Glass or Plastic Hydrometers?

I may not be into reefs (yet) but I would agree with the above posts, DO NOT CUT CORNERS. I have tried in so many ways and it doesn't work. And this is freshwater, I can't imagine what would happen in SW.

I urge you, if your tank is not setup, do not continue without the proper equipment. It is reckless and dangerous.
 
I'm not sure I'd call it "reckless" or "dangerous" to not want to spend the extra money on something that is highly accurate vs. something that is moderately accurate.

But there is a rub - and that is the simple fact that you will eventually get frustrated with the less accurate product and opt for the better one. You end up spending more money that way. Same thing I tell people who want to buy student model musical instruments. Better to just start with the good stuff.
 
i used all 3, the plastic one was wildly inaccurate, the glass one is hard to read to say the least i mean where do you measure at the visible level or where the water rides up the shaft a bit? Both these style meters were way off for me so i got a refractometer and it's worth every cent, major understatement. Also, having been someone that tried to do sw on the cheap I learned that realistically it's is NOT a good option. I ended up buckling down and upgrading to a nice setup which unfortunately wasn't cheap, had I not had the money for this then I would have quickly backed out of the hobby. What size is your tank, do you have a sump/refugium/skimmer etc? Do you have a quarantine tank.. the list goes on. Do it right :)
 
As we don't have much senses to judge the water parameters we rely much on instruments to measure them. The same as with electricity.

That counts more for beginners as with the time you may be able to see much from the behaviour of the livestock what water parameters your tank could have.

Many people can go lucky like Mr. Magoo but I feel better with instruments and test kits even if those can be misleading, too.

If you can't spend much money on that I would go the already suggested route and try to get your water tested elsewhere. LFS or fellow aquarists.

In the long run quite cumbersome and maybe more expensive, but for the moment the best way.
 
re: inaccuracy in hydrometers... They may be inaccurate, but they're as easy as all get-out to check/calibrate if you have access to a 100mL voumetric flask, some RO/DI water and a good balance. Just dry some salt (bake it for a few minutes), weigh 3.000g into a tared 100mL vol. flask, dissolve and fill to the mark w/ RO/DI, mix and check w/ your hydrometer. If it's off, put a mark on it - that's 1.030 for whatever temp it all happened to be at when you checked it (it would probably be a very good idea to float a sealed vessel of RO/DI in your tank before diluting your salt so that your reading is at your tank's typical temp.).

If you want it calibrated at a number other than 1.030, use more or less salt.
 
my issue with the hydrometer was 2-fold.
One, the inacuracy, but two...constantly fighting the airbubbles to actually get a good reading. That is why I picked up a refractometer.
 
True, but which is more important? That my water is pure? Or my SG isn't .002 off? Especially with Squawkbert's calibration technique and the suggestion to test against the LFS refractometer, I think I'm better off putting that money towards pure water.
 
I'm not suggsting you shouldn't get RO/DI water via your own unit or buying it from a store or local reefer. I am stating that SG is part of good water parameters. The same is true for having balanced Alk and Ca. etc. and neither of those are done via the RO/DI. It isn't a case of one or the other. Prioritizing the buys such as Squawk suggested is a good idea, but if you sincerely do believe that water quality is important (and I think you'll do) you'll not negate the importance of SG.
 
Oh all right. Sorry if that came off wrong.

And for those that have glass hydrometers, do I just let it float and see where the water line is?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom