Is it worth buying a large container of R-0870?

[JRzMom]

I test almost daily for FC, but I find the R-0870 powder doesn't keep well. I'm thinking of buying a 16 oz. size and refilling the kit as needed. Is that worth it, or will it go bad? I try to be careful with moisture, but I guess I'm not careful enough. Also, how do you keep the scoop clean? It gets all gunked up. Do you wash it and dry it well before putting it back in the kit? Any suggestions for keeping the moisture out? I've read a few posts about using one of those silicone pouches taped to the lid, doing the test indoors (away from humidity), etc. What works, and most importantly, should I buy the 16 oz. size?

 

[HermanTX]

I rinse my scoop after each use. I just spray some pool sample water on it and let it dry before putting back into kit.

I only seen the 10gram and a 1/4 lb of R-0870 powder. Taylor Technologies website only shows those 2 sizes.

I think I would just purchase 2 or 3 bottles of the 10gram size and open as needed.

I do not think the larger size will go bad but it may get clunky so would have to pound on it to pour into a 10gram container.

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

I test almost daily for FC, but I find the R-0870 powder doesn't keep well. I'm thinking of buying a 16 oz. size and refilling the kit as needed. Is that worth it, or will it go bad? I try to be careful with moisture, but I guess I'm not careful enough. Also, how do you keep the scoop clean? It gets all gunked up. Do you wash it and dry it well before putting it back in the kit? Any suggestions for keeping the moisture out? I've read a few posts about using one of those silicone pouches taped to the lid, doing the test indoors (away from humidity), etc. What works, and most importantly, should I buy the 16 oz. size?

My 2 cents...

After looking at prices of the smaller containers compared to the larger ones, I took a risk nearly 4 years ago and bought .25lb R0870 powder and 16 oz. R0871 reagent. I shared some with my F.I.L. and have been using the reagents since. I didn't expect to use it for more than a couple years, but there was still value in the purchase of the larger sizes. I have purchased a couple of TF-100 refill kits since then and have compared the results to the fresh reagents. I'm still getting expected results. I always have fresh clean white powder. I'm glad I made the purchase. I can test as frequently as I want and run my own experiments without the fear of running out of reagent. I keep the large containers of reagents in a dark dry indoor storage cabinet. YMMV