Best salinity tester & test kit?

[elc02]

I’ve seen a lot of people recommend the Hanna Instruments one and the Tropic Marin High Precision Hydrometer, are these two good? Which would be better?

And as for test kits for ammonia, nitrite, pH, etc, what would everyone recommend? Is the API master test kit any good?

 

[fishywishy]

Both are good but the Tropic Marin hydrometer is more accurate. You don’t need that though. Unless your doing a hyposalinty or something where you need to be extremely accurate, a normal cheap refractometer from amazon or something would be fine.

Red Sea and Salifert are the best test kits, in my opinion, besides Hanna Instruments.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

The main drawback to a big floating glass hydrometer is convenience, or lack thereof. A second drawback is temperature correction.

There are better methods than either of the Hanna or TM, but the best methods (typically high end conductivity meters) are much more expensive. The Hanna is a conductivity meter at the low cost end and so makes some sacrifices relative to better conductivity meters.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Fortunately for reefers, exact salinity measurement is not critical, and so these less expensive devices can be accurate and convenient enough.

 

[Garf]

I’ve seen a lot of people recommend the Hanna Instruments one and the Tropic Marin High Precision Hydrometer, are these two good? Which would be better?

And as for test kits for ammonia, nitrite, pH, etc, what would everyone recommend? Is the API master test kit any good?

I get by on a normal optical refractometer. Making sure is calibrated correctly helps, a lot.
API is OK for cycling a tank.

 

[Uncle99]

My Hanna salinity tester sits alone, on a shelf, with the CA and MG testers. All three of these resulted in higher end and fluctuating numbers which could not be trusted, especially that salinity tester which, simply, is wrong.

My calibrated refractometer has been a true gem.

I’m sticking with the older stuff.

That being said Hanna makes a super phosphate checker and the Alk checker accurate, fast and easy.