PSA: Ditch your API test kit

[melonheadorion]

Nice vid. However I’m pretty sure the dropper bottle for the API should by vertical, not at a 45deg angle like in the vid. I do agree that dropper tests are probably less reliable due to errors such as drop size not just user error though.

the issue that you run in to, and this is specific to the alk test, the drops come out so fast, even when you dont squeeze it, i barely managed to count the 5 drops at the angle i used. all other api bottles dont come out as fast, but the alk solution is insanely fast. so fast that you can lose count in the matter of a half second. i literally could have completed 15 drops in 2 seconds if i wasnt careful

 

[HawkeyeDJ]

Nice vid. However I’m pretty sure the dropper bottle for the API should by vertical, not at a 45deg angle like in the vid. I do agree that dropper tests are probably less reliable due to errors such as drop size not just user error though.

The directions specifically say to hold the bottle vertically for uniform drop size. It's simple enough. Just place the bottle tip inside the top of the vial and center it.

 

[melonheadorion]

The directions specifically say to hold the bottle vertically for uniform drop size. It's simple enough. Just place the bottle tip inside the top of the vial and center it.

i assume you still want to refute the outcome then, ya? i will redo it, just for you, to prove to you that it wont change the outcome enough to matter. since i dont trust the api kit to begin with, just after creating that video, i decided to test again. the test, with a 90 degree vertical drop, is now a solid 8. its not even a 8 to 9 now. obviously, i didnt record that, so im sure you will say im lying, but with 3 tests. 1 of them being skewed comparative to the other two, they showed a difference of a full dkh point value.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Well, then you have to explain a vast difference you get between the different outcome you will get with the two versions of the red sea alkalinity test. If one is just as accurate as the other, then both should come to the same result. I can confirm that they dont
On he other hand, I'm glad that you agree that there is a degree of incorrect value that api gives. You acknowledge wha my point was, probably without realizing it

There is a "degree of incorrect value" with ALL hobby grade test kits! Are you even reading the posts or just composing your next soliloquy?? We get it-you don't like API. Let the rest of us live in peace with our own opinions! Geez!

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

i assume you still want to refute the outcome then, ya? i will redo it, just for you, to prove to you that it wont change the outcome enough to matter. since i dont trust the api kit to begin with, just after creating that video, i decided to test again. the test, with a 90 degree vertical drop, is now a solid 8. its not even a 8 to 9 now. obviously, i didnt record that, so im sure you will say im lying, but with 3 tests. 1 of them being skewed comparative to the other two, they showed a difference of a full dkh point value.

Um, 90 degrees is not vertical...

 

[melonheadorion]

There is a "degree of incorrect value" with ALL hobby grade test kits! Are you even reading the posts or just composing your next soliloquy?? We get it-you don't like API. Let the rest of us live in peace with our own opinions! Geez!

its not that i dislike them, but the amount of "they arent innacurate, incorrect, etc" thrown out there, can be proven as being false. in fact, just minutes apart, i found that the api kit proved itself that it changes from test to test.
and um, 90 degrees is vertical. lol. a letter L would be a letter in the alphabet that represents 90 degrees. the table top being part of the angle that creates 90 degrees, and the straight up and down of the dropper being vertical. im no rocket surgeon, but when the instructions say vertical, pretty sure thats what they mean.

ver·ti·cal
at right angles to a horizontal plane; in a direction, or having an alignment, such that the top is directly above the bottom.

a vertical line or plane.

an upright structure.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

its not that i dislike them, but the amount of "they arent innacurate, incorrect, etc" thrown out there, can be proven as being false.
and um, 90 degrees is vertical. lol. a letter L would be a letter in the alphabet that represents 90 degrees. the table top being part of the angle that creates 90 degrees, and the straight up and down of the dropper being vertical. im no rocket surgeon, but when the instructions say vertical, pretty sure thats what they mean.

ver·ti·cal
at right angles to a horizontal plane; in a direction, or having an alignment, such that the top is directly above the bottom.
a vertical line or plane.
an upright structure.

If you turn something upside down, that's 180 degrees. "Pretty sure" I'm right. 100%, in fact.
(What you described is perpendicular, but we're getting off track)

 

[melonheadorion]

If you turn something upside down, that's 180 degrees. "Pretty sure" I'm right. 100%, in fact.
(What you described is perpendicular, but we're getting off track)

the test instructions dont tell you to turn it upside down. it tells you to do a test vertically. so, unless your going to somehow hold that bottle upright toward the ceiling, and get those drops into a vial, a 90 degree angle where the leg that is going up, is vertical. the angle in which i held it in that vertical is 90 degrees so that the drop is going straight down, and not at a 45 degree angle. the actual facing of the opening isnt part of what the instructions mean to be vertical. thats just a weird flex to get me on a definition

 

[Garf]

I’ve got a mag test from aqua forest and the dropper bottles in that test are a problem. The instructions even warn that half drop, or drop with air bubbles in, makes the test useless. Thankfully I seldom check mag.

If you have a pH meter, this is the most accurate and cheapest method for testing Alk. However it’s not quite as convenient and can infrequently be used to assess other Alk tests;

A DIY Alkalinity Test: By Randy Holmes-Farley - REEFEDITION

Alkalinity is one of the most important measurements that a reef aquarist can make. It can become rapidly depleted in many aquaria, requiring frequent measurement in order to maintain stable levels.

www.reefedition.com

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

the test instructions dont tell you to turn it upside down. it tells you to do a test vertically. so, unless your going to somehow hold that bottle upright toward the ceiling, and get those drops into a vial, a 90 degree angle where the leg that is going up, is vertical. the angle in which i held it in that vertical is 90 degrees so that the drop is going straight down, and not at a 45 degree angle.

Seriously, just stop. Every post, you're just making it worse!
Definitely not a rocket scientist... but you said that...

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

the test instructions dont tell you to turn it upside down. it tells you to do a test vertically. so, unless your going to somehow hold that bottle upright toward the ceiling, and get those drops into a vial, a 90 degree angle where the leg that is going up, is vertical. the angle in which i held it in that vertical is 90 degrees so that the drop is going straight down, and not at a 45 degree angle.

Seriously, just stop. Every post, you're just making it worse!
Definitely not a rocket scientist... but you said that...

 

[melonheadorion]

Seriously, just stop. Every post, you're just making it worse!
Definitely not a rocket scientist... but you said that...

ok

 

[tharbin]

@melonheadorion I understand what you are saying and much of what you say is correct but not necessarily germane to this thread.

Here is the original post in this thread:
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I've seen many post of individuals asking for help and they are using API test kits. These test kits are unreliable and make it difficult for experienced aquarist to help. Please look into at least Salifert test kits or better.

Please don't cheap out on the test kits that measure the most important thing in this hobby

WATER QUALITY.
-----

I take exception to that post for a number of reasons. First it is inaccurate. I have used many, many test kits, including a few that are no longer made, over the years and API tests are very good for their intended use. I do not like seeing a company get bad-rapped without just cause but even more I do not like to see hobbyists forced into spending more money than they need to from nothing more than peer-pressure.

Case-in-point: There was a thread recently on R2R from a newer hobbyist asking if there were any alternatives to the Hanna checkers because they are $50.00 each (they are now more like $55.00 each). His reasoning was that he was lead to believe that his API tests were useless and that you had to spend hundreds of dollars on Hanna kits to actually measure your tank. That would be cost-prohibitive to him and to me for that matter. These posts cause great harm to the hobby and to the manufacturer.

Here is the post I made in that thread to show you what I currently use and how I responded to him:
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The reality is that most of the test kits work 'pretty' well, including API. None are lab-quality. The majority of the Hanna Checkers are just colormetric tests just like everyone else's. If you want to pay 50 dollars to have someone else (the photo sensor) read the color chart for you, go for it (I just have my wife look as well if I'm unsure). Just remember that if it gets out of calibration, it's time for a new 'egg'. There is a lot of 'elitism' in the reefing hobby but the reality is we were keeping reef tanks just fine long before the Hanna checkers existed.

That said, I do use one: The Marine Phosphate ULR as the Hanna ULRs are the only ones I know of that read the low ranges we typically maintain today.

So here is what I use (not a recommendation of these over others just another data point for you):
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Source water chlorine/chloramine - LaMotte
Source water - TDS - HM Digital
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Ammonia and Nitrite (when needed) - API
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pH - API
SG - Marine Depot Refractometer
Nitrate - API
Alkalinity - Salifert (because I wanted finer resolution than the API test)
Calcium - Salifert (because my API test expired and the Salifert was in stock)
Phosphate - Hanna Marine Phosphate ULR
Magnesium - Aquaforest

Significantly when I changed from API to Salifert for Calcium and Alkalinity my readings did not change. My Phosphate did change because all I knew from the API test was that it was more than 0.0 and less than 0.25ppm. It ended up being 0.05 do I really need to know that? I doubt it but I don't want to get in trouble with the test kit police around here

The only changes in testing I plan to make is to pick up a new Tropic Marin High-Precision Hydrometer as backup and verification and get a good separate temperature probe, not sure which one yet though.
-----

I hope you can see my viewpoint as well as your own. If I was not starting to dose 2-part I would still use the API Alk test. I need to know my Alk is between 7-8dKh. Where in that range doesn't really matter and you can get a feel for about where it is between the two points. Now that I'm dosing I need finer resolution so that I don't Alk-shock the tank from the dosing. That does not negate the validity of the API test it merely says that my current situation calls for a more precise test.

 

[Microcosm Reefer]

I'm sure API has it's place... just not on my shelf.
Nitrate was deal breaker for me... showing atleast 5ppm but showing zero on Salifert.
Could be operator error... willing to give benefit of doubt (perhaps loose cap and evap on solution 1)

 

[Czredbeard]

Unfortunately I don't think there's a lot one can do. A lot of people buy the API kits simply because they're cheap. The irony ends up being that if there's an issue that arises out of the API tests, it's usually cost more in livestock than a good test kit would have.

I think that there is one universally accepted fact in the hobby; the API ammonia test is not accurate. It always shows .25 ammonia.

I am writing to confirm bad api master test kit.I have been helping a friend new to hobby with his 150gallon aquarium. He recently called me after a fish dying. Long story short I brought my kit to test against his. His Api master test kit was showing 0 ammonia and 0 nitrate. My topfin test kit showed .25 ammonia and whatever the 3rd shade down for nitrite. I not sure what it was because at that point I went to panic mode. It was not user error. Very, very disappointed.

 

[MnFish1]

I am writing to confirm bad api master test kit.I have been helping a friend new to hobby with his 150gallon aquarium. He recently called me after a fish dying. Long story short I brought my kit to test against his. His Api master test kit was showing 0 ammonia and 0 nitrate. My topfin test kit showed .25 ammonia and whatever the 3rd shade down for nitrite. I not sure what it was because at that point I went to panic mode. It was not user error. Very, very disappointed.

Well - here is my (Heresy warning) experience. First. Your top fin test showing .25 ammonia is not significantly high enough to kill anything. The free ammonia was at a non-toxic level - and nitrite is not toxic in saltwater at that level either Iif it was a freshwater tank - thats potentially a different story)

Second - there have been numerous videos/studies actually comparing the various test kits - and all of them have errors and false results. None have been found to be superior - if done correctly.

Third - I only use API test kits. I make sure I follow them exactly - because if you do not - you can get erroneous results. Additionally, Make sure the expiration date has not passed.

Fourth - with regards to ammonia - the most common error with API tests is not reading 0 ammonia when the actual reading is .25 - the problem is usually that people are reading 0.25 - when its really zero - which again - usually comes down to not following the directions of how to read the API ammonia test.

Again - just my 2 cents.

 

[WVNed]

I used them a very long time. I would say other tests are easier to do. I would still use API tests if I had to.

 

[Rmckoy]

I still have api kits around and use them when I don’t agree with the other test results.
Especially nitrate . It’s easy. I’ve memorized the test step by step and have used it for too many years not to trust it .

that being said I do find salifert easier to tell the difference between colours

 

[brandon429]

Team I want to earnestly offer something regarding api and it’s not to hate on them


it’s that when applying updated cycling science you don’t need any ammonia testing in a display reef, and that includes cycling. I’m not sure how many more testless cycling threads we need at 30+ pages each to establish the method


it’s not that api is bad, its that new resources can cycle any reef tank never testing anything and it works 100% of the time. There isn’t a need to know api, or seneye, or hanna ammonia levels unless we want to use them as proofs in debate threads. For our actual home reefs, ammonia and nitrite from any brand name aren’t require to know. We can cycle any reef tank described by a given date ten days out, and it’s also common and easy to skip the ammonia prep cycle altogether and start on day one.

when cycling is complete, we don’t have to test for ammonia and nitrite in the display. They don’t drift out of spec. There’s no need to have a warning system for those two parameters.


fish disease control, prevention, mitigation, study - that’s where to aim concerns. 0% cycling concerns, 100% dealing with disease prevention is the concern well beyond Api ammonia or nitrite.

I only mentioned those two params because they self control by a predetermined date…other params like calcium and alk range and many systems test for those. I have no idea if api is good for those params

 

[Aaron75]

Wow, I just read through all this and I feel it was worth the read. I'm just getting my new tank and was afraid to at least start with API but was going to use anyway just for Cycling. My mind was already set on Salifert for the rest of my tanks life. Maybe I'll stick with API a little longer.