PH Meters

[ajw22]

I did my monthly calibration of my PH meters. ATC meter was off by .1 and I turned the screw to calibrate it.






Tested my PH. It was high as I expected.





Added about 1/3 a gallon of MA.





Meters are ATC pH Meter and Waterproof Pocket pH Tester with 0.1 Resolution - pHep - HI98107 - Hanna Instruments

Note that PH Meters are usable at high FC levels.

If you get a PH meter you need to shake it in the water to get air bubbles off the probe until the reading stabilizes.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

I tried to find the screwdriver adjustment on my bottle of R-0004 pH indicator but couldn’t I then thought maybe Taylor put it on the comparator tube but no such luck, no screw I called Taylor tech support but the guy on the phone sounded baffled...he was sure all the bottles come factory-calibrated....



Hahaha, thanks for the post Allen. Glad to see the probes working out for you. Please keep us updated on longevity and any quirks. Honestly there are days I’d rather just stick a chunk of plastic in the pool and get all my readings done.

 

[ajw22]

Hahaha, thanks for the post Allen. Glad to see the probes working out for you. Please keep us updated on longevity and any quirks. Honestly there are days I’d rather just stick a chunk of plastic in the pool and get all my readings done.

I have only had these meters since May. We will see how they hold their calibration over time. I occasionally run the color PH test as another validation of the meter.

 

[Thasista]

Do you calibrate with the low pH standard as well or just the 7.01?

 

[ajw22]

Do you calibrate with the low pH standard as well or just the 7.01?

No since we only care about PH around 7.

 

[Thasista]

Perfect thanks!

 

[duraleigh]

Do you remember roughly the cost of each?

 

[tomfrh]

I tried electronic meter. The values did float around a bit and I didn’t trust it. Calibrating is as much effort as drop testing

 

[Thasista]

Do you remember roughly the cost of each?

Roughly $40 each

 

[ajw22]

Do you remember roughly the cost of each?

ATC Meter from TFT is $15 and Hanna is $40.

I would have thought the Hanna meter would be better and hold calibration better but it seems to drift more. The most the ATC meter has been off during a calibration is .1. The Hanna meter has been off .4.

So far they have always drifted high on me.

 

[jeremycrook]

ATC Meter from TFT is $15 and Hanna is $40.

I would have thought the Hanna meter would be better and hold calibration better but it seems to drift more. The most the ATC meter has been off during a calibration is .1. The Hanna meter has been off .4.

So far they have always drifted high on me.

Where do you find the solution to calibrate the meters? Can I find it cheap at the grocery or wallyworld?

 

[ajw22]

Where do you find the solution to calibrate the meters? Can I find it cheap at the grocery or wallyworld?

Never looked, but i doubt it. Calibrating solutions are industrial supplies. And I want to buy them from a trustworthy source as they are critical to the accuracy.

 

[jeremycrook]

Never looked, but i doubt it. Calibrating solutions are industrial supplies. And I want to buy them from a trustworthy source as they are critical to the accuracy.

I have the yellow meter, it worked great for quite a while but then got a little quirky. I think I left the meter on after testing once and the batteries got low. It has sat ever since, but it was awesome while it lasted. I would like to get it going again.

 

[ajw22]

I have the yellow meter, it worked great for quite a while but then got a little quirky. I think I left the meter on after testing once and the batteries got low. It has sat ever since, but it was awesome while it lasted. I would like to get it going again.

I have had the problem of leaving the ATC meter on accidentally. The Hanna meter has auto power off.

From what i have read the probe does not like getting dried out. Hanna sells storage solutions for that puropse. I am not sure how much is worthwhile to invest in solutions for a $15 ATC meter versus replacing it. If you get 7.0 calibratimg solution you can try letting the meter soak in it for a while. It may bring it back.

 

[Thasista]

My ATC pH meter has gone haywire I put it in pool water sample and it went straight to 7.8. I took it out dried it off and rechecked. This time it started going down then oscillated between 6.3 and 6.5. Is this a battery issue? I might have these batteries handy for my hearing protection ear buds (D10?) but wow that would have been quick. Opinions please.

 

[tomfrh]

Edited

 

[Adamphotoman]

With all the errors would it be a good idea to replace the meter every season? They are cheap enough.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

With all the errors would it be a good idea to replace the meter every season? They are cheap enough.

Even in the industrial chemistry labs I worked in, pH probes were considered consumable expenses. We replaced them every year. And this is a setting where probes were kept in their appropriate storage liquids (typically saturated potassium chloride) and calibrated/used on a daily basis. I can only imagine that an infrequently used cheap pH pen-meter will fail a lot sooner. Seasonal replacement is probably the best approach.

 

[ride525]

Are there better pH meters that hold their calibration?

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Are there better pH meters that hold their calibration?

Some are better than others but ALL pH meters need calibration. It’s just the nature and physics of how they work.