PH testing meter?

[indicalover]

What should I get and where.

This will be used for testing the water and nutrients to be used with soil.

thanks

Any that I should stay away from?

[B00st3d]

Get a Milwaulkee or an Oakton PH pen, both sell for around 70 bucks and work like a champ. Make sure you calibrate it when you get it home even tho its factory calibrated, takes 2 seconds to do. Also consider an EC pen or TDS pen.

[ogenko]

those sound good... just don't get the red hanna
had a nightmare with it and heard of other bad trips with red one

[Deft]

I got the milwaukee and like it, got it for 55 here http://www.nehydro.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_in fo&cPath=7_13&products_id=90
I recommend the calibration solutions too since the 4oz ones are pretty cheep too.

[d4.]

You can go to your local pet store and for $5-$10 get a pH test kit good for 200+ tests. Unless your hydro you really don't need to test your PH all the time.

[green_grow]

stay away from the cheap, $10.00 soil probes ! absolute trash.

[Uncle Remus]

I HIGHLY recommend the Hanna Checker...See them on Ebay for like $18

I got one not too long ago and its great...Accurate and cheap...Think I got the meter, and 6 sachets each of 4.01 and 7.01 cal fluid and paid like $45 for everything INCLUDING shipping...That should be enuff cal fluid to easily last me 9 months or so

Great deal...And if it takes a shit after a year or so, you can do the same and buy another for that price

AVOID ANY COMBO METERS IMO

DAMN...Another edit...Can't type for shyt tonite

[indicalover]

Thanks for all of the info guys.

[Iron_Lion]

I bought a Milwaukee pH52 and didnt like it, it was pain in the @ss to get calibrated properly and the probe sh!t the bed after 1 grow. I scrapped the Milwaukee and bought an Oakton ultra basic, so far so good, very easy and fast calibration, and its 100% accurate.

[gdawg]

i second uncle remus, the checkers are great!

[hoosierdaddy]

I know folks do not like the probe soil testers, but I think it is mainly due to not using them exactly as prescribed by the instructions. They will not work worth a damn if the procedure is not followed 100%, which means the each and every time you take a reading, you need to moisten and clean the probes with the included scrubber cloth.
Even after taking one Ph reading, you cannot simply wipe off the probes and reinsert in another sample and get a good reading. You must go through the process exactly as before to get a good read. And they do not work well by simply inserting into freshly watered soil, you need to make a slurry of mud with your water and medium.

Since I am only checking my initial soil/water Ph, I find the <$20 probe tester to be fine for my uses. Find at any Home Depot in the garden center. They also have small sample chem kits that you can check out the accuracy of your probe with.

I am NOT trying to take away from the value of a "precision" instrument, only pointing out that there are lesser instruments that will suffice in some instances.

[B00st3d]

to me its a no brainer. Why be cheap about it? If you're too cheap to go out and spend 70 bux for whats gonna amount to maybe 15 grand worth of dank then you shouldnt be growin at all.I finally got a PH pen and a TDS pen after realizing that my girls werent takin to the new water source too well. Come to find out my tap water was comin out in the high 7 rangeon PH and over 200ppm!!!

[hoosierdaddy]

I can afford to buy a few cases of pens. I don't need a high-dollar pen if my $19 soil tester gives me accurate, or even close, readings.
To say a person has no business growing simply because they don't purchase a $70 Ph pen, is really ignorant to say. I'm not trying to throw around bad vibes, just counteracting yours, B00st3d. I bet you have done LOTS of things you couldn't afford.
You know, some folks choose not to sell their wares. Perhaps a man doesn't have the coin for a pen? Is it your job to try and make him feel bad, just because you have a fancy pen? I think not.

You know, high performance motorcycles are another hobby of mine, and all of the folks, who have very few clues, feel that if you don't put the highest-dollar motor oil in the engine (or as they also put it "can't afford it"), you have no business riding.
They too are missing the point, and really have no business assessing the maintenance practices of others.

[astartes]

I feel what you're saying. I too am frugal when it comes to growing just because that's how I am naturally in other aspects of my life.

I started out with a cheap Hanna Checker 1 for 30 bucks. It worked like a champ for one grow and them poof! Wouldn't adjust down past 6.2! Trips to multiple hydro shops confirmed it was a bad probe. Of course it was out of the year warranty (bought it and left it unopened for a year).

When to the hydro store and picked up a Milwaukee for 75 bucks. Has a lifetime warranty where the hydro store will hand me a new one on the spot, no questioned asked!

Can't beat that warranty, service, convenience and support of a local store! The wasted thirty on the first meter, the gas driving back and forth across town to diagnose the problem multiple times as well as my wasted time wasn't worth it in the long run.

My two cents are the pH and ppms are the core of a hydro regime. Go with quality products and the peace of mind their warranties provide.

Sorry for the rambling. Just smoked a bit of casey jones with some honey oil on top. Going a mile a minute :jump:

[green_grow]

hoosier ... you must be talking about a different soil probe than i am . the one i bought was 10.00 cdn (2 years ago, when our dollar was much lower) and it didnt come with a scrubber cloth . no matter what i did, i couldnt get that needle to budge from 7.0

i am curious ... got a pic ?

[hoosierdaddy]

These are sold under many different names. The one I have was sold by Ferry Morris Seeds at Home De'pot. (on a portable rack with seeds and stuff, hard to find in store...ask)
HD also sells a couple of other electronic probe testers mfg'ed by Rapidtest that I have never used. (not multi's and supposed to be immediate)
http://www.pet-dog-cat-supply-store.com/shop/index.php?page=shop/flypage&product_id=12795

I was also one who felt this was a piece that was a complete rip-off, until I was advised on how to actually use the gadget properly. I didn't realize the thing had a scrubber in the box either. (if you have one and have lost the pad, "green" Scotch-Brite pad will work)
It will be a one shot deal...and you will have to completely start over to take multiple readings. I have a feeling this is the case because the surfaces of the probes probably become oxidized with the first test. That is why it is so important to follow the instructions exactly.

Once the probes are wetted (with your water) and scrubbed, you need to make a mud slurry of your soil and water. The probes need to be placed in ALL the way up to the unit. The Ph reading will be taken exactly 1 minute from insertion. Before and after are not good readings. And although I do not rely on the soil fertility part of the test, you can switch the button while the probes are still submerged and count 5 seconds, and that will be the correct fertility reading. No more no less than 5 seconds.
If you just insert the probes into wet soil, it may or may not give a read. You need to make a mud slurry to be sure it works.
I don't think the Ph part of the test uses the battery at all, only the fertility part, but it needs a battery for it to function.

This is not for a hydro person at all. Only soil.
Also, if you are a nute freak, then this will not work out too well. It is mainly for making sure you have acceptable Ph'ed soil only.
I use it each time I open a new bottle of water, even if I know what that brand of water tested out at before. (batches can vary)
Keep in mind I am now growing in a cab, and have very few tests required.

I do NOT want to take away from the usefulness of the pens and high-dollar testers at all. I simply make the point that these units do what they are intended to do if used properly. You will see bad reports all over the internet about these soil testers, and many times they complain about the battery connections breaking. They gripe about this because they figure they aren't working right and go to check the battery right off and are probably hosing it up at that point. They do work, and the battery connections are no different than anything else that uses AA battery. I would bet most complainers have not read the instructions thoroughly, as I didn't.

The "you shouldn't even be growing if you don't buy what I have" thing irks me.

[green_grow]

as i thought, you bought a different meter than i did. mine had a cheap red plastic housing, a simpler scale, only a single probe and it didnt come with a probe scrubber . also, it cost a lot less than yours. so i stand by my original statement that the soil probe that i bought was a total piece of shit. i followed the instructions to the letter and the needle never moved. glad to hear that yours is working as it's supposed to.