Customer Reviews

Luster Leaf 1840 Rapitest Soil pH Meter

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

I purchased this meter about 2yrs. ago and it works fine. I think what the other neg. reviewers are failing to do even on brand new meters is to keep the probe clean, not just visually clean. These work off a chemical and electrical reaction if the probe has any oxidation which starts the minute after you clean the probe it varies or even blocks the electron flow, distorting or even blocking the reading entirely. With mine before I go to use it I pinch a peice of steel wool in my fingers and run it back and forth a couple times than wipe it clean. Do this and you'll find very acurate and subtle changes in readings. You also don't need to do all the soil prep as one reviewer said. Just collect and test watering run off from potted plants. If you want to test straight soil, yes the soil must be moist and you'll learn to make the slight needed adjustments in readings with practice, no big deal. Keep in mind salt water conducts electricity better than fresh, it's nearly the same principle as to why the directions what you to test mixed and dissolved soil. I did this once for acuracy and than acounted for the diffrence when I test straight into the potted soil with no prep. Do wipe probes inbetween test and maintain consistent probe depth. (Duh the more metal that's in contact with the test medium soil/water the greater the flow of electrons will be and to the meter, effecting it.) I test my watering solutions and it is acurate enough that if the water is wavey hitting the probe at different hights the meter reads these subtle diffrences. In short great product especially under $15, you just have to be smarter than the meter.

I bought one of these meters in 1987 (obviously not from here!) and am still using it today. I've had the same 'problem' other people have reported about the meter staying at 7, but it's easy to solve.
I use a small piece of 600 grit sandpaper to polish the probe prior to use. The readings are accurate every time. Just make sure the probe is bright and shiny (especially the tip), and it will work. If it's not shiny, the readings will be sporadic, or it will just get stuck on a particular reading. It's a very simple and affordable PH meter, that can obviously last a very long time!

This product works great. I was reluctant to buy it because others said it just keeps showing 7, but if you follow instructions and make sure the soil is wet, it works perfect. Be careful not to stick it in dirt that has a lot of rocks or you will scratch it.

As NC points out, you need to use this correctly. I have used this pH meter along side the test kits and find it gives you a quicker reading that is on-par with the Rapitest kits that are not exactly sophisticated. The Rapitest kits such as 1612 give you half point precision, which is pretty much what I get with this. Like anything, you need to know your instrument, which must be clean and polished, and you need to have the right soil moisture. That moisture needs to come from distilled or deionized water if yours has a distinct pH. A lot of the time you cannot go sticking this straight in the soil because the moisture is often incorrect or you could hit objects.

Is it perfect? Of course not, but it is costs under $20. The pH meters we use in laboratories cost 10-20 times this little gadget.

I used this pH tester on my garden soil and always got a result of 7. Since I work in a laboratory I borrowed a few drops of pH standards (pH 4 and pH 7) and tested with this pH Meter. Both came up as 7. Hmmm! Don't waste your money!

The tester worked good after I found the best way to use it. I got readings of 5.6 to 6.8 around different plants (mostly azaleas). What worked best for me was to clear a small 4 to 6" area of exposed soil. The soil needs to be damp down 4-5". I pressed the area down so it was firm. I then pressed the probe in all the way to the black frame (4-5") and then turned it some per directions. The probe should go in smoothly without hitting anything (stones) and it should feel tight - like the soil is firmly around the probe. It may take a minute for the needle to settle out. You can do 2 to 3 probes at adjacent locations. You need to clean the probe with the supplied little pad like the directions say when you go to a new plant/location.

Doesn't work right out of the box.

Yes, I followed every detailed instruction. I completely cleaned the probe. I even went out and purchased distilled water for the soil sample. I paid attention to every review here and elsewhere and it's clear that this company sells two versions of this product:

One that works (about 40%)
One that doesn't work (about 60%)

I'm not usually a gambling man, but for whatever reason I was convinced that I was going to purchase a version that worked. It didn't. I had a similar experience to others where it reads at something like 6.9 regardless of what you stick it in. I did the process several times, cleaning it several times, multiple soil samples, using the glass method and in the soil method it never changed the position of the needle. Really horrible quality control.

I've got this meter, and I've had it for 10 years or maybe more, and I leave it in the garage and subject it to dirt, cold, heat, you name it. And it still works! I've checked the results against other test kits, I think it is still accurate. I even bent the stick badly once, pushed it back into shape, and it still works. Amazing.

I enjoy the use of this meter and it helps me to see what our water does to
the soil. Our plants thrive in the proper ph and this meter gives me that skill.

Could not get this meter to work properly.
Checked with 4.01 calibration solution that I use with my Hanna digital ph meter (which works quite well but not on soil) and it wouldn't move off the 7. Cleaned probe as mentioned in other reviews (I used emory cloth) and I did get it to move but only to 6.5 in the 4.01 solution. My opinion on this product is that it is junk, if you have a ph dependant plant as most are this meter could kill it!