Test Kits

API High Range pH Test Kit

Liquid testMarine & cichlids160 tests

The API High Range pH Test Kit picks up where the standard freshwater kit stops. It reads pH from 7.4 to 8.8, the band occupied by marine aquariums, Lake Malawi and Tanganyika cichlid tanks, brackish set-ups and the alkaline tap water many South African towns supply. One reagent bottle gives 160 tests, with a glass test tube and a colour chart for fresh and salt water. If your low-range kit keeps reading at the top of its chart, this is the kit that tells you the real number.

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Technical details

Test type	Liquid reagent
Parameters	pH (high range)
Range	7.4 – 8.8
Tests per kit	160
Suitable for	Freshwater and saltwater aquariums
Best for	Marine tanks, African cichlids, brackish water, alkaline tap water
In the box	1 reagent bottle, glass test tube, colour chart, instructions
Made by	Mars Fishcare, USA

What should a marine or cichlid tank read?

A marine aquarium should hold between 8.1 and 8.4, and Lake Malawi and Tanganyika cichlids are kept from about 7.8 to 8.6. Test at the same time each day if you can — pH is lowest just before the lights come on and highest at the end of the photoperiod — and treat a steady downward drift as a carbonate hardness problem rather than a pH problem: test KH, and if it is low, buffer with Proper pH 8.2 or a marine KH supplement. Sudden drops after a water change usually mean the new water was not matched to the tank. The kit’s 160 tests are several years of weekly readings.

Marine and Rift Lake water, read properly

A reef tank at 8.2 or a mbuna tank at 8.0 is off the scale of a 6.0 – 7.6 kit. The high-range reagent resolves the colours between 7.4 and 8.8, so a marine tank sliding from 8.2 to 7.8 — the classic sign of low carbonate hardness — shows up clearly.

Alkaline tap water

Much of inland South Africa has hard, alkaline municipal water. If a freshwater community tank keeps testing at the top of the low-range chart, this kit shows whether it is sitting at 7.6 or 8.4 — a difference that matters for soft-water fish and for choosing the right Proper pH buffer.

Pairs with the KH kit

High pH is held up by carbonate hardness. Testing pH and KH together explains what the pH is doing: a falling pH with low KH needs a buffer such as Proper pH 8.2, while a stable pH with adequate KH needs nothing at all.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use the High Range pH kit in freshwater?

Yes. It is labelled for fresh and salt water and is the right kit for any freshwater tank above 7.4 — cichlids, livebearers in hard water, or alkaline tap supplies.

What is the difference between this and the standard pH kit?

Only the range. The standard kit reads 6.0 – 7.6; this one reads 7.4 – 8.8. The master kits include both.

How many tests are in the kit?

About 160 from the single reagent bottle.

Why is my marine pH falling?

Most often because carbonate hardness has been used up by corals and bacteria. Test KH with the API KH kit and raise it with a buffer; the pH follows.

Is the API High Range pH Test Kit available in South Africa?

Yes — Jungle Aquatics in Fourways, Johannesburg stocks it and delivers nationwide; live pricing and stock are on jungleaquatics.com.

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South Africa's leading pet and aquarium store since 2007 — with the API range on the floor in Fourways, advice from people who test water every day, and easy ordering from anywhere in the country.

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