H2O Testing-Hannah

[Manny'sReef]

After a couple of years of neglecting my tank I am hell bent into getting it back in shape again. What are your thoughts on Hannah test kits? I hate looking at those color comparisons and making the right call on them. Do you find Hannah to be accurate and easy to use?

 

[Crabs McJones]

After a couple of years of neglecting my tank I am hell bent into getting it back in shape again. What are your thoughts on Hannah test kits? I hate looking at those color comparisons and making the right call on them. Do you find Hannah to be accurate and easy to use?

I recently switched to the Hannah Alk checker from the Salifert. And when implemented correctly the Hannah kits are highly accurate. And I agree I love having a digital readout that tells me exactly what my level is compared to trying to read colors

 

[ihavecrabs]

After a couple of years of neglecting my tank I am hell bent into getting it back in shape again. What are your thoughts on Hannah test kits? I hate looking at those color comparisons and making the right call on them. Do you find Hannah to be accurate and easy to use?

I hated testing purely due to the color comparisons.. Triation was better, but still a pain for me. Hanna has literally made testing a breeze and more than manageable.

I find them consistent (or consistent enough). I currently use Hanna for Alkalinity and ULR Phosphorus. I use other kits for Calcium, Nitrate, and Magnesium as those are tests I do more as needed.

 

[blackizzz]

I use Hanna for Alkalinity and Phosphates (ULR Phosphorus)

Alkalinity is really easy to use, quick and from my experience accurate.

Phosphorus is a little trickier, but much easier than color-comparison. Once you get the hang of it it's pretty simple as well though.

Only thing that's not awesome is trying to clean the bottles without leaving any residue behind, and not damaging them. Takes a little time for them to air dry.

 

[sghera64]

After a couple of years of neglecting my tank I am hell bent into getting it back in shape again. What are your thoughts on Hannah test kits? I hate looking at those color comparisons and making the right call on them. Do you find Hannah to be accurate and easy to use?

I’m like you and made the switch for the reasons you cited to Hanna’s:

- ULR phosphorus
- Alk
- Calcium

Now saying all that, keep in mind that digital precision does not mean you will get the same level of accuracy.

Many of us on R2R have found the ULR phosphorus to be within their specified accuracy. BRS has a video verifying my claim. So look at what Hanna claims and decide if that accuracy is okay for you. There has been a few more threads of debate regarding the accuracy of the Hanna calcium. Many of us feel is within their claim, but a few have shown their kits were off.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

A lot of folks have issues with the calcium kit, probably due to the strange design where a trace of calcium in the blank shows up as a hundred times more calcium subtracted from the total.

 

[Manny'sReef]

A lot of folks have issues with the calcium kit, probably due to the strange design where a trace of calcium in the blank shows up as a hundred times more calcium subtracted from the total.

Which calcium kit do you use?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Which calcium kit do you use?

I haven't personally used one for many years.

I determined a long time ago that my tank operated fine by replacing all evaporated water with limewater (kalkwasser)and changing 1% daily with normal IO. The normal IO I used tended to be low in calcium and the limewater tended to raise it (relative to alkalinity), so it worked out fine.

The last test I had by Triton a year or so before taking the tank down after 20 years showed a level of 472 mg/L.