API ammonia tests kit

talal reefer

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hi guys i have a new tank 650 red sea peninsula that has been running for 13 days i have cycled the tank with dr tim one only rated for 240 gallons and just emptied that bottle in the tank and a 286 ml bottle of fritz 9 bacteria , i am using aquaroche dead rock with real reef dead rocks and caribsea live sand , on the 2nd day i tested for ammonia and nitrite using api and saw nothing and tested for nitrate and it was 0.2 - 0.5 using slaferet which shocked me cuz i thought i killed the sand using rodi water which meant i should have ammonia then i added 7 green chromis in the tank with a small cuc that eat left over food and started feeding twice and three times a day , tested for ammonia and nitrite eveyday and it came up zero everyday

i kept all water parameters in check ph = 7.99 temp = 24.6-25 salinity = 1.027 and using trident with dos from neptune i used triton base elemnts to keep kh = 8.52 ca =450 =mg 1380

after the 5 days period of the dr tim instructions i stated the skimmer and the refugium with a small amount of chaito
then i started getting hasty and kept adding few fish and inverts and with them i increased feeding and fed 3 times a day
since everything was stable parameters wise and no ammonia and nitrite showed up i kept getting confident 4 days aggo i added 2 colonies of acros 4 frags of montipora 4 colonies of branching montis a colony of bird nest and zoas , mushrooms , two hammer corals , two clams and expanded my clean up crew of inverts
3 days ago i fed 1 cube of frozen food with two feedings of pellets i use rdo/hikari pellets , 2 days ago did the same cuz i was worried corals werent getting food becuase of how new my tank is even tho all the corals are happy
all the fish and corals are happy and fully open my shrimp are molting and breeding
nassarus snail spawned
all the signs say the tank is fine
then 2 days ago after i feed the frozen for two days straight i was worried so tested my water and it showed a yellow tinted with green but zero nitrite i panicked and ordered two 286 ml fritz 9 bacteria waited for the day after same resualt so i emtpted the two bottles of bacteria in the tank i stopped the frozen but fed 3 times a day with pellets
i kept testing the waster yestrday all day same resualt
i tested today and got the same yellow with green tent
my test is not expired but its 2 years old atleast
so i went to a friends house just now and tested with his salfiret test and it showed white color thats a bit cloudy which meant zero
which test should i trust ?
i also sent an icp and ndoc test today to triton to know for sure but i dont want to wait that long before it too late
Should i be worried ? And what should i do ?
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ying yang

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Alot off people seem to struggle with the api amnonia test and say always 0.25 ppm test result but in saltwater the water little more cloudy than freshwater so can make the colour harder to read,but 0ppm on api = yellow and 0.25 ppm is lime green if not mistaken, you go by which colour its closest to which sounds like it's closer to yellow than lime green so I would say 0ppm on your api but not seen colour so idk.
But beat to do test with natural sunlight and hold teat tube upto white part off card and have natural sunlight behind you.

From what I can remember what you said from your post,all fish,snails,cuc,corals all alive and thriving, growing and even spawning so that points to all is ok.
Salifert = 0ppm
Api = sounds like 0ppm as you say yellow with tinge of green so if more yellow than lime green then read as yellow so 0ppm
And api reads total amnonia so that's the toxic and none toxic combined so that usually means divide by 10 whatever your api amnonia reading is ( after do tan conversion) so 0.25 ppm amnonia = 0.025 toxic free amnonia )
It may not be exactly divide by 10 but its something similar to that.
Sorry yours was long post and cant remember all you said and time frame from start to finish but remember you saying dead Rocks and live Sand? And added doctor tims bacteria and fritz 900 bacteria and they 2 off the best brands for quick cycling a tank from Dr reefs tests he did on bottled bacteria ( threads on r2r somewhere )
So imo salifert 0ppm and api reading 0 .25 total amnonia you think buy could well be reading 0ppm but even 0.25 after tan Co version much less toxic amnonia and alot off bottled bacteria and no dead livestock so I probably wouldn't worry about it .
But maybe sloe down on adding all the livestock so quick.
I know it's hard and we get excited ( me to ha ha) But we don't plan quickly stock tank and break tank down in 6 months so no rush right .
Good luck
 
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talal reefer

talal reefer

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sorry for the long post i wanted to add as much info as i could yeah after this scare iam pulling the brakes hard thank you for the reply
 

vetteguy53081

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API notorious for false readings. While some have luck with use, too many do not and go with Hanna or salifert brand. If in doubt, I generally suggest to take a water sample to a trusted LFS that does Not use api kits and see what readings they come up with and to comare with yours.
I will never rely on a $7.00 badge or $24 test kit to manage over a $200 -$1000 in fish and coral
 

ying yang

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sorry for the long post i wanted to add as much info as i could yeah after this scare iam pulling the brakes hard thank you for the reply
Yeah no need be sorry, always best to add everything you think relevant then little more just incase is my opinion.
Just counting your fish in picture and counted was it 13 ? And that's 13 fish in 13 day old tank ?
Ha ha that's giving it some,but you've added fair few bottles off bacteria and biggish tank right ?
Just keep testing and take appropiate measures if needed ( like have some saltwater made up incase need do water change quick if amnonia rises etc.
Always best be prepared
 
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talal reefer

talal reefer

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API notorious for false readings. While some have luck with use, too many do not and go with Hanna or salifert brand. If in doubt, I generally suggest to take a water sample to a trusted LFS that does Not use api kits and see what readings they come up with and to comare with yours.
I will never rely on a $7.00 badge or $24 test kit to manage over a $200 -$1000 in fish and coral
The hobby isn’t really good in my country we order alot of our equipment from the us so no lfs that has good testing standards sadly this is why i sent my water samples to triton but it will take some time to ship
 

brandon429

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Cease testing for ammonia the bottle bac already cycled you.

It does no good for me to type another two page info on why you'd stop testing for ammonia for the life of this tank, the info is out there for finding and this is the condensed version. Ammonia is now in control for good, don't test any longer. You're confusing nh4 for nh3 and the testers you are using measure those states of ammonia in ways that will seem bad to you but are really good readings, and why your corals are open and fish are good every day.

Ammonia doesn't rise out of control after cycling, and you are cycled done regardless of what the kits say
Look at the pics of living reef life = youre cycled.
 
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talal reefer

talal reefer

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Yeah no need be sorry, always best to add everything you think relevant then little more just incase is my opinion.
Just counting your fish in picture and counted was it 13 ? And that's 13 fish in 13 day old tank ?
Ha ha that's giving it some,but you've added fair few bottles off bacteria and biggish tank right ?
Just keep testing and take appropiate measures if needed ( like have some saltwater made up incase need do water change quick if amnonia rises etc.
Always best be prepared
I have a couple of wrasses in the sand some where yeah i over did it
This is another test i just made witha white flash light
Its 0.25
84CC349D-414A-4257-86A0-61BA82D202C8.jpeg
 
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talal reefer

talal reefer

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Cease testing for ammonia the bottle bac already cycled you.

It does no good for me to type another two page info on why you'd stop testing for ammonia for the life of this tank, the info is out there for finding and this is the condensed version. Ammonia is now in control for good, don't test any longer. You're confusing nh4 for nh3 and the testers you are using measure those states of ammonia in ways that will seem bad to you but are really good readings, and why your corals are open and fish are good every day.

Ammonia doesn't rise out of control after cycling, and you are cycled done regardless of what the kits say
Look at the pics of living reef life = youre cycled.
Thank you i will stop testing
 

ying yang

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I have a couple of wrasses in the sand some where yeah i over did it
This is another test i just made witha white flash light
Its 0.25
84CC349D-414A-4257-86A0-61BA82D202C8.jpeg
Yeah with your flash ,the colours in teat tube look closer to 0.25 ppm but using unnatural light not as good as sunlight and can affect the colours.
I just took picture off my old api test kit and 0.25 is more lime green,your colours in test tube look more yellow to me.
But imo all your corals and livestock doing more than ok so all seems good.
But as api tests total amnonia, even if was 0.25ppm,it isnt 0.25ppm of toxic amnonia so the experts say
 

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talal reefer

talal reefer

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Yeah with your flash ,the colours in teat tube look closer to 0.25 ppm but using unnatural light not as good as sunlight and can affect the colours.
I just took picture off my old api test kit and 0.25 is more lime green,your colours in test tube look more yellow to me.
But imo all your corals and livestock doing more than ok so all seems good.
But as api tests total amnonia, even if was 0.25ppm,it isnt 0.25ppm of toxic amnonia so the experts say
thanks alot for the help iam litrally in the middle of research about ammonia in the water i would feel really bad if i caused harm to these amazing creatures and i understand ammonia much better i also found

brandon429

article about api test kit panics XD
i think iam ok i dailed back on my auto feeder and i will stop using frozen food for a week just incase
 
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