Do iron test drops work?

I'm buying some drops online right now. I am wanting to buy some an iron test kit. Do those drops work? I think someone said they did work.
Thoughts?

[rsretep]

i have started testing iron lately with a liquid test and have seen results slowly probably cause i am dosing slowly not trying to over do it....my iron is now in a good range and plants look good

Originally Posted by rsretep

i have started testing iron lately with a liquid test and have seen results slowly probably cause i am dosing slowly not trying to over do it....my iron is now in a good range and plants look good

I bought the iron drops off of big al's website. Question - why do people say that the drops are not accurate?

[captain_bu]

Check out this post on another forum. It is 7 years old now and the situation may have changed over time but when I was looking for an iron test kit other research I did at the time supported this person's claims... I would welcome any corrections to this information from those of us here that are more knowledgeable.

http://fins.actwin.com/aquatic-plant.../msg00550.html

[plantbrain]

Originally Posted by captain_bu

Check out this post on another forum. It is 7 years old now and the situation may have changed over time but when I was looking for an iron test kit other research I did at the time supported this person's claims... I would welcome any corrections to this information from those of us here that are more knowledgeable.

http://fins.actwin.com/aquatic-plant.../msg00550.html

Heck, Shawn's dead.
Nice guy though.

He had little clue about about testing however.
Fe is one of the hardest.

Bottom line, do not even bother.

Most test based on the plants, give any routine about 3-4 weeks time to gauge whether you should add more/less etc.

Adding excess amounts has never shown any ill effects in any test I've done with traces.

I've never been able., nor have others, to correlate plant health and Fe dosing residual levels in the water column.

The issue is that it is gone before you have much of a chance to measure it.
What goes to the plant or what is complexed or preciptated is a huge question.

No one really knows without labeling the Fe using a stable of radioisotope and then measure how much was added vs how much % got into plant tissue(tissue analysis).

Not something hobbyist really do.

The test it extremely time dependent that we use and the levels of Fe do not correlate to plant health.

So do not waste your time.

Generally, a non limiting level is about 5mls of TMG 3-5 x a week a to an 80 liter tank with high light and CO2.

You might get away with less.

Flourish seems to have the same effects but I like the TMG a bit more.
You can alternate back and forth between them also.

Regards,
Tom Barr

[captain_bu]

Thanks for the additional information and clarification Tom!

Yes sir, indeed - I'll be sending the iron test kit back tomrrow.

Do you think the other test's are good to have on hand?

nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, kh, gh, phosphate.

Just to get a bearing on your water from time to time?

[fishscale]

Those are good tests to have, I would say.

Ok - sounds good!

[phanizzle]

the thing about these test kits i don't like is judging the color. i think that makes it somewhat inaccurate..?

[lauraleellbp]

You could always go digital- but those cost an arm and a leg. Maybe someday when I have enough tanks to make it worth the $$. For now, I'll stick with drops.

Originally Posted by lauraleellbp

You could always go digital- but those cost an arm and a leg. Maybe someday when I have enough tanks to make it worth the $$. For now, I'll stick with drops.

and you mean everything but the Iron ones right?

Also lauraleellbp - I got 3 more o cats for a total of four now. Also I'm returning the clown loaches this week for 5-10 amanio shrimp.

You think this will be much better?

[lauraleellbp]

Yep- not the iron. I wouldn't bother with gH or kH in a digital either, just the ones that I test most frequently. I haven't looked at prices in a while, but $60-90 each is a little rich for my wallet! LOL plus you need to by calibrating solutions...

Yes 4 otos is definitely better than 1. Switching out your clowns for shrimp is also a good move- as long as the Apistos don't see them as lunch?

Why don't you post your current stock list back in that other thread so we don't get totally off topic for this one and we can look over it again and get feedback from other people, too?