Test Kits - 6 In 1?

[FreshwaterFish]

Which Test Kit?

As a relatively new aquarist I am just beginning to find my favourite products, what works well together etc...

Until now I have also just been using Tetra's Test 6 in 1 strips - are they any good though? To be honest they first caught my eye because of price - but should I instead work my way towards a full liquid kit? What are your opinions and favourite test kits?

P.S. Any other tips are much appreciated

 

[fluttermoth]

Liquid or tablet based tests are considered far more accurate than the strip kind.

Most of us here use the API ones, but Salifert is very highly spoken of (and possibly more accurate than the API ones); Nutrafin also do a good Master test kit.


As for other tips;

familiarise yourself with the nitrogen cycle, if you haven't already, it's the bedrock of keeping healthy fish and tanks

don't be afraid of doing water changes

research any fish before you buy, and never buy a fish that can't live happily, to its full adult size, in your current tank

 

[FreshwaterFish]

Liquid or tablet based tests are considered far more accurate than the strip kind.

Most of us here use the API ones, but Salifert is very highly spoken of (and possibly more accurate than the API ones); Nutrafin also do a good Master test kit.


As for other tips;

familiarise yourself with the nitrogen cycle, if you haven't already, it's the bedrock of keeping healthy fish and tanks

don't be afraid of doing water changes

research any fish before you buy, and never buy a fish that can't live happily, to its full adult size, in your current tank

Thank you for your advice, I forgot to mention that I do also use an API ammonia liquid test kit which I do find nice to use

 

[phantomlink]

I love my API liquid kit, I only have one problem with it and thats how the bottles are all different sizes. Most of them are 37.5ml, while the Nitrate test kit is only a 30ml bottle and requires 10 drops of each ( 2 bottles for Ammonia and Nitrate ), Ammonia needs 8 each, and Nitrite is sitting down at 5 drops. Its good to buy the Master Kit at the start but then soon you'll find you only need one of them and have to buy them individually which depending where you are, might be costlier then you think