Refractometer.

revoran

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I recently aquired a refractometer, that was not orginally made for the aquarius. It is a Westward Battery/Antifreeze refractometer brand new out of the box. Is there any kind of conversion or anything I can use to check my salanity?
 
it has bunch of stuff..... measures ethlyne and glycol and water temp and something to do with battery acid i beleive
 
Since it will definitely NOT be labeled with salinity (which is commonly used), what you want to see is specific gravity. That will be a number which, rather than PPM (parts per million) you will see as 1.xxxx, giving the specific gravity as compared to a constant (which I'm pretty sure is water). In other words the tested liquid is 1.xxx times the SG of water.
You will need the range measured to include at least 1.020 to 1.030, since the target here is 1.024-1.026.

I'm concerned that since it is meant to measure something else entirely, that it will have a usable range that differs from what we need here.

I've been wrenching on vehicles for some time, and I've never seen a refractometer used in this regard. Are you sure it's not a hydrometer?

A refractometer has a lens where the liquid is placed and you look through the instrument like a telescope, and you see a scale with a line that marks your reading. A hydrometer is a container with either an arm that floats to point to a mark, or a number of balls that float.
 
thats the exact one man I wish i could get a picture and show u :P it doesnt have a 1.020, but it does have a 1.20 - 1.40
 
No, it wont work. Refractometers are calibrated to measure certain types of liquids. For example there are medical ones used for biologics, mechanicals ones as you have, and hobbyists one. Point in fact, the ones we used for aquariums arent even calibrated for sea water!! Regardless, it does not have the correct slope and calibration for salt water. Sorry.
 
DOH! good thing i didnt pay anything for it! It sure was worth a shot though.
 
I used to use those when I worked in automotive. It will definately not work for SW. Like ares said, a new one is cheap enough to not worry about it.
 
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