Which do you like better, multi test strips or the test kits that have all the little bottles of drops?
Why?

The liquid tests are said to be far more acurate from everything I have heard.

I prefer drops for the thier accuracy, but keep strips for general check up. If the strips seem off I recheck with drops.

I've never bothered with the strips, for as infrequently as I test water, I use the drops. They are a little more expensive & take a little more work than dipping in a strip, but their accuracy makes up for it.

I like the drops because of accuracy, i also like them because i can use the spacific test for what i need to check and not waste so many multitests.

The cost is also a factor, while a box of liquid tests can do many tests usuualy 50-200 depending on solution concentration its more bang for your buck. drawback, You may have to buy 5 kits one for each agent.

Then you look at the strips, while you have the convinance of one test and five results and not messing with viles the issue is i get this many for this much, which is about 5 times that per test unit cost of a liquid test. and they are very inacurate and only color up to general levels so they can be far enough off to cause problems


the liquid tests usualy have a wider range they result in the stages of levels are much more detailed into partial like 2.4 2.8 3.0 as opposed to just 1,2,3, the test strips are limited. the strips results can also be effected by water hardness the harder your water the less acurate they will be.

Strips, though i hardly ever test the water.

I prefer using the drops

When I use the strips at work, there is one strip which covers:

pH
nitrite
nitrate
hardness
( i had a brain fart, there are i think two more tests)

and you need one more strip to test the ammonia.

If you test both multi and ammonia strips in the same container of water.... it will be contaminated with whatever strip you use first... so if you test first with ammonia, and then with the multi strip, the results for the second will be innacurate....

plus ive learned for 3 years on the drops, and then had the strips thrown at me..


you should attatch a poll to this thread and see who prefers what... :P

I've been checking out test kits on ebay and am wondering exactly which tests I'm going to need. I used to just test Ph and ammonia, but I'm getting into cichlids and need to know exactly what to test for. I know that testing for cichlids is more complicated than for livebearers and goldies. I want to get a kit that tests for everything but what exactly does "everything" include?
Also I need to know if it's better to use liquid or granuals.

Only tests you need for cichlids in my opinion are..

Ammonia
NitrIte
NitrAte
PH

What about all the talk about hardness? It will be a community tank with Apistos, some livebearers and loaches.

KH and GH wouldn't hurt, both are rather important for hard water fish such as africans. You may get by with out them since apistos prefer softer more acidic water.