ICP Test Shows Zero Iodine

[gbroadbridge]

No waterchanges in almost 5 years and only 1ml iodine per day extra... that is cheaper

Touché.

You're one of 'those' lol

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Took our water sample for the ICP test and tested parameters with our Red Sea iodine against the same water. Red Sea says that Iodine is perfect at 0.06ppm and ICP says that Iodine is 13µg/l (which converts to 0.001ppm using http://www.endmemo.com/sconvert/ug_lppm.php). I'd expect that the ICP is a lot more accurate than our hobby test kit, but it's wild to see that they're that far off. From what Triton's test says, I should be reading almost zero on the Red Sea kit.

This makes me nervous when it comes to adjusting iodine in our aquarium.

What would you do in this instance?

You have a math mistake in your post.

13 ug/l = 0.013 ppm (not 0.001 ppm)

It's still not at natural seawater levels, but its not zero.

Have you tried the Red Sea kit on other water samples and gotten lower levels?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

And water changes alone will not maintain minor and trace elements in balance long term. It is not an ionically balanced process.

I didn't dose most trace elements and some were fine (e.g., zinc). Foods add a lot of trace elements, Folks neglect that.

 

[MnFish1]

Do you prefer hobby-grade test kits over laboratories?

yes

 

[PeterEde]

My Triton ICP came back as 0 iodine also. I've not tested iodine with any home based kit but have started dosing as per their instruction.
If you are running charcoal then it will eat iodine I've read.
Plus fish and corals take it in. So unless you do big WC weekly then I see no reason why iodine may not be detectable.
If you are not replenishing it manually

 

[Lavey29]

I didn't dose most trace elements and some were fine (e.g., zinc). Foods add a lot of trace elements, Folks neglect that.

But you were doing weekly water changes to keep trace normal? Heavy coral stocking would make a difference though right?

 

[PeterEde]

Nope. Two bottles of Triton Mn costs the same as one 50lb bag of Red Sea Salt.
They're both consumables, and a water changes adds all the traces in one go.

A 50% WC will only add 50% of the depleted element. You maybe losing far more than 50% depending on stock?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If you are running charcoal then it will eat iodine I've read.
Plus fish and corals take it in. So unless you do big WC weekly then I see no reason why iodine may not be detectable.
If you are not replenishing it manually

Not true.

That's a myth based on a misunderstanding of the "iodine test" for I2 binding to GAC from freshwater. That's not the form present in seawater.

Iodide is mostly consumed by algae.

I'm not personally convinced most corals need it, and the scientific literature shows no such need for most, but some people do think it helpful.

I dosed it for 10 years, then stopped and nothing apparently changed for the next 10 years of not dosing. Iodine read 0.022 ppm by Triton years after I stopped dosing.

 

[92Miata]

I would trust ipc lab testing over hobby kits. But that is my personal opinion. You can start dosing a little of iodine and send out another icp in a month or 2. Are you seeing signs of distressed coral (may or not be caused by lack of iodine)

You should't.


We've had several people send in certified NIST reference samples to these sort of ICP companies and received back results that are nothing short of nonsense.

 

[Tchung23]

No waterchanges in almost 5 years and only 1ml iodine per day extra... that is cheaper

How big is your tank??

 

[Icedog]

I know this is an older post, but it caught my eye because I'm having the same issue as the OP.

Regular ICP analysis over the past five months has consistently shown my iodine to be on the low side - anywhere from 0.008 to 0.023 ppm. While the RS Iodine Pro Test Kit has consistently shown it to be right on target at 0.06 ppm. And the home test was done on samples taken from the tank at the same time that samples were taken for ICP analysis.

I'm wondering if the iodine in the samples sent for ICP could degrade during the shipping period? Perhaps there are some sort of micro-organisms in the sample metabolizing it? Or some other chemical reaction taking place?

 

[hsosa]

the great IODINE debate and now add to it the ICP mystery of Low Iodine for every reefer out there. .It makes me think its a gimmick to make u buy triton iodine. for reals every 1st icp trition test u will get 0 iodine then u start dosing it and on the next icp ur over on iodine lol ... I hope some day this dabate will be settled, Triton laughing to the bank on iodine sales lol

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'm wondering if the iodine in the samples sent for ICP could degrade during the shipping period? Perhaps there are some sort of micro-organisms in the sample metabolizing it? Or some other chemical reaction taking place?

It cannot be degraded, but it theoretically can be removed somehow. I think that is unlikely, however, since it would require a lot of growth.