# A new ph meter



## goldnugget77 (Dec 7, 2010)

I just bought this new meter
http://www.hannacan.com/PDF/manHI98127-8.pdf

All I want to do is test the acidity of the liquids.
I cant even turn this thing on
I am pressing the on and off button and nothing happens
I guess it has batteries



> Before use please soak glass bulb in storage solution for an minimum of 1 hour


There is no glass bulb only a 3 and a half inch plastic piece of something
what is a storage solution 
I will have to write to these people
If anyone has a quick way to help me that would also me nice
Thanks


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## goldenchild (Dec 7, 2010)

Did you try pressing and holding the on/off button for a few secs to turn it on?


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## Barren Realms 007 (Dec 7, 2010)

Is the battery hooked up?


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## 4metals (Dec 7, 2010)

The small glass piece on the bottom (once the protective cap is removed) is the electrode. They usually require soaking in a buffer for a time before the meter is used after a period of inactivity.


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## goldnugget77 (Dec 8, 2010)

> If you press and hold down the mode button down for about 5 seconds will it turn on?
> 
> The electrode (glass bulb) should already be installed in the meter. The 3.5 inch plastic piece you describe is the tool used to remove the electrode when you need to change it.
> 
> If you do not have the storage solution it is okay to just use some of the pH7.01 buffer.


This is what the company wrote to me
I have to go back to the people that sold me that thing because it wont go on


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## butcher (Dec 12, 2010)

I would check battery polarity, and voltage. watch batterys in top. I have one, and have had no trouble with it.


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## goldnugget77 (Jan 20, 2011)

That pH meter was broken and I gave it back to them and this afternoon I am supposed to pick it up
I see that I need to calibrate this meter and I need 7.10 buffer and a 4.01 buffer
I thought I could prepare these buffer liquids myself and I went to you tube and I see that to prepare this you 
need all kinds of chemicals
I thought I saw something on you tube that showed hos to prepare the buffer with simple solution and I don't see it
does anyone have a way to prepare those buffers


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## Barren Realms 007 (Jan 20, 2011)

goldnugget77 said:


> That pH meter was broken and I gave it back to them and this afternoon I am supposed to pick it up
> I see that I need to calibrate this meter and I need 7.10 buffer and a 4.01 buffer
> I thought I could prepare these buffer liquids myself and I went to you tube and I see that to prepare this you
> need all kinds of chemicals
> ...



You should take a known solution to calibrate it, I wouldn't try to make my own. You can get a test kit for pools and run a test on some tap water and get close but not perfect.


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## goldnugget77 (Jan 28, 2011)

The pH meter that I bought was defective and I went to the Hanna office and they gave me a new one.
The technician said I should calibrate it every week
I said the solution is expensive and he said you can save the solution and that way I can buy the solution every month
I find that a bit expensive 
If I have to spend 40 to 50 dollars on the solution its too much

Hoke says you can buy litmus paper at drug stores
I wonder if the have litmus at drug stores now
maybe I can use litmus sometimes
What do you folks think
Thanks


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## FrugalEE (Jan 28, 2011)

I too was tempted to buy a PH meter, but instead I went with the papers. I bought a set of papers that goes all the way from pH 0 to pH 14.0 in 0.5 increments from Amazon. They carry a wide variety of papers with different ranges. Temperature affects your reading somewhat with papers.

Drug stores may handle a pH paper that people use for testing their saliva to see if they are acid or basic. That kind has a limited range like pH 6 to 8. I use it to check boiler water.

FrugalEE


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## Harold_V (Jan 29, 2011)

I used the wide range Hydrion paper for years with results that were more than adequate for my needs. That included working with cyanide. Buy them once and you're good to go for years. 

I fail to see the need for an instrument that requires constant calibration------follow procedures that are known to work, using the paper, and it's simply not a requirement. 

Harold


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## goldnugget77 (Feb 18, 2011)

I tested something with acid and the calibration got messed up.
Water should be around 7 and now it shows it as 8 and a half
Anyway I have my pH papers to be on the safe side


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## dedalus (Dec 21, 2011)

Don't use water as a check solution for your pH meter. You can get wildly varying results that mean nothing. Use pH buffers.

These solutions are not that expensive, and you don't need much. Watch for mold growth, esp. in the pH 4.

If you're determined, you can make your own. There's a table of formulae in the CRC handbook of chem/phys.

You can store the electrode in potassium chloride solution with a little muriatic added. NEVER store it in water, tap or distilled.

Hanna makes a real nice little meter called the "Checkr" or something like that. It has true two buffer calibration, and a replaceable electrode.

Most pH "pens" stink.


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