Water Tester which is comparable to the Pool Store

[Sabot]

Ok.. Another research item. Sorry!

Being a complete newbie to pool ownership, what are some of the best water testing equipment similar to what the pool store uses? Act like price does not matter (it really does but what the heck...I am researching! ) What do I need to look for in a tester which will allow me to test my water at home and have complete confidence in the report without going to the pool store?

 

[pooladdict]

The Trouble Free Test Kit has all that any pool store will do. Its available at www.tftestkits.com and Dave is the best at insuring you get it promptly. Its link is on the main page here.

Rik

 

[Wolfmarsh]

The TF-100 from www.tftestkits.com

 

[Sabot]

Cool, thanks for the info! I will grab one of those for sure.

What kind of testing equipment do the pros use? I am assuming they use electronic testers of some sort. (Part of my research is to find a helpful and friendly pool supply store nearby...) I found a system made by Palintest. They have many different electronic testers, none of them cheap. But I did say price didn't matter. The Pooltest 25 runs around $1265 retail, there are others less expensive but you get my drift. Does anyone know of other manufactures of electronic testers whose data is reliable?

Thanks in advance!!!

Mike

 

[JohnT]

A great many of the pros use cheap junk when it comes to water testing. You have to realize that the typical clerk in a pool store is young, working for minimum wage, and likely has never maintained a pool. The attempt to make the testing process easy for them can have a negative effect on the accuracy of the tests.

 

[waterbug]

http://troublefreepool.com/viewtopic.ph ... colorq+pro

this is a thread on this site that talks about a home based tester that sounds promising.

 

[JasonLion]

The drop based tests, like the TF Test Kits, are the best. Many of the stores use other things which are faster or easier but they aren't better.

 

[Buggsw]

Most of the pool stores around here use Taylor drop based kits, or they did. Some of them are starting to use strips - run, run, run if that's all they use. A couple of them are using some electronic meter, but I don't know which brand.

I have found the Taylor and the HTH test kits to be fine. I think HTH OEM's their kits from Taylor.