Blue Lab PH pens are not good

lusidghost

lusidghost

Well-Known Member
PadawanWarrior said:
Doesn't leak out of my Bluelab Soil Ph Pen if it's tipped, but it's got a sealed cap on it.
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The cap isn't actually sealed. If you overfill the liquid you'll see it run out. It's also why they suggest that you remove the cap and put the pen in a cup of KCI solution for long term storage.
 
PadawanWarrior

PadawanWarrior

Well-Known Member
lusidghost said:
The cap isn't actually sealed. If you overfill the liquid you'll see it run out. It's also why they suggest that you remove the cap and put the pen in a cup of KCI solution for long term storage.
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Actually the cap on the Bluelab pH Soil Pen is sealed. But I'm not gonna argue with you. Peace man.
 
MissinThe90’sStrains

MissinThe90’sStrains

Well-Known Member
I’ve gone through a dozen ph meters over the years. More than 3/4 of them died because the solution leaked out of the cap and the probe dried out and died. Sometimes I’d have a month or 2 between grows, and no matter how I stored it, they would always dry out. After moving and restarting yet again, I talked to the new grow store owner about ph pens and they said just keep it in a cup of distilled water. I asked them if I could do this in a mason jar and keep a lid on to prevent evaporation, because - “been there done that”. They said it was a good idea, so I tried. Despite the ph meter being waterproof, it fried it from the humidity. I came back to the store and got a replacement meter. She said what I did couldn’t possible hurt the meter because it was waterproof, and simply sitting in a humid jar meant my kids must have shaken the jar or something. So, fuck me, I did it again, and hid the jar from sight. Fried yet another ph meter. I started reading about ph meters…..

There are different types of meters with different types of probes. Some require different storage solutions and indifferent care. Apera instruments ph pen uses a type of probe, that if it dries out, it’s not dead. It can also be stored in plain water (although not ideal). They sell replacement probes too. Read your pen’s manual, some probes can be stored in distilled water, some cannot - itl actually ruin the probe. Some have tighter fitting caps, some are shit and leak. Get yourself a probe that will not die if it dries out, and get one that the probe can be replaced. For $50 bucks the Apera ph20 is a good deal. Carrying case, laminated instructions, calibration and storage solutions included, and the company is American - so you get English speaking tech support during normal business hours (for the US).

Thanks for attending my Ted Talk :-)
 
Star Dog

Star Dog

Well-Known Member
I've ruined a few ph pens with the kci drying out to crystals, the Apera ph60 i have atm has a silicone seal around the cap, i know it doesn't leak because the spare tip still has the factory kci in it after 18 months.
 
LeastExpectedGrower

LeastExpectedGrower

Well-Known Member
My pH pen isn't that old (bought it about a year ago) and I haven't had any troubles with moisture in the screen or body of the unit? I dunno. Though I do treat it pretty gently. Seems to need calibration every 3 weeks or so. The little cup in the cap that holds the glass bubble probe seems to have a bit of foam in the bottom that holds the KCl solution and if I notice that it appears to be evaporating out I add a few new drops. Seems to hold it whether I keep the pen stored vertically or horizontally. These days I'm using it every other day since that's my current feed pattern.
 
Rurumo

Rurumo

Well-Known Member
Star Dog said:
I've ruined a few ph pens with the kci drying out to crystals, the Apera ph60 i have atm has a silicone seal around the cap, i know it doesn't leak because the spare tip still has the factory kci in it after 18 months.
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I have the same pen-2 years old, I haven't used it in 2 months and it's still has the same amount of fluid, and was accurate this morning when I replaced the storage solution and checked the pen against reference solution. I'd buy another in the future.
 
curious2garden

curious2garden

Well-Known Mod
Staff member
Rurumo said:
I have the same pen-2 years old, I haven't used it in 2 months and it's still has the same amount of fluid, and was accurate this morning when I replaced the storage solution and checked the pen against reference solution. I'd buy another in the future.
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I bought my Bluelab pH pen 11/10/2015 from Amazon and it's still running strong and accurate as ever. Although I don't take breaks from growing so it's used at least every 2 weeks. I put a couple drops of KCl solution on the felt pad in the cap and it keeps it moist enough and that's in my 10% humidity environment.

I had an Oakton that I hated even with the replaceable electrodes (it was very slow). If/when this one dies I'll have to check out the Apera.
 
Rurumo

Rurumo

Well-Known Member
curious2garden said:
I bought my Bluelab pH pen 11/10/2015 from Amazon and it's still running strong and accurate as ever. Although I don't take breaks from growing so it's used at least every 2 weeks. I put a couple drops of KCl solution on the felt pad in the cap and it keeps it moist enough and that's in my 10% humidity environment.

I had an Oakton that I hated even with the replaceable electrodes (it was very slow). If/when this one dies I'll have to check out the Apera.
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It's awesome for a $40 pen. I was planning on getting all bluelab stuffs when my current pens die, but I'm amazed this Apera has lasted for 2 years. I've always been very careful about keeping fresh KCL covering the tip though. I like New Zealand though, so I'll probably get a Bluelab too, so I can RP that I'm in the Shire when I work inside my tent.
 
LeastExpectedGrower

LeastExpectedGrower

Well-Known Member
Rurumo said:
It's awesome for a $40 pen. I was planning on getting all bluelab stuffs when my current pens die, but I'm amazed this Apera has lasted for 2 years. I've always been very careful about keeping fresh KCL covering the tip though. I like New Zealand though, so I'll probably get a Bluelab too, so I can RP that I'm in the Shire when I work inside my tent.
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The Apera is the other one I'd be interested in too...though when I need to buy another, I'll probably get something with replaceable probes rather than having to re-buy whole new devices every once in a while. Seems like 'where they go' is related to the probe hardware itself.
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
It doesn't matter what piece of equipment or brand. There are always going to be cannabis growers that have problems. I didn't take care of my pH pen so it has to be the brand. My plants have nutrient issues so it has to be the brand. Bluelab makes a reliable and accurate unit.

The cannabis growing world is rife with operator error.
 
lusidghost

lusidghost

Well-Known Member
xtsho said:
It doesn't matter what piece of equipment or brand. There are always going to be cannabis growers that have problems. I didn't take care of my pH pen so it has to be the brand. My plants have nutrient issues so it has to be the brand. Bluelab makes a reliable and accurate unit.

The cannabis growing world is rife with operator error.
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It used to be. Which is the point of this thread.
 
Star Dog

Star Dog

Well-Known Member
Rurumo said:
It's awesome for a $40 pen. I was planning on getting all bluelab stuffs when my current pens die, but I'm amazed this Apera has lasted for 2 years. I've always been very careful about keeping fresh KCL covering the tip though. I like New Zealand though, so I'll probably get a Bluelab too, so I can RP that I'm in the Shire when I work inside my tent.
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You only pay $40 that's a great price for them, theyre £75-90 over here.
 
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