Most Tested versus Least Tested Parameters of the Reef Tank

PICK the Most Tested & Least Tested Parameters of your Tank (Pick 2)

  • Calcium (most)

    Votes: 49 5.9%
  • Alkalinity (most)

    Votes: 574 68.8%
  • Magnesium (most)

    Votes: 7 0.8%
  • Phosphate (most)

    Votes: 80 9.6%
  • PH (most)

    Votes: 76 9.1%
  • Nitrate (most)

    Votes: 91 10.9%
  • Nitrite (most)

    Votes: 7 0.8%
  • Ammonia (most)

    Votes: 27 3.2%
  • (least) Calcium

    Votes: 14 1.7%
  • (least) Alkalinity

    Votes: 5 0.6%
  • (least) Magnesium

    Votes: 79 9.5%
  • (least) Phosphate

    Votes: 18 2.2%
  • (least) PH

    Votes: 43 5.2%
  • (least) Nitrate

    Votes: 15 1.8%
  • (least) Nitrite

    Votes: 230 27.6%
  • (least) Ammonia

    Votes: 315 37.8%

  • Total voters
    834

kingjames_dc5

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I know it’s probably overkill but I test almost everything one a week. I feel like I definitely have a better understanding of when my tank is happy/upset. Plus I can see what’s being consumed and what’s not. I keep a log on an app and track with pictures on my phone. It keeps the date and time of the photos. Helps me keep track of everything. OCD a little? Maybe after my tank settles passed the year mark I might let up on the frequent testing lol.
 

Reef Rhino

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It’s phosphate most for until I got an eccentric elegance Darn thing sucks in the magnesium never seen anything like it so need to keep an eye on that constantly… beginning to suspect it’s bottling it and selling it on the internet. now rarely test anything else other than phosphate tbh I can kind of work out what’s going to happen based on that and take preventive measures

Very surprised to see that some never test for Magnesium. I dose Kalk and have seen tank Magnesium fall over time. I do Tropic Marin Pro water changes. I boost it up to 1400 with magnesium doses and then see it a few months later fall back to 1200 ....

I see distinct grow spurts, especially Monitipora, when magnesium is raised up again to 1400.

Very intrigued about Elegance usage of magnesium since I now have two and one is big boy. I will now watch Magnesium even closer.
 

sfin52

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I test alk and calcium once a month magnesium about every 3 months

I haven't tested ph, nitrate and phosphate in over 1yr. Last I checked nitrate 180 or above ph 8.1 and phosphates 0.25.
 

BriansBrain

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Not that it’s overly difficult, but I hate testing magnesium lol I usually save it for last and my brain usually says no thanks
 

Dbichler

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Who tests more than once a week besides those with Neptune or trident or anything else. I no longer test to be honest look at corals and say yup their good or nope time for a water change.
 

NowGlazeIT

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We don't always REEF the same way and when it comes to testing the same holds true. Some of us test alkalinity religiously and neglect calcium, whole others test calcium and neglect alkalinity! Today I was wondering what parameters that our members tested the most and what they tested the least! Of course there are some things we should only test very rarely so let's take them off the table and only focus on the following tests.

1. Out of the following tests which one is the MOST tested by you?

2. Out of the following tests which one is the LEAST tested by you?

  • Calcium
  • Alkalinity
  • Magnesium
  • Phosphate
  • PH
  • Nitrate
  • Nitrite
  • Ammonia
ReefKinetics-Multi-TestKit.jpg
No way! You first Rev! Haha I almost picked ammonia then I noticed nitrite was there too. It’s phosphates most and nitrite least for me.
 

Calm Blue Ocean

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1. Out of the following tests which one is the MOST tested by you?

I have an Apex so pH is constantly monitored.

2. Out of the following tests which one is the LEAST tested by you?


After cycling the tank I never tested Nitrite again. I think I kept the Ammonia badge for a few months and did run a Seneye for a while so Ammonia gets nudged out by Nitrite as least tested.

I definitely like being able to keep tabs on my tank parameters and I think it's a good idea to do so. When I got lazy about testing Nitrate and Phosphate I ended up with dinos (didn't notice they'd all bottomed out until it was too late).

I do sometimes wonder if the ease of testing certain parameters can make us place them on a higher pedestal than they deserve, though. Easy to blame something when it's easy to obtain a number for it. Chasing numbers has certainly harmed many tanks. But it's helped many tanks too.

It seems that reef tank chemistry is actually pretty complicated (imagine that) and it seems that the hobby as a whole is still learning (which is actually really cool). Wasn't that long ago that people aimed for zero nitrate and phosphate. I wonder what "ideal" parameters will look like in another 10 years?
 

reefsaver

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If I test my freshwater bucket for PH before adding salt to raise salinity and adjust to a desired PH, then add my salt am I doing the wrong thing? Do I need a Salt Water PH Tester?
 

cryptodendrum

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Wasn't sure how I really should answer this survey. So I went with what is technically correct, but that may have not been what was being sought.

Technically correct:
Ammonia and pH are most tested as I have a Seneye connected to my DIY Aquarium Controller which is built around Home Assistant & supports native integration with the Seneye. And that performs a test every 15 minutes of those two values.

But in regards to what do I test the most manually, that would be Alkalinity (every 1-4 days) and Calcium (once a week).
 

Timfish

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I can't think of the last time I actually had a nitrite test kit, let alone use it, might be 2 decades. Alklinity, have to buy new API test kits at least semianually.
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
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Operator Wrasse one tuneup offered for post #18

only seneye owners are able to determine if they are getting a mini cycle, non seneye owners are not able to discern this reliably, we can see in false stuck cycle posts.


remember that mini cycles, partial control of ammonia, do not occur in reefing they occur only on non seneye, no TAN factored api and Red Sea ammonia alert threads. It is not possible for a reef tank after cycling to fail to control ammonia and nitrite outside of full drying, antibiotics dosed, or full fish kills.



ammonia nitrite and mini cycles are still being referred to here as possible creep events, not so. The cure for this thought mode is to own a seneye, or just track cycle logs from those that do


ammonia and nitrite control cannot be starved, stalled or stopped in any tank posting here, those two benefits are a function of time underwater plus our currents plus our contact surface area on rocks, they cannot ever ever ever drift out of spec, seneye owners can see.


now we have twelve folks voting who fearfully test ammonia the most, we can thank the false bottle bac sales machine for this training, they’ll have purchased more supports for the ghost condition than anyone posting unless it’s seneye they own.


what makes them doubt inherent free control is wielding api or Red Sea and skipping tan conversion from the instructions during the interpretations.
 
Last edited:

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
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In the case of post #75 where seneye does measure ammonia constantly, that’s awesome and the only time it should be that way. You will never ever ever be tricked into thinking your biofilter is broken, thats for sure.


what your tank does in your home regarding nh3 is the exact same thing it does in every tank posting here. That two different reefs would fail to behave the same in biofilter ability after cycling is part of the false old information set. We know all reefs are inherently linked in nh3 performance because we are all modeling the same current, surface area ratios and time factors / beyond day 30. new cycling science predicts what nh3 will range in any given display without testing due to this ironclad rock solid inherent link tank to tank— be it a pico reef with no fish or a 350 gallon setup with thirty, they run the same nh3 control ranges after day 30 as long as the systems stay wet.
there are no outliers, only non seneye test reports create the illusion
 
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Mark Bradley

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I regularly test alkalinity, salinity, phosphate and calcium using Hanna testers. I do frequent water changes and everything is doing well (fish and corals) so format seems fine.
 

design.maddie

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I marked Phosphates as my most. As of this last month it has finally locked in around 0.03-0.5. Learning curves with local water and my RO/DI was the root of my problems. I expect my "Most" to be changing.
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 58 50.0%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 64 55.2%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 27 23.3%
  • None.

    Votes: 28 24.1%
  • Other.

    Votes: 9 7.8%
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