clean Apex Trident Cuvette?

BonelessEvil · May 22, 2021

I asked on the Neptune systems forums whether we should be cleaning the Apex Trident Cuvette, as I've had mine running since 2019 and have never cleaned it even once.

So, should we? If so, how often? And how would I go about cleaning it properly?

TX_Punisher · May 22, 2021

I cleaned mine with q tips. It took 12 to wipe it clean.

Reef man 89 · May 22, 2021

I have clean mine as well. Neptune says the build up won’t affect the results but I find that hard to believe. Once I cleaned mine my test results were much more stable.

infinite0180 · May 22, 2021

I cleaned mine. It was pretty easy and gave me peace of mind.

BonelessEvil · May 23, 2021

Reef man 89 said:
I have clean mine as well. Neptune says the build up won’t affect the results but I find that hard to believe. Once I cleaned mine my test results were much more stable.

if you can remember, what were the results before cleaning and after cleaning?

lakai · May 23, 2021

can someone explain how to get the cuvette part open to be able to clean ?

Reef man 89 · May 24, 2021

BonelessEvil said:
if you can remember, what were the results before cleaning and after cleaning?

I can remember I want to say it was around .8 dkh difference and the cal and mag stay the same instead of it jumping up and down 40-50 ppm.

lakai said:
can someone explain how to get the cuvette part open to be able to clean ?

flip the trident over and the rubber feet are screws. Take all 4 out then you have to spread apart the bottom of the cover to get the tabs out to be able to lift the cover off. From there you will be able to access the cuvette just peal the electrical tape of top and pull off the rubber plug on top of cuvette. Just be careful not to lose the magnetic stirring rod.

blaxsun · Oct 20, 2021

While performing some semi-annual maintenance on my system I decided to briefly take the Trident offline to clean the cuvette. In hindsight I should've taken some before and after pictures, but suffice it to say there was a purple reagent ring around the upper portion of the cuvette along with quite a bit of dried reagent all over the cuvette.

I was able to clean the cuvette with 4 q-tips, and I would recommend that you wet the first several q-tips with RODI water so that you can actually scrub off any reagent that's accumulated. The cuvette is normally filled with saltwater anyway, so a few drops of RODI water is perfectly safe to use and ensures a more thorough cleaning.