Alternative reagent for Alk monitor, KH Director and prob others

dragon99 · Sep 17, 2018

I've been running this for about 6 weeks in my KH Director. Straight swap from the GHL reagent to this, no changes, no recalibration.

I got that idea that maybe these alkalinity monitors were just an automation of Randy's DIY alk testing. So I ran through the test using the GHL reagent, and sure enough came out with the same (nearly) alk reading. So I went ahead and ordered some .1N acid off Amazon and lo and behold, perfect readings, at HALF the cost.

If you really want to stock up, there are 4L and larger options on Amazon of .1N acids would fit the bill.

chipmunkofdoom2 · Sep 18, 2018

dragon99 said:
I've been running this for about 6 weeks in my KH Director. Straight swap from the GHL reagent to this, no changes, no recalibration.

I got that idea that maybe these alkalinity monitors were just an automation of Randy's DIY alk testing. So I ran through the test using the GHL reagent, and sure enough came out with the same (nearly) alk reading. So I went ahead and ordered some .1N acid off Amazon and lo and behold, perfect readings, at HALF the cost.

If you really want to stock up, there are 4L and larger options on Amazon of .1N acids would fit the bill.

Interesting, thanks for sharing this. You're right, most of the tests we have for carbonate alkalinity just involve adding an acid of a known strength to a sample of seawater until the pH reaches 4.5. Some devices measure the endpoint using a colorimeter to measure the color of a dye, while others measure the pH directly. But that's probably still the most reliable way we have to test alkalinity these days

powdertang05 · Jul 13, 2019

dragon99 said:
I've been running this for about 6 weeks in my KH Director. Straight swap from the GHL reagent to this, no changes, no recalibration.

I got that idea that maybe these alkalinity monitors were just an automation of Randy's DIY alk testing. So I ran through the test using the GHL reagent, and sure enough came out with the same (nearly) alk reading. So I went ahead and ordered some .1N acid off Amazon and lo and behold, perfect readings, at HALF the cost.

If you really want to stock up, there are 4L and larger options on Amazon of .1N acids would fit the bill.

Are you still using this solution vs the reagent? Any issues?

dragon99 · Jul 13, 2019

I'm actually back on the GHL reagent because I have some of that left. I used a 1L bottle of the Amazon acid and then switched back. I had no issues and plan to go back to it when I run out of GHL reagent.

bhuyett · Jul 13, 2019

Interesting, so it doesn't matter if it is Hydrochloric, Nitric, or Sulfuric Acid since they are all .1N Acids?

road_runner · Jul 13, 2019

Both khd and khg will run DYI reagent successfully.
All what these testers so is calculate start ph point and end of point of a water sample while adding reagent. Ince end ph point reaches, the ammount of reagent added will calculate kh.
As long as the tester allow you to add a fixed delta point to your meaustment, you can use any acidic rodi(reagent) all you need to do is test one time.uaing the new reagent, see the kh, adjust the reading compared to a trusted tester(salifert) and done. As long ad the prepared reagent do not change its acidity over time, your results will be consistent.
I still use the khg reagent cause I purchased a year supply. Each package last me 2 solid months. Reagent is cheap.
But DIY reagent is solid approach ad well.

smartwater101 · Sep 6, 2019

This is essentially what you're using, yes? (The 1L you linked isn't in stock at the moment.)

Also, do you send the waste back into the tank? Sounds like many people do (I do with my Alkatronic) From what I understand, only thing to worry about (if anything really) would be pH fluctuations....

dragon99 · Sep 6, 2019

smartwater101 said:
This is essentially what you're using, yes? (The 1L you linked isn't in stock at the moment.)

Also, do you send the waste back into the tank? Sounds like many people do (I do with my Alkatronic) From what I understand, only thing to worry about (if anything really) would be pH fluctuations....

That's the stuff. I never got around to re-routing the waste line. I only have to empty the waste container every 3 weeks so I've just let it run.

smartwater101 · Sep 7, 2019

dragon99 said:
That's the stuff. I never got around to re-routing the waste line. I only have to empty the waste container every 3 weeks so I've just let it run.

How much waste is there per test? You say every three weeks. How many times per day do you test?

thx for the help btw

dragon99 · Sep 7, 2019

I'm testing twice per day, with the default sample size which I think is 80ml. The container is 4L, so 42 tests filling the container every 21 days (though it's never completely full) gives ~95ml waste per test.

CEReefer · Oct 23, 2019

dragon99 said:
I'm testing twice per day, with the default sample size which I think is 80ml. The container is 4L, so 42 tests filling the container every 21 days (though it's never completely full) gives ~95ml waste per test.

Do you still use the hydrochloric acid? Is it everything ok? Is the accuracy the same?

dragon99 · Oct 23, 2019

I'm back to using GHL reagent at the moment, I think I have 1 more bottle. I didn't see any change going between GHL reagent and standard .1N acid.

TheGulag · Dec 9, 2019

Thanks for the info on this. Just picked up the kh Director and plan to try and use this option after going through the first bottle that came with the package.

CEReefer · Dec 9, 2019

For what it’s worth, I bought my KHD used, had half a bottle of reagent, once done with it I switched to the 0.1m HCL as mentioned here, and works perfectly fine. Same results, and still constantly reading 0.4 dKh less than hanna checkers (but as long as it is consistent and within range the actual value being different it may not mean anything)

Yanos · Dec 9, 2019

Is this the product you are guys on about?

dragon99 · Dec 9, 2019

Yanos said:
Is this the product you are guys on about?

picture is a little blurry, but as long as it's "0.1 N" acid that will work.

esther · Dec 9, 2019

dragon99 said:
I've been running this for about 6 weeks in my KH Director. Straight swap from the GHL reagent to this, no changes, no recalibration.

I got that idea that maybe these alkalinity monitors were just an automation of Randy's DIY alk testing. So I ran through the test using the GHL reagent, and sure enough came out with the same (nearly) alk reading. So I went ahead and ordered some .1N acid off Amazon and lo and behold, perfect readings, at HALF the cost.

If you really want to stock up, there are 4L and larger options on Amazon of .1N acids would fit the bill.