TF 100 results way off (long)

[tlbb]

I received the TF 100 last week and just used it for the first time. I still have my Taylor K2006 from last year but was out of the reagents to do the CH test, which was the first thing I used in the new TF 100 kit.

The first thing I noticed was the drops came out super fast and super small! I dumped that water and started over trying to be as careful as possible. My results were over 500! I had my water checked at my local pool store last Saturday and their number was 190. I also used one of the strip tests and that was in the normal range.

I performed the CH test 2 more times, the second was 450, and the third was 350. Crazy. And I never felt like I had total control over the drops. They would start to come out without me squeezing at all.

Next, I tested the TA. I've been raising this slowly from 60 to get to 100-120. The Taylor results were pretty much the same as the pool store, tonight the Taylor result was 90 but the TF 100 came out much higher at about 150!

I didn't do any more testing tonight because it's starting to get dark and I prefer to do it during the day. The other thing I noticed was that the lid on the water sample tube doesn't fit snug enough, so water leaks out when I shake it after every drop. Not enough to change any results I don't think, but enough to be a little messy and annoying.

I love this forum and really appreciate everything I've learned here so I hope I haven't insulted anyone! I am pretty disappointed with this test kit though. Any thoughts as to the drastic differences in test results?

tlbb

 

[duraleigh]

Tibb, sorry you haven't seen this earlier post. I have no idea how many of you got the wrong tips but I've had three requests for replacements to this point. I'm really sorry for the inconvenince and wish I could figure out how it happened. (all the remaining tips from that carton are fine).

As for the lid on the graduated cylinder, it's not meant to be watertight. The directions ask you to swirl the sample...not shake.

Well, it appears that somehow our supplier has mixed in a few wrong tips with the correct ones. Let's first talk about how you can tell.

If you have the correct tip, all the reagents will come out of the bottle in such a way that you can count each drop. Now you could get a little careless and apply too much pressure to the bottle but, generally, they should stay seperate and countable.

If you have the wrong tip, it is incredibly difficult to contol the drop rate. The drops tend to be small and almost "shoot" out of the bottle....it's very difficult to make the drops uniform. They even seem to come out of the tip at an odd angle sometimes.

The biggest giveaway that you have the wrong tip is that your other reagents will be obviously easier to control. So if you have 5 that are reasonably consistent and one that gives you a fit, you obviously have one bad tip.

Here's a temporary solution. Simply remove one of the good tips from any of the other reagents by bending it over at a 90 degree angle to vertical....it'll snap right out. Now rinse that dropper tip thoroughly in tap water, inside and out and replace the offending tip with this newly rinsed one. (all the reagents are water soluble)

This will allow you to perform any test you may have to do, until we can get you your new dropper tips.

Here's the permanent solution, after you have determined you have a bid tip or tips, please send an email to [email protected] and tell me how many tips you need. Please include your MAILING address as these will go out first class mail. We'll get them right out to you the same day we get your email if we get it by 2:00pm.

The tips are virtually identical (the hole is smaller on the wrong ones but it's difficult to tell....use the performance above as the determining factor to decide if you have a bad one) but we know what to look for here so we'll be examining them carefully to insure that everyone's is correct from here.

Sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you but let me know and we'll get it corrected.

 

[tlbb]

Wow. That explains it! Thanks, Dave. I'll request my new tips.

Tlbb