# Ammonia Test



## baishui (Jan 7, 2014)

I've been wondering why both of my tanks have ammonia, a reading between 0 and 0.25 ppm. So I just did a test of my tap water, a bottled water, as well as boils water, after thoroughly rinsed the tubes and caps. Funny enough, none of them reads 0. Attached image is the result of bottled water and boiled water.

That can't be true! My tap water might have ammonia, but bottled water shouldn't have any, right?

Any idea where I did wrong?










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## coldmantis (Apr 5, 2010)

Maybe your ammonia test is expired I believe api last 2-3 years?

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## baishui (Jan 7, 2014)

coldmantis said:


> Maybe your ammonia test is expired I believe api last 2-3 years?
> 
> Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk 4


They expire on 2018 

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## mistersprinkles (Nov 4, 2013)

The one on the right looks like about 0.10-15ppm of ammonia. The one on the left looks like zero. The color chart for the API ammonia test is a little inaccurate. 0 in the test tube does not look like 0 on the chart. The yellow on the chart is more of a full bodied yellow while the yellow on the actual test is more washed out. Your boiled tap water looks like 0 to me.

As for ammonia being in bottled water, I totally believe that it could be. Regardless, tiny trace amounts of ammonia aren't dangerous to humans. That's why you can drink your own urine in emergencies.


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## baishui (Jan 7, 2014)

Ok, now I can finally say my 2nd tank is cycled.


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## blackmajik (Jan 23, 2014)

baishui said:


> Ok, now I can finally say my 2nd tank is cycled.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Maybe... test for nitrites which should read 0 as well and nitrates which should be less than 20 ppm.


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## baishui (Jan 7, 2014)

Yes, nitrites has been 0 for several days, I was just waiting for ammonia to fall to 0.


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## TorontoBoy (Mar 14, 2013)

The City of Toronto adds ammonia into the final step of water treatment before distribution. This ammonia combines with chlorine, creating chloramine, a much more stable form that for a long time after purification, continues to protect our water from bacteria and viruses. This is the reason we here in Toronto should use Prime.

York buys water from Toronto and some other city. Markham is so close to Toronto that it would be hard to not use Toronto water.

The API Master Test kit is an economical consumer kit. In the past we have posted up the API test result cards from different members and debated the colour differences. There are differences in colour printing. I would consider the API test kit a good guideline, "good enough" but not for specific and highly accurate test results.


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

ammonia can be hard to read quite often, the light used makes a difference. If it looks like under .25, then consider it 0 for the most part. As long as nitrites is 0, you can feel safe that the ammonia is actually 0


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## mistersprinkles (Nov 4, 2013)

pyrrolin said:


> As long as nitrites is 0, you can feel safe that the ammonia is actually 0


I have to disagree with you on that.


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## pyrrolin (Jan 11, 2012)

in the case of cycling where you first get a spike in ammonia and then ammonia starts to go down and you get a spike of nitrites, you can feel safe that if the nitrites are 0 and your ammonia reads somewhere between 0 and .25 that the ammonia is 0 and you are good to go.

I'm not saying that in all cases if nitrites are 0, you are fine as this would not be correct. But in this case if ammonia looks very close to 0 and nitrites are 0, you can feel safe.


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## baishui (Jan 7, 2014)

Thanks Gus. I believe it's safe too, and I've put some yellow shrimp and some RCS in the two tanks today.


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