Apera Instruments, LLC-AI314 Premium Series EC60 Waterproof Conductivity Pocket Tester Kit, ±1% F.S Accuracy, Easy Switch of EC/TDS/Salinity, Replaceable Probe

It does cost a pretty good price when compared to those cheap Sub $20 TDS meter. I got an old cheap TDS meter I got from Home Depot but the old cell battery was dead and expanded. Didn't known the battery cell was bad and forced into the meter and breaks the cap and battery slot. I hate those watch battery type cells that is not as reliable as AAA size batteries.I had to get a new and better TDS meter that is more accurate and will last a long time. This Apera EC60 Tester Kit Meter can handle 4 types EC, TDS, Salinity, and of course temperature. I wanted the Apera TDS Meter but they were out of stock. For a few tens this one does 2 additional types.I have ran a few tests.Distilled Water Great Value brand = 1.00 ppm TDSR.O. System = 20 ppm TDSR.O. boiled water = 26.9 ppm TDS (Not sure why slightly higher? Maybe the container we used?)Refrigerator Water Filter = 294 ppm TDSTap Water = 306 ppm TDS ( I think my refrigerator water filter needs to be changed or it is not working to well.Overall, I am very happy with this purchase I made. The EC60 was pre-calibrated with a tested calibrated quality certification and I was able to get a 1.0 ppm TDS on my distilled water.Other features I found out from the quick laminated guide was you can do 7 programs. Changes like option to turn off/on P1 auto lock, P2 leave 1 min default/off/on, P3 - P3 Change temp coefficient and TDS factor for calibration, P5 change salinity type measurements, P6 change temperature from F° to C°, and lastly P6 does restore back to factory default (factory resetting).This might be a little overkill for some but for me who appreciates accuracy in 1% and a high well made meter, the calibration kit, and sturdy carrying case is a perfect whole kit for testing my home water.

I use this to measure TDS in my water, as I have a filter system for it.It was already accurately calibrated when I received it. It's well packaged, and very easy to use and read.As a HS science teacher of many years, I've had a lot of cheap crappy instrumentation devices and this one is VERY nice and well made.It comes in a very nicely molded case that will stand up to some abuse.Very good value for a well made device. Don't go on the cheap when measuring anything like this. the 1% margin is much better than higher error margins, especially for TDS filter systems.Also, stick color reading are crap. For a hot tub or pool that is probably ok, but not for anything else, like a water filter system, or for water quality studies.This would be a great addition to an environmental science dept at any school or college .

Several professional growers have been amazed by the accuracy, durability and sheer quality of Apera products. Please, don't waste money on cheap measuring devices, Apera is a great midpoint between the too expensive professional ones and the cheap but good ones. Tech support is also very fast and reliable.

This meter was highly recommended to me by several different people. They all said that the ec60 was very accurate and easy to use, once you get the hang of it. They also said the directions were lacking and were hard to understand. I agree, the directions could be a little more detailed, but their customer service department seems to be on point, answering any emails within a day or so.Seems to be a good, well made meter.Meter is advertised as accurate to within 1%, but on my Quality certificate it's listed as 1.5% which should do for most applications.I will update review in a few months time just to keep you informed.

My less expensive meter was a lot quicker to stabilize. It seems like this EC meter takes a veryyyy long time to acclimate to the temperature of the solution.. which for me is normally +10-20F over ambient. This causes a longggg delay while I watch the reading (even with the smiley face showing) continually drift down towards, almost 300-400 microsiemens in total, as the temp indicated slowly comes up to accurate. The delay is so long that I have to press the power button every time the 1min *Maximum* backlight timeout occurs. I end up pressing the power button 3-4 times in order to see the reading as it starts to stabilize and become accurate. Why doesn't apera allow me to set the backlight to more than 1 minute???If this time wasting daily annoyance wasn't enough in itself to get a bad review, the box only contains two out of the three needed calibration solutions to make sure that this meter is accurate down to reverse osmosis (low EC) levels. There is even a third spot in the box that is filled with a foam piece. As it stands, my tap water and my RO water both read the same at 90 to 100 when I know both are 30 and below (RO is something like 5-7 microsimens on my system). This is because I can only calibrate to the medium and high EC levels unless I go buy my own calibration solution.So while I liked apera PH60 Meter a lot, I really wish I didn't buy this EC Meter. It costs 7x what the cheaper one did and has cost me 3x the amount of time on every use.Buy something else

I started using this EC meter back in September of 2024 with my Aerogardens. I had seen several mentions of the importance of checking electrical conductivity of nutrient water used in hydroponics and decided to give the Apera meter a chance. To my shock, my nutrient water was way below the needed values for both the peppers and tomatoes that I was trying to grow. With an increase in the food and CaliMagic that I was using I began seeing better results in my gardening. Recently I changed from the Aerogarden food to another popular hydroponic brand and realized upon using the EC meter that I had added way too much nutrient solution to my pepper garden, which unfortunately resulted in dropped blooms. If I hadn't had the Apera meter, I would not have known what the problem was. As a side note, I also use the Apera PH20 pH meter. Both meters are absolutely wonderful.