I am getting a VERY low reading on my ORP... 75. I am pretty sure it is way off as I think my tank would be looking pretty rough if it was actually that low and everyone seems happy and healthy. Anyway, I want to try calibration before trying a new probe but not sure where I to find quinhydrone. Any place locally that would have this stuff? Next question, anybody near me (Alpharetta) got a portable ORP setup so I can see how off I am? What number would straight RO/DI water put out?
ORP Questions
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It monitors the Redox.
ORP = Acronym for Oxidation Reduction Potential, also called redox as Maroons15 pointed out. I have no idea what rodi water should read though. I know they sell calibration solutions, but I've also read you are better off mixing your own, because of shelf life issues.
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Its ok, I don't know what it is either. But Point for meee!!!!
Cameron,
I have a Red Sea ozonizer you can borrow, it also functions as a ORP monitor/controller. I bought it used, so I have no idea if the probe is any good. But with two probes and two monitors you can do some swapping back and forth for troubleshooting purposes. PM me if you are interested.
Cheers,
Chuck
I have a Red Sea ozonizer you can borrow, it also functions as a ORP monitor/controller. I bought it used, so I have no idea if the probe is any good. But with two probes and two monitors you can do some swapping back and forth for troubleshooting purposes. PM me if you are interested.
Cheers,
Chuck
washowi;35889 wrote: No way heck I can help, I don't even know what you guys are talking about here. Sorry for prying in where I really don't belong..
I am afraid to ask what is Redox? I really have to step into 2007....
Prying, what's prying? This is a public forum!
I'm a complete noob, but from what I've read I don't think there is even a definitive consensus among experts on how important ORP is, or what the ideal ORP reading (measured in millivolts) should be. But, if you are using ozone, (as I plan to do if my new tank ever gets together), you can monitor ORP to make sure you are not over dosing, which can be harmful, ozone is toxic.
Not that it's necessarily saying alot, but I had no idea what ORP is either. On a fairly related subject, is everyone else's RO/DI water naturally high pH right out of the tap, or is it just mine?
hmm... I had the same issue--plugged in a probe that was lightly used (though sent to me in solution) and got a reading of 90. But the instructions said the probe was pre-calibrated so I just figured that's what the reading was... So now that my Ozone generator is running, it's reading around 350. I hope to God I'm not overdosing due to a bad probe! maybe I'll just order a new one....
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ORP probes frequently and easily $hit the bed, so I'm guessing the probe just went bad. A recently used toilet has an ORP of 75.
Dont get to hung up on ORP readings. I have a Ozonizer with an ORP controller built in it, but I never even look at it anymore. You can tell when thiong are kooky by looking at your animals. I would put a piece of lectrical tape over the digital screen, but it makes the system look so much cooler to non-reefers!:thumbs:
Dont get to hung up on ORP readings. I have a Ozonizer with an ORP controller built in it, but I never even look at it anymore. You can tell when thiong are kooky by looking at your animals. I would put a piece of lectrical tape over the digital screen, but it makes the system look so much cooler to non-reefers!:thumbs:
I did not get a TDS meter, and a friend who was supposed to loan me his never did remember to bring it by. I'm planning on taking some water samples from both my tank and direct from the RO/DI to a store either today or tomorrow to be tested. The water direct out of the RO/DI seems to be coming out around 8.6+ pH Down was terribly difficult to find (I had to check 5 or 6 stores before I found any) and right now I haven't really been able to affect the pH in the tank as I'm also fighting high alkalinity :/
Sorry if I hijacked the thread; I'll definitely get the fresh water tested to see if I cna find out what the story is... Stupid Fulton County water...
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without getting too snooty- ORP measures the "cleanliness" of the water by measuring its ability to oxidize or reduce. Oxidation is the process of losing an electron, and Reduction is gaining an electron. Ozone is "unstable" as such, which makes it a marvelous oxidizer. So, when you add ozone, it oxidizes the amterial it touches, which effectively "cleans" it. That is just the simple explanation- it gets much deeper and more convoluted.
As I stated earlier, though, dont get caught up on a number. My tank happens to run 350-400 mv. But, if it dips, I dont do anything at all. Just fiollow a regular maintennace program abnd you'll be fine. However, when I was behind the scenes at the GA Aquarium, I happened to notice an ORP monitor that said 570!!! That ORP would surely kill everything in our tank, but in a marine mammal tank where bacteria can be a huge problem, such an ORP is mandated.
As I stated earlier, though, dont get caught up on a number. My tank happens to run 350-400 mv. But, if it dips, I dont do anything at all. Just fiollow a regular maintennace program abnd you'll be fine. However, when I was behind the scenes at the GA Aquarium, I happened to notice an ORP monitor that said 570!!! That ORP would surely kill everything in our tank, but in a marine mammal tank where bacteria can be a huge problem, such an ORP is mandated.
I was just wanting to get a healthy number to give me an indicator when something might be off such as a skimmer running down or a dead fish in the water somewhere. I was greatly disappointed when it popped up a number in the 70s because I am quite sure my ORP is well above that. Next up was calibrating the sucker, but that requires quinhydrone and I got no idea where that stuff can be found.
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I would guarantee your ORP is not that low. Our aquarium usually run from 250-400+. I wouldnt go above 450, but like I said, I dont really look at the ORP numbers very much.
Like George says, MD has calibration fluid. What reader are you using?
AC3 is kicking back a bad number. I think it is the probe, but before I replace it I wanted to be sure. Hoping someone around me might have an ORP monitor so I could test the probe on the unit and vice-versa or create some calibration fluid and see how that goes.
One other thing: Has it been in the water a while? I know my new ones read very low when I first install them, but come up in a few days.
FWIW, I use ORP mostly to kind of monitor general heath... A major drop without a good reason (messing with the skimmer, water change, messing with the refugium, etc) I have found often means something has died, in my experience. I have had two probes on my system at one time, and they read 100 off from each other most of the time. Only difference is that one is in the sump and one in the display. It has never been that low, however.
I dose Ozone, and my original tank/sump volume made a controller pretty important. Over the years, it (the total volume) has gone up from about 60 gallons total to about 240 (sump and all), and the impact is such now that I don't really worry about that any more. I can run it flat out and not get it too high. Does kill any plastic it goes through, however, eventually.
Neptune recently did a change on their AC3Pro's (at least) that removed the temperature compensation. In my case, that dropped the reading by about 100. Curt said he did that because most probes/controllers are not temperature compensating, and it was causing a lot of confusion by folks with both. Don't know if the AC3 did the same (it was a firmware update late last year).
I could loan you a probe, however I am kind of a long way away..
-Mike
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