API FRESHWATER MASTER TEST KIT 800-Test Freshwater Aquarium Water Master Test Kit, White, Single, Multi-colored

Safe to use, good quality and has instructions. Size is great which means the kit lasts forever, it doesn’t smell. Easy to use with clear instructions. Brochure looks great and good material. Price beats all sellers.

Amazing kit! It helps continuously check the water parameters in my tanks to keep my fish, shrimps, and snails healthy. It's a great value for your money. It's safe to use; however, if you get the product on your hand, it will stain, lol.

I picked up the API Freshwater Master Test Kit when setting up my 6-gallon planted tank, and it’s been a huge upgrade over the test strips I started with. The strips were frustrating—hard to read, not very precise, and the gaps between values made it difficult to really understand what was going on in my tank. With this kit, the results feel much more accurate and consistent. I actually feel confident making adjustments based on the readings now. It’s also just a better overall experience. The process is straightforward, and there’s something oddly fun about it—it definitely gives off “mad chemist” vibes in the best way.

You will find this freshwater kit is far more accurate than test strips. The soaking of a tiny doped pad method of test strips just isnt an accurate way to test. This is the industry standard water test kit that most aquarists swear by. 1st, be sure the test chemicals you get are not near expiration. You should easily be able to use this kit for up to a few years before the chemicals included lose their effectiveness. The expiration date is on the kit box and on each bottle of solution. The glass test tubes that used to be included in this kit have been replaced by plastic ones. The glass tubes made cleaning up a breeze and were far better than the plastic ones that don't clean up as well. Also the 5ml fill line is a bit difficult to see on the plastic tubes. It was always inevitable though that you would eventually break a few glass tubes before you got through the 800 tests this kit can provide. They now just assume that by the time the plastic tubes get permanently stained, you'll be on to a new test kit with new tubes. While not a deal breaker, I prefered the glass tubes. Be sure you purchase the kit best suited for the tanks or ponds you keep. This kit is the freshwater version. This kit tests pH in two different ways. If you have ph generally higher than 7.4 you use the high pH test solution. If you have pH below 7.6 youll use the standard pH test kit. This is great of you are keeping multiple tanks with different pH levels or if your one tank tends to bounce around between 7.4 to 7.6. Once you figure out which test best suits your aquariums, youll likely not use the other solution. This kit tests for total ammonia using 2 solutions in one test. Ammonia is a very hazardous chemical to your fish and plants. Use this kit to keep these levels of ammonia at or near 0. This kit tests Nitrites using 1 solution. This is the second step in the nitrogen cycle. While not as harmful as ammonia, it's still something you should strive to get as close to 0 as possible. Now some people using heavily planted and fertilized tanks will actually strive to have this level low but present. This kit tests for nitrates in two solutions for 1 test. While nitrates are not as harmful to fish as Ammonia or Nitrite, most fish keepers still strive for low readings. Long term exposures to high nitrates can still cause harm to fish. Generally youll get rid of nitrates by water changes or heavy plant growth. Many people with heavily planted and fertilized tanks prefer this value to be a little higher to feed the plants but still low to protect the fish. With this test kit testing 4 of your most important chemicals in fresh water, it is a necessity to have on hand. Test strips might be more convenient but are seldom very accurate. This liquid master test kit is the standard if you want true values at an affordable price. It comes in several varieties, depending on whether you have freshwater, marine, reef or ponds. Its a great way to see what is going on in your setup before any loss of life occurs.

Great product and good shipping

Easy to understand the instructions. Comes in a portable case which is a perfect caddy to go from one aquarium to the next. No scent that I detected. The case is durable and has an easy storage system that holds each vile. The colors are easy to get a reading to match against and each bottle has a different color for color coded instructions. The helped me adjust my water parameters to better suit my tropical fish. Very effective.

Got this kit for monitoring my goldfish tank. Very easy to use with clear instructions. Overall very satisfied and think this is a very suitable test kit to start with. This kit tests for 2 things. (1) PH levels and (2) Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate levels (i.e. the Nitrogen Cycle). The Nitrogen cycle as related to a fish tank is as follows... Your fish gives off waste products, which Ammonia is a major component. When Ammonia levels in the tank go to high the fish can get burns, sick and can die. At some point your tank should develop bacteria that convert the Ammonia to Nitrite (this bacteria can live in the gravel and the filter. Also this bacteria is killed by tap water that has chlorine present so this is why you don't wash gravel with tap water. Also this is why you should not change all filter elements at once as you may be eliminating too much of your bacteria colonies). Once the bacteria that do this develop a large enough colony your ammonia levels should go to zero. Before the colony of bacteria is developed your tests for Ammonia should show some level present. You want to make sure that the level does not go to high. To reduce Ammonia levels you can either do water changes, use a filter that removes Ammonia or there are additives that can be added to reduce the levels as well. The next step is the bacteria converts the Ammonia to Nitrite. Nitrite levels if they go too high are bad for fish. Initially Nitrite levels will tend high (similar solution for excessive Ammonia levels will work for Nitrite as well). Eventually a colony of bacteria will develop that convert Nitrite to Nitrate. Once the colony reaches maturity your Nitrite levels should come up as zero on your tests. The final step (well not final if you use plants, which is more complicated) is as mentioned above the Nitrite being converted to Nitrate. When the bacteria colonies are fully removing all the Ammonia and Nitrite the tank is called cycled. At this point the major concern is that Nitrate levels should not go too high. The fortunate thing is that fish can tolerate relatively high levels of Nitrate as compared to Ammonia or Nitrite. I would think most cases where fish are not faring well, probably the Ammonia or Nitrite levels are high and the Nitrate is fine. In any case you will need to test for Nitrate probably no more frequently than every few weeks to few months (depends on your tanks size and number of fish) to make sure the levels are not getting to high. The solution for high levels is the same as for Ammonia or Nitrite, namely water changes, filtering, and additives (I have stayed away from additives but they are an option). This kit gives you everything you need to test for this critical cycle and is probably all you need for most fish tanks to help you keep your fish healthy for a long time.

Does this scale look a little wonky to anyone else? The 7.6 and the 7.4 seem to be out of order, but also the color gradation jumps dramatically between the ones labeled 7.6 and 7.4. It's almost like the labels were printed backwards? Edit: I'm dumb. those are two different ph test scales. There are two separate PH test reagents. All the tests seem to work just fine, and after realizing my mistake, the color chart is fine. There are still some typos and incomplete sentences in the instructions, but everything was still clear enough to follow. I'm gonna have to get an alternate pH test for a sanity check here. which doesn't inspire confidence for the rest of the test get either, as well as the typos and incomplete sentences in the instruction manual. at least it is cheap and it's giving me some metrics to go off of.

I moved away from test strips and bought the API 800 Test Freshwater Master Kit. One of the best decisions I have made for my aquarium. Test strips may look convenient but once the container is opened and the strips are exposed to air the clock is ticking. Moisture and oxygen start degrading the reagents immediately. After about 30 days the accuracy drops off badly. At that point the readings are questionable and you may as well consider them unreliable. For something as important as water quality, that simply is not good enough. The API Freshwater Master Kit solves that problem completely. The reagents are stored in sealed bottles so they remain stable and accurate for a long time. Using it is straightforward. Fill the test tube with tank water to the line, add the correct number of drops from the bottle, cap the tube and shake. For nitrate there is a second bottle and a longer shake but it is still very simple. Wait the specified time, then compare the colour against the chart. That is it. What you get in return is far more reliable information. The colour changes are clearer and the scale is more precise than strips. You can properly track ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH rather than relying on vague strip colours that can be difficult to read. Each kit also lasts a very long time because you get a large number of tests from the bottles. It ends up being far better value than constantly replacing strips that degrade quickly. If you want accurate, repeatable readings and a clear picture of what is happening in your tank water, this kit is excellent. Simple to use, dependable and well worth the money. Highly recommended for any serious fish keeper. 🐟

Good 👍 Work's Well

its an API test kit, its functional and works for getting a rough idea of the state of your aquarium

So easy to use , very accurate , the test strips said everything was fine but this master test kit told the truth it wasn’t fine and it helped me fix my water so my fish stopped dying , would definitely recommend for everyone keeping fish !! Definitely worth the money it’s actually not much when you think of it this stuff will last forever , I think it said 800 tests ,you only uses so many drops per test and you only need to test once a week unless you have a problem your trying to fix ..

Good product