Trusted test kits?

[Ronoh]

Hello everyone,

I've just been thinking about water analysis kits and wondering what the more trusted test kits are?
I'm sure most of these have their issues, but are any better than others?

The kind of thing I want to test for is iron, phosphate, potassium, magnesium etc, the general micro and macronutrients for plant growth.

Thanks a million!
Ryan

 

[Tim Harrison]

This may be of help

Reliable testing methods?

After being a marine/reef hobbyist for many years, testing is one thing that is drilled into pretty much all hobbyists, it's very much a test test test community, with things like dedicated ICP (Inductively coupled plasma) labs popping up from a number of companies. Now I know on this forum...

www.ukaps.org

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I've just been thinking about water analysis kits and wondering what the more trusted test kits are?
I'm sure most of these have their issues, but are any better than others?

The kind of thing I want to test for is iron, phosphate, potassium, magnesium etc, the general micro and macronutrients for plant growth

If you look at the link that @Tim Harrison posted it gives some idea of the difficulties in involved. I've got a bit of a <"jaundiced view"> of the sellers of aquarium products, and in many cases they know the products they sell are of <"very limited value">, but they carry on selling them.

You can get accurate values for most metal ions using ICP <"New bit of kit - MP-AES">, but nitrate (NO3-), for example, is problematic using <"any of the techniques available to us">.

Both Estimative and Duckweed Indices were developed (partially) to do away for the need for water testing, have a look at <"Low nitrate level">.

Have a look at <"The scientific background to the "Leaf Colour Chart"">, it explains why we can successfully use <"inferential methods">, even if we can't always get accurate parameters for our tanks.

Cheers Darrel

 

[Ronoh]

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction @dw1305 & @Tim Harrison

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction

It would be so much easier if there was a test kit or probe that you could just dip in your water and it would give you accurate parameters.

If you use tap water, the values you get from your water company should be accurate, mainly because they have a water testing analytical lab. I've never put in the proviso <"should "> before, but I think you now have to.

Because <"you are in London"> you will have hard, alkaline tap water with some level of nutrients already present. You should be able to get a report from your water company.

Have a look at <"Seasoned Tank Time">, it is plant and wait with a snazzy title.

cheers Darrel

 

[Andy Pierce]

The kits from Hanna I believe are legit and I have been using their (titratable) alkalinity kit for about 6 months now. Are they worth it is more complicated to answer. I think the initial purchase, although pricy, is worth it, but purchasing refill reagents is not worth it. Still, it depends how badly you want it but I do trust the actual product.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

The kits from Hanna I believe are legit and I have been using their (titratable) alkalinity kit for about 6 months now.

If you do want to go down the <"route of testing">, and I understand that <"some people will">, then <"titrimetric methods"> are more likely to give accurate results. <"Testing kit recommendations">

You can get accurate values for nearly all the parameters that we are interested in, water companies do this all the time. The only provisos are time and money, and you need a lot of both. How much? I'd guess even <"if you had the kit"> it would still be several thousand a year in running costs, that is without without costing the time of the operator.

If there was a dip meter you could pop in the tank, and it gave even ball-park figures for tank health, I would unequivocally recommend it.

Cheers Darrel

 

[hwscot]

Have a look at <"The scientific background to the "Leaf Colour Chart"">, it explains why we can successfully use <"inferential methods">, even if we can't always get accurate parameters for our tanks.

Hi, Darrel .. I'm still slowly catching up on some of the older posts. I read the thread you link to on the colour chart. I wondered if anyone in the UK has them to purchase. It's a curiosity question rather than practical, because different plants will have different shades of green when growing optimally. Would just be interesting to see one. And maybe there's a case for an aquarium version specific to frogbit .. it would have to be to a non-limited for CO2 plant.
i guess we could have a rough and ready one as an image on here but with all the provisos for colour balance of the photo and different screen renderings it might be of limited value as an online image. Also, when we briefly discussed inadvertent 24/7 lighting the other week, you mentioned your frogbit going yellow and I did notice mine the same, but I guess we all have quite different light levels / spectra, which would also limit the value of a chart, where the rice farmers are all working with pretty similar daylight values.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I read the thread you link to on the colour chart. I wondered if anyone in the UK has them to purchase.

I've never seen one for sale, it was designed for Rice (Oryza sativa) <"Leaf Color Chart - IRRI Rice Knowledge Bank">, but there might be something similar for other cereals. <"http://www.knowledgebank.irri.org/qualityseedcourse4women/images/stories/module 2/Leaf_Color_Chart_version_1.2.pdf">. I've just found that there is <"About Leaf Color Chart (LCC)">.

i guess we could have a rough and ready one as an image on here but with all the provisos for colour balance of the photo and different screen renderings it might be of limited value as an online image.

Rice LCC, not the right colours, but probably <"near enough"> for me. <"https://acsess.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.2134/agronj2004.1606">*

Calibrating the Leaf Color Chart for Nitrogen Management in Different Genotypes of Rice and Wheat in a Systems Perspectivebecause different plants will have different shades of green when growing optimally. Would just be interesting to see one. And maybe there's a case for an aquarium version specific to frogbit .. it would have to be to a non-limited for CO2 plant.

That was really why I ended up with Lemna minor (Lesser Duckweed) (<"originally">) and subsequently Amazon Frogbit (Limnobium laevigatum),

• it had to be a <"leaf green"> plant,
• it needed to not be bothered about water hardness and to show a <"very plastic growth response to nutrients">.
• a <"floater"> and
• not a <"turned up to 11"> plant.

Also, when we briefly discussed <"inadvertent 24/7 lighting"> the other week, you mentioned your frogbit going yellow and I did notice mine the same, but I guess we all have quite different light levels / spectra, which would also limit the value of a chart, where the rice farmers are all working with pretty similar daylight values.

That is partially why I always suggest people run with their <"light at full brightness">, it does away with the variable of not / only just reaching light compensation point (LCP).

* Calibrating the Leaf Color Chart for Nitrogen Management in Different Genotypes of Rice and Wheat in a Systems Perspective

cheers Darrel