water test strips- reliable?

[ColleenT]

i bought a container of water test strips and i have tried them 2x. i KNOW the ph part is not working b/c when i test it with the regular kit, it is 7.5 and when i test with the strip it is 6.0 the test strip has 5 colored squares on it.

Have any of you had luck with these? Should i just stick to the regular water test kit?

[craiger75]

Nah, I hear those test strips are notoriously inaccurate. You're better off getting a liquid test kit. It's a more expensive initial outlay, but you'll actually save money in the long run not burning through strips.

[Geomancer]

Which 'regular' kit?

API has two versions. A low range, and a high range. If you're using the high range, you'd get the lowest reading (7.4).

The liquid tests are the more accurate.

[ColleenT]

my kit is for regular ph, not high range. I do have the regular type kit, so i guess i'll just stick to that. i'm bummed i wasted $14 on the darn strips.