I used the same pen, it has worked very well for me for over a year.
For me, a absolute must is a good shot glass to store the pen in. Just fill the shot glass about 1/3 full of 7.0 buffer solution and bamm your good to go.
I used the same pen, it has worked very well for me for over a year.
For me, a absolute must is a good shot glass to store the pen in. Just fill the shot glass about 1/3 full of 7.0 buffer solution and bamm your good to go.
D
dramamine
The cap with a little cali solution works great for me.
There is in mine. Actually a piece of cotton, I think.
^yes - the pens have a piece of cotton like stuff in the cap...at least mine did too.
I believe HammerHead has the combo and it just has a plastic vial as the cap. It fits tight and holds the solution. My GroChek is like this but I did cut a piece of sponge to put in there in-case my solution leaks out or evaporates/
A larger shot glass or something to store the pens is not a bad idea. I've noticed my cap can start to smell a bit foul if I dont change it out. I'll give it a quick soak/rinse in ISO when it does that and rinse it well before putting my probe back in it.
Buelab is supposedly great...i have never owned one though. when I get the $$$$...it is going to be the Milwaukee MW802 from eseasongear.com....$140.00 for a combo meter is a fair price.
I have a cheap Milwaukee M600 ph pen from ebay...and it has been nothing but great.
cheers
TPM
I have a cheap Milwaukee M600 ph pen from ebay...and it has been nothing but great.
cheers
TPM
G
Guest1298
i have just bought the bluelab ph pen when not in use i stand it in a small glass of water to keep it hydrated also there is a little tick on the screen to let you no its calibrated properly & after 30 days tick isnt on the screen its time to re calibrate...75 bucks delivered...peace Dank...oh and the hydro shop i got it from is called GroTec... excellent shop
Guest02345
Member
i used hannas for years and they go off really easy.
bought a bluelab meter a few weeks ago and i really really like it. very easy to use and holds a calibration. easy to clean. great all around meter.
my tew since
bought a bluelab meter a few weeks ago and i really really like it. very easy to use and holds a calibration. easy to clean. great all around meter.
my tew since
abellguy
Member
This is the same meter I have and I love it. Holds calibration forever, it's very quick to move to reading on all three scales and calibrates easy with a turn knob. I haven't used a Blue Lab so I can't comment on that one but this one is half the price I believe and hasn't skipped a beat. Hope this helps
M
MrSterling
So the Milwaukee MW802 is a combo pH/EC meter? I'm vaguely familiar with EC, trying to educate myself more as I learn more about organics.
I switched to Bluelab about 2 years ago and very pleased so far. I use the handheld with a probe and the probe breaks kind of easy. Smashed one of the probes and I think I sliced one of the cords in half by placing a 5 gallon water on it accidentally. Cord is pretty weak. Very reliable and accurate and way longer shelf life than those damn pens from Hanna that constantly break or are inaccurate.
That's true I just broke one. It fell off the table and broke the inner glass. Im not familiar with the new pens. Like mentioned mine has a vile that is sealed with a o'ring type deal. It has never leaked. I have another cheap pen type that works OK its a Milwaukee PH51 Waterproof pH Tester. It has dual point cal but the resolution and accuracy is .2 Blulab is
.1......
.1......
G
Guest1298
i just found this in my loft its a hanna phep its about 4 years old
i just calibrated it and it works...lol..i cant beleve it...Atb Dank
i just calibrated it and it works...lol..i cant beleve it...Atb Dank
Make sure you dont us RO water. Tap water is OK in a pinch but the solution should be acidic for storage.
Here is a good Article to read
http://www.coleparmer.com/TechLibraryArticle/1189
G
Guest1298
Thanx for the link Hammerhead i have just put both ph pens into
4.0 calibration fluid when not in use..cheers Dank
abellguy
Member
I am not an organics person, but from what I understand you "can't" use a TDS/EC meter as the minerals read different. EC is what is universally acceptable as TDS/PPM is just an inversion of this measurement with different meter companies having different scales .5 and .7 I believe Milwaukee is .7. The meter will read PH, PPM, and EC but I only use PH and EC. So if you tell someone you are running 700 ppm and not what your meter conversion is they may tell you to add or subtract something not taking that into consideration. Using it just for yourself it will not matter as far as the conversion if you use PPM's although EC is just easier lol
I have never two point calibrated and have not had a problem at all in my hydro setup although it does call for a two point calibration as most pens do. I have been using these types of instruments since the first came around and have never two point calibrated any one of them and not had a problem. I PH7 calibrate and 1397mS/cm I think it is for EC or if PPMs I think is 1400. I only EC calibrate like once every couple runs but I PH calibrate about once a week or so, but it is usually right on or just a very small turn of the knob. Hope this helps
most units dont have cal for EC. The bluelab and Milwaukee I have dont have cal for this. Having dual point cal for PH is good to adust the slope between 7 and 4..
Makes me wonder, I've been storing my Mil 802 in a glass of RO for two years now and it's always worked fine.
we do alot of things we shouldn't. what we should do is up to us
abellguy
Member
EC and PPM are a function of each other, you can't have one without the other. While a two point calibration wont hurt at all, it absolutely unnecessary. I feel the same about the storage and the buffering solutions as well, when RO water is already available in the growroom. I change my water in my cup every two days or so, that would cost a mint in storage solution. We want to be feeding within an almost .5 EC window anyway so fractional point reading is not necessary
I have been storing multiple brands of different meters in RO water as well for 20 plus years and it keeps the electrode perfect. I took my probe from my original SW802, the green one, in after two years cause it wasn't swinging as quickly in the readings and the guy at the hydro store said he had never seen a probe in such good condition. Fortunately I had the unit with me cause he just replaced with a new one and said he would return the old one as a warranty return, cause the new MW802 was out. He said you keep this in the buffer solution and everything most people don't do that. That was information enough that my practice for the past years has been spot on with the RO water
Where did I say EC was different the ppm??? .5 or .7 that's all you need to know what conversion your meter uses.... You can go check all the papers yourself and what they tell you to do.. Does not matter the fact is it is required to do it. If you dont that's your decision..I will do it the right way..
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