Box of the copper Cu water test in drops, labelled 50 X TEST, on a white background

Copper kit contents: grey colour comparator block, syringe, two glass test tubes, two reagent bottles and colour chart

$Diagram showing the fate of copper in a tank: dissolved fraction measured, insoluble compounds deposited on the bottom$

Cu copper water test in drops

Name: Cu copper water test in drops
Brand: JBL
SKU: J2411400
Price: 18.59 USD
Availability: InStock

$18.59

Copper is tested to confirm it is absent from the water: at doses a fish can tolerate, it kills your shrimps, snails, and freshwater shrimps.

This test measures dissolved copper in fresh water, ponds, and salt water, using a colour comparator block that cancels out the natural tint of your water.

Ref. J2411400·Water test

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The summary

What you receive: 2 bottles of reagents, 2 glass test tubes with screw caps, a syringe, a grey comparator block and a colour chart.
What you are measuring: copper dissolved in the water, in freshwater aquariums, in seawater and in garden ponds.
What the figure means: a level that a fish tolerates during a treatment is enough to kill a shrimp or a snail.
When to get it out: before introducing invertebrates, after a treatment, or on water drawn from an old installation.
How to choose: copper is included only in the more complete of the two kits.
Reagent 2: flammable and irritating to the eyes, it is handled away from a flame and never goes into the fish's water.

Drop test for dissolved copper, 50 measurements, for shrimps, snails and fish

This drop test measures dissolved copper in freshwater, in a pond and in seawater, for around 50 tests, before shrimp are introduced or after a treatment. Outside treatment, the recommended level stays below 0.05 mg/L. The flammable reagent stays in the test tube read on the comparator block, never in the water your fish or shrimp live in.

Copper is a trace element needed by every living cell, and a cellular poison beyond a certain concentration. Its particular feature is its selectivity: copper-based antiparasitic treatments work precisely because the concentrations used are tolerated for a time by the fish while the parasites cannot withstand them. What holds true for a parasite also holds true for a shrimp, a snail and a gammarid. If your invertebrates disappear while your fish stay in perfect health, copper is the first cause to check.

🚰 Where copper comes from

Few aquarists add copper deliberately, yet it gets in by four routes that people rarely think of. Identifying the source lets you remove it, and testing then confirms that the input has really stopped, since a single measurement says nothing about a source that keeps feeding the tank between two readings. So go through these four entry points at the same time as you take your first measurement.

Pet shop treatments

Many antiparasitic treatments and some algaecides contain it, and this can only be seen from the composition.

Copper pipes

When water stands in copper pipes, significant amounts of copper come off into it. Drain the pipes before filling.

Nutrient inputs for the plants

Several aquatic fertilisers contain it as a trace element. It has no effect on fish, but should be monitored in a shrimp tank.

Rainwater from the gutter

A copper gutter is enough to contaminate collected water. This water is not suitable for an invertebrate tank.

🧫 Dissolved copper and bound copper

This test measures dissolved copper, and only that, whereas copper quickly forms insoluble compounds that settle on the bottom. Part of what has been added therefore leaves the water column within a few hours and binds to the grow medium, the filter media, the decorations and the organic debris on the bottom, where the measurement can no longer see it. In a treated pond, most of the copper added ends up in the sediment within a few days. The copper does not break down for all that: it simply moves from the water column to the sediment, from where it can be released again when the pH drops or the substrate is disturbed.

Compliant drinking water and invertebrates

Perfectly compliant tap water can contain up to 2 mg/L of copper, since that is the European regulatory limit. Yet the value that protects 95% of freshwater species is 0.0014 mg/L, more than 1,000 times lower. Compliant drinking water can therefore remain toxic to invertebrates, and only a measurement reveals it.

Remove residual copper after a treatment

Once the treatment is finished, the fraction still dissolved remains toxic to any invertebrates you want to reintroduce. Activated carbon placed in the filter holds back part of it, along with the residues of the active molecule, and so complements partial water changes. Place it in the filter as soon as the treatment ends, then test again before putting back a single shrimp. One litre is enough for a tank of ordinary size and should be replaced after each use.

🧪 When to use this test

Three situations justify getting it out, and otherwise you can leave it in its drawer. The first is a loss of invertebrates in your tank without any mortality among the fish, which is the most common signature. The second is monitoring a treatment in progress, where the measurement is used to check that the concentration stays within the useful window. The third is doubt about the top-up water, whether it comes from your old copper plumbing or from collection under a gutter.

Every time you carry out this test, the procedure is the same: draw the water into the test tube, add the two reagents, read the result in the comparator block in daylight, then pour the sample down the sink and rinse the glassware. Reagent 2 is a flammable solution and irritates the eyes, so keep it away from any flame and out of the reach of children; nothing that has been in the test tube goes back into the tank. When the bottles run low, the Cu reagent refill replaces them without your having to buy the glassware again.

🪸 Treating without condemning the tank

A tank that has received a copper treatment does not become a shrimp tank again with a simple water change, because the insoluble compounds remain in the substrate. They can only be removed by throwing the substrate away completely, which amounts to starting the tank again. So treat in a hospital tank whenever possible, or consider the substrate lost before you even pour the first dose. The guide to koi carp in aquaponics explains why the quarantine tank stays separate from the system during treatment, and the article on choosing a fertiliser points out the copper present in many trace element solutions.

In aquaponics, copper does not only affect shrimp: the same water runs through the biofilter and bathes the roots of your crops. A copper-based anti-parasite treatment should therefore be given in a quarantine tank separate from the circuit, and this test then checks that the water returning to the system no longer contains any before you reconnect the tank. If your top-up water comes from an old copper installation, a test when you start the system is enough to rule the question out.

Technical specifications

Measuring copper

Parameter measured: Dissolved copper in the waterCopper already bound to the substrate, decorations or filter media is not counted
Recommended level: Less than 0.05 mg/LOutside treatment, in a freshwater or marine aquarium as well as in a pond
Tests per kit: Around 50
Method: Two samples in the comparator blockOne treated and one control, which cancels out the natural tint of your water, even if amber
When to use it: Filling the tank, mortality, dosing a treatmentAlso any water drawn from an old setup
Manufacturer's reference: JBL 2411400, PROAQUATEST range

The procedure

Water volume: 2 times 5 mlOne treated sample and one untreated control, taken with the syringe supplied
The steps: Rinse, draw up, reagent 1, reagent 2, wait, read5 drops of each reagent in the treated test tube only
Waiting time: 15 minutesUntil the colour has fully developed. Reading too early underestimates the level
Total time: About 17 minutesWaiting time included
Reading: In daylight, in the blockNever under the tank lighting, whose tint distorts the comparison
Water types covered: Freshwater, pond, seawaterSalt dampens the reaction, so the marine scale is separate

Hazard labelling

Signal word: WarningOnly reagent 2 is classified
Pictograms: Flame and exclamation markGHS02 for flammability, GHS07 for irritation
Hazard statements: H226, H319Flammable liquid and vapours, causes serious eye irritation
Precautionary statements: P101, P102, P305+P351+P338, P501Keep the label for the doctor, out of reach of children, eyes rinsed for several minutes, dispose of as required by regulations
Precautions: Away from flame, out of reachMeasured sample poured down the sink, never into the tank
Reagent 1: UnrankedIt should be handled with the same care as the second one

To allow for in addition

Reagent refills: Reagents only, ref. 2411500The two bottles only, the rest of the kit can be kept
Enough to remove copper: Activated filtration carbonIt retains some of the dissolved copper, but not copper already bound to the grow medium

12 further specifications are available in the detailed view.

In the box

2 reagent bottles
2 glass test tubes with screw caps
1 graduated sampling syringe
1 grey comparator block, read against a control
1 colour chart for reading and 1 set of instructions in several languages, including French

Manufacturer's values (instructions, colour chart and test brochure). The limit of 2 mg/L is the European value for drinking water, and 0.0014 mg/L is a guideline value for the protection of freshwater species.

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.

A single metal, or all of the water chemistry?

Copper is absent from entry-level kits. That is the first reason to buy this test on its own, and the only question to settle is what you will actually be measuring.

What treats a fish sterilises a shrimp tank A few hundredths of a milligram per litre are enough to kill shrimp and snails. Copper arrives through a treatment, through an old pipe, or through a borehole.

	Parameters covered	Drop test kits included	Copper Cu	pH, KH, nitrite, nitrate, ammonium	GH, iron, phosphate, oxygen, silicate	Reagent bottles (bottles)	Glass test tubes	Laboratory comparator block	Thermometer	Reagent refill sold separately	Price
Recommended Copper test onlyYour choice	1	1	Yes	No	No	2 bottles	2	Yes	No	Yes	$18.59
6-in-1 Aquarium Water Testing KitYour choice	6	5	No	Yes	No	9 bottles	3	Yes	No	Yes	$57.35
JBL ProAquaTest Lab water analysis case, 13 tests for aquarium and pondYour choice	12	13	Yes	Yes	Yes	23 bottles	12	Yes	Yes	Yes	$112.56

Copper test onlyRecommended

What you are measuring

Parameters covered1

Drop test kits included1

Copper CuYes

pH, KH, nitrite, nitrate, ammoniumNo

GH, iron, phosphate, oxygen, silicateNo

Equipment supplied

Reagent bottles (bottles)2 bottles

Glass test tubes2

Laboratory comparator blockYes

ThermometerNo

Budget

Reagent refill sold separatelyYes

6-in-1 Aquarium Water Testing Kit

What you are measuring

Parameters covered6

Drop test kits included5

Copper CuNo

pH, KH, nitrite, nitrate, ammoniumYes

GH, iron, phosphate, oxygen, silicateNo

Equipment supplied

Reagent bottles (bottles)9 bottles

Glass test tubes3

Laboratory comparator blockYes

ThermometerNo

Budget

Reagent refill sold separatelyYes

JBL ProAquaTest Lab water analysis case, 13 tests for aquarium and pond

What you are measuring

Parameters covered12

Drop test kits included13

Copper CuYes

pH, KH, nitrite, nitrate, ammoniumYes

GH, iron, phosphate, oxygen, silicateYes

Equipment supplied

Reagent bottles (bottles)23 bottles

Glass test tubes12

Laboratory comparator blockYes

ThermometerYes

Budget

Reagent refill sold separatelyYes

Parameters covered and equipment in the kits, as described in their data sheets.

Documents & manuals

Official manufacturer's instructions, in French

The full six-step protocol, where the copper in tap water comes from, and how to remove insoluble compounds.

PDF · 1,6 Mo

Download

Estimate your
delivery time

Parcel of 0.15 kg, dispatched within 48 h by Colissimo or Chronopost to your home, as you choose during payment. The reagents are sent in their original box. 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

8 questions

6 key questions, 8 in the detailed view

My shrimp are dying while my fish are doing very well, is it copper?

My plumbing is copper, should I be worried?

Does a test reading of zero prove there is no copper?

How do you remove copper from a treated tank?

Remove the surviving invertebrates to an unaffected tank.
Run the water through activated carbon, which retains some of the dissolved copper.
Change part of the water, several times rather than one large change.
For the fraction that has become bound, there is no other option than to throw away the grow medium.

That is why copper treatment is best carried out in a hospital tank whenever possible: the decision is made beforehand, not afterwards.

Which values should you keep in mind?

Why read in daylight rather than in front of the tank?

Is the test suitable for seawater?

How often should you do it?

This is not a routine test like pH or total hardness. Get it out at three moments:

before introducing invertebrates into a tank whose history you do not know;
during a copper treatment, to stay within the target window;
after that treatment, to follow the decline before putting shrimp back.

Each time, the measurement is made on a sample taken from the tank: reagent 2, which is flammable and irritant, never goes into the water with the fish or the shrimp.

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Cu copper water test in drops

The summary