Dip Sticks

[dwayne]

I am a recent purchaser of the 5-in-1 test strips (don't remember maker... has nitrIte, nitrAte, ph, gh, kh) and tested them against my liquid testing kit... all tests came out the same. I bought an ammonia strip test kit and that showed ammonia even though my liquid test kit said there was 0 ammonia... so I'm using the liquid ammonia test and the strips for everything else.

They're almost TOO convenient, making me want to test my water every single day... but I only bought a small bottle (25 tests?) because I wasn't sure about them. Now that I know they're kosher to test with, I'll buy the bigger bottle next time (hmmm, maybe I'll look at big al's and see if his prices are cheaper)

~Tara

 

[EhfiYann]

Originally posted by JSchmidt
I think for general purposes (i.e., where super-precision isn't needed), they're OK. They're probably a bit less precise than other means of testing, but they're close enough and... easy enough to use.

I let my kids use them, it gives them a greater sense of responsibility knowning that they are testing the water themselves. Also, I know they're not playing around with chemicals.

The strips are great for everyday use when "just checking" will do.