What lighting for Salifert Test?

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

The Salifert Ammonia Test is really hard to read for me between 0, <0.15, and 0.25. the readings look different in all types of lighting. Near the window it has a brownish hue to it, not deep brown, but you know... In a white lit room it can be white, yellow or brown depending which way I am facing. So I was wondering what type of lighting is recommended to accurately read the Salifert Ammonia Test?, because it doesn't seem to tell me in the directions.

 

[Saltyreef]

That test kit is garbage imo. I love salifert but some of their kits are literally useless....

If you see any kind of color registered on it, its already likely too late!
I prefer seachem ammonia badges for monitoring free ammonia.

Btw is this for a quarantine tank?

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

That test kit is garbage imo. I love salifert but some of their kits are literally useless....

If you see any kind of color registered on it, its already likely too late!
I prefer seachem ammonia badges for monitoring free ammonia.

Btw is this for a quarantine tank?

Nope DT, but funny you say that I just got a ammonia badge today. Was hoping to wait until I need to.use quarantine.

 

[brandon429]

Let's assess ammonia using updated cycling science which does not require any test kits

Start with a full tank picture pls

If that is missing core proofs all we'll need to know afterwards is how many days the tank has had water, to discern your cycle status

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

Let's assess ammonia using updated cycling science which does not require any test kits

Start with a full tank picture pls

If that is missing core proofs all we'll need to know afterwards is how many days the tank has had water, to discern your cycle status

Tank is 2 months with fish, and added biospira. Check out my build thread please. Here is pic lights turning off atm.

 

[atul176]

Tank is 2 months with fish, and added biospira. Check out my build thread please. Here is pic lights turning off atm.

If you added sufficient amounts of bio spira then you don’t even need to be testing for ammonia, unless you don’t see any kind of algae or diatoms. This is provided that the bacteria did not die on transport.

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

If you added sufficient amounts of bio spira then you don’t even need to be testing for ammonia, unless you don’t see any kind of algae or diatoms. This is provided that the bacteria did not die on transport.

Build Thread - 125g Build :)

Biological Start Date (Biospira): Monday, June 7th, 2021 First Fish In this build (2x Clownfish): Wednesday, June 9th, 2021 Equipment: 1x Fluval FX4 Stock Mechanical Filtration Removed Bio Foam (For more Bio Media) +- 1.3 Liter's of Seachem Matrix Bio Media Carbon Filter Floss...

www.reef2reef.com

My fish looked sick, was trying to rule out ammonia. And wanted to see if I was overfeeding.

My parameters today are:
Ammonia 0 I think with salifert, and API looks to be between 0 and 0.25 so guessing it's .15.
Nitrate 5 or less but not below 2
Ph 8.15
Alk 8Dkh

So I shouldn't be worried about ammonia?

 

[brandon429]

you do not need to test for ammonia or nitrite for the life of this reef tank starting now here's why

fish disease is your issue, see this thread below its how your tank is running and will run

in that much dilution, low bioload you do not need to test for ammonia at all


your test above needs something called a TAN conversion just the same to be accurate, not factoring that part is total mis contextualizing your reading

*after tan, that sample above you're testing is fine anyway, your ammonia is safe, not unsafe, per the tester.

the ammonia in this reef runs at the thousandths ppm nh3 level regardless of what that test above says...dilution, surface area, low bioload, more than ten days old I can see by details, and used biospira which is skip cycle bac:

Bio-spira works great

I just started a new tank a little over a week ago. I started with all dry rock and new sand. I added a bottle of Bio-Spira and put fish and coral the same day. Never saw any ammonia and fish and coral seem healthy.

www.reef2reef.com

that thread proves you are ok, he added 6x more items on day one.

your posts from early July show benthic growths on the sand and some life forms, those only happen via import, in cycled tanks. Pics alone has cleared you cycle and in no way can you have uncontrolled ammonia, it would blot out the water and kill your animals to be running 30 days in unclean water.


early fish disease, now that's a different story. non fallow non qt is what keeps the fish disease forum busy by the minute.

 

[Saltyreef]

Good. The crew chimed in while i was gone.
Yea id omit the ammonia test after getting your first fish that doesnt die immediately

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

Lol, ok saves me 3-5 minutes every testing day, yay! Probably wasted a couple hours of my life on that kit. I usually test because it's the most harmful. But I guess a cycled tank doesn't need ammonia tests unless a problem occurs somehow. Like dumping a shotload of food into the tank?

 

[brandon429]

and its neat how reliable updated cycling science is...you have exceeded wait time for the ammonia control line from any common cycling chart. it never comes back up, after trending down, we can see (unless fish disease gets em first, they lay in the tank and rot, thats the only thing that can drive up ammonia and you dont need an ammonia test to prevent that, you'd remove dead fish)

Updated cycling science knows that ammonia can never creep up to kill your fish, its the other way around strictly. something kills fish when we aren't home to remove them (murphys law of fish keeping) and the collective rot overpowers an otherwise ready system.

if you can account for all your fish, your ammonia is fine, and plus a reef of that size can take those few above dying anyway and control the waste/already tested at nh3 levels on seneye/fish loss has been.

ammonia and nitrite testing can be retired here for sure. focus on disease controls and quality feeding but not overdoing it, for the fish. you can easily add some starter corals, that guy above added a $300 anemone at the same time he added biospira, the rascal lol.

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

and its neat how reliable updated cycling science is...you have exceeded wait time for the ammonia control line from any common cycling chart. it never comes back up, after trending down, we can see (unless fish disease gets em first, they lay in the tank and rot, thats the only thing that can drive up ammonia and you dont need an ammonia test to prevent that, you'd remove dead fish)

Updated cycling science knows that ammonia can never creep up to kill your fish, its the other way around strictly. something kills fish when we aren't home to remove them (murphys law of fish keeping) and the collective rot overpowers an otherwise ready system.

if you can account for all your fish, your ammonia is fine, and plus a reef of that size can take those few above dying anyway and control the waste/already tested at nh3 levels on seneye/fish loss has been.

ammonia and nitrite testing can be retired here for sure. focus on disease controls and quality feeding but not overdoing it, for the fish. you can easily add some starter corals, that guy above added a $300 anemone at the same time he added biospira, the rascal lol.

Yeah XD, that rascal! I would like to get a coral, but I still have diatoms. I don't want to snuff out the coral.

 

[atul176]

Build Thread - 125g Build :)

Biological Start Date (Biospira): Monday, June 7th, 2021 First Fish In this build (2x Clownfish): Wednesday, June 9th, 2021 Equipment: 1x Fluval FX4 Stock Mechanical Filtration Removed Bio Foam (For more Bio Media) +- 1.3 Liter's of Seachem Matrix Bio Media Carbon Filter Floss...

www.reef2reef.com

My fish looked sick, was trying to rule out ammonia. And wanted to see if I was overfeeding.

My parameters today are:
Ammonia 0 I think with salifert, and API looks to be between 0 and 0.25 so guessing it's .15.
Nitrate 5 or less but not below 2
Ph 8.15
Alk 8Dkh

So I shouldn't be worried about ammonia?

API is notorious for giving false readings. If you’re concerned then get an ammonia badge. Also here’s a tip for the salifert kit, get two of the exact same containers, and fill them both up with the same amount of water as instructed in the test kit. Only add the reagents and liquids to one and complete the test. Then you have a side by side comparison of normal tank water and ammonia tested water, so you can see if there’s detectable ammonia or not.

 

[SaltwaterGuruNeeded]

API is notorious for giving false readings. If you’re concerned then get an ammonia badge. Also here’s a tip for the salifert kit, get two of the exact same containers, and fill them both up with the same amount of water as instructed in the test kit. Only add the reagents and liquids to one and complete the test. Then you have a side by side comparison of normal tank water and ammonia tested water, so you can see if there’s detectable ammonia or not.

I would but the ammonia kits always have the reaction thing going, like the fuzzy stuff. I did one with rodi and one with tank water and rodi one was clear and yellow, the tank water was yellow but fuzzy. So idk. This was the API Test.

 

[brandon429]

The test proposed above is invalid. We expect all reef water with fish in it to report slight amounts of ammonia, if the tester can even read it when non digital, the levels were named above.


We wouldn’t use non aquarium water for blanks, out of context the reading means nothing. No future testing is needed here because no reef tank has ammonia issues past the dates on a cycling chart and at one month of bioload carry after adding instant cycling bottle bac. This cycle is simply done.

your test will work fine if you run it on reef tank water, apply the TAN conversion to get nh3 totals, and compare that to the safety chart in the directions.