Everyone probably has their own needs and preferences, and a lot depends on the current state of the tank. I try to line my testing up with what my tank is going through at the moment.
For example, you are probably monitoring ammonia and nitrite/nitrate as you cycle. Once cycled and up and running for a while, you may rarely test for ammonia.
When I started Triton at first, I tested alk, Ca, Mg, PO4 and NO3 every day, sometimes alk more than once a day, to dial in the dosing rates. Once I had the dosing set, I backed off the Ca and Mg to weekly at first,but then as I got more comfortable, I relied on daily alk testing and checked Ca and Mg even less frequently. I kept the PO4 and NO3 up daily for a while because I was still learning how my tank took up nutrients, but I eventually backed those off to weekly.
That is, unless you notice a change in the tank, or add something that could change consumption rates. In that case, I go back to daily testing until I feel like there is an equilibrium again, then I back off. I still check alk every day because it is quick and easy, and it alerts me for any need to possibly check something else. It is interesting how alk consumption can vary over the course of a day, so I try to test at the same time every day. It is also interesting to see how coral growth can affect it, and clue you in to a need to perhaps change the triton dosing. If I fiddle with the dosing, I will go back to daily Ca and Mg just to make sure they don’t get out of whack.
I did ICP tests monthly for maybe three months,but Like the other testing, I realized I wasn’t learning much at that frequency, so now I do them maybe 2-3 times a year, or specifically if I change salt mixes or something big like that.
For salinity, it doesn’t change much unless you have a problem with an ATO or something, so I don’t check that on a regular basis.
