks. Back when I used to check my water regularly, I'd use the test strips for a quick check and if anything was off, I'd double check it with a real test kit. They are excellent for quick checks, just don't rely solely on them because they are not always accurate.

Sen, I used one of those suction cup ammonia alerts when I added a bunch of new live rock to my 240 to keep track if there was going to be a cycle. It worked great, as did the same brand of suction cup pH indicators. Just keep in mind that they need to be replaced periodically.

 

[kevinsimons]

Biff - thanks for confirming what I suspected was the case. Plus, I'm really not comfortable putting chemical-laden ANYTHING (even a tiny little strip of paper with some absorbent pads on it) in my tank. I'll only use them (now) for quick checks...

 

[diver]

fatman, because of what you said, I think I'll try checking the day/night ph, just for shits & giggles if nothing else. Is it bad for a small daily swing? When I check at night, everyuone acts OK. Everyone in the tank seems very healthy & happy, except for my smaller scallop who I'm trying to feed directly.
My nitrates almost always show zero, too.

 

[yote]

Its actually a good idea to check the PH right before the light come,then again right before they go off.That way you know just how much of swing your getting.
Mine drops to 7.8-7.9 at night and rises to 8.2 durning the day.

 

[fatman]

I am sure what you would find is that just before your lights come on your pH will be down 0.1 to 0.3 points, your redox will be down, your dissolved oxygen will be down and your pH will be up. About the only way to change that is to run algae or some coral in a refugium with a light cycle opposite your display tank. I very much doubt you will find any tanks with out the same situation. It varies with load of photosensitive coral, live rock and algae in display tank but it is always happening. Some differences can be had in the dissolved oxygen area with increased circulation but macro algae works much better. Algae also cuts a lot of the carbon dioxide swing. Also ozone will help the oxygen and redox, but again not as well as the refugium with algae. The aquariums with the huge swings have large amounts of live rock with lots of coraline algae and or large amounts of coral with symbiotic algae. The swing will not not be eliminated but lessened is a good idea. It is bad enough in some tanks that the fish spend the night right at the return nozzles, power head nozzles or at the very top of the water when the oxygen levels are highest. Unfortunately the coral and clams do not have that option. It is present to a very limited extent on coral reefs in the wild, something like 0.05 to 0.1 pH units at night. To say whether it is good or bad would only be a guess in degrees of bad. Yes it is bad. How bad? Not as bad as high ammonia or high nitrates. Worse than low calcium and low alkalinity. Worse than poor circulation and poor lighting. Probably about tied with fluctuating salinity and temperature swings. All bad, all inversly affecting health of organims, some even killing organisms.

 

[hotimportknight]

I don't feel so bad after seeing the amount of people who check their parameters about the same frequency as me... I check salinity when I do water changes, before and after. Lately I've been checking calcium because I'm trying to raise it, and alk because I finally got a test for it...

 

[diver]

All right, maybe this a stupid observation on my part, but I'll say it anyway. Isn't it somewhat natural to have some swing in your tank? Actually, a little swing helps everything.:mrgreen: Look at how we live-our air quality and many of the things we drink are harmful to us,(budweiser & crown royal, as examples) yet we tolerate them and grow accustomed to the variations, to an extent. I know that the fish, and to a greater extrent, the invertebrates, have much less tolerance obviously. But trying to keep everything perfect all the time seems like an impossible chore.
I know from years of freshwater that you can look a fish over and tell to a great extent if that fish is healthy and thriving.
Yotes swing of 7.8 to 8.2 doesn't seem harmful to his tank, I recently looked at the thread of his tank pics.

I know I'm still learning saltwater, but I'm just saying...

 

[reefer2b]

I check mine every few days. I've never had any readings as of yet though. I check salinity a few times a week.

 

[fatman]

Captive propagated corals are hardier in reef tanks because they are the off spring of corals that have been able to survive such conditions such as swings in pH between night and day. How ever science has shown it has taken thousands of years for animal life and human live to evolve into what we are and what are needs are and what our systems can handle. It is the selective breeding that is changing the fish and corals in our time frame not the stresses we are putting them through. No significant variances in a reef tank in any of the parameters is still the best you can try for.

 

[diver]

I agree, fatman. I don't want any sig. variances. I know I have to keep a close watch on the tank. I am carefully adjusting my daily lighting times between the white & blue bulbs to stop the growth of what appears to me to be some red slime type stuff.
Coraline seems to be coming along nicely, though.