Confidence inspiring By Ken J. on 1/21/12

Ken J. would recommend this product to a friend

I am a novice in this hobby, but not with meters. We use a number of Hanna professional products at work and I was pleased to see that they made "hobby grade" instruments for aquarists. They don't display the build quality of a professional meter, but they don't cost hundreds of dollars either. The case, while durable, is clearly a cheap product. There are a hundred chinese shops that can produce plastic cases which close properly. But you are buying a meter (not a plastic box) and the price is right for this one. I would not think twice about the purchase. The Ca checker is more complicated to use than the other Hanna checkers, but that is a function of the test, not the meter. Buy it, adjust your levels with confidence, and get back to watching the corals.

Good product By shane on 1/20/12

shane would recommend this product to a friend

Works great as long as your RO you use for the test is 0 ppm but on the up side it is really acurate and only paying 9 bucks for the refills is way better than paying 40 bucks for a new test kit every time it runs out.

Good Product By Michael on 11/29/11

Michael would recommend this product to a friend

I really like the digital readout and the test instructions are straight forward and easy to understand. One of my 1.0ml syringes was labled in reverse which confused me.

I'm not a big fan of the little packets of reagent, they are a PITA to pour into the vials.

Still, far easier to use than other test kits that I've had in the past.

Works great By Jose Manuel on 11/25/11

Jose Manuel would recommend this product to a friend

I had a Salifert test kit but it wasnt accurate enough. It read 370 on freshly made SW, tested 4 different salts with the Salifert and the same. Got the Hanna and it reads what the Salt manufacturer says it should be. Excellent product.

Another great checker from Hanna By lachapr on 11/24/11

lachapr would recommend this product to a friend

This is my 4th checker and I love them all... I would recommend that anyone that is having issues with checker to watch the video that Hanna has put out. It is super easy to use and very accurate in my testings.

Most Compliated Hanna So Far By David on 11/22/11

David would recommend this product to a friend

I have other Hanna Checkers..this one took a bit longer to get in the groove with. It does require RO/DI water but if you dont use that you will have other problems anyway and will also clearly need the phosphate checker! The nature of the science behind this test makes it more complicated. I believe it is worth the steps and carefully measuring out the small sample size. Just follow the directions and its a slam dunk.

Better than counting drops By Roger on 11/2/11

Roger would recommend this product to a friend

As stated before you are only testing 0.1 ml of your water sample so you have to make sure you are accurate. Also, if you don't have a RO/DI source, or cannot confirm the quality of your RO/DI water it could be an issue. However, if you make accurate measurements, and you know the quality of your RO/DI water, you get accurate, repeatable results.
For me, it has worked much better than any test kit I’ve used.

Ok but not great By SaltCritters.com on 10/30/11

SaltCritters.com wouldn't recommend this product to a friend

We have all the Hanna test kits and the others work great. But this test is all over the place. We did 3 tests in a row and each time it read something different. ended up with a 600, 550, and 475. Crazy

Great! Requires RO/DI water By ssgatbliss on 10/18/11

ssgatbliss would recommend this product to a friend

The test requires Ro/DI water not distilled, accuracy with a syringe, and executing the directions properly. Other than that it's a decent test kit. If you don't have RO/DI go with Salifert or another trusted brand. I have the ALK and low Phosphate kits from Hanna as well. I would rate those a 9 out of 10 and the calc test a 7 out of ten due to the precise measurements and RO/DI water.

Good machine By Ryan on 9/27/11

Ryan would recommend this product to a friend

The tester I have had all weekend and used it several times. I hae compared it the API tests and it is correlating well. The down side is the need for reagents and you must calibrate with RODI water but otherwise a workable little unit that helps take the guess work out of it.

Flawed Design By Mulberry on 9/24/11

Mulberry wouldn't recommend this product to a friend

As noted by others, the dilution of 0.1 ml sample is problematic. I tried it with the RODI water and distilled water (from the pharmacy) and I get readings off by about 50-100 mg/L too high. It's not usable for me. I wouldn't recommend it. The phosphate test works for me.

Too difficult to use, wait for an upgrade By jamie on 9/8/11

jamie would recommend this product to a friend

First off, I love my pH checker from Hanna. I was hoping for the same ease of use from the calcium checker. However, it requires the use of testing water that is basically 0 ppm of Ca. Anything else and the test fails. Also, the requirement for the sample is to accurately measure 0.1 ml of your tank water and then one of the reagents is a powder. I would give Hanna more time to figure this one out before buying.