Packaging of the NH4 ammonium test refill, showing the three numbered reagent bottles

Table comparing the contents of the refill with those of the full test kit: the accessories are not included with the refill

Chart of charge autonomy: approximately 50 measurements, compared with 42 for a six-week cycling and 56 for eight weeks

Reagent refill for NH4 ammonium test

Name: Reagent refill for NH4 ammonium test
Brand: JBL
Price: 12.0 USD
Availability: InStock

$12.00

Ammonia is the first waste product in an inhabited water system, and the fastest indicator that biological filtration is struggling. These three bottles are the reagents for the ammonia test, in the same volume as those in the original kit.

Approximately 50 tests, enough to monitor a full cycle start-up at one test per day. Your existing glassware, comparator block, and colour chart remain in use.

Reagent refill

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The summary

What it measures: ammonium, the first waste product that inhabited water produces.
What the box contains: 3 bottles of reagents NH4 1, NH4 2 and NH4 3.
How many measurements: about 50, the count of the original kit.
How often: one measurement a day during cycling, then only after an incident.
Refill or full kit: the choice depends on the condition of your colour chart and your glassware.
Where to dispose of the sample: down the sink, under running water; these three reagents never go into the fish water.

Three bottles of reagents to continue monitoring ammonium, approximately 50 tests

The 3 bottles in this refill replace the reagents of the NH4 ammonium drop test, for about 50 tests from 0.05 to 5 mg/L, using the glassware and colour chart you already have. Cycling monitored every day uses up most of it. Reagent 2 is corrosive and toxic to aquatic life: never put it in the fish's water.

Ammonium is the first waste product of water that has living things in it. It appears as soon as droppings, leftover food or a dead plant start to break down, and bacteria then convert it into nitrite, then into nitrate. In a mature system this conversion takes a few hours and the test reads zero. A readable value therefore always means the same thing: the biological filtration can no longer keep up.

You measure it every day while a new tank is being set up, then after every incident. In aquaponics, monitoring has a second purpose, since your plants live on the nitrates produced at the end of this chain: as long as ammonium is still readable, the chain that produces these nitrates is not yet complete. The nitrogen cycle guide details the stages of this start-up.

🔁 What the refill replaces

These three bottles hold the same volume of reagent as those in the original kit, for about 50 tests. You slot them into your kit and carry on with the glassware, syringe, comparator block and colour chart you already have. Consumption comes in fits and starts: a 6-week cycling at one test a day takes 42 tests, and an 8-week cycling takes 56. One set of bottles will see you through one cycling, not two.

What you keep from the kit

Keep the glassware, the comparator block and the colour chart from your ammonium test, as these are what translate the colour into milligrams per litre. Buy the complete kit again if the colour chart is stained or faded, or if a test tube is broken. During cycling, the nitrite refill runs out at the same rate, so it is worth planning ahead and ordering both in one go rather than two.

Three bottles, two of them classed as hazardous

This refill carries several hazard statements, spread across two of the three bottles, as reagent 1 is not classified. Reagent 3, containing propan-2-ol, carries H225, highly flammable liquid, as well as H315, H319 and H336 for skin and eye irritation and the drowsiness its vapours can cause. Reagent 2, containing sodium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite, carries H314, severe burns and eye damage, H400 and H411 for aquatic toxicity, and EUH031, as it releases a toxic gas on contact with an acid. Store the box up high and away from any flame, and pour the treated test tube down the sink, rinsing plentifully.

📦 In the box

The box contains three reagent bottles with child-resistant caps, numbered 1, 2 and 3. Store them in your test case, next to the glassware and the colour chart. Screw the caps back on tightly after each measurement and keep the box dry, in its original packaging and away from direct light, which allows the reagents to remain usable until the date printed on each bottle.

🧮 When to order it

Order the refill before a period of daily testing rather than when the bottle runs out. A tank start-up, a spring restart of a pond or the arrival of a batch of fish all herald a series of day-by-day measurements, and a gap in monitoring would then fall exactly when the ammonium level can change from one day to the next. Once the ammonium is back to zero, it is nitrite that is tracked every week, and this set of bottles then waits for the next incident.

Unopened, the three bottles keep for 2 years; once opened, they deteriorate more quickly on contact with the air, which argues for ordering just before cycling rather than months in advance. The glassware, the block and the colour chart remain those of your ammonium drop test. After reading, the tested sample is poured down the sink, because reagent 2, toxic to aquatic life, never goes into the fish's water.

Technical specifications

What the refill contains

Contents: 3 reagent bottlesReagents NH4 1, NH4 2 and NH4 3, numbered on the label
Readings: Around 50Same volume of reagent as in the original kit. The count varies with how consistently you dose
Manufacturer's reference: JBL 2412200, PROAQUATEST rangeEAN code 4014162241221. Not to be confused with 2412100, which is the complete case
Matching test: Ammonium NH4 test, ref. 2412100The refill is used with the glassware, the comparator block and the colour chart of this test

Usage rate

Recommended frequency: 1 measurement a day at start-upOn a new freshwater tank, plus a reading after any illness or mortality
Lifespan per cycling: About 1 complete cycling42 measurements for 6 weeks, 56 for 8 weeks, to be compared with a capacity of about 50
Water types covered: Freshwater, pond, seawaterThe chemistry is the same as in the kit. It is the colour chart that carries the three reading bands
Parcel weight: 0.08 kgPackaging included

Hazard labelling

Signal word: DangerReagents 2 and 3 classified, reagent 1 not classified
Pictograms: Corrosion, environment, flame, exclamation mark
Hazard statements: H314, H400, H411, H225, H315, H319, H336Reagent 2: H314, H400, H411 and EUH031. Reagent 3: H225, H315, H319, H336
Precautionary statements: P101, P102, P303+P361+P353, P305+P351+P338, P501
Precautions: Sink, ventilated room, out of reachSodium hydroxide, hypochlorite and propan-2-ol declared
Storage: 2 years, unopened bottlesOnce opened, the bottles wear out faster through contact with air

To allow for in addition

Glassware and syringe: Those from the ammonium testThe syringe and the two test tubes give the exact sample volume, on which the colour depends.
Comparator block and colour chart: Those from the ammonium testThe colour chart is printed: it is what translates the colour into milligrams per litre.

8 further specifications are available in the detailed view.

In the box

3 reagent bottles with child-resistant safety caps, numbered 1, 2 and 3

Manufacturer's values (NH4 test instructions, safety data sheets and FAQ). The number of tests per cycling is an order of magnitude, calculated for 1 test per day.

Manufacturer and product safety

Manufacturer: JBL GmbH & Co. KG
Postal address: Dieselstraße 3, 67141 Neuhofen, Allemagne
Contact: info@jbl.de
Website: www.jbl.de

Information provided under Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety.

Three new bottles, or the whole test?

The refill and the kit share the same chemistry, the same protocol and the same number of tests. What sets them apart lies entirely in the accessories, and therefore in what you already own.

The refill only replaces what runs out It provides three bottles, for around 50 measurements. The colour chart, test tubes and syringe, however, must already be at home and still usable.

	Reagent bottles (bottles)	Possible tests (tests)	Glass test tubes with screw caps	Sampling syringe	Comparator block	Colour chart for reading	Price
Recommended Reagent refill for NH4 ammonium testYour choice	3 bottles	50 tests	No	No	No	No	$12.00
Ammonium NH4 water test, drop formatYour choice	3 bottles	50 tests	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	$17.00

Reagent refill for NH4 ammonium testRecommended

Consumables

Reagent bottles (bottles)3 bottles

Possible tests (tests)50 tests

What is not consumed

Glass test tubes with screw capsNo

Sampling syringeNo

Comparator blockNo

Colour chart for readingNo

Budget

Ammonium NH4 water test, drop format

Consumables

Reagent bottles (bottles)3 bottles

Possible tests (tests)50 tests

What is not consumed

Glass test tubes with screw capsYes

Sampling syringeYes

Comparator blockYes

Colour chart for readingYes

Budget

Contents of the two boxes, taken from the instructions and the data sheet for the ammonium test.

Documents & manuals

Official manufacturer's instructions, in French

Six-step protocol, order of the three reagents and number of drops. Written for the full test, these instructions apply as they stand to the three bottles of the refill.

PDF · 2,7 Mo

Download

Estimate your
delivery time

Parcel of 0.08 kg, dispatched within 48 h by Colissimo or Chronopost to your home, as you choose during payment. The bottles are sent in their original packaging. The exact amount is shown in the basket. Once unsealed, this product can no longer be returned under the right of withdrawal (article L221-28, 5° of the French Consumer Code), for reasons of hygiene and health protection.

Frequently asked questions

6 questions

6 key questions

How many measurements does one refill last?

One refill lasts about 50 tests, the same number as the new kit, since the volume of reagent is identical. Based on the recommended rate at start-up, one test per day, this gives a simple benchmark:

42tests for a 6-week cycling period

56tests for an 8-week cycling period

One set of bottles therefore covers a start-up, with a small reserve if the cycling is short, and it runs dry before the end of a long start-up.

Refill or full kit, how do you decide?

The choice depends on the condition of your equipment:

Your situation	What you need
Colour chart, glassware and block intact	The refill
Colour chart lost or illegible	The complete test
Test tube broken, scratched or frosted	The complete test
You have never had this test	The complete test, without hesitation

Is the colour chart supplied with the refill?

In what order are the three bottles used?

Add the drops from bottle 1 to the test tube containing the sample, never to the blank.
Add the drops from bottle 2 straight afterwards, to the same test tube.
Add the drops from bottle 3 last. Its drops are noticeably smaller than those of the first two: this is normal, so do not add extra to compensate.
Close the test tube and shake after each addition, then wait 15 minutes before reading: an earlier reading underestimates the value.

The numbers are printed on each label. Reversing the order gives a wrong colour, not an approximate one.

Can I start with the refill if I have never had this test?

How should you store and dispose of these bottles?

Store the box closed, up high and away from any flame: one of the three reagents is a highly flammable liquid.

The caps are child-resistant. An empty or expired vial should be taken to a household waste recycling centre with household chemical products, never put in the ordinary bin: two of the hazard statements on reagent 2 concern toxicity to aquatic organisms.

Reagent 2 is toxic to aquatic life and must never go into the fish water: the tested sample is poured down the sink.

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Reagent refill for NH4 ammonium test

The summary