rigleautomotive
Premium Member
This was an old thread that didnt get carried over to this new site (ncpars.org)and I thought it deserved some attention so I moved it over.
HANNA CHECKER REVIEW 08 May 2011 11:26 #1
rigleautomotive
NOW ONLINE
Moderator NCPARS.ORG
Posts: 26
Karma: 1
HANNA CHECKER REVIEWS
Phosphate Checker
Although I originally believed the phos checker to be of no use to me with its +/- .04 margin of error (my phos runs between .01 and .05 typically) I will have to eat my words.I have had this checker for a few weeks now and enough time to get familiar with it and I am impressed.It gives consistent values when checking the same sample numerous times which leads me to believe there is little if any noise in this instrument.Test kits have never been consistent over several tests on the same sample with as much as 1ppm variance.The variance seems to be about .01 ppm with the Hanna.I believe even with a +/- of .04 the consistency still gives you a good idea of your tank changes over time and can point you to the loss of color or poor health in a given coral.I find it refreshing to know that when my acros loose a bit of color(all other params in range and stable) and my phos is .09 instead of the usual .03 or less ,I need to step up my phos control,ie water changes,gfo,bacteria etc...And if its very low.00 then I can step up on the feedings.And if it is in normal range according to the checker I can look elsewhere.I have noticed a slight loss of color when Phos reaches above .05 acording to the checker.I believe every serious sps keeper should have one of these guys unless you have something better and more accurate then this.
HANNA CHECKER REVIEWS
Alk Checker
Love this thing.Very accurate and easy to use with a very small margin of error as far as we are concerned with coral keeping.(+/- 5 ppm).I did 4 tests on same sample and had no variance (DKH)between 3 of these tests with the 4th only being off by .3 ppm.I believe there to be little or no noise for our practical purposes and this is quite contrary to the test kits I frequently used prior .Keeping the big 3)alk,cal and mg) is much easier when you are able to trust your alk readings . if you use a balanced method of supplementation and can test alk accurately and often,you can ignore the other 2 and test mg and cal much more infrequently.This checker is a no brainer for me with it being about twice the cost of a decent kit it becomes very economical once owned for a period of time.
This is a bit different then some of my older posts(no pics) but I just felt some of this info needed to be said by someone!! please feel free to comment. TY
And after 6 months of continued use I will update.
I wish others that do reviews for the hobby would do some long term testing more often and test long term durability rather then new out of the box performance.Lets face it if your goals are to grow corals,long term stable and rock solid are all in the equation so what a product can do over the years and not the days is what really matters.Anyway,I will get off my soap box and tell what I have found.
I test alk frequently and with the hanna it is awesome.I ran several calibration fluids thru this checker and each time it was right on or off a minute amount.I see no negatives on this after 6 months of use and I highly recommend anyone that is trying to grow stoney corals have one of these
Phosphate checker
Well I do like(do not love) this product but I must say I am on my third unit now at 6 months.The first read fairly accurate for 3 months but began giving me high(unexpected reading)after that.I tried different indicator packets and also cleaned the unit and changed the battery.No effect with these changes and after talking to tech support I realized it needed to be replaced.The second unit worked for one test and then read a error code of low battery for the second and every subsequent test afterwards even with a new battery.Fail # 2 Third unit I opened yesterday and it works perfectly thus far.But again,long term will remain to be seen.Hopefully I got a couple bad units and Hanna corrected these units and all will be good.I hope so I really like Hanna products and I have high hopes for these checkers.
TY
HANNA CHECKER REVIEW 08 May 2011 11:26 #1
rigleautomotive
NOW ONLINE
Moderator NCPARS.ORG
Posts: 26
Karma: 1
HANNA CHECKER REVIEWS
Phosphate Checker
Although I originally believed the phos checker to be of no use to me with its +/- .04 margin of error (my phos runs between .01 and .05 typically) I will have to eat my words.I have had this checker for a few weeks now and enough time to get familiar with it and I am impressed.It gives consistent values when checking the same sample numerous times which leads me to believe there is little if any noise in this instrument.Test kits have never been consistent over several tests on the same sample with as much as 1ppm variance.The variance seems to be about .01 ppm with the Hanna.I believe even with a +/- of .04 the consistency still gives you a good idea of your tank changes over time and can point you to the loss of color or poor health in a given coral.I find it refreshing to know that when my acros loose a bit of color(all other params in range and stable) and my phos is .09 instead of the usual .03 or less ,I need to step up my phos control,ie water changes,gfo,bacteria etc...And if its very low.00 then I can step up on the feedings.And if it is in normal range according to the checker I can look elsewhere.I have noticed a slight loss of color when Phos reaches above .05 acording to the checker.I believe every serious sps keeper should have one of these guys unless you have something better and more accurate then this.
HANNA CHECKER REVIEWS
Alk Checker
Love this thing.Very accurate and easy to use with a very small margin of error as far as we are concerned with coral keeping.(+/- 5 ppm).I did 4 tests on same sample and had no variance (DKH)between 3 of these tests with the 4th only being off by .3 ppm.I believe there to be little or no noise for our practical purposes and this is quite contrary to the test kits I frequently used prior .Keeping the big 3)alk,cal and mg) is much easier when you are able to trust your alk readings . if you use a balanced method of supplementation and can test alk accurately and often,you can ignore the other 2 and test mg and cal much more infrequently.This checker is a no brainer for me with it being about twice the cost of a decent kit it becomes very economical once owned for a period of time.
This is a bit different then some of my older posts(no pics) but I just felt some of this info needed to be said by someone!! please feel free to comment. TY
And after 6 months of continued use I will update.
I wish others that do reviews for the hobby would do some long term testing more often and test long term durability rather then new out of the box performance.Lets face it if your goals are to grow corals,long term stable and rock solid are all in the equation so what a product can do over the years and not the days is what really matters.Anyway,I will get off my soap box and tell what I have found.
I test alk frequently and with the hanna it is awesome.I ran several calibration fluids thru this checker and each time it was right on or off a minute amount.I see no negatives on this after 6 months of use and I highly recommend anyone that is trying to grow stoney corals have one of these
Phosphate checker
Well I do like(do not love) this product but I must say I am on my third unit now at 6 months.The first read fairly accurate for 3 months but began giving me high(unexpected reading)after that.I tried different indicator packets and also cleaned the unit and changed the battery.No effect with these changes and after talking to tech support I realized it needed to be replaced.The second unit worked for one test and then read a error code of low battery for the second and every subsequent test afterwards even with a new battery.Fail # 2 Third unit I opened yesterday and it works perfectly thus far.But again,long term will remain to be seen.Hopefully I got a couple bad units and Hanna corrected these units and all will be good.I hope so I really like Hanna products and I have high hopes for these checkers.
TY
