Questions about PH pen...

[GetThisOrDie]

Whats up...

Just bought a new Milwaukee PH 600 pen and I have a couple questions. Since this is my first pen...

I calibrated it to 7.0 with the solution it came with. Tested my res with it fine. I washed it and put a small piece of sponge in the cap with the storage solution. The next day now the PH was crazy on the pen...

My question is, Does it need to be calibrated before every use?? Also did I use the storage solution correctly?

It didnt come with any instructions really.. :(

[DreadedHermie]

Sounds like the innards got wet; mine's real finicky that way (I dropped it into a batch of nutes for like a millisecond before I snached it out and dried it off, but the readings would swing wildly.) I took the battery cap out, dried off all the batteries and let everything dry out in front of a fan blowing warm dry fan for a couple days. Reassembled it and it worked. Needed recalibrating, but once I did that it's held to +-.1 for months now. So, no, you shouldn't have to recalibrate it often at all.

If your tap water is consistent pH you can check calbration, quick and dirty, by sampling your tapwater, provided there's some ppm to it. I don't bother with calibration solution too often any more, like I said it's held steady since I dried it out. I check it against another meter frequently, though.

And don't store the thing in distilled or deionized water. Or calibration solution. I just keep mine, cap off, in a little juice glass with .5" or so of vinegar, diluted with hard water to pH 3.5 or so (not critical). My cap leaked out all my storage solution, so that didn't work out for me.

Don't know if my storage method is approved by anybody, but my meter's still working fine. :icon506: It's just real convenient for me to use like that.

Good luck! Let us know if you can "heal" it.

HTH, Hermie

P.S. I try not to get any part of the meter wet except the pH probe itself. They're NOT waterproof! If you use the cap I would keep the pen in an upright position to keep the liquid at the bottom.

[LOC NAR on probation]

Like he said. Just keep the probe wet. seems when they dry out they go bad. My bro likes to drop them in water and then act stupid like he don't know what could of happened. LOL I open the battery compartment and a dribble of water comes out and the thing stays on like 6.6 and won't move.

[GetThisOrDie]

Can the calibration fluid be stored and used again? I still have it in a cup inside of my fridge... Hope I can calibrate using that again.

[texashustle]

Shit! I just keep mine dry. FML. Just vinegar and RO water will work? My tap is 1740 PPM, no thanks.

[DreadedHermie]

Can the calibration fluid be stored and used again?

Probably not, depending on what it is, and what gas (air?) it's exposed to in your fridge. CO2 in the atmosphere dissolves into standing water, and (long story short) lowers its pH. Lower fridge temps will slow, but not stop, this reaction.

Also, the pH reading of a solution is temperature-influenced, normally there's a table of value offsets for solutions that are not at 77 deg F. So, you couldn't use your cal solution right outta the fridge.

Looking at an old bottle of GH 7.0 reference solution I have, it says it CAN be used for a storage solution as well. Never noticed that. It's reading at 1330 ppm, though. I'll probably just use it up as storage solution --I don't really trust calibrating with anything that's not a fresh-opened package. I like those little single-use things, myself.

Just make sure your storage solution has some "TDS" to it. Storage solution needs to have some electrical conductivity to it, at least for the meters I'm familiar with. And some probes like to be stored in an acidic environment.


My tap is 1740 PPM, no thanks.
Texas, 1740 ppm is prolly better than distilled. MAYBE better than RO, depends on what's left in it after processing. That is some crunchy H2O, though. Thought mine was severe (it's about 740). Lemme ask Weezard to check in on this. I don't wanna lead anybody astray. I'm jes' sayin' what I do with my $25 Milwaukee POS pen. I'd hate to have you mess up a precision instrument following my questionable lab techniques!

[Weezard]

"Texas, 1740 ppm is prolly better than distilled. MAYBE better than RO, depends on what's left in it after processing. That is some crunchy H2O, though. Thought mine was severe (it's about 740). Lemme ask Weezard to check in on this. I don't wanna lead anybody astray. I'm jes' sayin' what I do with my $25 Milwaukee POS pen. I'd hate to have you mess up a precision instrument following my questionable lab techniques! "

Crunchy is a good word. :thumbsup:

Ah dunno!
I'd guess that you'd risk lime deposits at that level.
Again ah dunno.
But, twere me, I'd use distilled water with plain ol' table salt, NaCl, sprinkled in to about 600 ppm.

And, on getting them wet?
(and feeding them after midnight):D

If you drop in, or splash with, nutes, open it up right away and rinse the circuit board with distilled water.
D.W. is non-conductive, and will fix a hosed-up meter if you don't wait too long.:)
Blot it with a paper towel and let it air dry before replacing battery and you should be good to go.

Sounds like you guys are in good hands here.:thumbsup:
Carry on.

Exits, stage left.
Veezard-------

[the image reaper]

if the sensor tip on the Milwaukee pen dries out, it's trashed :wtf: ... do NOT store it with calibration solution in it, or distilled water, either ... store it with plain tapwater ... (this, straight from the manufacturer) ... :smokin:

[DreadedHermie]

store it with plain tapwater ... (this, straight from the manufacturer) ...


There ya have it. Thanks, Image Reaper :hippy:

P.S. I can't stop thinking about that photovoltaic panel you have. How big a plant would satisfy you? I can see it now: "Save water, shower with a IRDG..." :D