Compare the Aquagenx CBT EC+TC Kit to Other Tests
The CBT EC+TC Kit is simple and easy to use to detect E. coli and total coliform bacteria in the field.
It does not need electricity, a lab, cold chain or expensive, complicated equipment or intensive training.
See how our CBT EC+TC Kits compare to other P/A and MPN tests for E. coli and total coliforms.
Presence/Absence Test
- 100 mL sample
- Three year shelf life of growth medium
- No color comparator required
- Only components are Thio-Bag and growth medium packet
- E. coli test results read in ambient light
- Color change easy to identify
- Ambient temperature incubation ≥25°Celsius
- Works at variable temperatures
- UV Flashlight is optional to detect Total Coliforms if E. coli result is negative
Most Probable Number Test
- 100 mL sample
- Three year shelf life of growth medium
- No color comparator required
- Only components are Compartment Bag, Thio-Bag, growth medium packet, and Seal Clip
- E. coli test results read in ambient light
- Easy color match scoring with Aquagenx color-coded MPN Table
- Ambient temperature incubation ≥25°Celsius
- Works at variable temperatures
- UV Flashlight is optional to detect Total Coliforms if E. coli result is negative
Comparisons to IDEXX Colilert
The World Health Organization (WHO) engaged KWR Laboratory to evaluate the Aquagenx CBT EC+TC MPN Kit against standard method IDEXX Colilert 2000. The report yielded excellent results.
WHO Report CBT EC+TC MPN Kit→
Evaluating Human Sensory Perceptions and the Compartment Bag Test Assays as Proxies for the Presence and Concentration of Escherichia coli in Drinking Water in Western Kenya
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene →
Evaluation of Microbial Water Quality Tests for Humanitarian Emergency and Development Settings
Procedia Engineering
Compare to Membrane Filtration
Household Microbial Water Quality Testing in a Peruvian Demographic and Health Survey: Evaluation of the Compartment Bag Test for Escherichia coli
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene →
Evaluation of the Compartment Bag Test for the Detection of Escherichia coli in Water
Journal of Microbiological Methods→
Compare How-To Videos of 100 mL Tests for E. coli and Total Coliforms
Aquagenx® CBT EC+TC P/A Kit
Aquagenx® CBT EC+TC MPN Kit
IDEXX Colilert
UNICEF MICS Water Quality Test
Colitag™ P/A Method
Colitag™ MPNPlate™
CBT EC+TC Kit Components
Growth Medium
Aquagenx powder growth medium dissolves quickly
Compartment Bag
Aquagenx Compartment Bag included with MPN Kits
Whirl-Pak Thio-Bag
100 mL Whirl-Pak Thio-Bag for sample collection and P/A Kits
Seal Clip
Seal clip snaps on Compartment Bag to prevent leakage
Compare Test Features
Download PDF of Table |
Aquagenx® CBT |
Wells in Trays |
Membrane Filtration Methods | Multiple Tube |
Testing method | Presence/Absence (P/A) and Most Probable Number (MPN) | Most Probable Number (MPN) with Presence/Absence (P/A) versions | Colony Forming Units (CFU) | Most Probable Number (MPN) |
Microbial indicator | E. coli and total coliforms | E. coli and total coliforms | Depends on product/system: Thermotolerant (fecal) Coliforms; E. coli | Depends on the differential and selective culture media used. Available for E. coli, thermotolerant (fecal) coliforms, coliforms and other fecal bacteria |
Usability | Easy for anyone to use, designed for field testing. No color comparators are required, color-change test results easy to identify. | Requires intensive training. Color comparator needed for MPN and P/A test results. | Requires intensive training, challenging to use for field testing | Requires intensive training and is impractical or impossible for field use. Extra materials are needed (see components below) sample bottles, culture tubes and racks, pipets, diluent for serial dilutions, controlled temperature incubation and in some tests, further confirmatory testing. |
Portability | Lightweight, easy to carry and transport | Lab use only | Can be heavy and/or cumbersome, multiple components | Lab use only |
Incubation | Ambient temperature incubation >25° Celsius | Requires incubator and temperature control | Requires incubator and temperature control | Requires incubator and temperature control |
Components | Aquagenx EC+TC medium, Thio-Bag, Aquagenx Compartment Bag for MPN testing, Seal Clip for MPN testing, UV flashlight (365nm) for total coliform detection | Requires multi-well trays, tray comparator, rubber insert, and special plate sealer for MPN results, 6-watt UV lamp for E. coli detection in some samples, color comparator for P/A results, rigid sample containers | Filter and funnel apparatus, vacuum system (vacuum flask and vacuum source, typically an electrical pump or a vacuum line in a lab) or large syringe, culture plates, petri dishes, gridded membrane filters, multiple measuring devices, absorbent pads, volume dispensers (e.g., sterile pipettes and/or graduated cylinders or centrifuge tubes with volume marks), tweezers, heat source to flame tweezers | Sample bottles, multiple culture tubes and racks, pipets, diluent for serial dilutions, controlled temperature incubator and in some tests, further confirmatory testing |
Procedures | Easy, small number of steps. No color comparators required Determine E. coli results in ambient light Determine total coliform results that are negative for E. coli with UV flashlight |
P/A testing: use color comparator to obtain total coliform results, use UV light to obtain E. coli results MPN testing: tray and rubber insert preparation, sealer procedure, controlled incubation procedure, controlled incubation conditions |
Time consuming with multiple steps: equipment set-up and preparation, culture media preparation, sterilization of multiple pieces of equipment | Time consuming with multiple steps: Making, autoclaving or boiling culture media, dispensing culture media into tubes set up in racks, adding samples and their dilutions to culture media tubes, and incubating at controlled temperatures. Some tests require further transfer of positive culture tubes to additional culture tubes for confirmation. |
Growth medium shelf life | 3 years | Up to 1 year | Up to 2 years | Depending on product (broth) can be up to 5 years |
Growth medium storage | Store at 4-25° Celsius in a dry environment, refrigeration is optional | Store at 2-30° Celsius | Requires refrigeration and cold chain | Culture media can be stored for weeks at refrigerated temperatures, but dehydration and extraneous contamination is possible |
Post-test disposables and reusables | No reusables to clean or sterilize. To decontaminate sample, add liquid bleach or chlorine tablets to Thio-Bag or Compartment Bag. Or, treat with heat >60°C. After 30 minutes, pour contents into a sink, toilet or hole in ground and safely dispose the bags. | Trays should be decontaminated prior to disposal, typically by autoclaving | Disposables: Petri dishes (and possibly sample collection bag, large syringe for pulling a vacuum, disposable pipettes and disposable graduated centrifuge tubes) that must be decontaminated prior to disposal (e.g., with heat >60 degrees C or free chlorine). Reusables: Multiple materials and equipment that require decontamination, cleaning and sterilization (e.g., filter apparatus, pipettes and/or graduated cylinders, vacuum flask, sample collection bottles, etc.) | Disposables: culture tubes, pipets, sample bottles, and in some tests, inoculating loops that must be decontaminated prior to disposable (e.g., with heat >60 degrees C or free chlorine). Reusables: multiple materials and equipment that require decontamination, cleaning and sterilization (culture tubes, sample bottles, dilution tubes, pipets, inoculating loops that must be sterile or flame-sterilized, and equipment maintenance and calibration (e.g., incubators). |