Is my e.c meter boinked?

[Unagi]

Heyo everyone! i'm not really experienced with this Hydro stuff. but here goes, i recently bought an e.c meter the brand is Essentials. Anyway it's reading 0 on the well water coming out of my tap, is this even possible or is my meter faulty?

I have tried adding nutrients to water and it does read something then. To be more spesific I mixed up

250 ml canna Coco a
250 ml canna Coco b
100 ml cannazyme
60 ml rhizotonic
20 gallons water +- a couple liters

my e.c meter read this between 1.2-1.3 ec dependent on water ammount.

I cannot find any similar case where someone got 0 e.c out the tap, so whats up?

 

[Joint Monster]

That is interesting! My RO water does not even come out at 0 .

Is it possible to measure with a second device? Or try with different tap water (from a source other than your own home).

You could also try adding nutrients one at a time and seeing if the meter gives you different reasonable readings; i.e.. Add Coco A (check reading) , Add Coco B (check reading) .... although I don't think it will help you to much if the meter is already reading the entire solution at ~1.2EC.

...on a side note, is your well water treated with any specific chemicals?

 

[Unagi]

I have tried adding nutrients 20 ml at a time and it does jump up 0.1 sometimes 0.2 ec.

And no our well water isn't treated with anything.

Actually everytime we have someone over to check on it they get surprised by how clear the water is, you can easily see the buttom in daylight. Crystal clear. Also when I think about it I can really taste the chemicals when I visit my brother in the city.

I live at the base of a mountain, an hour away from the closest city.

 

[Joint Monster]

Oh you live by a mountain...... maybe you just have some darn good water!

Yeah city tap water tastes like chemicals.... once in a while it tastes like pool water (chlorine) ...... I'll stick to my RO .
....My friends house is Downtown and when she pours water it comes out cloudy..... then clear after 5-10seconds.... super sketchy city water...

 

[kingtitan]

Heyo everyone! i'm not really experienced with this Hydro stuff. but here goes, i recently bought an e.c meter the brand is Essentials. Anyway it's reading 0 on the well water coming out of my tap, is this even possible or is my meter faulty?

I have tried adding nutrients to water and it does read something then. To be more spesific I mixed up

250 ml canna Coco a
250 ml canna Coco b
100 ml cannazyme
60 ml rhizotonic
20 gallons water +- a couple liters

my e.c meter read this between 1.2-1.3 ec dependent on water ammount.

I cannot find any similar case where someone got 0 e.c out the tap, so whats up?

Contact them on Amazon and they will send you a new one, most of the chinese sellers with very large review base are quick to respond. Your water is not 0, I can sometimes get 1ppm out of my RO but to get 0 you need to pass it through DI resin.

 

[rkymtnman]

buy a bottle of EC calibration solution.

 

[Unagi]

buy a bottle of EC calibration solution.

I shall do this and we'll figure it out.

thanks for all the replies! You guys rock

 

[kingtitan]

buy a bottle of EC calibration solution.

unless of course the meter costs less than the solution lol. I think those essentials are 10 bucks or less.

 

[Unagi]

For the record it cost around 40€. A quick Google on 'essentials ec meter' will show you that.

unless of course the meter costs less than the solution lol. I think those essentials are 10 bucks or less.

 

[kingtitan]

For the record it cost around 40€. A quick Google on 'essentials ec meter' will show you that.

I would suggest going to Amazon and grabbing one of the 10-20 dollar ones with lots of reviews and stop trying to fix something that is broke, no way tap water is 0 ppm so dont waste your time.

 

[Unagi]

I would suggest going to Amazon and grabbing one of the 10-20 dollar ones with lots of reviews and stop trying to fix something that is broke, no way tap water is 0 ppm so dont waste your time.

No offense, but I dont think Amazon reviews are that reliable. Look at all the discusting blurple LED lights with crappy epistar chinese diodes, they got great reviews. It's not that all the reviews are crap, there is just way to much clutter from trolls and people with no experience.

Also my water comes from a well.

it's the reason I like to use forums

I will buy the calibration solution, calibrate my e.c meter then check it in some mineral water. If it's still boinked I'll return it and buy the bluelab one..

thanks for stopping by and dropping knowledge, cheers!

 

[Lordhooha]

No offense, but I dont think Amazon reviews are that reliable. Look at all the discusting blurple LED lights with crappy epistar chinese diodes, they got great reviews. It's not that all the reviews are crap, there is just way to much clutter from trolls and people with no experience.

Also my water comes from a well.

it's the reason I like to use forums

I will buy the calibration solution, calibrate my e.c meter then check it in some mineral water. If it's still boinked I'll return it and buy the bluelab one..

thanks for stopping by and dropping knowledge, cheers!

I have well water super clear but it has calcium and such in it. It’s a natural process going through sand rocks and all that it’ll pick up some of the minerals. My well is about 200 ppm for reference. But generally any water that’s from a well will have some sort of minerals in it. I’d get a good pen.

 

[Unagi]

As soon as I know if my meter is broken or not I'll look into getting a refund and buy a new one. For now it's cheaper and less waste to buy a calibration solution.

thanks for your reply @Lordhooha

 

[HydroRed]

I wonder what the tolerance is for the pen? (+/-)
Maybe anything 10 ppm and under is unreadable with that pen since it is an E.C. pen? Possibly why it still functions when tested with higher E.C. values.
Just a thought.

 

[Unagi]

I wonder what the tolerance is for the pen? (+/-)
Maybe anything 10 ppm and under is unreadable with that pen since it is an E.C. pen? Possibly why it still functions when tested with higher E.C. values.
Just a thought.

Will check the user manual and let you know, I love that explanation btw! seems very logical, nice catch dude

 

[Lordhooha]

Will check the user manual and let you know, I love that explanation btw! seems very logical, nice catch dude

I still think your meter may be off or busted. Given your on well water as I am. I live by lakes were you can see 20 foot or more to the bottom so water quality is excellent.