FloridaReefer Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Anybody have experience with this floating hydrometer or know if these are precise? http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~act...es~vendor~.html Link to comment
Nitro350Z Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 no. I used to have one when I started, It can be amazingly wrong. Just spend the money and get a refractometer, it'll make a big impact in the long run. You can pick one up for ~$50 in some places. Link to comment
Scott Riemer Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Precise and accurate are two different things. I would use one of those before using a swing arm hydrometer. But I would still want to know if it was accurate by calibrating with a properly calibrated refractometer or pinpoint salinity meter. Personally, I recommend a refractometer. Link to comment
NanoReefNovice Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Dont buy that cheezy hydrometer, buy a good quality scientfic one that is specific to the range you are looking for. You may want to see if there a good homebrew shop nearby that you can pick one up from, or just order from MoreBeer.com or a scientif supply store. A good quality float hydrometer will be more percise then a refrac anyday. But its hard to beat the convience of a refrac. Either way it is up to you to be accurate, with consistent measuring technique. Link to comment
Kraylen Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 I use a floater sometimes. Link to comment
nanoty Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 I am a floater sometimes. Link to comment
glennr1978 Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 judges.......... good, but not epic. Link to comment
thecowkid Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 kray stay away from the floaters esp if your in the kids section of the pool. I use one and love it. You have to keep it clean or the additional weight will throw the results off Link to comment
nanoty Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 judges.......... good, but not epic. I'm saving my epic one..... Link to comment
Kraylen Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Remember that old commerical with the snickers floater in the pool? It hits that one ladys shoulder haha Link to comment
nanoty Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Only on NR could a thread about hydrometers end up being a discussion about turds. Link to comment
thecowkid Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 what else do we have to do? Our tanks are fully automated so .... Now you have me craving one of those dark choclate snickers. Dang you Kray Link to comment
FloridaReefer Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 I figured as much on the floater, anybody find a good deal on a refrac online? Link to comment
SmittyCoco Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Only on NR could a thread about hydrometers end up being a discussion about turds. So if no one else is going to take this I must ! The epicness just arrived. Link to comment
BKtomodachi Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 I figured as much on the floater, anybody find a good deal on a refrac online? http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod...cfm?pcatid=9957 Sometimes there are $5 off coupons floating around also. Link to comment
nanoty Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod...cfm?pcatid=9957 Sometimes there are $5 off coupons floating around also. I have that one and it works well enough for me. Link to comment
andrew.ars Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 You can purchase a hydrometer accurate to .001 sg from fisher scientific for about 60 dollars that would be more accurate and never needed to be calibrated if handled and cleaned properly. Link to comment
Cytosol Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Refractometer all the way. I used to use these glass floaters until one broke and sent little lead balls deep into my sand bed. I had to tear apart the entire tank to get rid of those. Also, you pretty much need to turn off your water flow every time you use them, since powerheads will send these flying around your tank and making it very difficult to read. I think they are accurate enough, but you can get a refractometer for under $40 on ebay, so it is a no brainer. Link to comment
andrew.ars Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 using a glass hydrometer correctly is very very very very important it should be cleaned after each use in di water dried and stored in a box to test, tank water should be put into a container that fits the hydrometer \\\\ not the tank\\\\ after the test the container should be cleaned with water then rinsed with di/ro water then dried before next test Link to comment
FloridaReefer Posted January 12, 2009 Author Share Posted January 12, 2009 Thanks for all the advice everyone, already ordered a refrac with calibration fluid from DFS. Link to comment
racefan Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 I'm going to show my ignorance on refractors here.Is this a decent one? http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Salinity-Refractom...93%3A1|294%3A50 Link to comment
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