IceCap Digital Pocket Tester Review

[Opus]

Yea there is some on ebay right now listed at $139.99, I'm not sure I would ever shop at a store gouging like that.

That is the store I'm referencing. If you go to the website their address is a LFS near me. They use a different name for their LFS. I was tempted to go to the store and see if they had the MAP price in store are the $139.99 price.

 

[SaltwaterAq Verified Sponsor]

Ya. MAP is Minimum Ad Price so technically they can charge whatever they want over the MAP price. It's just bad business IMO.

 

[shred5]

I may have to pick one up.. Be nice to have something quick and easy to check against.

Been having allot of issues with calibration solutions.. I have like 6 + bottles because they all read different..

 

[Kentech5]

I was very surprised on how accurate it was. Tested on 3 tanks multiple calibration fluids, against red sea refractometer & my Milwaukee digital. All were close to spot on. Then I ordered 300x more from coraluve.

Quite similar to my experiences.

 

[SteadyC]

Too pricey at $80.

By the time a refractometer is 40 ish dollars, no this isn’t too pricey for a digital unit.

 

[ayckorea]

Talking about price?

I have noticed some VERY VERY similar look/function salinity testers for months, like Scionix is only 47 usd sold in china

 

[myzislow]

Personally, I think $80 for this is more than fair, especially if works well and as advertised.

I look forward to retiring my refractometers that's for sure.

 

[Tennsquire]

It reads the conductivity on the water. I got one a couple of weeks ago. My only concern is that it reads differently than my calibrated refractometer (lower), but maybe the refractometer is off (or the calibration fluid, which is new and from Salifert).

 

[siggy]

I was just saying yesterday. my 2 calibration fluids read 1 piont different on the milwaukee but show a 4 point difference with a refractometer

 

[Tony Thompson]

Please someone correct me. It says a PSU which I surmise is Practical Salinity Unit. Now this would make sense as the reference for any reading as the device appears to work on the principle of conductivity.

If this is so, why is it giving a reading of 44,4 PSU and a ppt of 34.5, surely they should be almost the same. around the 35ppt mark for most reef aquariums.

Based on those readings I would calculate.

Salinity at 21°C
Conductivity 60.4 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 44.4 (≈ 44.4 ppt)
Density 1.0317 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0337

Salinity at 25°C
Conductivity 65.5 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 44.4 (≈ 44.4 ppt)
Density 1.0305 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0335

I apologize if I have missed something obvious here. Measuring salinity always gets me confused. That is why I always use a good Conductivity meter. I aim for a conductivity of 53 mS/cm at 25c.

Salinity at 21°C
Conductivity 48.9 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 35.0 (≈ 35.0 ppt)
Density 1.0245 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0266

Salinity at 25°C
Conductivity 53.1 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 35.0 (≈ 35.0 ppt)
Density 1.0233 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0264

I also don`t` understand why the device is designed to take the reading of a sample in the sample bowl, surely it would be far more practical to measure directly in the source (the tank or mixing bucket) that way you can see the particular salinity at your operating temp. Not at the ambient temp.

I would appreciate any qualified advice please. I thought I had finally got my head around salinity and now I have doubts.

 

[Kentech5]

Please someone correct me. It says a PSU which I surmise is Practical Salinity Unit. Now this would make sense as the reference for any reading as the device appears to work on the principle of conductivity.

If this is so, why is it giving a reading of 44,4 PSU and a ppt of 34.5, surely they should be almost the same. around the 35ppt mark for most reef aquariums.

Based on those readings I would calculate.

Salinity at 21°C
Conductivity 60.4 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 44.4 (≈ 44.4 ppt)
Density 1.0317 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0337

Salinity at 25°C
Conductivity 65.5 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 44.4 (≈ 44.4 ppt)
Density 1.0305 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0335

I apologize if I have missed something obvious here. Measuring salinity always gets me confused. That is why I always use a good Conductivity meter. I aim for a conductivity of 53 mS/cm at 25c.

Salinity at 21°C
Conductivity 48.9 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 35.0 (≈ 35.0 ppt)
Density 1.0245 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0266

Salinity at 25°C
Conductivity 53.1 mS/cm
Salinity PSU 35.0 (≈ 35.0 ppt)
Density 1.0233 g/cm³
Specific gravity 1.0264

I also don`t` understand why the device is designed to take the reading of a sample in the sample bowl, surely it would be far more practical to measure directly in the source (the tank or mixing bucket) that way you can see the particular salinity at your operating temp. Not at the ambient temp.

I would appreciate any qualified advice please. I thought I had finally got my head around salinity and now I have doubts.

I’m pretty sure the point of the small cup/bowl that holds water is to avoid interference from equipment in the tank affecting the reading. I know that I get vastly different readings when I don’t use it. As for the PSU part of your question I have no clue.

 

[Hk45]

Great write up.

 

[JMetaxas]

Excellent review !

 

[Jaysushi]

I picked one up today at an LFS for $80 which is retail price! If it was any more I probably wouldn't have bought it. So I guess I got a little lucky.
It is a nifty and very useful tool for checking my reef tank salinity now. I used a Red Sea Refractometer before, but I will be using this more often now.
My only concern is if it's okay to wash it off with sink water and wipe it down good afterwards. I hope it doesn't effect the salinity reading if at all.

 

[Solis Reef]

My refractometer eye pice broke. I can still use it so I decided to order one. I My digital one today and compared it to my refractometer and it got the same reading every time.

 

[myzislow]

Got mine today, this thing is awesome. Where have you been all my life haha.

Super quick and easy! Once done, quick rinse with sink or ro di and pat dry. Simple as it gets.

 

[squampton]

Ill have to see if I can find one of these in Canada but Ice Cap products can be hard to find.

Depends on the price as well. It may end up overpriced here..if it ever comes.

 

[Kentech5]

I picked one up today at an LFS for $80 which is retail price! If it was any more I probably wouldn't have bought it. So I guess I got a little lucky.
It is a nifty and very useful tool for checking my reef tank salinity now. I used a Red Sea Refractometer before, but I will be using this more often now.
My only concern is if it's okay to wash it off with sink water and wipe it down good afterwards. I hope it doesn't effect the salinity reading if at all.

I’m guessing sink is probably fine as long as it’s wiped off well. I use RODI in a spray bottle since I have one filled for cleaning test kit vials and the like.

 

[Tony Thompson]

I’m pretty sure the point of the small cup/bowl that holds water is to avoid interference from equipment in the tank affecting the reading. I know that I get vastly different readings when I don’t use it. As for the PSU part of your question I have no clue.

I thought I had seen this device before from a chinese manufacturer. You are correct about the cup reducing interference, thats because normal conductivity meters have a shroud so you can use them directly in the tank or mixing bucket.

What is more interesting is the PSU reading, this model has the same software error only with respect to % rather than PSU. Jake adams explains how this could give a false sense of security when reading SG. I would like to see a review off this product using a calibration reference sample. 12 month warranty and no calibration feature does not fill me with confidence on its practical life span. Still maybe worth a punt at $80, but any more than that would be stretching it. Here is the link to the review from Dec 2017. https://reefbuilders.com/2017/12/18...kes-short-work-of-measuring-specific-gravity/

 

[myzislow]

Both of my calibrated refractometrs read 1.026, the ice cap read 1.026. Good enough for me.