Do I really need a saltwater test kit?

[Splasheo]

Really quick question, do I need a saltwater test kit if I have premixed saltwater from a lfs, and I do weekly water changes? I don't see the need for them, if I detect something wrong with my water, i'll do a water change, and if I dont, i'll still do a water change. (nano tanks if that helps)

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

Maybe not if it's fish only, but you need test kits for coral and inverts.

 

[corosato]

At the very least you are going to want to test for nitrates and phosphates. if you only plan on keeping softies then probably don't need more. if you want any stony corals eventually you are going to at least want to know what your alk is.

 

[Tahoe61]

You absolutely need test kits. The investment in the appropriate test kits will save you money.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Alkalinity is the first needed test kit, IMO.

 

[Splasheo]

Maybe not if it's fish only, but you need test kits for coral and inverts.

but what would test kits tell me that won't be solved by a water change?

 

[Tamberav]

Really quick question, do I need a saltwater test kit if I have premixed saltwater from a lfs, and I do weekly water changes? I don't see the need for them, if I detect something wrong with my water, i'll do a water change, and if I dont, i'll still do a water change. (nano tanks if that helps)

What types of corals do you plan to keep? Or only fish?

A weekly water change does not keep up with certain coral or coralline algae and you need to test and dose.

But sure, it is possible to keep softies without much testing though if something is unhappy, the first thing people will ask you for is water parameters.

With softies, you could use your LFS to test for you assuming they offer that but that just seems inconvenient.

You could also just buy the super important one once you have corals like alk and have the LFS double check the others every so often. Ca and Mg never changed much for me with 2 part dosing. Just alk.

 

[DrkNMighty]

but what would test kits tell me that won't be solved by a water change?

If water changes alone are not keeping up with consumption. If the water from the LFS is a possible source of any issues (bad water).

 

[Max Campbell]

Really quick question, do I need a saltwater test kit if I have premixed saltwater from a lfs, and I do weekly water changes? I don't see the need for them, if I detect something wrong with my water, i'll do a water change, and if I dont, i'll still do a water change. (nano tanks if that helps)

I have a softie/anemone tank and i don't test i just keep up with my maintenance!

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Using LFS water is a poor choice IMO, not testing would be another poor choice, it doesn't bode well for the livestock. Testing is the bread and butter of this hobby

 

[Splasheo]

What types of corals do you plan to keep? Or only fish?

A weekly water change does not keep up with certain coral or coralline algae and you need to test and dose.

But sure, it is possible to keep softies without much testing though if something is unhappy, the first thing people will ask you for is water parameters.

With softies, you could use your LFS to test for you assuming they offer that but that just seems inconvenient.

You could also just buy the super important one once you have corals like alk and have the LFS double check the others every so often. Ca and Mg never changed much for me with 2 part dosing. Just alk.

i intend on keeping a couple soft coral, and very lightly stocked fish. Do you think i could get by on just alkalinity?

 

[BristleWormHater]

Buy once, cry once. Get some solid tset kits, hanna or salifert. Mix your own saltwater, lfs batches may be inconsistent and contain lower levels of important elements. I started with using lfs water, coral growth was super slow, their water was at 6dkh and only had 300ppm of calcium. Mix your own.

 

[JayM]

Really quick question, do I need a saltwater test kit if I have premixed saltwater from a lfs, and I do weekly water changes? I don't see the need for them, if I detect something wrong with my water, i'll do a water change, and if I dont, i'll still do a water change. (nano tanks if that helps)

How are you going to detect something wrong with your water without testing?

 

[mnsean]

Depends on the age of your tank and on what you’re trying to achieve. If your tank is fully mature, and only if it’s fully mature, then, If you’re trying to achieve the most hands off possible style then yes just look at your corals and fish and depending how they’re doing you should do water test. But if you’re looking for more of an optimal and want to prevent any future issues, then you should definitely do routine water test.

 

[twentyleagues]

For a couple soft corals and a couple fish it probably doesnt matter in all reality. But you should still test for alk. If you do religious weekly water changes of 20+% youll probably be fine. I do agree with testing and the fact you should not trust the lfs water without testing it though.

 

[elysics]

i intend on keeping a couple soft coral, and very lightly stocked fish. Do you think i could get by on just alkalinity?

At the very least you need a way to test salinity. All sorts of reasons why salinity might drift. And you really shouldn't get your water from an LFS. There's so many scenarios where something goes wrong and you suddenly need to do an unplanned waterchange or need extra saltwater very very quickly and having to take a trip to an lfs first would be rather bad. Not to mention the lugging water from your car aspect.

With that stocking, and regular big waterchanges you don't really need any other tests. Maybe nutrients months down the line. Always good to learn how to do the tests though, so you are ready and practiced if you change your mind about that stocking later.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

But what’s the reason to not want to test?

 

[KrisReef]

Really quick question, do I need a saltwater test kit if I have premixed saltwater from a lfs, and I do weekly water changes? I don't see the need for them, if I detect something wrong with my water, i'll do a water change, and if I dont, i'll still do a water change. (nano tanks if that helps)

How do you replace evaporation currently?

If you are competent at taste testing your salinity then you don’t need to check salinity.

The ancient Māori sailors used water tasting for navigation across the Pacific.

 

[old_salt]

I might have missed this, but how many gallons is the tank?

 

[rtparty]

If you stick to just a couple softies, water changes should work just fine. Softies don’t care about alkalinity and calcium like stony corals do.

I would be VERY diligent about weekly water changes and checking salinity with a good tester. Tropic Marin glass hydrometer being preferred.

However, long term I would not trust LFS water.