I love these things so much! I got one recently and it's given me such a peace of mind. My betta tank recently had a cycle crash, so unfortunately now I have to do a fish-in cycle. I have really bad anxiety and it was a huge distraction worrying about if Prime was binding all of the ammonia since my test kit only tests for total ammonia. Being able to look over at the tank and see the yellow sticker has saved me from a lot of headaches and panic attacks. 10/10, would definitely recommend.

I have used these for a number of years without any problems but I recently read some bad stuff about them. This revue is excellent and very informative. It's settled my mind after reading the bad stuff.

Great video! Just bought 2 amonia alerts and put in my 70 g and 20 gallon quarantine tank.

Thank you for clearing up how to read it. It turns out I was reading it right. I recently got a fresh water sting ray pup an have been worried about the ammonia levels with in the tank. You have really put my mind at ease

Found one of these in an old box of aquarium gear I had stuffed away. At least 20 years old. Granted it hasn't been in the water all that time, but it still works.

That's the answer I was looking for! Now I can understand the reason for so many controversial reviews, thank you for that!

I bought the test strips for my betta 9 gallon nano aquarium and forgot to test the ammonia test.. doing water changing till I get this badge. love it already! and thank you a lot for this video!

What a great narrative video. I wasn't going to get one because of poor results and reviews. But you explained perfectly why people don't like it. Thanks for a top notch job and im off to get one

Thanks so much for clarifying the free/bound ammonia thing - I haven't installed my sensor yet, but I bet I would've compared the reading to my API test & freaked out! Whew....crises diverted!

I have two badges one for ammonia and one for ph you're information was very helpful to me to understand how it works and second to see that test with the ammonia glass cleaner. Thanks alot we'll appreciated

Thank you for your very informative video on the use of the Ammonia Test kit Badge in your fish tank. I have two of them that I will place in two of my ten gallon tanks with my betta and Otocinclus catfish.

By far the best You-Tube Video on Ammonia! I bought one yesterday! The API Kit was actually driving me insane. (LOL) Thank you so much! I actually have 0 Nitrates & Nitrites!

@sko1beer

3 жыл бұрын

Hi how long does the badge last?

What a great review! Thank you for your time.

Thank you for this video! It's very helpful.

A very helpful video. Clearly understandable and informative thank you for uploading it

Great now I get it! I was confused by the badge reading compared to my test kit result. This shows that my seachem prime binds the ammonia in the tank. Test kit shows a high reading of Ammonia but the badge shows it’s in safe zone. So this badge is useful to show the amount of free ammonia in my tank. Thanks!

When u said gas my cat farted lol

@Shinigamix07

3 жыл бұрын

@Splashing Around Indoors lmao

@clutchcontrol3394

Жыл бұрын

It is letting its ammonia out😅

@warpartyattheoutpost4987

10 ай бұрын

That made me choke on my coffee.

Thanks for this. I've put Ammonium Chloride in my tank that should get it to about 4ppm (fishless cycling a new tank) but the Seachem Ammonia Alert is only showing 0.05ppm. I couldn't figure out where it had all gone, as it's too early to have been converted to nitrite/nitrate. This video clarified that it's because I also have Prime in the water and it's been bound. Thanks for solving the mystery!

Thank you! Great video and very informative!

Great video, I learn something new today from you thanks!

Very nice information, I've used this product before and it works very well.

Clear concise info, thanks and the ammonia test works too!

Great video! Thank you! I unfortunately watched this video after I did exactly what he said and ruined my badges immediately. But I got new ones and I love them! Definitely don’t overlook the instructions 😅

Thanks, I was looking to purchase on of these so I can constantly monitor the ammonia levels in my aquarium.

Aa great as this product is the quality of the video is even better and I have seen everything on the? Seachem Ammonia badges. 🌏💚💙 Please make sure that you will be making a lot more!!!

thank you so much for this information.god bless and see you again.

Great video. Very informative. Cheers mate.

Thank you so much this was very helpful.

Very helpful. I’m quarantining for the first time, a Royal gramma, and my badge has been consistently yellow, but my test kit said 0.8 total ammonia. I did a hefty water change, but was perplexed and the fish showed no signs of stress. I had added some bacteria in a bottle, but no ammonia binding agent. Sounds like I can rely on this badge a bit more than I thought.

Good video, thanks. I have a well cycled 50 gallon tank that is showing 1-2 ppm total ammonia (NH3/NH4+) with an API test kit. I used Prime to protect the fish and at this point I'm pretty sure that something is causing a false positive with the Salicylate test (possibly Ca or phosphates). This test strip is showing safe in the tank. At 2 ppm, the calculators would say I had >0.03ppm free NH3.

Excellent video. Thank you.

Great video very useful information

Very informative video. Many thanks!!!!

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the kind words! It's always good to hear that my guides are helping people.

Thanks. I actually threw one out because I thought it wasn't working. I feel stupid but, but I have another that I just moved into a problem tank because I understand now and am much more confident that it will begin doing it's job. Appreciate it.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the comment and I am glad to hear that this video helped you. These badges can get confusing if you don't understand all the tips and tricks to correctly use them. So, don't feel bad about tossing that last one, I bet that happened to a bunch of people.

@urbansk8r231

5 жыл бұрын

You not stupid. Even people who have been in the hobby for yrs are still learning new thing or a new way of doing thing.

Thinking to buying this type of alert badge or not, but after watch your video i will considering buy this type alert badge. Again very helpful and thanks.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the comment and I’m glad I was able to help.

Thank you very much for your explanation. I am new to the hobbi planing to get two of this badges.I am on the process of collecting all I need to start a 15 gallons salt water tank and a small one to quarentene the fish.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

cristina lexy I'm happy to hear the video helped. We are in the process of hatching some baby clownfish, but there will be a video about sponge filters this week. Those filters are perfect for quarantine tanks.

Answered questions I've had about this. Did not easily detect scale changes and was not aware of the protective film over it. Lol

I have one in each of my three tanks, they are seriously good value and can prevent something terrible from happening. I have a real small tank up in my office so parameters change quickly, its just 5 litres, with cherry shrimp and 3 male true endlers. I find you even see the bright yellow start to fade and grey creeping in around the circle when you are starting to get the slightest Ammonia before you even get to the completely grey alert level. I do a small 1/5 water change and it returns to vibrant yellow within an hour or two. One tip id give is though you may want to hide it away for making your tank attractive make sure that your aquarium light is shining through it well and make very sure to clear algae off the back especially dark algaes that distort your colour dot. I have the PH one in my betta tank, not awfully useful but it came as a combo. As I'm about to establish a dedicated heavily planted shrimp tank the PH one will be useful there. Shame you don't get alarms like this for nitrtrite I'm sure there's a technical reason.

Awesome thanks so much for this 🙏

beyond excellent . !!thanks

Very helpful. Thank you

thanks a lot i will buy this now without hesitation .

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Glad to hear the video was helpful! Let me know if you have any more questions.

Helpful.. Thanks for this!

Thanks for the Vid helpful, going threw a semi cycle situation with fish in. Learning on the fly knowing the different ammonia's has given me some peace of mind going threw cycling process. How long can you treat a tank with Prime before doing a water change is necessary ,? to allow the good bacteria a better chance to set up ?

Thank you! Your video was far more useful than the lame instructions that came with the product. All that was necessary is to reveal that the center dot is the display and that yellow is good and dark blue is bad. Again, thanks!

Just bought two. One for new display and on for QT. Thanks

Thanks for clarifying that Free/Bound Ammonia issue... I was worried my badge was faulty precisely because my API Water Test kit was showing Ammonia present, but the badge showed a Safe reading. 👍

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

It’s great that I was able to help you clear that up. While researching my video, I found that there was tons of confusion around free & bound ammonia too. Be sure to let me know if you have any questions and thanks for watching.

@collinmckeon107

5 жыл бұрын

@@HackersReef yes, thank you for everything

@alanconnor8213

5 жыл бұрын

I had same issues with API

@thepassionreef

4 жыл бұрын

Damn I have been testing my new tank using Ammonia test kit from Seachem and all this time I was testing for Total Ammonia instead of Free Ammonia 🤦‍♂️

Thank you for your narrative on the installation and use of this product. I have a 5 gallon tank that can turn you fast.

@Ephem13

4 жыл бұрын

Everyone thinks small tanks would be easier, 20gal and below can go toxic so quickly it's crazy.

@reefboy2558

3 жыл бұрын

@@Ephem13 exactly it’s all about stability

Excellent thanks so much!

Great Video! I was considering buying this for my main tank, but I was just so concerned about the bad reviews of this product so I had second thoughts. So glad I found this video! 👍👍 Btw, will this be a sufficient alternative for water test kits? I am considering ditching the water test kits completely and settle for this badge, because it lasts so much longer and it's affordable.

Good video. Thank you

Glad I found your review! I really wasn't sure how well it worked, as the reviews were all over the place even though I knew about the free and bound ammonia. I love Seachem, but sometimes they make things that seem too good to be true, you know? I just finished cycling a tank, so this badge will help immensely!

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Really happy to hear that this video helped. You're 100% correct, the directions for the badge are a bit vague and confused me at first too.

Your video is very helpful thanks

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Mike Law I'm glad you found it helpful. Let me know if there are any products or fish keeping techniques you would like to see in future videos.

Fantastic video1

Great video here.

Great video.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Brett Backer glad you enjoyed the video. Are you using the alert in a fresh or saltwater aquarium?

shit! I was about to remove the center sticker thinking it had another protective tape! 😅 thank you for the video.

going to get 2.i will put them side by side to see if they are working as they should or if they read different.bad part is,if different readings,which is more accurate.i guess if you have 3 you can let the 3rd be the deciding factor unless all 3 read different.keep in mind folks,dirty filters can create a real problem.but just changing filters will not remove the ammonia but it will keep the dirty filters from increasing the levels.if you see your fish doing the back stroke with x's where they once had eyes,then you have real problems..thanks for the vid.

Very informative

Thank you

I cycled a 30 long. For a long time with one fish. Finally I added 15 Tetras. Everything looked ok. I made a fatal error and replaced the filter media with something NEW....a carbon filled piece from Petco. Suddenly, my Tetras starting dying off and I had an ammonia spike. I’ve lost five so far. In four days. I’ve Done numerous 50% water changes. The PH is good, temps good....I’ve put CAMO in the water. Will continue water changes and food just every other day. Hope for the best. I plan to buy one of these units, I saw them at Petco. Thanks for the review.

@johnseo8160

2 жыл бұрын

Do not do water changes when you get an ammonia spike. When you have an ammonia spike and do a water change that toxic ammonia can still be in your water. What you wanna do is add some prime and then some fritz zyme 7 intriguing bacteria. Prime neutralizes the ammonia while the fritz eats at it.

Great video, helped me a lot to make a decession,thank you! Though there is one thing i dont understand, might someone can help me. I do fish in cycle in 5 gallon tank.yesterday,when i received the bedge and placed into the tank, it went straight into alert. i did a proper ammonia test, there i got 3ppm ammonia result.based on this i added 3ml prime and up till now(24 hours later) the bedge is showing alert. never changed any colour since i placed it into the tank.

I bought 1 before watching any vids. I followed instruction and it reads light yellow im guessing thats good it hasnt moved on that color since 2 weeks ago. when do you think will be the time that color will change and do you think amonia can be more seen lower in the tank?or it dont matter If you got time pls respond ty.

I have the same thing in my tank but when I go to store to get water tested says high ammonia the have done the dunk test and the liquid have changed my water a lot and have added ammonia remover still losing some fish the disc say it is safe so will give it a test r Thanks

Just a question one i have read purple. Has not changed color. Did i get a bad card? Should i try the window cleaning trick to see if the color changes?

So I've been doing a ton of water changes, I rinsed the filter, I vacuumed the gravel etc but my badge still says it's in the alert zone. My fish seem happy and healthy so I'm not sure what's going on. Any advice?

I wiped off the middle sensor did I break it?

Hi. Can I use it when I give medication for my fish? Thank you

Can I use this all the time for a year in my 3 gal betta tank? I only have 1 fish. Thanks

I bougt one and so far its been on the safe (yellow ) for te past week but its weird my fish died tonight for nitrate spike ??? going to get a new one tomorrow

I used this for about 2 week in my fry tank then took it out. Is it any good now??

How do you know when it's gone bad without removing it from the tank and exposing to ammonia?

Pre-testing this particular badge was and is a very important procedure as you have simply demonstrated. People have to understand this and everything else you explained in order to properly guard against what ever testing they are doing. It's just so unfortunate that your video (this one particularly) is overlooked... Perhaps Seachem could recognize your video and use it as a guide for those interested in their products. I know this happens with some companies because I've seen it in the Photography industry with certain lenses/camera gear. BTW, I gave your video a thumbs up and subscribed as well!

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the awesome comment and the sub! You perfectly explained why I created this video in the first place. I found so many forum posts and reviews from frustrated people that were wondering if their badge even worked at all. I'm just happy I could help and I will reach out to Seachem. Keep spreading the word and look out for more videos in the coming weeks.

You say quaranteen tank or new tank. Can i keep it in my Main tank thats been runing for a year or do you Only recomend it for new tanks or quarant tank?

My test kit shows 1ppm and the badge shows yellow. I am using prime... My badge did not come with a peal off layer...

My seachem alert badge is always in the alert color. But when i test the water i have 0 ammonia. I have 3 of these in different tanks and the other 2 seem to work fine. 🤷🏻‍♂️

I think the badge is a good indicator of CHANGE. For more advanced things like testing you would of course need something more precise. The response of the badge (time) would depend on circulation BUT I think Seachem used to say the response time was 2 hours.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

I agree. I just felt that this video needed to be made due to the large amounts of people that compare liquid tests to the badge and panic. It’s difficult to know what to trust when one says safe and one says lethal. When I do an update to the video I will add a bit about higher flow giving slight better reaction time.

I cycled my aquarium for around 8 weeks and was pretty sure it has no ammonia. I bought this anyway, is pretty handy just to be safe.

I got a new one and it doesn't work. It's saying safe but JBL liquid amónia test is saying that amónia is super high. Maybe it's the type of Amónia, I used seachem prime. I started the aquarium 3 days ago. Also have a ph alert and is failing by 0.4, it's saying 7.0 and I measure 6.6

I should've tried this test. I use the PH one, the ammonia one wouldn't change even when the ammonia tested high with API Master Kit.

can I take it out of 1 tank & put in another?

So if the liquid test at petsmart showed marginal ammonia does that mean I'm pretty much ok because of the type of testing it does? or is that still bad. It was slightly darker than the 0 result.

Get a great deal on the Seachem Ammonia Alert, shipped right to your home @ amzn.to/2BtEigs

Gr8 video thanks I made the mistake of touching the centre senor, u think its ruined?

@atanaspopov6204

3 ай бұрын

Yes, you cant trust anymore to the test

If I remember correctly, the two-step test kits that test for total ammonia work by first dramatically elevating the pH of the water sample. I wish I could recall where I read this. If anyone knows for sure and can either confirm or deny this, I'd love to know for sure. In any case, I love these. I don't use them as a substitute for daily liquid tests during a cycle, because of course the goal is no ammonia at all, but they do keep me fretting around around the clock between tests. I keep them even after that, just as an extra precaution to let me know if one of my tanks needs some unscheduled attention.

Is one for Nitrates ...?

What about the PH alert, that something that’s useful as well

What other realtime ammonia monitoring products are you familiar with?

will you please tell me where the activated charcol and bio ceramic rings and bio balls place in canister ehim sin 603 b filter??

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

I'm unsure of the placement on that exact model, but the usual order for a canister goes like this. Poly filter pad --> bio media --> carbon--> return. It's largely user preference, but that's a workable configuration. Sometimes you use a 2nd poly filter stage before the return to trap any carbon dust.

Is this disposable?

Hi there. My struggle with the badge is I have a hard time reading when it goes from safe to alert. I can't tell if it is truly at alert and if I shine a light behind the badge it looks yellow but under ambient light (which my QTs run with) it looks like the alert color. If I shine a light on the badge directly on it it looks like the alert color. When I test with an API test it get 0.5 or 1.0 PPM usually at this level. I'm not sure if I'm doing a water change unnecessarily or if I should just wait.

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

It can be a little tough to read sometimes. How long has the QT tank been running and are you using anything like bacteria to quickly cycle it?

Great video and explanation of how the product works! Bought myself one after seeing your video...However, how do you classify a "gray" color? Yes, I did verify that the sensor is working by removing the monitor and placing it in a bowl of tap water where it returned to yellow. However, when placed inside my aquarium it is gray...Any ideas? BTW, it's a new tank that's still going through it's cycle...

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Always happy to hear that the info in my video was helpful. When it turns gray, it usually means there is a small amount of ammonia that is on the cusp of hitting alert levels. According to Sea Chem, you should treat the gray as an alert reading and add in a little Prime, AmGuard or Stability to bring levels back down to 0. I have a few that turn gray from time to time in the fish room over here too.

@ramboadmin1875

5 жыл бұрын

Hackers' Reef ...TYVM for the quick response! I will go ahead and add a bit of AmGuard :) Subbed! TY!!!

Thank you so much!!! I’ve been worried my ph and ammonia alerts aren’t working! Haha. I can relax now!!

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

It's always great to hear that my guides are helping people. How is the tank going?

@SparkledStilettos

5 жыл бұрын

Hackers' Reef fantastic! My Kribensis fry are thriving and now I’m cycling a new 130L for my sparkling gourami and blue rams! :)

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

SparkledStilettos congratulations on the success!

this was helpful. The package doesn't really explain that well.

I'm starting my first marine qt tank. In what stage of the badge is recommended to do a water change?

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

charlo you definitely want to do a water change if it hits alarm or is stuck on alert for more than a couple days. You don't want to change out more than 25% of the water at a time either. Adding Seachem AmGuard and Stability will really help with ammonia spikes. What sort of filtration will this QT tank be using?

@carlosoc2001

5 жыл бұрын

i'm planning to use a HOB filter with some sponges that has been seeding in my DT for a while. I'll be looking for some AmGuard or Stability. Thanks for the recommendation and of course the grate video.

Do these work indefinitely? Or do they have to be replaced after a period of time? Granted the plastic holds up and other obvious factors that would stop it from working.

@Demonic_Kitty

2 жыл бұрын

1 year

I have API AMONIA LOCK this keeps it bound correct? It doesn’t go back to harmful?

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

Good question! Just about every ammonia binding product that I am aware of is only temporary. I believe API Ammo Lock binds ammonia for 48 hours, like Seachem Amguard. The idea is that you add these binding products every 24-48 hours (follow directions) until your biological filtration is strong enough to naturally consume the ammonia in your system. Don’t forget that adding too much of any ammonia binding chemical will reduce the oxygen in your water, so extra aeration and correct dosage is important.

I have algae on my ammonia and ph badge. I don't want to touch the actual film in the middle to wipe the algae off. How would you get the algae off?

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

You could try to pour some tank water over it or CAREFULLY dab around the film with a paper towel wet with tank water. Never use your bare hand or apply too much pressure and it should be ok. Good luck and let us know.

@realbill

3 жыл бұрын

Try dabbing it gently with a qu-tip.

will you please tell me the tds value and averrage temp and ph value where the fresh water fishes like catfish gold fish koi etc survive easily??

@HackersReef

5 жыл бұрын

TDS readings will not be very helpful for freshwater fish keeping. Starting with low TDS water is great, but to monitor the true water quality you will need to test for nitrates and nitrites. Here a link to a good fresh water test kit - amzn.to/2QVTzRa Nitrites should always be 0, nitrates should be as close to 0 as possible with pH between 7 (neutral pH) and 8. I hope that helps.

@dk12641

5 жыл бұрын

@@HackersReef thanks a lot ,,:)

My api kit showed .25 seachem alert showed 0 didn’t add any prime or anything

@dani-ou4uu

7 ай бұрын

Did you watch the video completely? It explains in detail why that may be.