# Best Nitrate and Phosphate Test Kits?



## artemis (Oct 21, 2004)

My new 55-gallon tank is finally up and running. The plants seem to be recovering from transplantion shock and are showing signs of new growth, and some algae is starting to grow. It's time for me to start paying attention to NO3 and PO4 levels, obviously, which means buying the appropriate test kits. Which kits do you folks recommend?


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## ninoboy (Jan 26, 2004)

hi Artemis,

If you use the searh function, you can read a lot of threads regarding this topic. But anyway, I use AP nitrate test kit and Hagen PO4 test kit. They are not the best out there but serve my purpose well enough.


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

Same here, although I've recently changed to the Red Sea PO4 test. It does seem easier to compare colors than with the Hagen.


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

How long are you planning on staying in the hobby? I have had almost all of them and then finally gave in to the LaMotte. Extremely accurate and easy to see the color changes. They do cost more initially but then the re-fills are the same as all of the others. I have had so much reliability problems with some I just felt I could not trust them or the jump between levels are simply too much.


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## JohnnyB (Oct 7, 2003)

I just switched over to Lamotte for nitrates and couldn't be happier. Easy to use kit with test results that I can trust. If you're serious, well worth the money.

I'm using AP for ph, ammonia, nitrites, kh, and gh. Rea Sea for po4.

Hope that helps...

Johnny B


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## Rolo (Dec 10, 2003)

Red Sea for PO4. Very easy to read and accurate. 

For nitrates I've tried SeaChem and Red Sea, but one failed and the other very hard for me to read. Just tried AP nitrate and it does the job. Accurate, easy to read, just no fine resolution.


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## gnatster (Mar 12, 2004)

From high to low price

Lamotte, a bit pricey up front but accurate and hardware lasts years. Refill readily available on line

Salifert, most people think of them as SW only, but many of the common kits are FW also. No refills

Seachem, good medium range priced kits, a little hard to read tho. No refills

Red Sea, personally have had accuracy issues and out of date reagents

Hagen, no experience

Aquarium Pharmacuiticals, you do get what you pay for, not much good to say here


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Where do you get LaMotte refills? Can't seem to locate any...


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

Wasserpest said:


> Where do you get LaMotte refills? Can't seem to locate any...


Here is where I bought my LaMotte’s and where I get my refills. They have LaMotte drop ship the refills so they are the freshest.
http://reefsplendor.com/pages/lamotte/lamotte.1.html


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

I use LaMotte for nitrates and Red Sea for phosphates.

The Red Sea phosphate kits have always been dependable and accurate. 

I have used Red Sea's nitrate kit, but I have had too many problems. I have spent way too much money on Red Sea nitrate kits that didn't work right out of the package. AP nitrate kits worked well, but it can be difficult to decipher the nitrate levels when comparing to the included chart. Form now on, it is LaMotte nitrate kits for me. They are accurate and always work. The initial cash layout is high, but the refill prices are pretty reasonable. The LaMotte kit is serious testing tool, and well worth the price.

Mike


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## artemis (Oct 21, 2004)

Thanks, everyone. I think I'll check out the LaMotte kits. Accuracy and ease of reading trump price for me!


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## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

If price isn't an issue the hach kits are better than the LaMotte kits. They use a color wheel that makes it really easy to read.
PO4  = PO-19

NO3 = NI-14


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## gnatster (Mar 12, 2004)

Looks like price per test the Hach kits come out lower then Lamotte. Hach is 100 tests and Lamotte is 60. The intial pirce is only slighty higher, about $10 per but over the long run Hach comes out with a lower overall cost to operate.


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

IUnknown said:


> If price isn't an issue the hach kits are better than the LaMotte kits. They use a color wheel that makes it really easy to read.
> PO4  = PO-19
> 
> NO3 = NI-14


Greg,
Are these the kits that you're using? What's the pricing on reagent refills?


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## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

I use the PO4. When my NO3 kit runs out I might get the hach kit.

Roger millers post about the kit
16 for the PO4

$40 for the No3


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

gnatster said:


> Looks like *price per test the Hach kits come out lower * then Lamotte. Hach is 100 tests and Lamotte is 60. *The intial pirce is only slighty higher*, about $10 per but over the long run *Hach comes out with a lower overall cost to operate*.


Oh really?

Hach NO3 refill $39.25 for 100 tests = $0.3925 each test
LaMotte NO3 refill $13.95 for 50 tests = $0.279 each test

Hach is a very good unit but it is not cheaper. LaMotte is a simple 2 tablet system, have you seen all the reagents you need to add for the Hach?


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## IUnknown (Feb 5, 2003)

Yeah, the only problem with the LaMotte is that the 4.4 ppm and the 8.8 ppm look identical (the 1 and 2). I even had them ship out a newer comparator (looks like they replaced them because it was problematic). The 1 and 2 is where I keep my levels at, and it drives me nuts.


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

IUnknown said:


> Yeah, the only problem with the LaMotte is that the 4.4 ppm and the 8.8 ppm look identical (the 1 and 2). I even had them ship out a newer comparator (looks like they replaced them because it was problematic). The 1 and 2 is where I keep my levels at, and it drives me nuts.


Did you try and change the light you are viewing them in? I am not having that problem but in one room with a yellowish lampshade I simply can't use any test kits.


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## Aphyosemion (Oct 15, 2004)

I mentioned this on another thread, but I use Seachem multi-test kits for phosphate and nitrate/nitrite. They work very well for me, since I have multiple tanks and don't want to spend an hour testing each one individually. The only thing I would mention is that on the nitrate test it is a bit hard in the higher ranges to tell the difference between 30 and 50 PPM. The lower ranges are not a problem and you probably shouldn't have nitrate readings that high anyway, but in two of my low light, high fish load tanks, the nitrates occasionally run up to about 30....or maybe 40 PPM.
-Aphyosemion


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

> LaMotte is a simple 2 tablet system,


I think that depends on the LaMotte kit you get. I have Model 3110 and there are no tablets. It is an acid and cadmium powder.

Also, there is no mistaking the readings on my LaMotte nitrate kit. I have the vials, and not the slide. 4 and 8 are _very_ different! 

Mike


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## Ahkuma (Dec 5, 2004)

Does Lamotte make an all in one kit that has all the basic tests you would need?


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

They make big kits, but they are way expensive!

Mike


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## rkundla (Mar 25, 2004)

I use the Hach Nitrate and Phosphate test kits.

Color wheels are pretty cool. The nitrate wheel is various shades of brown while the phosphate wheel is various shades of blue. A good cool white fluorescent light helps when sighting the sample against the color wheel.


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

*I want a colorimeter!*

I just got Aquatic-Eco's full catalog in the mail yesterday and saw these (as well as photometers and spectrophotometers).

Put some water in a sample vial, add some reagent then stick it in the meter. Push a button and bingo, a digital readout telling you the ppm level of whatever you're testing for! How CSI is that?!! 

Of course the least expensive model (by Hanna) is $536. LaMotte's is $747, Hach's is $897, and YSI's is $985 (but they, YSI, have the most comprehensive lists of tests). And don't forget the reagent refills which run between $20-$40 (100-250 tests depending on the manf) for the tests we'd perform (NO3, PO4, Fe, K, Ca, Mg).

Looks like I'll need to start charging more than just postage for the plants I've been sending people. Anyone interested in buying some HC for the bargain price of $1000? :wink:


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## Betowess (Dec 9, 2004)

Yeah, the PO4 Hagen reagent auto dispenser is kind of funky... It doesn't always dispense just one drop, but sometimes two unless you can get the test tube away really quick. When that happens, you have to start all over.


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

I can only find a LaMotte Nitrate kit online that measures a maximum of 10ppm. Not quite what I am after in a test kit.

http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/listings.categories/ssid/13

Do they actually make one that measures FW Nitrate in a broader range than that? If so I can't find it anywhere.


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## Hypancistrus (Oct 28, 2004)

TeeItUp said:


> Here is where I bought my LaMotte’s and where I get my refills. They have LaMotte drop ship the refills so they are the freshest.
> http://reefsplendor.com/pages/lamotte/lamotte.1.html


I see a lot of conflicting information on different sites... for example, at that URL, it says the salinity test is for saltwater tanks. However, on http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/listings.items/cid/73 it says it only measures salt levels up to .4%, which is way too low for saltwater tanks... it says the kit is for salt levels in freshwater or brakish tanks. So which is it?

The reefsplendor URL just says Nitrate, aquaticeco says it's only low level nitrate (max 10 ppm). Which is it?

The reefsplendor URL says pH is for saltwater only, aquaticeco doesn't specify. Which is it?

Too confusing to be spending a lot of money on these kits when the vendors can't even correctly say what they are, just my opinion!! :icon_conf


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

Hypancistrus said:


> I can only find a LaMotte Nitrate kit online that measures a maximum of 10ppm. Not quite what I am after in a test kit.
> 
> http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/listings.categories/ssid/13
> 
> Do they actually make one that measures FW Nitrate in a broader range than that? If so I can't find it anywhere.


The Lamotte #3354 test kit tests 1,2,4,6,8,10,15. For kits that measure nitrogen, not nitrate, you multiply by 4.4 to convert that reading into the nitrate equalivalent. So that kit goes to 66 ppm.


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

The kit on Aquaticeco is the 3110. 

That kit reads from .25 to 10. You need to take the reading in your test tube, compare it to the samples and _multiply your reading _ by 4.4. So, if you get a reading of .5 when compared to the samples, you that the .5 and multiply it by 4.4. A reading of .5 would translate to a nitrate level of 2.2ppm. A reading of 2 would translate to a nitrate level of 8.8ppm and a reading 10 would be 44ppm.

get it?

Mike


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## bharada (Mar 5, 2004)

Momotaro said:


> ...get it?
> 
> Mike


Math is hard. :icon_lol:


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## Kris (Feb 27, 2004)

bharada said:


> I just got Aquatic-Eco's full catalog in the mail yesterday and saw these (as well as photometers and spectrophotometers).
> 
> Put some water in a sample vial, add some reagent then stick it in the meter. Push a button and bingo, a digital readout telling you the ppm level of whatever you're testing for! How CSI is that?!!  :wink:


that is so cool! that is what i am buying when i win the lottery!

kris


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## yeldarb (Jan 7, 2005)

I have the Hagen/Nutrafin nitrate test kit. I have no faith in the results. Bottle #3 is glass and when dispensing the drops, with the bottle vertical, they come out in more of a gloppy stream than and individual drop. It is almost impossible to move the bottle away from the test tube fast enough to prevent any of the fourth drop from falling into the test tube. The drops are so inconsistent that the test cannot be accurate. If bottle #3 is tilted just enough to allow a drop to come out the drop is quite small. Maybe this is the right way. The instructions don't specify the correct method.

Anyone have experience with this?


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## Silent Running (Sep 13, 2004)

Momotaro said:


> The kit on Aquaticeco is the 3110.
> 
> That kit reads from .25 to 10. You need to take the reading in your test tube, compare it to the samples and _multiply your reading _ by 4.4. So, if you get a reading of .5 when compared to the samples, you that the .5 and multiply it by 4.4. A reading of .5 would translate to a nitrate level of 2.2ppm. A reading of 2 would translate to a nitrate level of 8.8ppm and a reading 10 would be 44ppm.
> 
> ...


I get it, but why do you have to do that?

Also, with the minimum reading being .25, does that mean that the lowest nitrate detectable with the kit is 1.1ppm?

Also, looks like this kit can be found cheaper at Marine Depot... http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=LM1115


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

The Marine Depot kit look like the one!



> I get it, but why do you have to do that?


I don't know.



> with the minimum reading being .25, does that mean that the lowest nitrate detectable with the kit is 1.1ppm?


Yes.

Mike


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## Silent Running (Sep 13, 2004)

Thanks Mike. So, the 4.4 multiplier is just part of the instructions that come with the kit then, I assume?


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

The reading x 4.4 are part of the instructions.

Mike


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## rkundla (Mar 25, 2004)

The 4.4 comes from the fact that the atomic weight of Nitrogen is 7 while the molecular weight of NO3- is 31.

The test just tells you how much N bound to nitrate in your sample. To know how much nitrate ion is in it, you need to multiply the N result by 4.4 to get the appropriate concentration of NO3-.

From some websearch on Google:



> *Nitrate Nitrogen. * The concentration of nitrates is commonly expressed as N03-. The term "nitrate nitrogen" is used to refer to the nitrogen present which is combined in the nitrate ion. This nomenclature is used to differentiate nitrate nitrogen from nitrogen in the form of ammonia (ammonia nitrogen), from nitrogen in the form of nitrite (nitrite nitrogen), etc. The concentrations are usually expressed in milligrams per liter of nitrogen.


From Kordon's homepage has some good info: Nitrate Information


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## Silent Running (Sep 13, 2004)

Gotcha. Thanks for the info!


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