Nitrites will eventually be converted to nitrate by the bacteria growing in the tank and filters. Nitrite is just as toxic to tropical fish as ammonia and the only way to quickly reduce nitrite levels is through a water change. Nitrite levels will soar in new tanks that have not yet been cycled. Read about the Nitrogen Cycle.Īmmonia gets converted to nitrite by the bacteria in your tank. Ideally you want this reading to be less than 20 ppm, in reef tanks you want this to be as close to 0 as possible. The only way to remove the nitrates is through a partial water change. Nitrates are not as toxic as ammonia or nitrites but they are harmful and will stress your fish at high enough levels. Nitrites are converted to nitrates during the cycling process. Magnesium is depleted over time and will need to be replace through water changes and maybe even dosing, but not until you get a magnesium test for it. I try to keep mine in the middle around 1300 ppm. You want to keep this in the range of natural saltwater which is 1200 to 1400 ppm. I wouldn't recommend dosing iodine without being able to test it.Īnother important parameter to keep an eye on for saltwater fish keepers is magnesium. Iodine is used up quickly by the aquarium inhabitants and skimmed out with the protein skimmer. Copper can be very harmful, even lethal, to fish and invertebrates so it can be good to have a copper test on hand.Īn iodine test is needed for saltwater hobbists that keep corals or invertebrates that require iodine.
It can also get introduced to your tank if you've used any copper based medications. This heavy metal can come in with the tap water if you have older copper pipes.
You will usually only test once or twice for chlorine with your chlorine test just to see if you have it in your water.
Clorine must be eliminated before entering your aquarium or it will kill your tropical fish. This chemical is found in most tap water and it is used to kill the bad bacteria in our drinking water. As with chlorine, you must eliminate this chemical from your tap water before adding it to your aquarium or it too will kill your tropical fish. It is a stronger disinfectant than chlorine alone and is used in areas where this extra disinfectant is needed. For more information on dosing calcium, please read Saltwater Supplements.Ĭhloramine is a combination of chlorine and ammonia. You need a test kit to determine how much and how often to dose. Calcium is a primary element that corals need to grow and dosing calcium may be a necessity for the health of these animals. Primarily for saltwater aquariums, a Calcium test is important to use when dosing calcium in reef tanks. You want this reading with your ammonia test to be 0. Ammonia is the leading killer of tropical fish. This chemical is the result of fish waste and decomposing food in the aquarium. In most saltwater tanks you want this reading to be in the 7-12 dkH range. It can be thought of as your tank's buffering capacity or it's ability to keep the pH level stable. The alkalinity test determines how stable your tank water is relative to a shifting pH. See below for more information on these terms. The Reef Master Kit has even more tests than the saltwater master test kit. Saltwater Liquid Master Kit usually contain tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and sometimes alkalinity. The Freshwater Master Aquarium Kit usually contain tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH. As hobbyists, we may tend to skew the results in our favor, so a second opinion may help keep us honest. Don't tell them what it means, just ask them to match up the colors. It can be a good idea to ask someone else in your house to compare the colors and give you a second opinion. You then match the color of the water in the test tube against a card to get your final reading. You usually need to shake the tube and wait a few minutes for the test to develop. You dispense the liquid (certain number of drops) into a test tube with tank water. The other type of test has liquid droppers. You then compare the color with the card that came with the kit to get your final reading for each particular test. Some aquarium water tests come as dip strips that you dip in a test tube filled with water from your tank. Live plant keepers and saltwater reef tank keepers may need to invest in additional specialized mini tests such as copper, phosphate, dissolved oxygen, etc. For most hobbyists these master kits will be sufficient. You can usually save a few dollars by getting a master test kit. There are many tests that you can use on your aquarium including:īuying these aquarium tests individually can get expensive.
You will need to know how to test your water during new tank start-up (the cycle) and whenever problems arise. An aquarium water test kit is needed if you want to be successful in the tropical fish hobby (freshwater or saltwater).