Too many checkers, my dear Mozart

[DmitryB]

Ok a little "Amadeus" joke for us old people. But really, I'm trying to stock up on some Hana checkers because doing these RedSea color chart tests is... I have no idea what I'm doing for most of them. I can't compare these colors. The results almost never resemble any color on the color chart. I have no idea if my results are accurate for anything. So want a digital screen to give me a number. But there are so many. There are highs and lows and ultra lows too. So what the heck should we be getting as we begin to cycle our rocks? Heeelp!

 

[KrisReef]

What kind of rocks did the composer use in starting this reef tank? A composition of live rock might already be “cycled “, where a dead rock tank might take longer to be safe for fish, with time it will be safe as the microbes that process ammonia waste will eventually be present. In either case, no tests are necessary, but measuring nitrate levels can be useful for determining if the tank would benefit from a water change (to remove excess nitrogen buildup if that happens.

The only other test that is useful is alkalinity, as keeping that parameter stable is necessary for good hard coral health.

 

[DmitryB]

What kind of rocks did the composer use in starting this reef tank? A composition of live rock might already be “cycled “, where a dead rock tank might take longer to be safe for fish, with time it will be safe as the microbes that process ammonia waste will eventually be present. In either case, no tests are necessary, but measuring nitrate levels can be useful for determining if the tank would benefit from a water change (to remove excess nitrogen buildup if that happens.

The only other test that is useful is alkalinity, as keeping that parameter stable is necessary for good hard coral health.

I got two buckets of live rock! I threw in half a shrimp into each bucket. Got power-heads going. I've been using RedSea kit and testing for pH, KH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia. I'm only 25% confident of my readings. I just know today the Ammonia reading was blue, which is not even on the color chart so I think it's way out. Nitrate is one of the most difficult because the pink in the bottle doesn't actually resemble any of the pinks on the chart. Just crazy stuff going on.

So Nitrate and KH (Alkalinity?) are the two main ones to do as the cycle starts??

Thanks!

 

[KrisReef]

I got two buckets of live rock! I threw in half a shrimp into each bucket. Got power-heads going. I've been using RedSea kit and testing for pH, KH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonia. I'm only 25% confident of my readings. I just know today the Ammonia reading was blue, which is not even on the color chart so I think it's way out. Nitrate is one of the most difficult because the pink in the bottle doesn't actually resemble any of the pinks on the chart. Just crazy stuff going on.

So Nitrate and KH (Alkalinity?) are the two main ones to do as the cycle starts??

Thanks!

Kh is not critical for cycling, but it is probably the most common thing reefers test for (other than temperature and salinity) and aim to keep kH stable in the reef for the sake of coral health.

Nitrate, the end product of the ammonia metabolism (cycle) should increase as the new tank cycles the decaying shrimp. The majority of tank cycles (with new water and rock) have near zero nitrate to start, and it appears and rises as the bacteria get established in the system.

Starting with live rock, the tank may be able to “skip cycle” and start registering nitrates in a few days. As it starts to accumulate, and going forward, many people monitor nitrates and use them as a metric for determining when to do water changes. —-changing water to keep NO3 under 40, or 20ppm, depending upon the arbitrary target chosen to use.

Nitrate levels are one metric that is easy to measure and the proper amount to keep in one’s tank is a keen point in the reefing community. Some people will insist on keeping levels extremely low, (usually at or below 3.0 ppm) but other successful reef keepers say that they don’t worry about nitrate if it is 40ppm, or even more. Most people understand that it is a valuable required nutrient that should be present in some amount, not zero! to avoid starvation.

 

[CHSUB]

So what the heck should we be getting as we begin to cycle

Yes, it can be difficult. Many tests might not be to important to get exact measurements and hobby testing is very inaccurate. I test temperature and ph continuously with digital monitors. Ph changes daily by a large value so imo testing with hobby test kits is worthless, many successful hobbyists don’t even test it but I find the value useful and informative. I use Salifert for many tests but Red Sea is fine also. I only use Hanna for po4 and no3 because, like you mentioned, color is difficult to read. Magnesium is a skip, search magnesium testing by RHF. No3 has a wide range of acceptable values so an exact value is not necessary. The greatest hobbyists/professional, imo, J. Sprung states that a properly set up and maintained reef aquariums can and should maintain levels below 1 ppm no3. He also states that reef aquariums are fine with levels of 40 ppm. So you can see it is a highly overrated test for hobbyists. Reef aquariums with fed fish are almost never, if ever deficient in nitrogen so don’t get confused by antidotal hobby observations that equates success with no3 levels. Nevertheless I find a valve interesting and use both Salifert and Hanna LR; not the Hanna HR which would be redundant with Salifert. No2 and Ammonia are a skip also, your aquarium will cycle without much effort on your part.

 

[exnisstech]

I use Hanna high range nitrate, ultra low range phosphates amd alkalinity. I use salifert for calcium but only test every few months. Many get more involved and test or monitor much more but I like to keep things simple. Testing those along with temp and salinty has worked for me for 10 years. I do have a pH monitor but I would not have bothered with one if I didn't have a tank with acros.
I cycle a little different and don't test ammonia or nitrite.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

For the purpose of just cycling the tank I would suggest to get API tests. It’s very simple to get past a cycle, experienced hobbyists do it without any testing. Hanna is expensive and I would save the costs for alkalinity and possibly phosphate and nitrate, but only later on when you want to get into corals.

 

[mfinn]

For the purpose of just cycling the tank I would suggest to get API tests. It’s very simple to get past a cycle, experienced hobbyists do it without any testing. Hanna is expensive and I would save the costs for alkalinity and possibly phosphate and nitrate, but only later on when you want to get into corals.

I agree. The API master kit is less than 1 of the Hanna checkers.
They may not be the most accurate, it will tell you you have turned the corner.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

As much as I don't like API it's what I would use on your initial test cycle. After that, start slowly upgrading to better test kits like Salifert Red Sea or Hanna

 

[DmitryB]

Thanks everyone! I'll hold off on buying all the fancy testers for now. I did buy an Apex system (with Trident and Trident NP, so that will take care of some of the testing when it actually matters much more.)

What's the difference between Nitrate HR and LR? I realize High and Low, but why use one over the other?

And I guess I'll stop testing the cycling rocks every day. It takes forever! The last readings I had last night, assuming they're accurate (I'm only certain about salinity, I use a Milwaukee digital which is great.)

Salinity: 34 in both
pH: 8.0 in both
KH: 6.0 and 6.25
Nitrite: 0.2 and 0.3
Nitrate: 40 and 30 (just a wild guess with these numbers)
Ammonia: was off the charts blue.

 

[commod0re]

What's the difference between Nitrate HR and LR? I realize High and Low, but why use one over the other?

Nitrate HR reads from 0 to 75 ppm +/- 2.0
LR reads from 0 to 5 ppm +/- 0.25

you might use the LR one if you have nitrate below 5 ppm and want a fairly precise number but imo there’s usually very little practicality in doing so

 

[Airedale Reef]

Hanna checkers were a game changer for me...I agree with he above though, as for your initial testing, a simple API test kit should hold you over until fully cycled.

As for nitrate testing, many reefers actually prefer the High Range nitrate checker because the nitrate levels we commonly run in reef tanks often fall within its useful range. For phosphate, however, the Ultra Low Range (ULR) checker is generally the preferred option since phosphate is typically measured in very small concentrations and requires greater precision.

The end goal here is to determine if your tank is cycled.

As for the cycle itself, one easy way to confirm it's complete is to dose ammonia to around 1–2 ppm and see how quickly the tank processes it. When the tank can consistently reduce that ammonia to near zero within 24 hours, you can be confident that the biofilter is established and ready for an initial livestock load.

 

[KrisReef]

Thanks everyone! I'll hold off on buying all the fancy testers for now. I did buy an Apex system (with Trident and Trident NP, so that will take care of some of the testing when it actually matters much more.)

What's the difference between Nitrate HR and LR? I realize High and Low, but why use one over the other?

And I guess I'll stop testing the cycling rocks every day. It takes forever! The last readings I had last night, assuming they're accurate (I'm only certain about salinity, I use a Milwaukee digital which is great.)

Salinity: 34 in both
pH: 8.0 in both
KH: 6.0 and 6.25
Nitrite: 0.2 and 0.3
Nitrate: 40 and 30 (just a wild guess with these numbers)
Ammonia: was off the charts blue.

So you are cycling in a couple of buckets, if I read your thread correctly? So assuming you started with new salt water that would be zero nitrates, and now you have 40 ppm, all that indicates that the bacteria is eating rotting shrimp very well like live rock is known to do and nitrates are accumulating normally.

Get rid of the shrimp if there is something left and you can put the cycled rocks in the tank when you’re ready.

Are you mixing your own salt water? The dkh is at the low end for a reef.

 

[DmitryB]

Thanks everyone! I'll hold off on buying all the fancy testers for now. I did buy an Apex system (with Trident and Trident NP, so that will take care of some of the testing when it actually matters much more.)

What's the difference between Nitrate HR and LR? I realize High and Low, but why use one over the other?

And I guess I'll stop testing the cycling rocks every day. It takes forever! The last readings I had last night, assuming they're accurate (I'm only certain about salinity, I use a Milwaukee digital which is great.)

Salinity: 34 in both
pH: 8.0 in both
KH: 6.0 and 6.25
Nitrite: 0.2 and 0.3
Nitrate: 40 and 30 (just a wild guess with these numbers)
Ammonia: was off the charts blue.

So you are cycling in a couple of buckets, if I read your thread correctly? So assuming you started with new salt water that would be zero nitrates, and now you have 40 ppm, all that indicates that the bacteria is eating rotting shrimp very well like live rock is known to do and nitrates are accumulating normally.

Get rid of the shrimp if there is something left and you can put the cycled rocks in the tank when you’re ready.

Are you mixing your own salt water? The dkh is at the low end for a reef.

Yo are correct, got live rock in two buckets. And yep, made fresh saltwater. I'm still having a hard time remembering what the good numbers are! glad that these nitrates make sense and are ok. I'll try to find the shrimp in there.

I mixed my own saltwater with RedSea Coral Pro. I've read around here that it may not be the best salt, so once I'm out of it, I'll switch although I haven't decided yet to what. (Again, too many options!)

Thank you for all the advice here!