Coop test strips

[LaurieinIA]

Has the issue with the pads falling off the test strips been resolved?

I ordered some a while back and I’d say at least 1/4 of my strips had lost the nitrate pad. Of the 48 I have left, 25 have lost that pad and who knows if the rest will fall off. Just this AM, 2 of the 3 I used looked ok - but then the pad fell off into the tank.

I’d love to order them again if this issue has been resolved.  

 

[dmurray407]

On 12/2/2021 at 6:33 AM, LaurieinIA said:

1/4 of my strips had lost the nitrate pad

Frustrating!  I got some about a month ago and have had absolutely no problems with them. Did you reach out to customer support? 

 

[LaurieinIA]

On 12/2/2021 at 9:23 AM, dmurray407 said:

Frustrating!  I got some about a month ago and have had absolutely no problems with them. Did you reach out to customer support? 

 

I’ve had my bottle for a while - since last spring - and at the time, it was kind of a known issue. So, I’ve been dealing with it and falling back on my API liquid kit.

I’d like to test more often now that I’ve moved and want to change from buying RO water to using tap water… the strips would be super convenient. But, I don’t want to invest in another bottle if I can’t depend on them.

From what you’ve experienced, maybe it’s been resolved?

[Guppysnail]

I have ordered 2 bottles since June or July and I have no issues. I think you are very safe ordering. 

[Brandon p]

I was in a forum last week about the trust of this product and some issues with it. Im not going. Im not going to comment on this product other than saying I still use both, catalog the results and if there is a big difference like one having a ph of 8+ And the othe having 6.6 I might suggest that you take the test at the same time for a bit and see if they are close

[LaurieinIA]

On 12/2/2021 at 11:21 AM, Brandon p said:

I was in a forum last week about the trust of this product and some issues with it. Im not going. Im not going to comment on this product other than saying I still use both, catalog the results and if there is a big difference like one having a ph of 8+ And the othe having 6.6 I might suggest that you take the test at the same time for a bit and see if they are close

I’ve been using both for a while

At this time, I’m mostly concerned about monitoring nitrates since that test takes the longest, has a decent margin of error due to the procedure, and that I can’t tell the difference in the shades of orange unless it’s “barely orange vs obviously red”.  I *think* my nitrate results are reasonably accurate across both tests.

I like the liquid test for ph for the same reasons… accurate or not, I can’t tell the difference in the readings for ph in the strips. They all look the same to me unless it’s one end or the other. But, at least the liquid test is fast & easy

Orange might be my favorite color, but I hate it when it comes to testing 😉

 

 

[dmurray407]

On 12/2/2021 at 9:32 AM, LaurieinIA said:

maybe it’s been resolved

I think you would be safe to get them. I check my water almost daily with the strips and try to do the API once a week "just to make sure" and I've found the results to be very close.

 

On 12/2/2021 at 11:58 AM, LaurieinIA said:

I’m mostly concerned about monitoring nitrates since that test takes the longest, has a decent margin of error due to the procedure, and that I can’t tell the difference in the shades of orange unless it’s “barely orange vs obviously red”.  I *think* my nitrate results are reasonably accurate across both tests.

I agree-that's one reason I like the strips. With the API test, the shade of orange is a little too subjective for me-how much reddish tone is too much?! 

[abbie]

On 12/2/2021 at 9:32 AM, LaurieinIA said:

I’ve had my bottle for a while - since last spring - and at the time, it was kind of a known issue. So, I’ve been dealing with it and falling back on my API liquid kit.

I’d like to test more often now that I’ve moved and want to change from buying RO water to using tap water… the strips would be super convenient. But, I don’t want to invest in another bottle if I can’t depend on them.

From what you’ve experienced, maybe it’s been resolved?

I got both the ammonia strips and the multi strips in November and I haven't had any issues with the pads falling off even with my bettas abuse of them cause he thinks its food and tries to peck at them...water testing is always interesting with him😂

[PineSong]

I've bought three bottles since July and have had no problems with pads coming off. I believe at the time when the problem with loose pads was happening, it was mentioned in a video that they would replace them. 

[Patrick_G]

I have two bottles and haven’t lost a pad.

I have had some fairly large differences in the readings from the strips and the API tests. I know that the liquid tests have a much greater margin of possible user error so for now I go with the readings in the strips but I plan on buying solutions with known levels to double check both the strips and the liquid. 

[LaurieinIA]

Thanks all!  I’ll be adding a bottle to my next order as it sounds like the issue was resolved. 😁

[Brandon p]

I haven’t had issues with the pads just results

[Guppysnail]

On 12/2/2021 at 8:10 PM, Patrick_G said:

I have two bottles and haven’t lost a pad.

I have had some fairly large differences in the readings from the strips and the API tests. I know that the liquid tests have a much greater margin of possible user error so for now I go with the readings in the strips but I plan on buying solutions with known levels to double check both the strips and the liquid. 

The cheap unscientific way I did….after a large water change or two where my tanks were testing almost as my source water with api liquid I began using strips to find my base line. Yes it read different than api but I am not concerned with exact numbers as much just is my tank preforming in the usual manner. So if anomalies show on the strips I know how to react. Ammonia and nitrite I automatically do water changes so all I need there is if it is present in the tank. 

[Patrick_G]

On 12/3/2021 at 3:20 AM, Guppysnail said:

The cheap unscientific way I did….after a large water change or two where my tanks were testing almost as my source water with api liquid I began using strips to find my base line. Yes it read different than api but I am not concerned with exact numbers as much just is my tank preforming in the usual manner. So if anomalies show on the strips I know how to react. Ammonia and nitrite I automatically do water changes so all I need there is if it is present in the tank. 

I’m pretty much doing the same thing. I enjoy the empirical aspect of keeping fish so I eventually want to do some more precise tests. I have a good friend who is a freshwater fish biologist. I’m hoping to use her equipment since calibration solutions can be fairly expensive. 

[KaitieG]

My bottles are about 6 ish months old and I haven't had any pads fall off--I think the issue is resolved.

One thing I'd mention is that every single tank I have registers trace ammonia according the the Co-op test strips.  API and Tetra test strips show none, and since most of them have been established for a long time, I dont think there's any there. 

I just set up a new tank again recently, so I was testing for ammonia (I had a used sponge filter), which I often skip on older tanks.  Noticed it turned pale green, so tested all the other tanks too--same exact color.  Then I tested with the other test kits and had the expected "0" reading.

I'm not sure if it's an issue with me having super hard, high ph water or something else, but you might want to double check what "0" looks like on that test with your water and other test kits if you're using it to determine when you do water changes...you might be doing lots of extra ones otherwise. 🙂  I've found the other tests on the Co-op strips to be quite accurate for me, though, and definitely more convenient than the liquid tests.  

[meadeam]

I have a bottle I received last month, and while no pads have fallen off of strips I was using at the time, a loose pad shook out of the bottle once in about 10 tests so far.

[Patrick_G]

On 12/3/2021 at 9:25 AM, KaitieG said:

I'm not sure if it's an issue with me having super hard, high ph water or something else,

I’ve had similar issues and I have soft low ph water. 
Edit: I should revise this to say my Coop strips were detecting some ammonia when the API wasn’t. This was in a newly set up, heavily stocked tank with pre-seeded media so some ammonia might be expected if the filters weren’t quite up to the bioload. 

Edited December 3, 2021 by Patrick_G

[KaitieG]

On 12/3/2021 at 1:28 PM, Patrick_G said:

I’ve had similar issues and I have soft low ph water. 
Edit: I should revise this to say my Coop strips were detecting some ammonia when the API wasn’t. This was in a newly set up, heavily stocked tank with pre-seeded media so some ammonia might be expected if the filters weren’t quite up to the bioload. 

Well there goes that theory!  😃