Ph test meters for soil recommendation

[Jr420]

Hi everyone, starting first grow next week and was wondering what ph testing products people are using. Will be growing in soil using fox farm ocean forest and happy frog mix.

seems like the options are test strips , drops, digital meters.

Prefer digital meter bc it seems the easiest but have heard some bad things online.

Any advice?

[tyler_ hobbyist]

Fox farm soil is very hot mean( extreamly full of nutes) use a good ratio of perlite 1/3 or higher. But back on topic any digital ph scale is the way to go but becareful not to break the glass bulb as they are very thin and just taping against something can break em. The plus side there cheap 15$. You will also want a soil ph meter, yes 2different meters and no they dnt interchange. Liquid for liquid and soil for soil only. I personaly use hydro farms 3way meter works great and is cheap the meter reads light/ph/moisture. And for a liquid ph meter any cheap on works just make sure u have buffer solution to calibrate with unless u have the screw type of calibrating then u can use water or something u know is the right ph

[9fingerleafs]

yes i agree, white apple vinegar and cocacola both have a ph of 2.4

[yamiacaveman]

Well I started with drops, and really that worked fine for me and i think they are relatively inexpensive. I switched to a Bluelab PH pen, and I like it better than the drops because I actually get numbers and not just a range of --
You need to follow the directions on how to set it up - store it and recalibrate it -- Not a very hard procedure at all but necessary.

No I have only had it about three weeks now but again so far it's nice and as soon as I am done here, I will be using it again.

So cost, shop around -- once again cost is relative?

I would also recommend looking for and buying a solution kit with it. It comes with small packets to get setup, but you will need more to continue using the meter. You can find kits with -- I believe there is a PH 7 solution and a Ph 4 solution for calibration, and then a smaller bottle of some type of storage solution.

All and all happy with it and so far no problems, but I do follow the recommendations that come with the pen.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

Try ebay and amazon that's were I get mosta my stuff for cheap

[9fingerleafs]

like everyone said its going to depend on the kind of person you are and what you want, digital meters are very accurate but sometimes expensive and require lots of maintenance, drops and strips are easier but you dont get an exact number, id say if you are willing to buy all the necessary solutions and you going to take excellent care of it buy a good digital one, if you lack the discipline and you just want to get over this ph thing and focus on numerous other things in your grow room then get some "saliva ph strips" on amazon. just cut a little piece of it and drop in the water and the color will change

[Jr420]

Thanks for all the info everyone it's exactly the info I needed.

[Canuck147]

Blue lab pH meter I have, I also have paper for back-up and they are called 'litmus' paper.

[fozzy]

Just make sure you get a good one. Its probably the most important tool you will have. I just picked up an Apera Instruments PH60 after buying several cheap ones. After dropping one in the water I learned that a water proof one is essential. Multi point calibration is a must too. I always use to calibrate mine at 7.0, and found out that my "best" cheap meter was wrong on the low end. Which lead to many problems. And many more benefits. You can pick one up on amazon.

[GreenArmadillo]

Wow, that's some great info. Especially what you said fozzy .Makes me definitely want to buy an expensive ph meter for my next grow. Guess cheap ones won't cut it in the end. Still, my cheap-ass ph meter is doing me well for now, so let's be thankful.


PS. I also found a rapitest soil pH testing kit in the ACE hardware shop here. They have a little compartment within a tiny plastic box with a colour chart, and 5 capsules filled with powder. You mix up a small amount of soil with water, add the powder from a capsule, shake, and then read the soil pH according to the colour chart. Seemed pretty legit for reading the soil.

[Harvey Harvester]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oakton-EcoTe...QAAOSw-0xYONpx

Hi everyone, starting first grow next week and was wondering what ph testing products people are using. Will be growing in soil using fox farm ocean forest and happy frog mix.

seems like the options are test strips , drops, digital meters.

Prefer digital meter bc it seems the easiest but have heard some bad things online.

Any advice?

High!
I went through three of those 10-$15 pens before i finally broke down and bought a good one.
No calibration fluids required since it is simple to reset to factory calibration, it is waterproof and i like it!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oakton-EcoTe...QAAOSw-0xYONpx