# Bad nitrate kit!



## moisheweiss (Apr 3, 2010)

My nitrate reading was at 200ppm, so I've been doing a lot of water changes to get my nitrates down and they weren't going down enough. After half a dozen one third water changes I was still at 60ppm. I finally brought in a water sample to get tested at a fish store. Their reading was 5ppm!

Long story short, the aquarium pharmaceuticals nitrate test kit reads really high for some reason. They get that from customers regularly. Don't believe what it says. They told me to use Hagen instead.


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## sbetsy (Apr 6, 2010)

Is this a common issue? Mine haven't been high (5-20) but I'm concerned....I'm using the master kit test, not the strips.


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## Guest (Apr 23, 2010)

5 to 20 is fine betsy. if you exceed 40 is when u need to start worrying.


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## Guest (Apr 23, 2010)

lol 200? man that kits wacked! checked the xpiry date?


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## moisheweiss (Apr 3, 2010)

It's not the expiration date. Firstly, its a wet kit not a strip. Secondly, they guy in the store said that it is a common problem with this particular test kit from this particular manufacturer. I think I have it figured out though. The aquarium pharmaceuticals kit has two liquids and the hagen has three liquids. The hagen instructions are to add 5 drops of each of the first two liquids, shake, shake the third liquid and add 3 drops, shake again and wait. The aquarium pharmaceuticals kit says to add 10 drops of the first liquid, shake, shake the second liquid, add 10 drops, shake again and wait.

Notice the similarity of the instructions? I suspect that the aquarium pharmaceuticals uses the same reactants but premixes the first two for you. Thus 10 drops total instead of 5 drops each. In which case the instruction to add 10 drops of the last liquid is a typo and should read add 3 drops. That would explain a lot of misreadings.

I am going to test that theory and report back.


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## sbetsy (Apr 6, 2010)

Oh interesting. I have that same API kit. Tell us what you find! My store doesn't carry hagen


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## Mikaila31 (Nov 29, 2009)

are you pre-shaking the regents enough? If you don't it will effect the reading. If you only occasionally use the test kit the reagents need a lot more shaking than the 30 or 60seconds they recommend. It is possible the test has expired. I recently tried to use a GH test kit that was kind old. It was one of those drop by drop ones till the color changes. It would not work. Not on my tap water or on RO water. Just stayed the same and would not change color. RO water is a good way to test a test kit. It should have zero nitrates in your case and in my case it should have very low GH. You can see if your LFS sells it. Usually its 25- 50cents a gallon. 

My API master kit nitrate test is pretty accurate. Every time we have our well water lab tested I take a little of the sample water and test it with the kit, then compare the readings with the lab's results. The API test kit reads 20ppm of nitrate. The lab tests Nitrate-nitrogen at 5.4mg/l. According to the API instruction booklet and the web the conversion of Nitrate-(N) to just nitrate is to multiply by 4.4, so using the labs data I have about 23ppm of nitrate. I also want to point out that not all nitrate test kits read the same way, some aquarium test kits do report in terms of Nitrate(NO3-) and some do Nitrate-nitrogen. 

I personally have no problems with APIs test kit, especially considering the Nitrate test kit by hagen cost about the same as the whole API master test kit. 

BTW what does your test read when you test your tap water? There is the possiblitiy that something in the tank is causing an error. Any new products?


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## moisheweiss (Apr 3, 2010)

The tap water reads about 5ppm


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## moisheweiss (Apr 3, 2010)

I just had a conversation with the makers of the product. Bottle 2 has zinc in colloidal suspension. The first time you don't shake the product enough you ruin the bottle forever by changing the concentration of zinc.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

interesting. Thanks for the info.


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## Brontegirl (May 10, 2010)

I've never had a problem with api's nitrite test kit. You have to tap each bottle on a table several times and shake like crazy. Also, turn the bottle completely vertical to dispense the drops.


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