Refractometer

[balistidae]

i prefer judging salinity by taste

 

[elan]

i purchased a refractometer for one simple reason... accuracy for a QT tank...
When i am going to QT my fish, i will use the Hyposalinity method to rid them of ich.... (do a search in desease forum)...
basically, you have to keep the water at 1.009.... if it goes higher, the hyposalinty will not work.. if it goes below... the fish may die..........
so, if using a swing arm, a reading somewhere between 1.008 and 1.010 just wont cut it....
whereas in a main tank, a reading of 1.024 to 1.026 will work just fine......
so.. its all a matter of preference.. some choose to set up a QT tank and not mess up their main tank... some are just so anal, they need to know exactly.....and others just like to experiment.

 

[elan]

Originally posted by Balistidae
i prefer judging salinity by taste

LOL... good one.

 

[infalable]

Hey serpentin5 I tried emailing you, but came back udeliverable. Can you forward the refractometer inf to: Blairf@ameritech.net. thanks. i am grateful.

 

[serpentine5]

Infalable,
Youve got mail.

 

[firefishspike]

I have two re fracs costing 200 each but it's for my work usage, at home I just use good ol deep six or when my fish starts floating that means it's toooo high

 

[ophiura]

Originally posted by Infalable
How often do you calibrate? If it is only once in a while then it would be about $20 cheaper.
IMO, it should be calibrated before every use...and it should be used often. Salinity should be checked quite often, IMO. If you don't want to do a calibration before each use, then there is no real point in buying one, because they can be off just as much as any cheaper model hydrometer. The key to having equipment like a refractometer is to use it as accurately as possible, and that means zeroing it before every use....even if it is just checking that it has stayed at zero.
I think you can 'get by' without one, but it is a pretty darn good piece of equipment to invest in for something that is pretty darn important. Also, if using a swing arm, remember to clean those out (they can be soaked in white vinegar) to remove any buildup that might cause errors in reading.

 

[infalable]

Thats a good point. I was more concerned about ease of use. I should be concentating on accuracy. Thanks for the tip.

 

[elan]

yes, i check my refractometer every so often... never have had to reset it...

 

[timsedwards]

Hi there,
Nice to see some intelligent discussion, until the tasting post, lol.
Refractometers are very good and if they are the right price, go for it. BUT, if you are new to the hobby or money is tight, you can certainly live without one. A good quality glass hydrometer is normally adequate.
Just a note, as you will see in the Disease forum, i see a lot of you are concerned with the accuracy of the the salinity. If you are, why are you measuring SG and not the ppt? Also to measure salinity without the temperature can be a little misleading.
Please read this article and this will help:
http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/a.../1/default.asp
All the best,
Tim.

 

[infalable]

Thanks for the link. I printed it out to use as a reference and for others to read.

 

[elan]

Great link... !!!!... seeing how much the salinity changes with temperature really makes me happy i invested in an ATC refractometer... its just one less thing i have to worry about... now i just need to raise my salinity to the corals optimal level.. and i will even raise my temperature up too...