Re: Lamotte vs AP

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

Cavan said:

> I disagree with Tom Wood about the nitrate kit.  I had
> the AP one and could barely tell between 5 and 15. 
> Maybe some people have better eyes for comparison than
> mine, but it was a bit of a pain to read the thing. 

I had this same problem, as did everyone in my family --"what's this
look like to you?"  "It's kinda that one but it could be this one too."
 "No, I think it's that one". . .

> The LaMotte is MUCH easier to use for me.  Matching to
> actual water samples beats a paper card any day (IMO).

It works for all of us here.

>  Isn't the Lamotte good for 50 tests?

If it isn't, I'm getting about 150% more test from the kit than I'm
supposed to.

>  The lamotte kit
> made coming up with a dosing schedule a lot easier.   
Same here.
> 
> 
> As far as GH and KH kits go, the AP are just as good. 

So are Tetra's and probably everyone else's.  The chems used for the
titration test are so easy to use, and the color-turning point so
pronounced, it's easy as pie (no, it really is easy; pie can b rather
difficult, actually).  But not all titration tests are easy.  The Hach
CO2 titration test has an extremely subtle color change -- at what
point is it enough of a blush to be a reading?  But the GH and KH test
are like black and white, so to speak.

> It's hard to go wrong with titration.  
> 
> SeaChem makes a good phosphate kit
I had just as much trouble making a dependable reading with the SeaChem
phosphate as with the nitrate.  But it's good to hear not everyone
does.

> but their nitrate
> one was also difficult for me to read (and read low). 
> 
Even pH color tests are sometimes difficult to read.  I had to
calibrate my perceptual faculties with a pH meter before I could read
the AP pH test reliably.  I know this is not colorblindness in the
clinical sense.  And I'll bet it's more widespread than some folks
might think at first blush.  What's your pH, give or take 0.4?  What's
your CO2?

If you find a color comparison kit you like except it's hard to decide
between adjacent colors, then calibrating your perception isn't a bad
idea.  Either use a well calibrated meter or prepare a known solution,
or both.  There are easy ways to see how a test kit shows up and how
*you* perceive it.

Scott H.

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