Topic 10 Appendix A: Use and Care of a pH Meter
💡 Performance alert: The pH meter has a delicate glass bulb at the bottom of the probe. Be careful not to break the glass bulb. Rinse the probe with distilled water and wipe off excess water before placing the probe in new solution.
- The pH electrode should be calibrated regularly before sample measurements are taken.
- To calibrate the pH electrode, go to Desktop → 412.
- Double click on the icon named pH Meter. Logger Pro 3 will automatically open. After a few seconds the software should detect the pH meter. If it does not, ask your TA or lab monitor for assistance. The probe may just have to be unplugged and then plugged again.
- Go to the Experiment heading of the toolbar.
- Select Calibrate. Then LabPro: 1 CH1:pH.
- Make sure the Calibration tab is selected in the Sensor Settings window.
- Click on the Calibrate Now button.
- If not so done already,
remove the pH probe from the storage vial. Be careful not to break the delicate glass bulb at the end of the probe;
rinse with deionized water and gently wipe dry. **Always rinse and wipe dry before placing into a new solution. - For Reading 1, place probe into the calibration buffer labeled pH 4.00. Wait for voltage reading to steady. Then type 4.00 into the Value window. Click Keep.
- For Reading 2, repeat Step 9 except with the pH 10.00 buffer.
- When finished with the calibration solutions, click the Done button.
You may want to double-check the quality of the calibration by placing the probe back into the 4.00 buffer and seeing what value appears on your screen.
