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Thread: Conductivity not giving green tick for acceptable range.

  1. #1
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    Conductivity not giving green tick for acceptable range.

    I have just installed a new 2016 Apex brain (from the old Classic).
    I moved the conductivity probe across and tried the automatic calibration.
    Rinsed the probe in RODI and dried it with a paper towel.

    I get a green tick for the stable reading but the acceptable range remains red.

    Any ideas? Maybe the probe is a little old (2years)...is it worth soaking in vinegar?

  2. #2
    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Do a manual calibration and see if it gives you realistic numbers you will know immediately if the dry settling number is not somewhere near zero (mine settle at -16 and +40 for dry step and 550 and 600 for the wet step). If not, a vinegar soak may be worthwhile and or a "probe reset" (unplug probe, Do a manual calibration and just scroll through next, when you calibrate again it should be "reset").

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

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    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zombie View Post
    (mine settle at -16 and +4 for dry step).
    Are you sure? Those are not even close to typical settling values.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

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    Quote Originally Posted by RussM View Post
    Are you sure? Those are not even close to typical settling values.
    Slight typo. The built in probe on my 2016 settles at +40 (missed a zero). My used PM2 with a 2 or 3 year old probe does settle at -16 for the dry step. The wet step is around 550 and 600 for the new and old respectively in the same solution.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

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    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Conductivity not giving green tick for acceptable range.

    Ok, I thought so. . Your update contains much more realistic numbers.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

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    hello just dropped by to check this out
    my probe is old and i know i need a new one soon

    my ? is i just calibrated it and it settled around 685 it is hooked up to the new brain when i put it in the tank it is reading salt 50.2 is that right
    before with my PM2 i would get a reading around 33.5 to 35.6 please help

    thank you Russell

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    Quote Originally Posted by thebagman View Post
    hello just dropped by to check this out
    my probe is old and i know i need a new one soon

    my ? is i just calibrated it and it settled around 685 it is hooked up to the new brain when i put it in the tank it is reading salt 50.2 is that right
    before with my PM2 i would get a reading around 33.5 to 35.6 please help

    thank you Russell
    Did you make sure that the calibration fluid matched tank temp when it settled? If not, that could be part of why the reading is so high.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

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    yes i did i let it set in the sump for about 1/2 hour but i did not see the temp compensation thing on the new brain, i let it dry out both times before i did anything

    when i calibrated it on the new brain i got an error that it did not calibrate correctly, so i used my last 53000 and did it through my display and the above is what i got.

    right now i am out of the 53000 and i am getting some soon and i may get a new probe also.

    so when i do all that what is the right way to calibrate this to the new brain.

    is there a video on the right way to do this on the new brain.

    thanks for your help i am ordering a new probe and some more 53000 i am getting 4 packs of the stuff

    thank you Russell

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    Quote Originally Posted by thebagman View Post
    yes i did i let it set in the sump for about 1/2 hour but i did not see the temp compensation thing on the new brain, i let it dry out both times before i did anything

    when i calibrated it on the new brain i got an error that it did not calibrate correctly, so i used my last 53000 and did it through my display and the above is what i got.

    right now i am out of the 53000 and i am getting some soon and i may get a new probe also.

    so when i do all that what is the right way to calibrate this to the new brain.

    is there a video on the right way to do this on the new brain.

    thanks for your help i am ordering a new probe and some more 53000 i am getting 4 packs of the stuff

    thank you Russell
    I actually make my own in a pinch with table salt. The recipe is 3.26g of mortons sea salt, and then add RODI until the total weight is 100g. You can also just stick it in the tank for the wet step to get a relative measurement until more comes in.

    If yours is that out of whack, then unplug It, run a manual calibration with it unplugged, then plug it back in and do a proper calibration.

    My procedure is this.

    1. Float packet in tank for 30 min.

    2. Rinse probe in RODI and pad dry with paper towel. Finish dry step when the number settles in about 1 minute.

    3. Cut corner of packet just big enough to fit probe in. Place probe inside and work out any air bubbles. Use two magnets, veggie clip, etc to hold packet so it touches tank water but doesn't spill.

    4. Leave to settle for 5 minutes, give it a quick shake and press complete. Save calibration packet in case it didn't calibrate right.

    5. Place probe in tank and verify results against a calibrated refractometer. If it's within 2ppt of the refractometer I trust the probe. If not, I verify that the packet is correct (should read 32-33ppt against a calibrated refractometer. I have gotten bad packets a couple times that read 25). If it is and the reading isn't right in the tank, I repeat steps 1-4.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

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    I tried the probe reset and a manual calibration. I gave the probe a vinegar bath and tried the manual calibration.The dry was sitting at 791 so I guess my probe is dead?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Batty View Post
    I tried the probe reset and a manual calibration. I gave the probe a vinegar bath and tried the manual calibration.The dry was sitting at 791 so I guess my probe is dead?
    That is a very good possibility. I would try blowing out the connector and the port on the apex with some air duster in case there is something on there causing a short. That high of a reading would indicate to me that there is a temporary short due to salt, debris, etc on the connector that can be fixed or a permanent short inside the probe itself, which means it's dead.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

  12. #12
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Just reboot the Apex and then try again.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

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    I rebooted and did a manual calibration....34.9 now

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    Quote Originally Posted by Batty View Post
    I tried the probe reset and a manual calibration. I gave the probe a vinegar bath and tried the manual calibration.The dry was sitting at 791 so I guess my probe is dead?
    Hi Sorry to hijack the thread but I got a new apex 2016 setup and have similar problems. My dry reads 775 it starts of at -3 then jumps to 775 and stays there. My wet gets to about 470 and I get a reading of 30.2 from the calibration fluids.

    had it for around 3 weeks now and it is doing my head in.

    Andy

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    Quote Originally Posted by RussM View Post
    Just reboot the Apex and then try again.
    Thank you! I tried to calibrate for 2 hours today and found this, rebooted the Apex and it worked right away!

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