Bluelab Discuss General Maintenance & Good Practice With Equipment

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Your pH measuring device is an investment into the success of your crop production, but it is a fragile piece of scientific equipment. By keeping a few simple habits, you could extend the lifetime of your probe. The lifetime of the probe is determined and affected by the number of pH measurements you take,

and the age of the probe. Due to the nature of the glass bulb, the probes will eventually fail through normal use.

It is also determined by contamination from the type of solution you are measuring. Contamination can come from touching the probe glass with fingers, the presence of oils, proteins or suspended solids that could coat the probe, and different temperatures of the solutions. A large temperature change, such as putting a cold probe into a hot liquid, can break the glassware. The glassware is designed to stay wet and must be kept this way for optimal performance, and this can be extended by keeping your probe clean through rinsing it after use, with fresh running water and (depending on the amount of use) cleaning the glass bulb as per the instructions.

Like your equipment for measuring the pH, your electrical conductivity meter must also be cared for, cleaned and regularly calibrated to extend its lifetime and ensure maximum accuracy. Conductivity (EC/CF) probes require cleaning at least once a month. This removes the build up from nutrient salts, ensuring better accuracy with your readings. Always test the probe in a known solution after cleaning – such as Bluelab 2.77EC Conductivity Standard Solution.

Conductivity probes that give low readings consistently need cleaning. The shroud on the conductivity probe must always stay on the probe tip – except when cleaning, or the readings will be incorrect. Avoid touching the probe face with your fingers – the oil from your skin will contaminate the probe. Rinse the probe head in fresh tap water after each use – to reduce nutrient build up. Care instructions come with the product – please follow them.

For more information on soil pH testers NZ, soil pH meters and pH meters NZ please go to http://www.getbluelab.com/   https://www.bluelab.com/home .