Betta Posted December 1, 2013 Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 So I was at AOA the other day & the I was talking to Ben about test kits & how most of them aren't designed for the low levels that we in the shrimp hobby have to keep our water partameters at, I mentioned that there's noting out there that does low range of calcium or in particular nitrates & without even flinching he said "Salifert does!". I was a bit apprehensive at first & asked if it will do as low as 5ppm(most test kits only go down to 10ppm) & he told me it would go as low as 0.2ppm, gob smacked I said I'll give one a try & see how it goes. When I got home I opened the box to check the contents, looks simple enough! I started to read the instructions & found there is a high range & low range reading, but what confused me was the fact that you don't have to do a different test for the two different ranges. I started to do the process, 1ml of tank water with the syringe provided, then add 4 drops of the liquid reagent Then you add a spoonful of the powdered reagent & swirl for 30sec(don't shake) You wait 3mins & then check against the chart from the top down, simple enough huh? Now this is where the test gets very cool indeed, if the test reads below 10ppm from above in the "high range" then to change to the "low range" you just look at the same test sample through the SIDE, that's right, same sample but looking through the side & then you divide the chart numbers by 10 to give you the "low range" reading values. i.e. 100ppm from the top becomes 10ppm from the side, 2ppm from the top becomes 0.2ppm from the side, etc, cool huh! All I can say is MIND BLOWN!!! I am a total Salifert convert now & have already ordered the calcium kit & will post up a review of that one as soon as I get it. I'm also keen to get the ammonia kit too. Apparently the guy who owns Salifert does one thing & that is design & refine test kits for aquarium use, which is why they are so good, he doesn't have a million different products in his range so he can concentrate on making his test kits the best there is. Anyway I thought I'd share this with you guys cause if you are having the same problem that I was & couldn't get a reading on any normal test kit then this is definitely the test kit for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamiya Posted December 1, 2013 Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 Mate...next time u take pics plz clean ur hands.....PS I like this kit....nice write up..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betta Posted December 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 Hahaha, I just finished mowing the lawns, I'll try to remember to wash up next time, lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishguy23 Posted December 1, 2013 Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 there is also hanna although thats in another price range $60^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donny@ageofaquariums Posted December 1, 2013 Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 Yea hanna checkers are good, but most people still use salifert kits periodicly to check they are still reading true. I am a big salifert fan myself. My advice on testing? ALWAYS write the results down. Record the date, tank and data. 1 tests results is interesting. But multiple test results gives TREND DATA. And trend data is how we develop optimal routines for our aquarium maintence. Also it lets you tell other people whats happening in your tank, so you can get accurate and specific advice. And specific advice is a thousand times more helpful than the usual generic advice you get when people have to make assumptions about what your water chemistry is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betta Posted December 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2013 Definitely have to agree with you there Dman! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustAddWater Posted January 26, 2014 Report Share Posted January 26, 2014 Cool indeed for the price of $19.95 its worth it, Thanks for putting this post up Betta and easy to follow steps, been looking for this exact test for shrimp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch86 Posted January 26, 2014 Report Share Posted January 26, 2014 Sayyyy whaaattt'. Side on for low range, how the hell did they work that out. Brain hurts lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betta Posted January 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 It's because you are looking through more water so it will be darker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch86 Posted January 27, 2014 Report Share Posted January 27, 2014 The dimensions of the test sample container must have taken some working out to be accurate. Very cool indeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
