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Conductivity of soil is an excellent indication for the presence of nutritive salts. Soil conductivity is checked before and after fertilization to establish its effectiveness as well as ensuring that the soil is not too saline and damaging to the plant roots. Conductivity of the irrigation water and fertilizer mixes, on the other hand, is checked to make sure values are within acceptable range and a correct fertilizer concentration and strength is being applied.
The HI993310 is an instrument that has been specifically designed to address the question of correct and rapid measurement of conductivity in soil and liquids. It is supplied complete with two probes, HI 76305 with a stainless steel, conic tip for direct soil measurement, and HI 76304 for fertilizer enriched solutions. HI 993310 measures both the soil conductivity in EC (mS/cm) as well as salt activity in grams per liter. The different scales can be selected through two keys on the front mask and two separate LED lights indicate which parameter is being tested. In addition, HI 993310 is equipped with an alarm LED that automatically comes on if the soil is too dry, or nutritive substances such as potassium or nitrogen are lacking. In the former case, demineralized water is to be added to the soil prior to proceeding with further tests.
Direct soil measurements are facilitated by the small diameter, the stainless steel material and the pointed tip of the HI 76305 probe. Once inserted into the ground, the user just needs to wait until the meter displays the value supplied by the auger-like probe. Calibration can be performed by even non-technical personnel, thanks to a simple dial on the front of the meter. Both probes incorporate a temperature sensor and the meter compensates for the temperature automatically. By using the meter for one hour a day and 5 days a week, the common 9V battery will last up to 5 months. HI 993310 comes in a rugged splashproof casing, made for outdoor measurements. |
