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View Full Version : Calibrating Ph PRobes with off brand fluid


oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 06:11 AM
anyone ever use this to calibrate their apex probes? i dont see why it wouldnt work... correct me if im wrong though.

http://www.amazon.com/General-Hydroponics-4-01-Calibration-Solution/dp/B004HE7W42/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1429099655&sr=8-3&keywords=ph+calibration+fluid

lighthouze08
04/15/2015, 07:51 AM
it's a reference fluid, should work just fine

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 08:00 AM
it's a reference fluid, should work just fine

good because i purchased it already! lol

slief
04/15/2015, 08:11 AM
Only issue I see with that stuff is that it's pH 4 and pH 7 solution. For best accuracy in our testing range you should be calibrating with pH 7 and pH 10 solution. As such, you would want to get yourself some pH 10 soltion if you are using this for a probe in your tank water. That said, pH 4 and pH 7 would be good for calibrating pH probes used in a calcium reactor.

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 08:17 AM
Only issue I see with that stuff is that it's pH 4 and pH 7 solution. For best accuracy in our testing range you should be calibrating with pH 7 and pH 10 solution. As such, you would want to get yourself some pH 10 soltion if you are using this for a probe in your tank water. That said, pH 4 and pH 7 would be good for calibrating pH probes used in a calcium reactor.

i currently have 7 and 10 ... the only reason i need 4 is for a calcium reactor :)

slief
04/15/2015, 08:32 AM
i currently have 7 and 10 ... the only reason i need 4 is for a calcium reactor :)

Perfect!! I am actually glad you posted this because you reminded me that I need to recalibrate my Ca reactor probe with the 4 & 10 solution.

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 08:54 AM
Perfect!! I am actually glad you posted this because you reminded me that I need to recalibrate my Ca reactor probe with the 4 & 10 solution.

i would think 4 and 7 should work fine.. but i am new at this... i just set up my reactor and it is currently leak testing.

ca1ore
04/15/2015, 08:57 AM
I think slief probably meant 4 and 7 to calibrate a pH probe for the acid range.

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 08:58 AM
Perfect!! I am actually glad you posted this because you reminded me that I need to recalibrate my Ca reactor probe with the 4 & 10 solution.

hey i see you are on the masterflex thread! do you have one of these set up? if so with which reactor? i have mine running with the GEO 618 pulling from the effluent exit and i am getting air trapped in the chamber... if you have any advice i would love to hear! im hoping to get mine running soon because im about to run out of calcium chloride solution.

ca1ore
04/15/2015, 09:00 AM
I had a similar problem with trapped air in my dual chamber reactor. Pulling effluent from the top solved it.

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 09:29 AM
I had a similar problem with trapped air in my dual chamber reactor. Pulling effluent from the top solved it.

so when you say pull from the top... did you physically drill a hole in the lid, thread it with a john guest fitting and then just plug some RO tubing into it for your effluent drain? this is how i am interpreting it. currently my effluent drain is in the plumbing which is higher than the lid of the reactor but it is on the side of the plumbing vs the top of the plumbing. i will post a pic or two

oshanickreef
04/15/2015, 09:38 AM
here is my setup. the masterflex pump is pulling from the effluent line.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k516/nckosh/5B4CBEAD-1C05-4841-91B8-8C529C2542DF_zps0qt44scd.jpg

here is another angle
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k516/nckosh/3AE56B15-016E-48AB-9187-7771836F8FBC_zpsdhvumv8u.jpg

here you can see the effluent line in my plumbing. it is located on the side of the pvc which i think may be the problem since there could be air surpassing the line and getting pulled back through the recirculating pump.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k516/nckosh/239AC547-AB54-4F39-8323-E35949B57466_zpsynickfby.jpg

here is my feed line which i just have in the tank... i am currently just running this out of a 5 gallon bucket (as seen above) i created a full siphon to purge the system and even without c02 hooked up there are still bubbles in the top of the reactor.
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k516/nckosh/27C77549-5EB7-464D-A222-6D952F726BE7_zpsstyccziv.jpg

lastly here is the air you can see going into the recirculating pump tube. once enugh air collects the pump stops working... this only happens after i have turned the co2 on and have the Aquarium Plants Regulator on and pumping air into the reactor. this makes me assume that my reactor is air tight and there are no leaks... but please correct me if i am wrong!
http://i1113.photobucket.com/albums/k516/nckosh/BE21794D-1DD8-4156-BD1C-BC09B54DC165_zps2ck3t7so.jpg

thanks! i am going to post this on the masterflex thread as well.

ca1ore
04/15/2015, 02:17 PM
so when you say pull from the top... did you physically drill a hole in the lid, thread it with a john guest fitting and then just plug some RO tubing into it for your effluent drain? this is how i am interpreting it. currently my effluent drain is in the plumbing which is higher than the lid of the reactor but it is on the side of the plumbing vs the top of the plumbing. i will post a pic or two

In my case there was an air-purge line already in the cap (which didn't work when I switched to using a Masteflex pump in pull mode - it requires positive pressure to work), so I simply used that as the connection between the two cylinders. It's the red hose in the picture.

http://i1361.photobucket.com/albums/r680/ca1ore/IMG_1212_zpshyow4owz.jpg (http://s1361.photobucket.com/user/ca1ore/media/IMG_1212_zpshyow4owz.jpg.html)

Masterflex then pulls from the top of the second, smaller reactor where the effluent exit always was (green hose). You could certainly drill and tap a hole in the acrylic lid. Personally I wouldn't go into the circulation piping as I'm not sure that will necessarily solve the air buildup problem, though it works fine for the pH electrode.