Trident ALK reading concern

[robbyg]

MS is out of business. Neptune is in business.

MS is not out of business yet and there are those people who still have a supply of disks. We won't know were the MS will end up until SAI decides to take up an offer instead of waiting for larger bids.

Unless you have used a trident, and I know you are going with GHL (hope it works out for you), you should probably stop bashing it or saying things like taking results or claim of accuracy with a grain of salt. Unless you have first hand experience of using one.

I have been operating SW aquariums for 36 years now and I am still working as an Electronic Engineer. I design stuff for a living and I can smell BS in specs a mile away. You think when that Trident is reading your ALK at 8.50 that the true reading is between 8.45 and 8.55 dKH? You really believe it is within .05dKH of the real value?
That would be amazing since the ICP testing companies readings seem to be out by my one whole order of magnitude of error higher at .5 dKH in that video.
All I am saying is that if they are going to make extraordinary claims like that then they need to back it up with some proof, just like SAI did when they showed their readings against $20,000 Marine Grade Monitoring devices. Until then I just don't believe it is even close to that specification.

You are 100% in price shouldn't indicate accuracy. Not sure I'd agree with one persons reading accurately not all of them will. They are calibrated and/or have some last minute checks at the factory before shipping out. Hobbyist calibrates after a few days because it will be installed differently and probably a few other things unknown to me. After using mine for a while now I do believe sample line location and the surrounding husbandry could come into play. Dirt, debris, micro bubbles, etc. Probes and discs may face similar issues but it sounded like MS used brushes or something I think you said - so there is that. Draw line won't have that obviously.

That was worded poorly on my part. I meant to say that he may have a defective unit and his readings are probably due to that. As for your other point. All of these devices have their issues. I know more about the trident than you might suspect. I think when people start getting repair kits and start pulling out those Cuvette's it might not be what they expected. Also dosing pumps are prone to grit and dirt causing amounts pumped to drift as the tubes cannot always be pinched off completely. Not a big deal in normal volumes pushed, but in these tiny amounts it can lead to big errors in the final readings.

In any case - plenty of data on the web with regards to the Trident if someone is interesting in buying one. I will say though that out of all of the various automation testing solutions MS was the only one who didn't need or use calibration, reference fluid, or reagent...

I would love to see a video shoot out of the Trident versus a couple of ICP testing companies. I have yet to come across one.

Edit: Forgot to say you are spot on with regards to ICP tests. The one article by @Thales comes to mind - it is really good and the follow up discussion on it. See, we don't always disagree

Thanks. I have no problems with a Civil back and forth on any subject. By nature I am just a very skeptical guy when it comes to company claims. I have personally seen how companies tend to make claims based on data that is dubious at best. As for GHL I have done my homework. Ion probes do work with a high degree of Precision but the question is how long do they work for before needing to be replaced. In that regard GHL has been very vague.

 

[CSJIII]

As an update, I’m working with Neptune to figure out the anomaly. I’m lead to believe there was a bad batch of part A reagent that lead to inaccurate testing. For those who trust only what your told, check and check again. $600 machine doesn’t always work better.

I received a new batch of reagent and installed it per instructions. My levels immediately became spot on with my Hannah Alk checker. A 2 dkh drop to match correct levels. Had I listened to a few and only trusted my trident, then reduced my Alk to what I wanted, my Alk would now be approximately 5.5. Check, then verify.

 

[robbyg]

As an update, I’m working with Neptune to figure out the anomaly. I’m lead to believe there was a bad batch of part A reagent that lead to inaccurate testing. For those who trust only what your told, check and check again. $600 machine doesn’t always work better.

I received a new batch of reagent and installed it per instructions. My levels immediately became spot on with my Hannah Alk checker. A 2 dkh drop to match correct levels. Had I listened to a few and only trusted my trident, then reduced my Alk to what I wanted, my Alk would now be approximately 5.5. Check, then verify.

This is exactly why I would never trust any automated testing system to control my Dosing.
A human is much more capable of understanding if a number presented is factual or is dubious.
I think these Auto testers are great for presenting information that would be tedious to get otherwise. Once I have the info I can decide if its valid and what to do with it.

 

[I.AM.MR.MIKE]

I am going through this issue now - exact same issue. Last box of 6 month supply. Changed to new ALK and readings climbed to 9.11 and oddly stayed there. I shut down dosing pumps all day yesterday and still 9.11 today with very little change. Tested manually and at 8.1. Opened new calibration bottle and calibrated and testing 9.11. Very odd. Cleaned vial a week or so ago and was doing better than ever till I changed to new box of reagents.