Hanna ph/ppm/ec combo meter help!!

so i bought the hanna combo HI98129 meter the other day. and cant seem to get it calibrated right..im doing it right, its just off ever time like when its done calibrating in the 4.01 it starts dropin an keeps going to like 3.7ish .. an if i put it in new cup with 7.01 or 4.01 there both off still after calibrating..are these thing supost to be dead on?. ppm where like 1450ish after calibrating in 1500ppm solution.. after how much i payed for the thing i'd like to be able to use it. And trust it!

thanks.. killa

anybody?...

Are you rinsing & drying off the 7 solution before you dip in the 4?
Be sure to rinse the probe off before you dip into any new solution to prevent cross contamination.

You need to place the EC probe and the pH probe in the solution together. The EC probe also takes the temperature of the solution. The EC of the solution will indicate to your meter that it is calibration solution and it should actually "auto calibrate."

Mine, when set to calibration mode, will ask for the first solution. When it gets it, then it just asks me for the second solution. I don't need to tell my Hanna GroCheck combo meter "this is 7.01 calibration solution" because the meter recognizes it as such. The EC probe is a vital part of doing that.

Ensure you clean the probes before calibrating and while calibrating. A quick spritz of water will do the trick.

Then you'll want to pay close attention, and record everything, as you add your nutrients. It should be predictable every time. The water should start at one value. Xml of the first nutrient drops the pH to another value. And on and on. Watch the pH every time and this will let you know when it is important to calibrate again.

I got my meter about 3 months ago. Calibrated it once since then and it didn't need it. They stay remarkably dialed in even when used in a hydro-organic system and getting a little "slimy."

FYI, don't store or leave the probe sitting in distilled or deionized water (or rainwater) for any significant period of time...trust me, I know, I killed mine this way and had to buy a replacement probe, cost me $40. The electrode needs to be stored in a solution that contains at least SOME ions in order to continue functioning properly. I use this (http://www.amazon.com/Hanna-Instruments-Storage-Solution-Electrodes/dp/B002NX0W2I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1298172268&sr=8-1), it's made for this purpose and only a small amount is needed so one bottle will last you a lifetime.

ya i just tryed it again an rinsed it off an dryed it with paper towel in between both solutions. an when i put it in the 4.01 solution after the 7.01 it flash cal in bottom left conner like it supost to then says ok.. ph just stats droping its at 3.72 right now.. i rinsed it off an put it back in the 7.01 jus to see an it says 7.02 so im not sure what to think.. an im storing it in storage solution..

are they ever dead on? i just put it in some 1500 ppm solution an it read 1487 should i calibrate it again? or it it norm to for it to be off a lil?

Change the battery.

i just bought it a few days ago, you really think it could be batterys?
this is my first real ph/ppm meter so i dont really no what to expect, but i thought they were supost to be pretty accurate..

Sometimes the batteries come out funky. They just sit on the shelf for too long.

I'm just doing the troubleshooting process.

There's definitely something wrong. Before you return it try a new battery. I found my Hanna pH wand couldn't hold the pH when the power was low. I left it on for a few days one time and it just ran the thing down.

If it still doesn't work you can return it or contact Hanna. I had a bad pH probe come with my meter, it worked fine, but the cabling had a break and it would sometimes return a 00.00 pH and just blink. They sent me a new one promptly, for free, and gave me some insight on keeping them working well for a long time.

Hanna is a good company with great CS. I spoke with one of their engineers when I asked to. Just normal people making scientific supplies. So if the problem continues you should really contact the MFG directly and see what they say.

ok. ill try the batteries and see whats up.
you think maybe the probe could be bad? the dude at hydro store gave me almost every thing i needed when i bought it but the storing solution..
so it dryed out the first night cuz i didnt no i need it till i started messing with it..but got some the next day an i let it soak in the storing solution over night so it should be fine?..

return it or have the guy at the sore calibrate it for u......simple

thakillagreen said:

ok. ill try the batteries and see whats up.
you think maybe the probe could be bad? the dude at hydro store gave me almost every thing i needed when i bought it but the storing solution..
so it dryed out the first night cuz i didnt no i need it till i started messing with it..but got some the next day an i let it soak in the storing solution over night so it should be fine?..

Click to expand...

You'll be needing a new probe.

i did take it to store an dude calibrated it but he was being kinda retarded....do i need the lil sponge think in the cap cuz he opened it an it went flyin an i asked him if i need it an he said i dont .. he was all like its never gonna be dead on ur only off a few points an ppm is only off by like 20 or so.. he thought it was fine.. but i thought they were supost to be more accurate?

if i pour some fresh 7.01 in cup an test it should it be 7.01 if its calibrated right or are they norm off a lil like 6.99-7.03?

will this sucks. I have this meter in my cart at amazon and was just waiting for the cash to buy it. I hope you figure out what happened?

thakillagreen said:

i did take it to store an dude calibrated it but he was being kinda retarded....do i need the lil sponge think in the cap cuz he opened it an it went flyin an i asked him if i need it an he said i dont .. he was all like its never gonna be dead on ur only off a few points an ppm is only off by like 20 or so.. he thought it was fine.. but i thought they were supost to be more accurate?

if i pour some fresh 7.01 in cup an test it should it be 7.01 if its calibrated right or are they norm off a lil like 6.99-7.03?

Click to expand...

No, they're not normally off at all.

ya im kinda starting to think its the probe but the ppms are off a lil too. the probe is only ph?

thakillagreen said:

ya im kinda starting to think its the probe but the ppms are off a lil too. the probe is only ph?

Click to expand...

Dude. You need a new probe. You let it dry out, that's a no no, get a new one. Profit.

i have the same meter the 98129 and need help with calibration....

doing the two-point calibration, it recognizes the 7.01 solution but when i rinse the probe and put it in the 4.01, it just keeps blinking "CAL". it never goes to "OK"...it eventually just shuts down.

I had this problem before and saw that my probe was actually broken (the little bubble thingy) and order a new one....well the new one worked fine for about a week then started giving me screwed up PH readings. So i tried calibrating but it wont recognized the 4.01 solution?

any ideas?