Reef Discussion

[daveH]

What's a reliable/reasonably accurate/economical pH reader that people are using?
I've gone through a number of the little pH units like this one but wouldn't mind finding something a bit better maybe.
I always think it's accurate when it's giving me the reading I want but I think it's shit when the reading is not what I want - haha.

 

[the cichlid kid]

The Weipro one is pretty well regarded by people on a budget in the planted aquarium world.

http://m.fish-street.com/weipro_ph2010_ph_meter

 

[Rob]

I would suggest the biggest issue with all these cheap units is the probe / electrode itself. I have found the Atlas Scientific probes to be very reliable and robust. Although you will pay 100.00 for the probe itself, without the display

 

[somethingfishy76]

I'm too scared to get a really good pH meter because ill be creating another thing I need to work on. I take my water into work and use they're pH meter and usually get between 8-8.3.... So I guess I'm ok. @daveH Just remind me to grab some of you're water Dave and i'll check it next week.

 

[dimitri]

using the seneye, set and forget pretty much, can sometimes be a bit temperamental but it fixes itself.

plus it does temp, ammonia and par if you have it in the main display.

4months in and i'd buy it again, no hesitation.

also you can get info @App to phone and emailed, so if shit goes bad you know in a hurry.

all the other probes need jelly, calibration, blah blah and then you still need to hook it to an apex to get the telemetry.

I stuck mine in the sump once i was happy with the light settings I chose & the Par readings so now its out of the way.

 

[MagicJ]

I rarely measure PH :rolleyes

As @Rob mentioned, the quality of the probe is the main issue as the electronics to convert the reading to a PH value is relatively easy.

Is the cost to get a good quality probe worth it?

 

[dimitri]

I don't think it is, but if you are using/dosing anything in the tank that is going to change PH as a function of something else - then I'd like to know it's about to crash and cause problems in the tank.

So for the relatively small expensive it's just some extra insurance.


Would you think twice about checking PH once you had a tank crash due to PH/KH/CAL drop and losing $2,000 worth of stock?

Thats how I think of it.

 

[macca_75]

I'm too scared to get a really good pH meter because ill be creating another thing I need to work on. I take my water into work and use they're pH meter and usually get between 8-8.3.... So I guess I'm ok. @daveH Just remind me to grab some of you're water Dave and i'll check it next week.

pH would have changed from when you get the water out of the tank to when you measure it (unless you live next door).

As @Rob said, spend the $$$ and get a good probe. Once setup they are really low maintainence (a vinegar bath every 6 months is all I do) and calibrate every now and again. 24x7 submerged and constant readings.

http://macca.myreef.info/weekly.html

(You can see the vinegar bath on 4/1/16)

 

[Franklin Dattein]

You most definitely want to avoid the ones with single point calibration, like the cheap pens from eBay. They come with two calibration solutions, to fool us, but they only remember the last one.

Regrading the probe, the cheap ones are accurate enough, but they last about 6 months before the reads are unreliable. They also don't handle dry periods as well as the most expensive ones.
There is very good video from BRS on youtube that explains the quality of materials in a pH probe.

The other feature to look for is galvanic insolation. Without it, the reads become inaccurate if the tank is receiving strain current.
Personally, I prefer without galvanic isolation, because it works as a strain current detector and forces me to solve the underlying issue.

 

[potatocouch]

pH would have changed from when you get the water out of the tank to when you measure it (unless you live next door).

As @Rob said, spend the $$$ and get a good probe. Once setup they are really low maintainence (a vinegar bath every 6 months is all I do) and calibrate every now and again. 24x7 submerged and constant readings.

http://macca.myreef.info/weekly.html

(You can see the vinegar bath on 4/1/16)

I didn't see you mention what gadget do you use for your pH read? Either that or I must be blind.

 

[macca_75]

I didn't see you mention what gadget do you use for your pH read? Either that or I must be blind.

Sorry - Atlas for both pH and ORP