EliWhitney314's 40 reef tank

[EliWhitney314]

I'm going to buy some test kits tomorrow. What kits should I buy?

 

[daugherty]

well i would get maybe an api kit that has ammonia nitrite nitrate at the very min. and you will also want cal, mag,alk, ph i like salfert but they are about 20 for each test and the mag test is 27bucks here

 

[tankedchemist]

the salifert mag test at my LFS is $50. I laughed.

James has you covered on the kits. API is easy to use, salifert is more complex. I think I got my reef test kit from API for around $25, and that's got calcium, phosphate, nitrate, and alkalinity. Then I also bought high range pH, ammonia, and nitrite kits, each pretty cheap. good luck!

 

[EliWhitney314]

thanks my friends

 

[EliWhitney314]

Well I remembered I did have an ammonia test kit and as far as I can tell it's between zero and .25

 

[EliWhitney314]

Is .25 really bad? I know any ammonia is bad, but still. Should I be doing water changes or avoiding them if my tank is cycling?

 

[Bifferwine]

No, if your tank is cycling, leave it be (if you don't have any animals in it).

 

[EliWhitney314]

Sounds good. I need to get that coral in my friends tank asap.

 

[EliWhitney314]

Well the ammonia test is confusing...if I hold it one way it is 0 but in another around .25

My nitrite and nitates are 0

My salinaty is 1. 025

my kh is between 120 - 300

my ph is between 7.8 - 8.4


I am a little nervous about my tank. the front top lip is gapped and not tight on the tank. All the other sides are tight should I be worried about this?

 

[Bifferwine]

Ammonia tests will sometimes give you a false positive. If you are also getting 0 then it's safe to assume you don't have any ammonia.

What do you mean gapped? Can you post a pic?

 

[EliWhitney314]

Ehh it might be difficult. It's just not tight on the glass, like it's bowed.

 

[EliWhitney314]

How does everything else look?

 

[dreamwalk]

How does everything else look?

If it is just the rim, and not really for supporting the tank(or even if it is) I would just use some aquarium sealant to hold it in place.

Use some masking tape to keep it off the viewing glass!

:twocents:

 

[EliWhitney314]

Well my ammonia is defenitely 0. So I guess I'm ready for my first fish this week or next week? Anyone have a link for drip acclimation?

I think I will get my skimmer before I get my first fish, plus I found a used HOB refugium for a cheap price.

 

[tankedchemist]

Well the ammonia test is confusing...if I hold it one way it is 0 but in another around .25

My nitrite and nitates are 0

My salinaty is 1. 025

my kh is between 120 - 300

my ph is between 7.8 - 8.4


I am a little nervous about my tank. the front top lip is gapped and not tight on the tank. All the other sides are tight should I be worried about this?

what kind of test kit are you using, Eli? Those ranges for kh and pH are...well, very broad. the kH you gave is probably in ppm, so that equates to a dkH of 6.7-16.8, and most people shoot for about 9 dKH. As for the pH, same thing-- you want about 8.2 or 8.3. The range you gave above is ginormous, and so it's basically a meaningless result. If you tel me which kits you're using, I think I can help you get results that are more meaningful for you.

Also, you must measure nitrite and nitrate before putting fish in. 'trites need to be at 0. 'trates are a little less harmful to fish. But congrats on the 0 ammonia!

 

[EliWhitney314]

Well I'm going to get a more precise test kit this week, but I just have the strips right now. But my ammonia test kit is the real deal. haha

I'm going to post some pictures right now

 

[EliWhitney314]

 

[EliWhitney314]

Not sure what kind of snails these are

My monti (e)?

This coral looks like it's almost dead or is dead

I don't know if this is some kind of marco algea or a plant?

 

[tankedchemist]

The snails are astrea. The monti looks good, but not so sure about that other little guy. good work so far :)

 

[EliWhitney314]

Well water chemistry wise what do you think?