What to get for measuring pH?

[freeradical]

So after reading every single thread on pH measuring methods, I am still torn between the methods. I feel there are half that believe inexpensive (<$50) pH meters are great, and the other half believes that meters are garbage. Are the people having bad experiences with meters using/storing the meter incorrectly, or are they really junk?

I want something inexpensive, reliable, and accurate to the (.1). Can test strips give you a reading this accurate? If so, what strips do you buy (there are so many types/ranges). What about liquid drop kits?

So many people argue for each method, frustrated with the other method. I don't know who to believe!

 

[maryj315]

I think all the methods you mentioned are reliable to me it is a matter of expense and preference

I use a oakten for ph and a hanna for ppm i bought both at the same time almost 2 years ago i am happy

Mj

 

[Greyskull]

hey man IMO ph is all about being within a specific range.
I use a Hanna combo meter and have no problems with it. Other will swear hanna is junk. personally i loathe the milwaukee stuff...

For back up I use a simple bottle kit like this: http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=TEPHKITGH&eq=&Tp=

to be totally honest even though the bottle kit is not exact becasue it is tough to tell 5.8 from 5.9 its still tells you clearly when you're in range.

I would be totally okay if my meter went out and I only had the bottle to check ph range.

ppm would be a different story....


good luck

 

[FreezerBoy]

I would be totally okay if my meter went out and I only had the bottle to check ph range.

ppm would be a different story....

I'm with Grey. I too did my reading before buying EC and pH meters. There's just no consensus on pH meters but, that nothing trumps the Bluelab EC * Truncheon. So, I spent the big bucks on a Bluelab and use a $3 drop kit from the aquarium store for pH.

*Not to be confused with the Bluelab pH Truncheon which seems to be universally reviled.

 

[kaljukajakas]

pH meters really will not work properly after a few years at best, no matter how well you treat them. It's just an inherent problem of the glass pH electrode. It's properties change over time. So if you're happy buying a new meter every now and then, calibrating it every few weeks or so - get a meter.

I use pH indicator drops. They work just fine and never need calibrating, despite the fact the indicator (bromocresol purple) was made in 1984. Now that's reliable!

You can get accuracy with pH drops as well - just buy a spectrophotometer

 

[Retardo Motabon]

I'd go with a milwaukee sm802 if you want areliable portable meter. its their pH, TDS & ec tester. I've used these quite a bit and they have been rock solid. it has a single probe and a quality connector to the meter. It doesn't need to be calibrated much, and i've never seen one drift. there are always lemons in every brand. i've seen one milwaukee fucked up and it was bad out of the box. probe was bad. unit was replaced immediately. I have owned four hanna meters over the years and every one of them started to drift, often within a year or less. as i srolled down to hit submit i saw kalj's post, and he is right too. A spectrophotometer can be had for under $100 bucks. It's more work when testing, but it will always be on. no time would be spent cleaning electrodes and recalibrating either.
Rm

 

[happyherb]

fish tank ph drop test ...does the trick .HH. =]-~

 

[kaljukajakas]

A spectrophotometer can be had for under $100 bucks. It's more work when testing, but it will always be on. no time would be spent cleaning electrodes and recalibrating either.

It could also be useful for those colorimetric aquarium or agricultural nitrate, phosphate, potassium tests etc. If you get a Nanodrop-type spectrophotometer (no cuvettes to clean!) a single test kit could probably be made to last 100 longer than normal... You'd need proper pipettes for that though.

Spectrophotometers are getting ever cheaper and better... Good ones are expensive though. A scanning type would be preferable since you want to compare the heights of two peaks and doing that by changing filters and measuring just two points, for example, would not be ideal.

 

[Retardo Motabon]

No me matee! you just posted while i was writing a reply.

as i srolled down to hit submit i saw kalj's post, and he is right too. A spectrophotometer can be had for under $100 bucks. It's more work when testing, but it will always be on. no time would be spent cleaning electrodes and recalibrating either.
Rm

 

[kaljukajakas]

I started it all right and hijacked the thread by quoting you replying to me. Anyway, the perfect pH measuring instrument for me would be a cellphone-sized scanning spectrophotometer that has a remote probe on fiberoptic cables. Possibly with an automated way of adding indicator to the measuring (flow) cell in the probe so you could leave it in the tank and press a button to add a little indicator and determine pH... Perhaps in 10 years? The tech is all there already, just expensive...

 

[yamaha_1fan]

I am on my third Hannah Champ and I am not happy. I have one that is only 3-4 weeks old, and I have calibrated it twice and each time it was off by almost a whole unit. reading 7.8 in 7.0 solution.

Money is not an issue, I want something better. Not sure if I want a spectrophotometer though.

I thought the truncheon PH meters were really good FreezerBoy? I was thinking of buying one of those.

Maybe I need to get the Milwaukee

 

[rabid]

Here's two threads discussing much the same question your asking:

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=79348&highlight=ph+meters
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=89142&highlight=ph+drops

Whatever you decide to get check out these guys, cheapest prices I've seen

www.eseasongear.com

 

[Lean Green]

I get by with the drops.

 

[Guest 18340]

The drops are the cheapest ph measuring method, $4.99 a bottle, and 1 bottle will last me over 6 months, and it is dead reliable- nothing to calibrate, no sensor to wear out, etc.
I've used nothing but the drops for my whole growing career and i have never had a ph issue.
True, the drops won't give you precise numbers like some of those digital pens, but if you're not color blind and want something that is dead reliable EVERY SINGLE TIME.
Just my 2 cents.
Evl...

 

[kaljukajakas]

I got five 0.1g vials of bromocresol purple for a grand total of 1$, enough to make 1.25 liters of indicator solution:



Sigma-Aldrich sells 5g for 16$, enough to make over 3 gallons of indicator. Can't get much cheaper than that...

 

[VenturaHwy]

Have you seen someones plants when their meter is off and they kill their plants? Its not very pretty... I have 3 gallons of bromothymol blue indicator solution I bought 20 years ago, it still works.... one gallon may last you a lifetime....

 

[FreezerBoy]

II thought the truncheon PH meters were really good FreezerBoy?

It may be similar to the hydrohut story. People with older units seem to love them. Those purchased within the last year or so were the ones providing grief. Then again, my "research" is about a year old. Maybe things have changed back.

 

[freeradical]

I see a good amount of stores selling bromothymol blue, but none of them seem to show that they include the chart. Do they all come with the chart, is there a chart available online, or anyone know a vendor that sells a chart with their bromothymol blue?

 

[kaljukajakas]

You might find the color chart in a freshwater aquarium pH test kit at your local pet store. If the range of the kit is about 6.0-7.5 then it most likely uses bromothymol blue as the indicator.

http://www.truebluepawz.com.au/prod...esters&txtProdCat=Fish&listPageNum=&valStart=

 

[yamaha_1fan]

Has anyone tried the SM102 from Milwaukee? Its a little cheaper but it is a PH/temp meter only, no TDS/PPM. The thing I like is it has a higher PH accuracy of .02 while the SM802 has a .2 PH accuracy. Probably not a big deal but if I am going to spend the money, I want accuracy.