Water quality testing - Multiple tanks

[Richocet83]

Hoping someone with experience in lab style water quality experience will chime in on this....

Our zoo is looking for new methods to assess water quality on our habitats. We're currently using Sensafe's Exact EcoCheck dual wavelength photometer to check NH3/4, NO2, NO3, PO4, pH, Free/Total Cl and a few other parameters but this setup is very time consuming. Each test has a 6-10 minute turn around time and until one test is complete we cannot begin another.

We've been looking at Hach photometers and I'm wondering if anyone has used these before. Are they worth the money? We average 3-5 different system checks a day but would like to test more frequently provided we can find something more time "friendly" (in total, we have about 30 individual freshwater and saltwater systems receiving routine water quality checks with possibility of more in the future). Can the hach photometers read/analyze quicker than the Sensafe? Or, can the Hach meters be set to run multiple systems or tests at once?

Any information would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance!
-Ryan

 

[bertoni]

I haven't used the Hach meters, but some of the parameters should work in saltwater. Some people report good results with them, but I don't know how long the tests take to run. You might want to contact Hach customer support with some of your questions. For some of the longer tests, you might be able to buy multiple cuvettes and run tests in parallel.

 

[Richocet83]

Thanks Jonathan

 

[bertoni]

You're welcome!