Section outline

  • General

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  • Conductivity and Calibration

    Conductivity is a measure of water’s ability to pass an electric current, which means it is dependent on the number of ions and the temperature. Download the instruction sheet to learn more!


  • Macroinvertebrates

    Macroinvertebrates are important organisms that live in freshwater streams and rivers. They live along the bottom of streams and rivers, lack a backbone, and can be seen without the use of a microscope. Download the instruction sheet to learn more!


  • Substrate

    Substrate is the surface and subsurface materials found in a streambed. Download the instruction sheet to learn more!


  • Temperature

    You may think of temperature as how hot or cold it is outside, but water temperature can tell us a lot of things! Download the instruction sheet to learn more!


  • Transparency

    A transparency tube is a tool used for measuring the water clarity of a stream. Water clarity is the clearness of the water (hence why it’s called a transparency tube) and is an indicator of water quality. Download the instructions sheet to learn more!


  • Velocity

    Velocity is the directional movement of an object or body. It is used to determine how quickly anything in motion will arrive at its destination from a given point. Download the instructions sheets to learn more! 


  • Water Quality 5 in 1

    My Backyard Stream kit provides a test strip that measures for five different parameters using one test strip. We can this a “5-in-1 test strip”. The five parameters are pH, total alkalinity, total hardness, nitrite, and nitrate. To learn more download the instructions sheet!