# Whats the go to for ph meters



## geekindenial (Oct 27, 2015)

I tried a cheapo Amazon pen and realized its wayy off the mark, and didnt calibrate properly. Forked out a bit more for an Apera PH20 (their cheapest) and itsy awesome. Super easy to calibrate, accurate (tested on reference calibration liquid).

Should have gone that route first as its not that much more expensive. Buy cheap buy twice folks say.


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## rzn7z7 (Aug 17, 2013)

American Marine is worth a look, too.....they make a monitor and a controller


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## EmotionalFescue (Jun 24, 2020)

i have the mc122 which is the same as the 120 except it can be used as a controller (i just use it as a monitor). I use it 24/7 in my sump and haven't had issues doing that.


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## mudbugmike (Jul 14, 2021)

Great question. I also just got a highly rated cheapo from amazon. Would love to buy something a bit better without committing too much money.


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## theusualsuspect (Oct 10, 2017)

EmotionalFescue said:


> mc122


The more I look into my option the more I think I want a Milwaukee over the rest. how long have you been using it for? have you had to replace the probe at all? how often do you calibrate it?


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## Deanna (Feb 15, 2017)

I use only the pen types. In that category, I've used Apera, Hanna and a few other nominally higher quality brands. In the last few years I've switched to low-price ("junk") meters, but with high ratings. I haven't noticed a difference. pH meters don't involve rocket science, but you can get bad ones. It is easy to determine if the meter is good, or not, simply by using the calibration solutions. I would focus upon those pen meters that make calibration as easy as possible and have high resolution and accuracy.

If I were interested in a pH meter for controller purposes, then I would go with a brand with a good reputation, such as Milwaukee.


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## EmotionalFescue (Jun 24, 2020)

theusualsuspect said:


> The more I look into my option the more I think I want a Milwaukee over the rest. how long have you been using it for? have you had to replace the probe at all? how often do you calibrate it?


Been using it for six or seven months and haven't replaced the probe. I don't calibrate often since I've got a flow meter on my regulator and am not depending on the meter. That said, it's been running continuously in my sump for a good long while since its last calibration and the readings haven't drifted.


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## theusualsuspect (Oct 10, 2017)

EmotionalFescue said:


> Been using it for six or seven months and haven't replaced the probe. I don't calibrate often since I've got a flow meter on my regulator and am not depending on the meter. That said, it's been running continuously in my sump for a good long while since its last calibration and the readings haven't drifted.


I still been using the pen my second one just went out lol I'm thinking about the Miwaukee mc120 again lol how has yours been? I also have a flow meter I think I pump 3ish liters an hour lol what ever that means


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## DanPlanted (Jun 15, 2015)

I've used a few cheap Amazon pH meters and always thought it was easier to just use a liquid test kit because of how often I was recalibrating the meter. Liquid pH tests give instant results, so no waiting around.

But please someone convince me to use a meter over a liquid kit, I'm open to further consideration.


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## latchdan (Sep 7, 2007)

Do these meters and pens work with 0kh? I no the monitors require some kh


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## klibs (May 1, 2014)

I have both a pinpoint and an apera pH meter both connected to my Apex. I used my apex utilities to calibrate them both in the same solutions at the same time. They both read wildly different values lol

For me the pH readings are more a general reference for "how much CO2 I have injected" so I can get a relative idea of how much more/less I am injecting. I don't trust it to tell me anything truly precise or meaningful

Just get a meter and start using it. My understanding is that these all kind of suck and don't have long lifetimes anyways


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## ddiomede (Feb 21, 2011)

The first link you shared is mainly a product for testing your PH manually. 

The second link you can either continuously monitor PH, and it also is a controller. I'm using the exact same one you linked to control my solenoid on my CO2 regulator. I basically have that plugged into an outlet, and then have a timer plugged into that, and the solenoid plugged into the timer. The timer I have has a built in battery that keeps the time set and my program, but when the lights go out on the tank it cuts CO2 off preventing the controller from kicking the solenoid on. 2 or so hours before the lights come on the timer turns on and the solenoid kicks on until that probe detects the preset PH has been reached and then it cuts of power. If it rises higher than .1 it kicks on again. But if you wanted it to just display the PH at all times you can do that with it most definitely. I calibrate it about once a month and it doesn't drift very much between calibrations.


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