What is the best test kits for reef tanks

hey i am going to buy a test kit for the reef tank i am about to start. I was wondering what is the best brand to get and what these should be in it.

 

Salifert or Elos.

 

Totally agree with AZ that Salifert and Elos are the best.
But if you're just starting up the tank I wouldn't spend that much on kits. You're going to be doing a lot of testing and for NH3/NH4, NO2 and NO3 and Salifert runs about $15-25 per.
For the cycling process get yourself an API Master Reef kit. It's fairly accurate, easy to use and inexpensive and contains all of the tests you need to cycle.

 

Great advice!

I hate when I see folks wasting money on test kits when they first start out.

I didn't test anything in the first 6 months of my current tank.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

i only test alkalinity and its been 2 years

 

i would also start with the api master test kit

 

I agree on the API for base testing and I agree that once your tank is going, continually testing for Ammonia and Nitrite does little good. If I see some wierdness in the tank, however, I like to have the test kits around.

With that said, there are some parameters you should be testing periodically.

If you're keeping stony corals (LPS or SPS) or clams you need to have your Mag, Calcium and Alkalinity reading in the 1300+, 400+ and ~10 dKH ranges respectively. These can all get out of whack quickly and you need to make sure you're dosing correctly to keep them where they need to be. You can't do that without testing.

Additionally, if your tank isn't able to cope with the Nitrate build up then you should be testing that periodically as well.

 

API Test Kit.

Lucky you I have a brand new one FS.

 

dont get the reef master kit get the saltwater kit it will have the stuff you need to start.