Hanna PH pen gone fritz

hello my ph pen just starts at 2 then keeps climbing untill it reaches 19 then turns back to 1 and stays there? I have it soaking in ph 7 but I keep trying it and it still just does the same thing in ph 7 or 4?? im confused

try changing the battery or setting it in hot water for an hour or two

its soaking as we speak.

Sounds like the reference junction dried out during storage or something similar. Do you have the instructions that came with the meter? It describes in there how to renew the junction by pulling the cloth sensor out a 1/8", cutting it, and then recalibrating the meter.