Best phosphate testing method?

[ReefDoberman]

I am looking to buy a phosphate test kit and was going to order the hanna checker (being colorblind these have been a dream come true) but they have 3 different options (high range, low range and phosphorus) and I'm not sure which is best for my needs?

I am running an sps dominated system, pretty much everything besides phosphate on a regular basis.

 

[outssider]

hanna phosphorus 736 ...this is the one you want. get extra reagents at the same time.
it measures in ppb. to convert to phosphate = multiply by 3.066 and divide by 1000.

I have used it for years. It's as precise as your going to get for the money...still not perfect.

 

[Dan_P]

Just bought the Hanna checker, ULR, ultra low range. It is a nice little device.

Top end for measurement is 0.6 ppm phosphate (200 ppb phosphorus). If your phosphate is currently higher than this you will have to dilute the sample to obtain a measurement. The low end is not very precise but it should not matter for phosphate concentrations less than 0.01 ppm or 10 ppb range.

 

[lafayettereefer]

Their phosphorus checker is much better for lower end readings. That's what I've been using for quite sometime and its pretty consistent

 

[bertoni]

The Salifert and Hach PO-19 kits worked well enough for me, although it was easier to get a number with the Hach kit.

 

[chemchris]

I bought a Hanna checker about a year ago and was extremely displeased with it- used it twice and put it on the shelf.

Its a 2 part test and after adding the first reagent, you have to wait 3 minutes until adding the 2nd. The thing is the unit times off after 3:15 or 3:30 - I forget which. If I remember right, you have to shake the 2nd reagent to mix it up also, GL doing all that in 30 seconds. After it turns off, you cant turn it on again and pick up where you left off- you have to dump out the reagent and start over again.

 

[pdiehm]

I have the Hanna 713 ULR

 

[outssider]

I bought a Hanna checker about a year ago and was extremely displeased with it- used it twice and put it on the shelf.

Its a 2 part test and after adding the first reagent, you have to wait 3 minutes until adding the 2nd. The thing is the unit times off after 3:15 or 3:30 - I forget which. If I remember right, you have to shake the 2nd reagent to mix it up also, GL doing all that in 30 seconds. After it turns off, you cant turn it on again and pick up where you left off- you have to dump out the reagent and start over again.

if you are talking about the 713 or the 736...not sure about the calcium checker......

If you press and hold the button in at around 2.5 minutes, you will get a 3 minute count down timer. This gets you another 3 minutes. now you have 5.5 minutes.

 

[pdiehm]

i have the 713, and only add the reagent once.

Fill 10 ml
insert to tester, hit the button once "C1"
wait for C2
pour in reagent
Shake for 2 minutes
Insert, hold button until 3:00 shows up

voila.

mine gives me 3 minutes of inactivity before it shuts off.

 

[tkeracer619]

I bought a Hanna checker about a year ago and was extremely displeased with it- used it twice and put it on the shelf.

I would consider erasing your experience or at least not passing it along. First you aren't following instructions and second there is almost no way you are going to get it right on 2 tries.

The 736 is afaik the best you can buy for hobby priced kits.

There is no two part reagent.

 

[Dave & Monica]

I would consider erasing your experience or at least not passing it along. QUOTE]

I thought that was the point of this forum.

Anyhow on topic, I agree with both of you. (a) it's a PITA, meaning you should put the water in both viles, regent, shake for a min or two, get bubbles to settle out, then start the test. This way the 3 min is more than enough. (b) It is the best test kit at hobbiest prices. It's accurate and does the job.

 

[kissman]

Love my Hanna ULR

 

[Panta rhei]

As it is an optical test (inside the unit there is a led emitting a specific nanometer wavelenght) you should use only one vial, and orient it in the same way when you zero the unit (tank water only) and when you add the reagent (phosphorous reading). Also clean the vial with white vinegar every time, and replace it if it has any scratches or stains.

 

[tkeracer619]

I would consider erasing your experience or at least not passing it along. QUOTE]

I thought that was the point of this forum.

Yes, that is half of the point. The other half is a place to share information. Their experience however doesn't really relate as they didn't follow the instructions. Maybe they are describing another test kit but their experience with the test kit in question does not line up with the actual test kit. It reads to me like a bad review on the wrong product. Maybe I could have worded it differently, it wasn't meant to offend in any way. I think they would enjoy the kit if they would give it another chance.

As it is an optical test (inside the unit there is a led emitting a specific nanometer wavelenght) you should use only one vial, and orient it in the same way when you zero the unit (tank water only) and when you add the reagent (phosphorous reading). Also clean the vial with white vinegar every time, and replace it if it has any scratches or stains.

+1

 

[2_zoa]

I've gotta say that the shut off timer is way to short. I mean come on. Getting all the regent out of the packet then getting it stirred up in the time frame they allow.......I'm not impressed with that part of Hannas checkers. Thanks to a post from spectrapure, I now cut off two adjoining sides making the powder easy to extract from the pouch. Plus, you can fold one side of the pouch to make a funnel out of it this way. The three minuet timer is for the test to develop. Not add to the fumbling about with the Powder in the packet.

Another 30 seconds on the microchip timer would have been the next greatest thing since sliced bread. Haha.


It shouldn't matter but, I have the 713 model. I also have another checker and it's the same way/time frame.

 

[tkeracer619]

I wish when you turned them back on they showed the last tested number.

 

[swk]

I love the elos professional po4 kit. As accurate as the hanna ulr and cheaper per test As well.

 

[pdiehm]

I love the elos professional po4 kit. As accurate as the hanna ulr and cheaper per test As well.

But that also requires to decipher different shades of numbers. No colors to decipher on the hanna.

 

[swk]

But that also requires to decipher different shades of numbers. No colors to decipher on the hanna.

Have you tried this test?

There is no deciphering. It nails one of the colors, or at the worst, directly Inbetween. The kit costs 50 usd for over 150 tests...

 

[swk]

Plus - there is no worrying about batches of reagents differing from batch to batch. I know a few guys that have screwed up their nutrient balance by relying on hanna reagents that weren't necessarily correct.