Direct Soil EC Meter
PRODUCT MANUAL
Item
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s
2266FS, 2266FSTP
Page 1: ...Direct Soil EC Meter PRODUCT MANUAL Item s 2266FS 2266FSTP ...
Page 2: ... Water 19 3 Interpreting EC Readings From Turf Grass 20 4 Greenhouse Media 22 This manual will familiarize you with the features and operation of your Field Scout Soil Water EC Meter Please read this manual thoroughly before using your meter For customer support or to place an order call Spectrum Technologies Inc 800 248 8873 or 815 436 4440 between 7 30 am and 5 30 PM CST FAX at 815 436 4460 info...
Page 3: ...to the salinity of the soil solution EC measurement is also affected by temperature and to a lesser degree by soil moisture content Use this portable EC meter and probe to measure sa linity in greenhouse soil media right on the spot with out tedious soil sampling and preparation Green house production managers can compare readings from plant to plant and fine tune their fertility program because m...
Page 4: ... younger plants will require lower EC than mature plants The stainless steel soil EC probe is designed to be inserted directly into soil The sensing surface is composed of 2 pairs of electrodes on the probe tip Additionally the probe is narrow in diameter so it can be used effectively in plug trays Because EC readings are affected by moisture content it is important that soil moisture content does...
Page 5: ...re withdrawing the probe Taking several measurements will allow a representative average to be computed Important Do not touch the sensor tip with your fingers The oils on the skin will affect the probe s measurement accuracy Sensor Electrode Pair ...
Page 6: ...to toggle between Cond TDS and Salinity Press HOLD to select desired option 4 The display shows the selected parameter with a checkmark and returns to the Setup screen TDS Factor 1 Press MENU to scroll to Settings option 2 Press HOLD The display shows TDS factor and Backlight 3 Use the MENU button to scroll to the TDS Factor option 4 Press HOLD Current adjustment factor will be displayed 5 Adjust ...
Page 7: ...nits and press HOLD to confirm The display shows the selected unit with a check mark and returns to the Setup screen Temperature Calibration 1 Press MENU to scroll to Temp Set option 2 Press HOLD The display shows options 3 Press MENU to select Temp Cal Press HOLD 4 The lower display shows the current measured temperature reading based on the last set offset The upper display shows the current mea...
Page 8: ...t affected by the user reset function 1 Press MENU to scroll to Reset option 2 Press HOLD The display shows options 3 Press HOLD to select User Reset 4 The display automatically shows No and Yes Use MENU to scroll to the desired option 5 Press HOLD to confirm selection Display shows User Reset option with a checkmark Factory Reset 1 Press MENU to scroll to Reset option 2 Press HOLD The display sho...
Page 9: ...uent sections 1 If necessary power on the tester 2 The timer icon will blink during this time Once the reading is stabilized the timer stops blinking and will appear to indicate the stability of the reading 3 Note the value or press HOLD to freeze the read ing To release the reading press HOLD again 4 Press and hold the power button for 5 seconds to turn off tester If key is not pressed for 8 5 mi...
Page 10: ...nt Soil EC measurements made with soils at field capacity or saturation will have readings 10 15 more than SME measurements due to a lesser amount of water in the soil Soil EC measurements should be made 30 60 minutes after irrigation Procedure Power up the meter Insert the probe tip 1 inch below soil surface Wait for reading to stabilize Repeat at 1 inch increments in the pot Golf Course Greens A...
Page 11: ...ved or pulverized as this will affect the growth medium properties and alter the results Traditionally the soil solution from the saturated medium is extracted by a vacuum pump However the Field Scout Soil Water EC Meter allows the saturated sample to be tested directly Procedure Moisten the media sample with distilled water to reach a consistent saturated moisture level When saturated the media s...
Page 12: ...trongly recommended that calibration be done with 1 41 mS cm solution Manual calibration is possible with other solutions But there are EC concentrations for which even manual calibration cannot be done Automatic Calibration Conductivity only 1 Power on the meter 2 Completely immerse the tip in calibration standard 3 Stir gently and press the CAL ESC button to begin the calibration The meter will ...
Page 13: ...matic Calibration 2 Wait until the display settles on a measured value Press MENU to manually adjust the value to the desired reading Note The adjustment will decrease only however the adjustment will eventually cycle to the highest available value after decreasing by 40 of the initial value 3 Press HOLD to accept and finish the calibration when the desired value is selected Note To abort calibrat...
Page 14: ... insert probe p 15 before replacing the probe or tip Replacing a tip 24 probes only The replaceable tip left is designed to thread in and out of the end of the probe A new tip has two flat faces on opposite sides This al lows the tip to be tightened onto the probe with a pliers or 5 16 wrench I Removing a direct insert probe The 8 probe do not have a replaceable tip The re placement procedure is o...
Page 15: ...d the assembly 4 Attach the probe plug to the socket in the meter housing 5 Push the assembly onto the meter housing so the metal pegs on the assembly line up with the notches on the inner diameter of the meter open ing Be sure that the small o ring sits at the base of the large plastic assembly 6 While holding the assembly in place hand tighten the nut to the strain relief 7 Connect and tighten t...
Page 16: ...tab towards the front of the tester as shown in Figure 2 Once unlocked remove the plate to access the bat teries 3 Turn the tester upside down to remove the batter ies Each side uses two AAA batteries Orient each battery with positive terminal facing downward 4 To lock the battery plate align the small tabs Figure 3 into the guide ribs on the housing and then press down See Figure 4 Battery Replac...
Page 17: ...y 1 full scale Calibration points 1 Temperature Range 0 to 60 C 32 0 to 140 0 F Temperature resolution 0 1 C 0 1 F Temperature accuracy From 0 to 50ºC 0 5ºC 0 9ºF 1 LSD from 50 to 60ºC 1 0ºC 1 8ºF 1 LSD General Display Graphics Dot matrix 80 x 100 pixel Auto off 8 5 minutes from last key press Power requirement Four AAA 1 5 V batteries Battery life 150 hours Water proofing IP67 Environmental opera...
Page 18: ...2 0 2 5 Strawberry 2 0 2 5 Lettuce 1 0 1 5 Eggplant 2 5 3 0 Melon 1 5 2 5 Potato 2 0 3 0 Pepper 2 0 3 0 Pea 1 0 1 5 Tomato 2 5 5 0 Celery 2 0 2 5 Marrow 2 0 2 5 Recommended soil EC for selected vegetable crops Note The values on this table refer to measurement of a saturated media extract SME Appendix 1 Preferred EC Values for Selected Plants ...
Page 19: ...ng methods Calvins Whipker and Fonteno North Carolina State University a saturated media extract b 1 part soil to 2 parts water Appendix 2 Classification of Irrigation Water Excellent EC 0 25 mS cm Good 0 25 mS cm EC 0 75 mS cm Permissible 0 75 mS cm EC 2 0 mS cm Doubtful 2 0 mS cm EC 3 0 mS cm Unsuitable EC 3 0 mS cm Categories of irrigation water quality based on elec trical conductivity Wilcox ...
Page 20: ... the Field Scout meter This equa tion is the basis for table 1 Table 2 lists a variety of grass species and the range of EC values converted to SME they can tolerate FS SME FS SME FS SME 0 1 1 1 1 1 3 8 2 1 6 5 0 2 1 3 1 2 4 0 2 2 6 7 0 3 1 6 1 3 4 3 2 3 7 0 0 4 1 9 1 4 4 6 2 4 7 3 0 5 2 2 1 5 4 9 2 5 7 6 0 6 2 4 1 6 5 1 2 6 7 8 0 7 2 7 1 7 5 4 2 7 8 1 0 8 3 0 1 8 5 7 2 8 8 4 0 9 3 2 1 9 5 9 2 9 8...
Page 21: ...uegrass Creeping Bentgrass Tall Fescue Seashore Paspalum Rough Bluegrass Hard Fescue Buffalograss St Au gustinegrass Centipedegrass Bahiagrass Zoysiagrass Table 2 Relative tolerance of turfgrasses to soil sa linity measured by the SME Method Salinity in Turfgrass Harivandi M A Butler J D Lin W 1992 Note The values on this table refer to measurement of a saturated media extract SME Use table 1 to c...
Page 22: ...low levels Indicates very low nutrient status 0 74 0 25 0 12 Suitable range for seedlings and salt sensitive plants 75 1 99 25 75 12 35 Desirable range for most established plants Upper range may reduce growth of some sensitive plants 2 00 3 49 75 1 25 35 65 Slightly higher than desira ble Loss of vigor in upper range OK for high nutrient requiring plants 3 50 5 00 1 25 1 75 65 90 Reduced growth a...
Page 23: ...ates to more conventional soil sampling techniques The FieldScout reading is designated by the variable FS Pour through Method PT PT 1 637 FS 0 556 1 2 Dilution OTT OTT 0 448 FS 0 13 Saturated Media Extract SME SME 1 178 FS 0 294 Source Scoggins H L VanIersal M W 2006 In Situ Probes for Measurement of Electrical Conductivity of Soilless Substrates Effects of Temperature and Substrate Moisture Cont...
Page 24: ... 815 436 4440 Fax 815 436 4460 E Mail info specmeters com www specmeters com Warranty This product is warranted to be free from defects in material or workmanship for one year from the date of purchase During the warranty period Spectrum will at its option either repair or replace products that prove to be defective This warranty does not cover damage due to improper installation or use lightning ...
