test kits wich is best

best i found was the C Hagen A7860 Master Test Kit it tests Nutrafin Master Test Kit Suitable for fresh and saltwater aquariums. Includes 10 test parameters for: - Phosphate, Calcium, Nitrae, Nitrite, Ammonia, pH High Range, pH Low Range, Carbonate Hardness, General Hardness, Iron. all in one kit

anyone know of a better or cheeper one that does same or more let me know and is there anything els i need to cheek on a 150gal reef tank ? want everything i need before i start this thing lol

Alec!!

I've never used the nutrafin test kits so I can't comment as to their ease or accuracy. I can however say that 1 of the tests is useless in a reef, and 2 others I have never tested for in my reef tanks.

The low range pH is useless IMHO, if your pH is that low you have serious issues already.

I have never tested for general hardness or iron, and I don't remember anyone ever saying that those tests were needed.

Now if you tell us some about what you have planned we can help you more.

What do you have so far and what are you thinking of getting???

do tell us more about your plans, and your experience!

A new tank doesn't really need to test for much - PH, salinity, and temp is really all you need until you really get into keeping more things alive than just algae!!

i want to set up a 150gal reef tank with a ton of coral shrimp crabs anemones a few small pretty fish with a 55 gal refugium with starfish in it to feed my Harlequin shrimp i have tank and everything picked out just know for hard /soft coral i need to test allot of stuff and need to know which test kit to buy

i know i dont need to test all that right away but i want the test kit on hand before i need it i will be runing my tank for 6 months before adding my coral just want to be ready lol ocd like that haha

OCD is a good thing when starting a reef tank.

totally - haha, and test kits go bad every 6-12 months, so hold off and just get the ones you need now, and when you are ready for corals, then move on to the CA/MG/ALK type test kits....

I know a lot of people out here like to use Salifert or Elos test kits - my main recommendation - use a brand you can easily get - one your LFS carries... cuz when you have an emergency, and your test kit is expired, you dont want to wait a week for it to ship in!

never new they expire thanks and will do

I like salifert, but they are pricey. So I only use them for tests which need specific numbers. A cheap kit is fine for ammonia and nitrate, because you really only need to test for presence/absence. Nitrite isn't a concern for saltwater. For pH, I really prefer a pH meter.

So for a successful reef tank, you need:
Magnesium
Calcium
Alkalinity
pH
Nitrate
Ammonia
Salinity

And if you really want, a phosphate tester.

Hi Alec!!! we like Salifert too - - mainly for calcium, nitrate and alkalinity....we use a ph meter and phosphate meter (this was pricey but so so worth it for us - - most accurate we've seen so far)....for the rest we use Aquarium Pharmaceuticals and are very happy - they're pretty accurate too.....

Originally Posted by spinycheek

I like salifert, but they are pricey. So I only use them for tests which need specific numbers. A cheap kit is fine for ammonia and nitrate, because you really only need to test for presence/absence. Nitrite isn't a concern for saltwater. For pH, I really prefer a pH meter.

So for a successful reef tank, you need:
Magnesium
Calcium
Alkalinity
pH
Nitrate
Ammonia
Salinity

And if you really want, a phosphate tester.

Alec

Those all in one master test kits sound nice but i would buy each test as needed. When you first set up a reef tank all your going to need for the first month or two will be a ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits. After the initial cycle is finished your not going to need the ammonia and nitrite kits. Then before you want to add corals or inverts you should pick up calcium, magnesium and alkalinity kits and get those all set before adding anything. For a reef tank your not going to need tests for low range PH, iron, iodine and a few others so i wouldnt buy an all in one kit that has those. Phosphate test kits will come in handy but the titration types (X amount of tank water, X amount of drops, look at the color) are pretty much useless. When the time comes to start checking phosphate look into the Hanna phosphate checker low range. It will give you a digital result unlike most others that have you guessing at shades of gray.

As for what brands to get, if you ask 10 different people you will get 10 different answers. Ive always liked Salifert and API