Tetra safestart

[PheonixKingZ]

I know @essjay agrees that test strips aren’t always accurate. I Personally haven’t used any test strips, because many people one this forum and others have said they aren’t any good.

Thank you so much! Those TSS bottles are cheaper than they were in the store, and I believe @Byron had a glowing reccomendation for amazon's shopping methods. I will definitely be sourcing them online from now on.

I was reading through the test kit and noticed that one of their pictures showed the 5 in 1 test strips. These are the ones that I purchased that don't include ammonia reading. Are they still reliable? Picture included.

Additionally and probably the most pressing is water change. Today is the day, but I'm worried on how to go about it. I can dig through my threads to find the number (I believe 20%?) but when I do change the water, is it safe to replace it with water treated with the seachem prime immediately, or will it kill off my bacteria?

It will not kill off your bacteria. Are you asking if you should do 20% water changes each day?

Yes, shopping on Amazon.com is much cheaper than buying items at your LFS. (It is good however to support a local business. )

 

[Quin]

I meant like 20% weekly. I plan on doing water changes every Sunday, but I'm not that confident on how to go about it

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I meant like 20% weekly. I plan on doing water changes every Sunday, but I'm not that confident on how to go about it

Oh, ok. I do a 30%-40% water change each week, depending on how much time I have. It’s OK if you don’t do a water exactly every week. I try to do mine every week, but i’m not always on schedule. As long as it gets done.

 

[Essjay]

I know @essjay agrees that test strips aren’t always accurate.

The main reasons I don't like strip testers is that they don't include ammonia, and depending on the brand some can't measure GH of hard water. Some strips have the highest reading as "over 180 ppm" (or 10 dH). This can lead people to think they have middling water when it could easily be very hard without them realising.

I have also read many cases where strips and liquid testers give different readings.


But in most cases, knowing whether nitrite is zero or not zero is good enough. If it's zero, good; if it's not zero, do a water change. Similarly with ammonia, if strip ammonia testers are bought separately.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

The main reasons I don't like strip testers is that they don't include ammonia, and depending on the brand some can't measure GH of hard water. Some strips have the highest reading as "over 180 ppm" (or 10 dH). This can lead people to think they have middling water when it could easily be very hard without them realising.

I have also read many cases where strips and liquid testers give different readings.


But in most cases, knowing whether nitrite is zero or not zero is good enough. If it's zero, good; if it's not zero, do a water change. Similarly with ammonia, if strip ammonia testers are bought separately.

Makes sense. I was just always told that test strips are trustworthy.