Electronic system.

mcdanielnc89

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Aug 1, 2007
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Kansas City, MO, USA
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Nate
Is there an electronic device out there that records the Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, pH, Co2 stuff and all of that in one if posible, if not then individually..

Any answers are greatly appreciated!
 
Not that I know of! But tell me if you find one!!! It will probably be really expensive
 
http://www.pulseinstruments.net/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=3521http://www.lamotte.com/pages/common/newprod/smart2.html
Requires a reactant tab to for most test.
http://secure.sciencecompany.com/Hanna-pH-Meter-Checker-HI98103-HI-98103-P16315C679.aspx

You can also find a digital meter for all of these. They typically cost around $200 a piece.

Search for anything you want to test for with "meter" and maybe "digital" if you can't find what you want.j

Or you could save your money on meters and just buy more tanks.
 
Is there an electronic device out there that records the Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, pH, Co2 stuff and all of that in one if posible, if not then individually..

Any answers are greatly appreciated!

Ion selective electrodes will do the trick. This is the one of the standard approved water test methods for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, as well as whole lot of other parameters. Just search the web for ion selective electrode or ISE ammonia and you will see what it is available. And yes, they are expensive, typical about $200-300 for the probe plus another $300-500 for the recorder unit. A multi channel recorder to record all the parameters at once is available as well but would be somewhere around triple the cost of a single channel unit.

A complete set up to read just those four parameters listed above would be somewhere between $1000 and $1500. Plus, you will also need calibration solutions for each probes and they typically have to be calibrated before each use unless you keep the probes hooked up to the recorder and standing in a beaker of a buffer solution.

Also keep in mind these work just like the standard liquid test kits in terms of use. You dip the electrode into a sample of water. The difference is you get an immediate reading on your concentrations that is more accurate without having to wait five minutes. On the flip side though, is before the development of these electrodes, the same set of reagent present in the liquid test kits was the standard for lab use, and is still approved.

Now, if you want a continuous monitor system to give full time, real time data, then add some serious money to the cost!

An API test kit for ammonia costs about $8 or so......an ISE set up around $500......you can buy a lot of test kits for $500. :)

As others have said, it is pricey but it can be done.

John
 

Most of the meters listed here are basic pH and conductivity meters. The Lamotte kit is spectrophotometer, which use the exact same reagents as in the API kits (ie, salicylate reduction for NH3, diazo reduction for nitrite), you are just getting an instrument to read out your results for you.

Here is complete kit to do all of the OP's original parameters:

http://www.pollardwater.com/pages_product/OrionNitriteISEKit.asp

Yikes on the prices though!!

John
 
Once the tanks are up and established, and you are comfortable with your feeding and maintenance routine, there isn't a real need to test frequently.
 
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