My ReefBot arrived last Thursday (9 business days after ordering), and I was able to get it up and running over the weekend! I had hoped to come to these forums and triumphantly proclaim how amazing it is, but unfortunately, that is not yet the case...
I am using four tests: Red Sea Alkalinity, Red Sea Phosphate, Tropic Marin Nitrate, and API Calcium. These appear to be the tests that anyone with a saltwater reef aquarium should be using, but strangely that information is only available on these forums- Reef Kinetics' site has a long list of tests, most of which aren't appropriate for typical testing purposes and just lead to confusion. I digress..
First of all, the good:
Red Sea Phosphate is working PERFECTLY. The results cross-reference with my Hanna checker very well, and also perfectly reflect the increase in PO4 before and after I dosed NeoPhos yesterday. I can't emphasize enough how amazing it is to wake up, or be out on a hike, and be getting test results to my phone. Brilliant!
API Calcium also seems to be working well. I have conducted two tests, 24 hours apart. The first yielded 420ppm (slightly below where I expected to be) and the second yielded 380ppm. API doesn't even publish an accuracy spec for its Calcium test, so I'm not sure what to make of that kind of variation. I am planning to cross-reference with my Red Sea Ca test tonight when I get home.
Now, the not-so-good:
I am mystified by my Tropic Marin Nitrate results. I am getting consistent results of 20 ppm- the maximum possible result. Both my Nyos and Red Sea kits are consistently reading 3-5 ppm, a result which I also find much more believable. The Nyos and Red Sea kits also correlated well with my previous doses of NeoNitro, which is why I consider them credible.
Here's the strange thing- when I use the reagents and do the test myself, I also get 20ppm/ off the scale results. So the problem isn't with the Reefbot, but with the test kits. Has anyone else experienced anything like this?
Because these reagents also measure Nitrite (and Tropic Marin mentions that the presence of Nitrites can affect Nitrate readings) I had the Reefbot conduct that test this morning. I get a result of 0.1ppm, which I find very surprising for an established tank. Also of note: the color of a 0.1ppm Nitite results is almost exactly the same as a 20ppm Nitrate result.
Has anyone experienced anything like this?
The bad:
Red Sea Alkalinity is not working, plain and simple. The ReefBot is consistently measuring 6.4 dKH (6.2dKH once). When I take the reagent bottle out of the machine and preform the titration myself, I get 8.1dKH, perfectly in line with my Hanna checker. I haven't a clue what is going wrong here, but the Reefbot is clearly at fault.
I sent an inquiry to support through the app mid-day Saturday... I got a quick response asking if I had remembered to insert the magnetic stirrers into the mix and rinse vials (I had), but nothing since then.
I am using four tests: Red Sea Alkalinity, Red Sea Phosphate, Tropic Marin Nitrate, and API Calcium. These appear to be the tests that anyone with a saltwater reef aquarium should be using, but strangely that information is only available on these forums- Reef Kinetics' site has a long list of tests, most of which aren't appropriate for typical testing purposes and just lead to confusion. I digress..
First of all, the good:
Red Sea Phosphate is working PERFECTLY. The results cross-reference with my Hanna checker very well, and also perfectly reflect the increase in PO4 before and after I dosed NeoPhos yesterday. I can't emphasize enough how amazing it is to wake up, or be out on a hike, and be getting test results to my phone. Brilliant!
API Calcium also seems to be working well. I have conducted two tests, 24 hours apart. The first yielded 420ppm (slightly below where I expected to be) and the second yielded 380ppm. API doesn't even publish an accuracy spec for its Calcium test, so I'm not sure what to make of that kind of variation. I am planning to cross-reference with my Red Sea Ca test tonight when I get home.
Now, the not-so-good:
I am mystified by my Tropic Marin Nitrate results. I am getting consistent results of 20 ppm- the maximum possible result. Both my Nyos and Red Sea kits are consistently reading 3-5 ppm, a result which I also find much more believable. The Nyos and Red Sea kits also correlated well with my previous doses of NeoNitro, which is why I consider them credible.
Here's the strange thing- when I use the reagents and do the test myself, I also get 20ppm/ off the scale results. So the problem isn't with the Reefbot, but with the test kits. Has anyone else experienced anything like this?
Because these reagents also measure Nitrite (and Tropic Marin mentions that the presence of Nitrites can affect Nitrate readings) I had the Reefbot conduct that test this morning. I get a result of 0.1ppm, which I find very surprising for an established tank. Also of note: the color of a 0.1ppm Nitite results is almost exactly the same as a 20ppm Nitrate result.
Has anyone experienced anything like this?
The bad:
Red Sea Alkalinity is not working, plain and simple. The ReefBot is consistently measuring 6.4 dKH (6.2dKH once). When I take the reagent bottle out of the machine and preform the titration myself, I get 8.1dKH, perfectly in line with my Hanna checker. I haven't a clue what is going wrong here, but the Reefbot is clearly at fault.
I sent an inquiry to support through the app mid-day Saturday... I got a quick response asking if I had remembered to insert the magnetic stirrers into the mix and rinse vials (I had), but nothing since then.
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