Testing Urine for Phosphates
Created  February 7,  2004

The theory behind the guai protocol is that there are tubules in our kidneys that are supposed to be open, allowing phosphates to pass through and be excreted, but which aren't working properly in those of us with FMS. The action of the guai is purported to open the tubules to allow the excretion of phosphates. Existing phosphate test kits, designed for testing aquarium water, have been adapted for testing human urine; details are given below.

Guai-Support does not consider that testing one's urine for phosphate excretion with these aquarium tests to be a proven, successful method however, anecdotally, the method seems to work very well, and particularly for blocking issues. Quite a few people have found that it has served them well in indicating blocking, although partial blocking may be difficult to detect if there is only a slight reduction in phosphate disposal.

Although we don't recommend that urine testing be used as the only tool for determining dose at this early stage of its use amongst guai'ers, it may be useful for confirmation alongside other methods (i.e. mapping and symptoms).

Maybe over time, as more people use it, it will prove itself.  If other methods are found we'll report those too.

Contents: Considerations Do's and Don'ts Method for Hagen PO4 kit Method for Red Sea kit Method for adapting other kits Frequently Asked Questions

Phosphate (0.0 - 5.0PPM) Test Kit

Considerations:

• If you're not confident of the accuracy of your results, ask a close friend or relative to allow you to test their urine for comparison. You will need to assess, based on your knowledge of FMS symptoms and the health of the person selected, whether they are suffering from unsuspected/undiagnosed FMS; the comparison would be useless unless they are FMS 'free'.
• We don't know if water consumption will vary the results at all; if you get an unexpected result, consider if you've been drinking significantly more (or less) water than normal, and repeat the test.
• Since we don't know how phosphate excretion may vary during the day, it would be best to test regularly and frequently over a few days to build up a 'baseline' picture for reference.
• Your interpretation of your results may be affected by the current lighting and background conditions; try to view your test results in consistent conditions, say, against your white bathroom vanity unit and in daylight.

Do's and Don'ts:

• don't use soap to wash any of the testing equipment; soap may leave a phosphate residue that will taint your test results.  Rinse the equipment well with water before using for the first time and between tests.
• do run a test with just water, no urine, before testing your urine, to ensure the water does not have levels of phosphates that will taint your results.  If your tap water shows a result, use distilled or bottled water, again testing it before using it to test your urine.
• don't rest your dropper against the side of the test tube while counting drops, this may create smaller drops and give inaccurate results.
• do repeat the testing through the day to see how long blocking lasts for you (usually at least 24 hours).
• do suspend using any and all suspect items, if your test results indicate possible blocking, before you repeat the testing.
• do keep notes on your results, especially if you observe unexpected results.

Method for Hagen PO₄ kit:

The kit is generally available at pet and aquarium stores, especially those that specialize in tropical fish.  Click here for Hagen web site.  If your local aquarium or pet store doesn't have a kit in stock ask them if they'll order one in.

Purchase Nutrafin Test Kit On-line:

Phosphate (0.0 - 5.0PPM) Test Kit
The kit comes complete with a test tube, a dropper, three bottles of reagent and a rack to hold everything.  All you need to add is your urine and water.  Ensure that the bottle of reagent #3 is a glass bottle; older kits used plastic bottles and they lost their effectiveness quickly.  Plastic bottles for reagents #1 and #2 are fine. 

1. collect your urine sample in a clean container
2. into the clean test tube, place three (3) drops of your urine
3. rinse the dropper well with water
4. add 25 drops of water to the urine in the test tube
5. carefully squeeze bottle #1 to add one (1) drop of reagent #1
6. put the stopper in the test tube and shake well; remove the stopper
7. carefully squeeze bottle #2 to add one (1) drop of reagent #2
8. repeat step 6 to combine the contents
9. hold bottle #3 over the test tube (don't rest it against the side) and patiently wait for one (1) drop of reagent #3, it will take a second or two for the drop to appear
10. repeat step 6 to combine the contents
11. wait 4 minutes and then observe the color change, if any.

We have found that our test results are not easily compared to the color chart provided with the test kit; it may be to do with comparing a liquid color with a printed color.  Observe your own results and compare one result with another, building up over time a pattern of results so you know what is a strong result, and what isn't, for you.

Method for Red Sea kit:

1. collect your urine sample in a clean container
2. fill the vial with urine to the 12ml mark
3. add four (4) drops of Phosphate Reagent A
4. shake the vial well
5. add one (1) drop of Phosphate Reagent B
6. shake the vial well
7. wait two (2) minutes
8. look down through the top of the vial to observe the result; compare the color to the chart provided with the kit

Method for adapting other kits:

1. if the kit instructions say to fill the tube or vial to a particular mark with the water being tested (remember these kits are for testing aquarium water), count how many drops this is equivalent to; otherwise, take note of the number of drops to be used in the instructions
2. divide the number of drops by ten (10)
3. add that number of drops of urine to the tube or vial
4. complete the volume required with water (ie add the right number of drops, or fill to the mark provided)
5. follow the kit's instructions to perform the test

Frequently Asked Questions:

Why do the Red Sea kit instructions not have water added?
When this web page was being developed, these instructions were extracted from a post in our archives and I confirmed with another member that this was the method she followed.  I have no experience with this kit at the time of writing.

If the method for the Red Sea kit above do not produce the results you were expecting to see, try diluting your next sample.  It may be that the urine sample was outside of the kit's working range (see next question).  If you find success with a different method of testing, please report your findings to the Guai-Support Group's list (members only, click here to join).

Why should I try diluting my urine sample further if I get no color change when I was expecting one?
Your phosphate testing kit is designed to work within a specific range of concentrations; for example, the Hagen kit is designed to work within the range of 0 to 5 mg/l (milligrams per litre).  If the concentration of phosphates in your urine is greater than this range you may exceed the kit's ability to function properly, and you may get a FALSE result.

If you expected to see a particular result (ie change in color) and it didn't happen, try diluting a fresh sample further and testing again.  Write down your method so you can repeat it with later tests and compare the results with each other.

Where can I get one of these kits?
Your local pet or aquarium store may already carry phosphate testing kits.  If you can't find one on the shelves, as the assistant if they can order one in for you, or search Google (or the search engine of your choice) for online stores.

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