Revised buying guide for pH meter (based on the book Water)
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These are new products and there are always some glitches in getting them launched. Hach clearly is bending over backwards to take care of people having these problems (which is a clue that there are quite a few of these) and Omega should too. I have used Omega products for years and found that in general they have good stuff. Customer interface, OTOH, is not that smooth or not as smooth as one would expect in the modern web oriented world. If the meter is good then customer service becomes, IMO, a secondary consideration unless it is really bad in which case it moves into primary place. Obviously if we have two meters of about equal price and about equal performance people will tend to go to the company with the better customer service.
Hach continues to ship defective units and continues to cheerfully replace then until the customer has a working one in hand. Performance of working ones is excellent. Not much traffic on the Omega offering.
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ocluke
Well-Known Member
I've been quite happy with the performance of my Hach. It doesn't seem like anyone is buying the Omega, or if they are, they aren't posting about it.
I have an Omega 7011 and love it. It replaced my Hanna pHep 5 after it crapped out.
It responds much faster than my old pHep 5 and seems to hold the calibration quite well. Calibrated it for the first time in 6 months yesterday and it wasn't off by more than 0.02
Very happy with it, especially consider how much more expensive the Hach is in Canada, but Omega sells for $101 direct from Omega.
I know several other people with the same meter and no one got DOA. No experience with Hach, but would go Omega again and the $40 replacement electrodes is a compelling case.
It responds much faster than my old pHep 5 and seems to hold the calibration quite well. Calibrated it for the first time in 6 months yesterday and it wasn't off by more than 0.02
Very happy with it, especially consider how much more expensive the Hach is in Canada, but Omega sells for $101 direct from Omega.
I know several other people with the same meter and no one got DOA. No experience with Hach, but would go Omega again and the $40 replacement electrodes is a compelling case.
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When looking for a pH meter, I came across 5 different brands with pH meters with products that could be used for home brewing. These were
Hanna Instruments
Milwaukee Instruments
Adwa Instruments
HM Digital and
Atago
Other brands are available on the web but as far as I know these are not available from local suppliers such as Omega and Hach. (I am from Denmark)
Hanna-, Milwaukee-, and Adwa- Instruments
Researching the web I made an interesting observation. Hanna, Milwaukee, and Adwa are very likely the same company. They all have office at EXACTLY the same address in Hungary.
...Alsókiköto sor 11., H-6726 Szeged....
So if prices for these 3 brands are similar, it is not a surprise.
It bothers me quite a bit that one company are giving the customer a sense of choice by producing different brand names but are in fact selling the "same crap in different wrapping".
So the choice was now down to HM Digital and Atago.
HM digital
HM is a US company and their pH meters are produced in South Korea. They sell 2 different pH meters that are useful for home brewers:
pH 80 and
pH 200
The main difference is the resolution. pH 80 show results with one decimal and pH 200 with 2 decimals.
Atago
Atago is a japaneese brand and sells only one pH meter - the DPH-2. This pH meter only has a resolution of 1 decimal.
The Choice...
Hereafter it was quite easy for me to choose, and I purchased the pH 200 from HM Digital. As a bonus it was also cheaper than the "Hungarian Huddle"
... and so far I am very satisfied with it and use it for mead brewing.
___________________
meadoflife.blogspot.dk
Hanna Instruments
Milwaukee Instruments
Adwa Instruments
HM Digital and
Atago
Other brands are available on the web but as far as I know these are not available from local suppliers such as Omega and Hach. (I am from Denmark)
Hanna-, Milwaukee-, and Adwa- Instruments
Researching the web I made an interesting observation. Hanna, Milwaukee, and Adwa are very likely the same company. They all have office at EXACTLY the same address in Hungary.
...Alsókiköto sor 11., H-6726 Szeged....
So if prices for these 3 brands are similar, it is not a surprise.
It bothers me quite a bit that one company are giving the customer a sense of choice by producing different brand names but are in fact selling the "same crap in different wrapping".
So the choice was now down to HM Digital and Atago.
HM digital
HM is a US company and their pH meters are produced in South Korea. They sell 2 different pH meters that are useful for home brewers:
pH 80 and
pH 200
The main difference is the resolution. pH 80 show results with one decimal and pH 200 with 2 decimals.
Atago
Atago is a japaneese brand and sells only one pH meter - the DPH-2. This pH meter only has a resolution of 1 decimal.
The Choice...
Hereafter it was quite easy for me to choose, and I purchased the pH 200 from HM Digital. As a bonus it was also cheaper than the "Hungarian Huddle"
... and so far I am very satisfied with it and use it for mead brewing.
___________________
meadoflife.blogspot.dk
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Very nice! Thanks for the research. As for me, I am kind of used to the 'corporate huddle' I have run across many that do this here in the states. Appliances for one: GE and Hotpoint are the most glaring example... appears they literally go down the same assembly line and at the very end they split and one gets a GE emblem and the other gets a Hotpoint emblem, yet Hotpoint seems to be 10-20% less expensive. Dunno.... So long as it works!
Sent from my BrewPhone using Home Brew, cuz I really didn't want to fire up the computer to post this.
Sent from my BrewPhone using Home Brew, cuz I really didn't want to fire up the computer to post this.
I see your point. But for appliances, foods etc you are targeting several customer groups and you will vary prices accordingly. I would have no issue with for example the Adwa being the cheap and Hanna the exclusive, but in this case the prices are pretty much the same - and how many customer segments are there for pH meters 
. So having several brands that cost pretty much the same you will give the impression that this is the market price. But when half the brands are from the same Hungarian group, it must reduce the competition.
. So having several brands that cost pretty much the same you will give the impression that this is the market price. But when half the brands are from the same Hungarian group, it must reduce the competition.
Ah... Not really disagreeing, just stating that it's kind of a normal thing for us here. I don't blame you at all for wanting to buy from someone who isn't so..... Underhanded? Not sure that's the proper phrasing, but I also would prefer to buy from a company that is more 'truthful' in their appearance and marketing.
Sent from my BrewPhone using Home Brew, cuz I really didn't want to fire up the computer to post this.
Sent from my BrewPhone using Home Brew, cuz I really didn't want to fire up the computer to post this.
Amazon has this meter on sell for $63.00 until the end of the year. Does anybody have any experience with it? Specs looks good:
pH 0.00 to 14.00pH
Temperature 23 to 194°F (-5 to 90°C)
Resolution 0.01pH, 0.1°
Accuracy ±0.01pH, ±1.8°F/±1°C
Power four 3V CR3032 button batteries
Dimensions 1.4 x 6.8 x 1.6" (35.6 x172.7 x 40.6mm) Weight 3.8oz (110g)
http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2014/1...ck.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on it, any thoughts or feedback would be appreciated.
pH 0.00 to 14.00pH
Temperature 23 to 194°F (-5 to 90°C)
Resolution 0.01pH, 0.1°
Accuracy ±0.01pH, ±1.8°F/±1°C
Power four 3V CR3032 button batteries
Dimensions 1.4 x 6.8 x 1.6" (35.6 x172.7 x 40.6mm) Weight 3.8oz (110g)
http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2014/1...ck.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
I'm thinking about pulling the trigger on it, any thoughts or feedback would be appreciated.
I don't know anything about it so I hope you'll decide to try one, read up at https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/ph-meter-calibration-302256/, do the stability check and report back to us here.
Pumbapoindexter
Active Member
Is this a good meter for mash pH? I received this today as a birthday present..
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1429760242.309251.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1429760261.721627.jpg
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1429760242.309251.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1429760261.721627.jpg
In the international market it is commonplace to work with a 'rep' in a country where you don't otherwise have a presence. This is very probably the case here. This outfit represents Hanna, Milwaukee, Adwa and probably several other companies in Hungary.
At the same time 'branding' is often used in the instrument business. For example Beckman made spectrophotometers sold under Hach's brand name for a time (with value added by Hach in the form of firmware for water related tests). Similarly a Hach pH meter contained a PC board made by Orion.
Yes. It is one of the three specifically noted as meeting the requirements of https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=302256 and is used by quite a few people here with success.
I ended up getting one of these and it worked great for about 2 months then wouldn't calibrate anymore. I always tested at room temp and stored in its cap that had a sponge soaked in calibration solution. I was pretty disappointed however when I called the support number they said they were sending out a new unit no questions asked. They didn't ask for proof of purchase, a serial number or anything. Even said to discard the bad unit. Though I'm not impressed with the unit itself yet, their customer service is outstanding. I'm hoping the second one will be better, will report back.
Are you going to do the stability check for us?
so, I was getting ready to pull the trigger on the Hach 9532000 PH meter, and happened to see this one
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O0BA7HG/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
does anyone have it, used it, know anything about it? The specs seem to be quite reasonable for our use, but.......can those of you that are more knowledgeable about such things take a look and toss out some opinions please?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00O0BA7HG/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
does anyone have it, used it, know anything about it? The specs seem to be quite reasonable for our use, but.......can those of you that are more knowledgeable about such things take a look and toss out some opinions please?
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I'm just naturally skeptical of anything that cheap from an unknown company but my suggestion is always the same: go ahead and get one then do the stability test as described in https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=302256 and report back to us here. You may lose $45 but the rest of the readership benefits. I guess I should point out, before so cavalierly advising you to toss $45 'for the team', that this one apparently requires the NIST buffer for calibration near 7, not the NIST traceable technical buffer that most meters use. This buffer is available but not nearly so readily as the pH 7.00 technical buffer which is available anywhere.
Yeah, that was the part that got my attention as well, the "near 7" thing. Most of the others I've looked at mention even numbered calibration, whereas this one is, well, not quite exactly 7. The lack of availability concerns me.
I agree with the skepticism, always there myself with the 'cheepies'.
Meh....$45 in the large scheme of expenditures I make with this obsession...oops, I mean hobby.... probably not really a killer of the beer budget. I have learned that sometimes it takes spending that little bit on the first time out to learn how to use something, is not so bad.
I ordered the Omega PHH-7200, but a week later and it still hasn't shipped. On their website and in the confirmation email I received, they state they ship within one business day, but that doesn't seem to be the case.
Can anyone comment on how quickly Hach shipped their order? I am considering cancelling my order with Omega and ordering the Hach unit since I have no idea when I can expect to receive my order from Omega.
Can anyone comment on how quickly Hach shipped their order? I am considering cancelling my order with Omega and ordering the Hach unit since I have no idea when I can expect to receive my order from Omega.
Depends on what you order but Hach usually gets stuff out within a business day or 2.
That's good to hear. I noticed the Hach meter is also available on Amazon with Prime shipping. If Omega doesn't ship by Monday I think I'll cancel and get the Hach. I like that the Omega comes with a carrying case and calibration solutions, but I want to get something soon so I can start playing with it
Just wanted to share my experience trying to order the PHH-7200 from Omega.
I placed the order on 7/10 when 18 of the units were listed as in stock. Omega's website states that orders with UPS ground shipping go out the next business day. I received an order confirmation email saying my order was scheduled to ship on 7/11.
By 7/13 the order status page indicated that the order still had not shipped, so I emailed Omega and asked for an update. They replied that they would expedite the order.
By 7/16 the order still had not shipped, so I emailed again and inquired if the meter was indeed in stock. Omega responded early on 7/18 that they would place an 'urgent expedite' request to ship the order.
By the end of the day on 7/18 the order status still had not changed, so I emailed Omega and requested that they cancel the order. By mid day on 7/19, they had not responded to my cancellation request, though they had responded to my previous emails early in the morning. I used their online chat and was able to get the order cancelled. The chat agent was helpful and able to cancel the order without issue.
I share this story because while I'm sure the Omega is a great meter, the product is only available from Omega themselves. Shipping cost is $10 for ground service, and nine days after placing my order it still had not shipped.
The Hach meter is available on Amazon with Prime shipping, so I have ordered that and should have it within a couple of days.
I placed the order on 7/10 when 18 of the units were listed as in stock. Omega's website states that orders with UPS ground shipping go out the next business day. I received an order confirmation email saying my order was scheduled to ship on 7/11.
By 7/13 the order status page indicated that the order still had not shipped, so I emailed Omega and asked for an update. They replied that they would expedite the order.
By 7/16 the order still had not shipped, so I emailed again and inquired if the meter was indeed in stock. Omega responded early on 7/18 that they would place an 'urgent expedite' request to ship the order.
By the end of the day on 7/18 the order status still had not changed, so I emailed Omega and requested that they cancel the order. By mid day on 7/19, they had not responded to my cancellation request, though they had responded to my previous emails early in the morning. I used their online chat and was able to get the order cancelled. The chat agent was helpful and able to cancel the order without issue.
I share this story because while I'm sure the Omega is a great meter, the product is only available from Omega themselves. Shipping cost is $10 for ground service, and nine days after placing my order it still had not shipped.
The Hach meter is available on Amazon with Prime shipping, so I have ordered that and should have it within a couple of days.
Thanks for sharing. I've been holding back on getting a meter(omega, hach+, or mw101/102). The cost of replacement probes from omega had me leaning towards them but after your exp. I would now feel better with the others. Still debating if a meter is necessary at all considering cost and maintenance. I've been going back and forth for a year now on this...
Sure! I was also leaning toward Omega due to price, and the fact their meters come with a carrying case and pH calibration solutions. I'm sure they are a good meter, but I at least like to have an idea of when I'll receive a product
I received my Hach meter the other day. The box was covered in soap, which was.....odd, but the meter is fine. I haven't had a chance to calibrate it yet. It seems to take a long time (~5 minutes) to stabilize reading my tap water, but I'm hoping a calibration will fix that. Should get my calibration solutions this week.
I received my Hach meter the other day. The box was covered in soap, which was.....odd, but the meter is fine. I haven't had a chance to calibrate it yet. It seems to take a long time (~5 minutes) to stabilize reading my tap water, but I'm hoping a calibration will fix that. Should get my calibration solutions this week.
