Can solution sit stationary? PH drifts/aeration

[medidedicated]

Check chewy they have aquarium dosers that are pretty much same thing as the blue labs ones at a fraction of the price. They make them with 4 dosers in one unit so you can rig up all kinds of stuff or just the single doser. I think they are like 35 bucks

I think the brand is jebao and the 2 channel is 60 bucks. I know there is other brands and a single channel one out there

JEBAO Multi-Channel Aquarium Auto Dosing Pump, 2 Channel - Chewy.com

Buy Jebao Multi-Channel Aquarium Auto Dosing Pump, 2 Channel at Chewy.com. FREE shipping and the BEST customer service!

www.chewy.com

Awesome! Will look into those. Not saying I would never spend 400$ on growing stuff when I spent a few grand on useless junk, I just would hold off on it.

Hold off on it to find it is possibly another hydro label as an excuse to mark up the tag. I was just worried about it being a packaged cost, like you need another 200$ to keep it maintained and still turns to junk after year 1 or 3.

At the least I would want top notch accuracy I can sleep on.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

Awesome! Will look into those. Not saying I would never spend 400$ on growing stuff when I spent a few grand on useless junk, I just would hold off on it.

Hold off on it to find it is possibly another hydro label as an excuse to mark up the tag. I was just worried about it being a packaged cost, like you need another 200$ to keep it maintained and still turns to junk after year 1 or 3.

At the least I would want top notch accuracy I can sleep on.

Also check out toraus hydro they make a device that keeps PH within range and all you do is toss it in the water and recharge it once it runs out but on the pricy side

 

[medidedicated]

Update: I calibrate before each reading and go with the reading right away as it was intended, then it just starts guessing and with age, drifting.

The solution drifts for the first 1-12 hours, I consider that the case when the meter spins like a price is right wheel. Otherwise it reads steady for 30-60 seconds then it is subject to drift, and may drift .1 points or slightly more, but slowly.

By that time I consider it a bad reading. I cleaned probe but just rinse with tap and store as is. It is used often enough to be alright and storage solution does worse.

Could call and ask about that but eh, what could it possibly be that it crystalizes before I use it next time and immediately starts oozing out crystals in 24hrs in basement conditions.

I feel like people do not store it like that anyway. It was off by .40 points, and .10 points immediately after calibration in 3 mins sitting. 1 year old plus. It works best calibrated each time but am sure it is great when brand new.

I say because I was saying to let it read 5-7 mins but I am seeing it works much faster than that. I can’t wait to see how much less it drifts brand new.

I say this lastly because, if my meter is so off so quick and possibly even brand new ones not being that much better, how do auto ph dosers not need calibration daily? Will be looking at that when purchasing a ph doser,

This is f#cked, it is as tedious as the original topic, I have to ignore what the meter says after 5 mins and recalibrate it and just trust it. Visual drops wouldn’t be any different. Maybe more effort for accurate readings. Might end up trying those, I have a set.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

Update: I calibrate before each reading and go with the reading right away as it was intended, then it just starts guessing and with age, drifting.

The solution drifts for the first 1-12 hours, I consider that the case when the meter spins like a price is right wheel. Otherwise it reads steady for 30-60 seconds then it is subject to drift, and may drift .1 points or slightly more, but slowly.

By that time I consider it a bad reading. I cleaned probe but just rinse with tap and store as is. It is used often enough to be alright and storage solution does worse.

Could call and ask about that but eh, what could it possibly be that it crystalizes before I use it next time and immediately starts oozing out crystals in 24hrs in basement conditions.

I feel like people do not store it like that anyway. It was off by .40 points, and .10 points immediately after calibration in 3 mins sitting. 1 year old plus. It works best calibrated each time but am sure it is great when brand new.

I say because I was saying to let it read 5-7 mins but I am seeing it works much faster than that. I can’t wait to see how much less it drifts brand new.

I say this lastly because, if my meter is so off so quick and possibly even brand new ones not being that much better, how do auto ph dosers not need calibration daily? Will be looking at that when purchasing a ph doser,

This is f#cked, it is as tedious as the original topic, I have to ignore what the meter says after 5 mins and recalibrate it and just trust it. Visual drops wouldn’t be any different. Maybe more effort for accurate readings. Might end up trying those, I have a set.

I think you need a better meter or something. Cuz I calibrate my blue labs like once every few months if that. Maybe like 6 months. And it shouldn’t be drifting that fast so that brings me back to the meter. Either you have a very sensitive meter or your water is crazy lol.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

Update: I calibrate before each reading and go with the reading right away as it was intended, then it just starts guessing and with age, drifting.

The solution drifts for the first 1-12 hours, I consider that the case when the meter spins like a price is right wheel. Otherwise it reads steady for 30-60 seconds then it is subject to drift, and may drift .1 points or slightly more, but slowly.

By that time I consider it a bad reading. I cleaned probe but just rinse with tap and store as is. It is used often enough to be alright and storage solution does worse.

Could call and ask about that but eh, what could it possibly be that it crystalizes before I use it next time and immediately starts oozing out crystals in 24hrs in basement conditions.

I feel like people do not store it like that anyway. It was off by .40 points, and .10 points immediately after calibration in 3 mins sitting. 1 year old plus. It works best calibrated each time but am sure it is great when brand new.

I say because I was saying to let it read 5-7 mins but I am seeing it works much faster than that. I can’t wait to see how much less it drifts brand new.

I say this lastly because, if my meter is so off so quick and possibly even brand new ones not being that much better, how do auto ph dosers not need calibration daily? Will be looking at that when purchasing a ph doser,

This is f#cked, it is as tedious as the original topic, I have to ignore what the meter says after 5 mins and recalibrate it and just trust it. Visual drops wouldn’t be any different. Maybe more effort for accurate readings. Might end up trying those, I have a set.

Don’t worry about it being exact it needs to drift as long as it’s in the range 5.5-6.5 hydro and 6.5-7.5 soil is what I’ve always gone by.

 

[medidedicated]

Don’t worry about it being exact it needs to drift as long as it’s in the range 5.5-6.5 hydro and 6.5-7.5 soil is what I’ve always gone by.

I see everywhere 5.8 -6.2 ph. If that is the case then that makes sense why I have been fine aside from heat and high ppfd/micro climate bubbles in canopy.

It is a hanna groline. 90$. It is old for a beaten up ph meter. I was going weeks at a time not calibrating it thinking the same but I read a nice tip somewhere to use calibration fluid to check the health of the meter.

Mine was either shitty or reaching the end of its life. As I typed that out, considering costs of fluids for meters, labor, the drops might be better long term for small grows. Willing to buy a new one and try again, knowing what I know now.

90$ isn’t bad for a decent meter for 1 year. But the fluids.. Seems like a lot of money. My solutiom is stable after 6-12 hours.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

I see everywhere 5.8 -6.2 ph. If that is the case then that makes sense why I have been fine aside from heat and high ppfd/micro climate bubbles in canopy.

It is a hanna groline. 90$. It is old for a beaten up ph meter. I was going weeks at a time not calibrating it thinking the same but I read a nice tip somewhere to use calibration fluid to check the health of the meter.

Mine was either shitty or reaching the end of its life. As I typed that out, considering costs of fluids for meters, labor, the drops might be better long term for small grows. Willing to buy a new one and try again, knowing what I know now.

90$ isn’t bad for a decent meter for 1 year. But the fluids.. Seems like a lot of money. My solutiom is stable after 6-12 hours.

Yes 5.8-6.2 is optimal but 5.5-6.2 you kill the plants and you can probably even push those limits but I would try to keep close to optimal but don’t have to be spot on close is good

 

[Treesomewanted77]

I see everywhere 5.8 -6.2 ph. If that is the case then that makes sense why I have been fine aside from heat and high ppfd/micro climate bubbles in canopy.

It is a hanna groline. 90$. It is old for a beaten up ph meter. I was going weeks at a time not calibrating it thinking the same but I read a nice tip somewhere to use calibration fluid to check the health of the meter.

Mine was either shitty or reaching the end of its life. As I typed that out, considering costs of fluids for meters, labor, the drops might be better long term for small grows. Willing to buy a new one and try again, knowing what I know now.

90$ isn’t bad for a decent meter for 1 year. But the fluids.. Seems like a lot of money. My solutiom is stable after 6-12 hours.

Also check growgreenmi for deals on meters. You can get a Hanna for like 35 bucks and blue labs for 70 and then you just need storage solution and some calibration solutions but you should only need a small amount of the calibration solutions if your only calibrating once every few months. Heck I still have my small bottles I started with 4 yrs ago

 

[medidedicated]

Also check growgreenmi for deals on meters. You can get a Hanna for like 35 bucks and blue labs for 70 and then you just need storage solution and some calibration solutions but you should only need a small amount of the calibration solutions if your only calibrating once every few months. Heck I still have my small bottles I started with 4 yrs ago

I guess I am just trippin, and cannot recall how it used to be, rather or not I tested it and it was so close to target that I stopped testing it and kinda went like you said.

I was just saying roughly 90$, but I doubt I can get what I have for 35$. That is like apera level if I recall the brand correctly. I will check though.

I will be sad to find that meters just aren’t accurate but like I said, I rarely verified the calibration afterwards which would be handy if the manual said.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

Here is the cheapest place for a blue labs and that grow green has the Hanna cheap but I wouldn’t stress it that much as long as they are growing fine and you think you within range let it roll.

Bluelab pH Pen *CLOSEOUT* 716480 - Horticulture Source

716480 Bluelab® pH Pen

www.horticulturesource.com

 

[medidedicated]

Here is the cheapest place for a blue labs and that grow green has the Hanna cheap but I wouldn’t stress it that much as long as they are growing fine and you think you within range let it roll.

Bluelab pH Pen *CLOSEOUT* 716480 - Horticulture Source

716480 Bluelab® pH Pen

www.horticulturesource.com

It only goes to 0.0 though instead of 0.00. I checked growgreenmi they have mine for 80$ which I think is still the same price anywhere. With tax it is close to 90$.

What are the paper strips on the shorter metal and plastic probe? I did not know that was there and turned to mush and thought it was gunk from using it.

The warranty is 1 year so that usually means (specially with something sensative) that it will give out around that time let alone using it with tap and not rinsing with ro water like it says to.

It says to use calibration every testing for best results so that has me thinking it might still be working. Would hate to spend money just to have the same thing happening.

Blue lab makes expensive stuff so I wonder it that model works better, never searched the two compared to eachother.

 

[medidedicated]

Ok, I just dunked in the buffer solution 6hrs later and it says 6.84 instead of 6.86 so it is close. That is a good sign.

I guess I just keep a cup of buffer solution and dunk it in there before each test so I can get accurate results faster.

I guess I will use storage solution since I use meter often enough, might work as should. They said tap water rinsing is ok but store it with solution. Then I would be using it as I should be.

It does act funny when I clean it or again, if fresh solution needs 1-6 hrs to stabilize.

 

[Hollatchaboy]

Just get one like this......



You can leave the probes in the res.

 

[Treesomewanted77]

Just get one like this......

View attachment 5269640

You can leave the probes in the res.

I have one of these too and it’s my most in accurate devise so far. I have calibrated it so many times and still 7 points off so maybe I need a new probe. For now I just check it against my 2 blue labs pens and put a piece of tape next to the PH reading telling me how off it is lol. The probe cost almost as much as a new pen so I just keep using it that way

 

[bulletproof zed]

Airstones

Boil them for 5 mins , like new and sterilized.

 

[PopAndSonGrows]

I jug up my nutrient mixes in 1gal water bottles and they sit for 1-3 days before using. I've NEVER had pH drift. Ive used this method with GH 3-part with additives, with Athena Blended, and currently GH Flora Nova with additives.

 

[medidedicated]

I just let things sink in a bit, and came across one suggestion on here already to have a bigger rez. The ph holds better which is like that already for me. I make 5 gallons and it drifts when a little over a gallon is left with warmer temps.

I am just going to ph by hand, after a few weeks of chasing tail, I saw such a strict pattern, I almost don’t ph test it. I don’t mind ph’ing by hand, it is the hand feeding that takes up so much time, cannot open up energy to focus on what I should, just hand ph’ing and refill rez real quick a couple times a day.

I am seeing other posts of people having this with RO water too. So I guess this is normal with any water. Here are some pics of my first auto feed setup. Ph should hold better when I switch rez for a 16gal bucket. Just practicing.

 

[ooof-da]

RO water is stripped of all radicals/buffers so it will move super easy if the RO filter is working properly. Also pH is temperature dependent so if your meter is not compensating for that…it will say ATC (Automatic Temperature Compensation)…then you will chase ghosts reading down to 2 digits past your whole number (7.01).

bottom line the pH measurements with ATC should stabilize within 30-60 seconds imo but the higher the EC the more buffer will protect the adjustments you make.

 

[Boatguy]

I jug up my nutrient mixes in 1gal water bottles and they sit for 1-3 days before using. I've NEVER had pH drift. Ive used this method with GH 3-part with additives, with Athena Blended, and currently GH Flora Nova with additives.

Really?
I had a ton of drift with flora nova.
Would mix up solution, give it time to settle in and it usually ph'd around 4.5. Ph up to 5.8, and i would find it at nearly 7 12hrs later. Ph down and it would drift up again.
Really took 3 days or so to stabilize. With weekly res changes it was a bit of a pain in the ass.

 

[PopAndSonGrows]

Really?
I had a ton of drift with flora nova.
Would mix up solution, give it time to settle in and it usually ph'd around 4.5. Ph up to 5.8, and i would find it at nearly 7 12hrs later. Ph down and it would drift up again.
Really took 3 days or so to stabilize. With weekly res changes it was a bit of a pain in the ass.

How were you storing? In an open reservoir? Sealed bottles? Any airstones?

I stored mine in "sealed" water bottles, no airstones