Only 3 minutes? Hannah phosphoros time out

[RGoltz]

I recently discovered that if you press and hold the button when prompted C2 it will start a 3 minute timer.

So what I do is:
(1) have everything ready including opening the reagent and placing a fold corner-to-corner
(2) have the vial filled with sample 1
(3) run sample 1
(4) add reagent
(5) shake like crazy for 1 minute
(6) insert vial and start the 3 minute countdown

Works every time!

 

[KrisReef]

I recently discovered that if you press and hold the button when prompted C2 it will start a 3 minute timer.

So what I do is:
(1) have everything ready including opening the reagent and placing a fold corner-to-corner
(2) have the vial filled with sample 1
(3) run sample 1
(4) add reagent
(5) shake like crazy for 1 minute
(6) insert vial and start the 3 minute countdown

Works every time!

This is good, but I would like to pass on some info on the entire process.

Based upon your step 5, I do everything the same, with two added precautions;
1. I use the marking on the vial to align the vial in the checker with the same orientation each time I load it to reduce error caused by imperfections in the glass vials, &
2. The reagent is supposed to be fully reacted and at peak for reading results AFTER 5 minutes of immersion into the water sample. SO, at step 5 above, I start my iPhone timer when I add the reagent powder. At 2 minutes I hold the Checker button down until the 3:00 minute timer starts. (2 minutes + 3 Minutes = 5 minutes, the proper reaction time for best results, according to Hanna.)

The only other step, or sampling ritual that I perform is before I open the foil reagent envelop I grab the little reagent foil by the corner that I am going to cut away with scissors and I beat the snot out of the foil on the edge of the countertop, trying to drive all the reagent into the one bottom corner of the foil package. When I cut the the foil open, I look to make sure that most of the reagent dust is in that corner. (Sometimes these foil packages are so crushed inside the box that the reagent falls out of the foil when I cut, making a dusting across my hands and the countertop. Those results are always wrong and never match the retest.)

OP- If the machine is shutting off too soon, contact Hanna and maybe they can fix that problem if the timer is shutting the checker down too quickly?

 

[fish farmer]

now i'm wondering if i've been doing the test wrong. i follow these steps:

-fill up the vial, wipe with cloth and then put in the checker and press button
-take out of checker and put in reagent. mix for two minutes
-wipe with cloth, put back in checker and hold button down. wait for reading to show after three mins

That is the directions I use for the hanna LR which is what they send you. I still timed out until I started to get the reagent packet open and folded. Since my test came with two vials I started to use one for pretest and one for reagent, of course sometime it knows it is the wrong vial, I get an inverted vial message or something like that. Then I have to start over. I also have the trouble of holding the button down too much at C2 so the whole thing shuts off. Then I have to start over. I also eyeball my time with the wall clock...so there is more than likely operator error with going past time, which is why I rush the mixing as much as I can, but still see bubbles in the tube around the 2 minute mark which is supposed to throw off the test. I also have scratched my vials and that is supposed to throw off the test as well.

 

[ru4serious]

I use both vials fill one with tank water for c1 and put the reagent in the other with water, I put the first one in and start mixing the other

 

[smarcuscofer]

Don't the instructions say to mix for 2 mins until clear, I guess if you find it's clear after 1.45 you could stop then, I would be consistent with this tho, always shake for 1.45 from then on.

Have to say tho, if your reagent is ready, you have a full min to add the reagent and then wipe, sounds as you are either not preparing your reagent correctly or being OCD in wiping the vial.

I bought some Exel micro fibre cloths, they are excellent, I dip the vial in rodi water then wipe, takes only a few seconds, lens micro fibre cloths I find are rubbish and just smear the finger prints around the vial.

From the time it says add press c2 you have 3 minutes to remove the vial from checker open vial carefully add reagent making sure you empty entire package close vial and shake for 2 minutes carefully once again then wipe away finger prints and return to checker so your basically talking a30 second window on either side of the mixing time. I wouldn't say I'm OCD about cleaning the finger prints but salt water is sticky and greasy feeling and it clearly states in the directions that smudges and finger prints could directly effect your reading.... I'm just trying to follow directions as best I can in a similar pattern to get similar results...I just find it strange that you get 8 minutes to add 1ml and shake 6 times and only 3 minutes to do all mentioned above the checker works great and gives me similar results every time I'm just thinking another minute would be great

 

[Reef.]

From the time it says add press c2 you have 3 minutes to remove the vial from checker open vial carefully add reagent making sure you empty entire package close vial and shake for 2 minutes carefully once again then wipe away finger prints and return to checker so your basically talking a30 second window on either side of the mixing time. I wouldn't say I'm OCD about cleaning the finger prints but salt water is sticky and greasy feeling and it clearly states in the directions that smudges and finger prints could directly effect your reading.... I'm just trying to follow directions as best I can in a similar pattern to get similar results...I just find it strange that you get 8 minutes to add 1ml and shake 6 times and only 3 minutes to do all mentioned above the checker works great and gives me similar results every time I'm just thinking another minute would be great

to be fair I did give a few suggestions to help but you have only chosen to comment on the OCD comment...takes all of 10 seconds at most to add the reagent, dip the vial in some rodi water, wipe with a good micro fibre cloth, which you'll have the remaining 50 seconds to do.

 

[Breadman03]

I don't touch the vial at all. I use a microfiber cloth to hold it, which saves me from having to wipe it down.

 

[Waters]

The whole process is actually very easy once you get it down. The key (which has probably already been stated) is to open the packet (cut along the lines shown) and fold the packet into a funnel before you even start. Clean the vial before starting and only hold with a cloth to avoid fingerprints. When shaking for the 2 minutes, just hold it by the cap.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

I use both cuvettes one with sample and the other with reagent mixed with water. Before I turn my Hanna checker on I have it mixed up ready to go I'm in no rush. This way you get the full two minutes to make sure it's all dissolved. But mainly no rush for two minutes to run out.

 

[smarcuscofer]

Thanks for all the helpful input I'll be testing today and try to implement some of these suggestions

 

[Waters]

I use both cuvettes one with sample and the other with reagent mixed with water. Before I turn my Hanna checker on I have it mixed up ready to go I'm in no rush. This way you get the full two minutes to make sure it's all dissolved. But mainly no rush for two minutes to run out.

I used to do it that way also but started running into inconsistencies....all it takes is one small scratch or smudge on one vial that isn't on the other.

 

[Rmckoy]

Use both vials ..
put rank water in both .
add the reagent to one ...

Place the first in the checker when it displays add c1

when it displays add c2 change the vials