Word of warning - TDS Meters

[Chris34]

If I bought it from a reputable dealer at that price and thought it was a fake I would give them a ring and diplomatically express my concerns and see what they had to say . Out of interest what’s the readings like compared to the original one ?..

Totally agree and that's what I'm going to do. I'm not happy at all. If I wanted a fake I would have gone to eBay and paid about £3.

It's from Pure Freedom. I've not even tried turning it on because it looks totally fake to me.

 

[Pjj]

Totally agree and that's what I'm going to do. I'm not happy at all. If I wanted a fake I would have gone to eBay and paid about £3.

It's from Pure Freedom. I've not even tried turning it on because it looks totally fake to me.

I would try it just out of interest pure freedom are now owned by wcw so good luck getting any ware with them ???let us know what they say

 

[Mattymarske]

WCW even using a blue one on their product page image lol send it back and get 20% off for Black Friday or get the plumbed in dual meter. No code necessary. ?

 

[Chris34]

I would try it just out of interest pure freedom are now owned by wcw so good luck getting any ware with them ???let us know what they say

Thing is if I try it, well for one they might not take it back, but secondly there is no way of me testing it to see if it's accurate, it could read '0' but it might actually be '1' or '10' or maybe not even work... That's why brands exist, you buy a brand of product to sort of expect a level of quality guarantee associated with that brand, that's why I paid more for a HM Digital and that's why I went to Pure Freedom thinking they wouldn't be that stupid to sell fake stuff (assuming it's fake which looks highly likely at this point) and would highly likely be selling the genuine product.

 

[Mattymarske]

HM Digital COM-100 Water Tester | Waterproof EC / TDS / Temp Combo Meter

HM Digital COM-100 Waterproof EC / TDS / Temp Combo Meter

www.waterfilterman.co.uk

This looks the beer knees as handheld go. £45 but has decimal place reading as you were asking about previously. Still HM but more bells and whistles.

 

[Mattymarske]

HM Digital COM-100 Water Tester | Waterproof EC / TDS / Temp Combo Meter

HM Digital COM-100 Waterproof EC / TDS / Temp Combo Meter

www.waterfilterman.co.uk

This looks the beer knees as handheld go. £45 but has decimal place reading as you were asking about previously. Still HM but more bells and whistles.

Handhelds – hmdigital.com

hmdigital.com

Here's the full range. Yes it looks a bit naff if you ask me. See what PF have to say for themselves or email HM digital if there's any kind of identifying mark on it. ? I'd be peeved off if dodgy for the price. Would be interesting to see what the readings are compared to the old one.

 

[Pjj]

Thing is if I try it, well for one they might not take it back, but secondly there is no way of me testing it to see if it's accurate, it could read '0' but it might actually be '1' or '10' or maybe not even work... That's why brands exist, you buy a brand of product to sort of expect a level of quality guarantee associated with that brand, that's why I paid more for a HM Digital and that's why I went to Pure Freedom thinking they wouldn't be that stupid to sell fake stuff (assuming it's fake which looks highly likely at this point) and would highly likely be selling the genuine product.

They wouldn’t know you had tried it provided you dry the end off after ????

 

[THL4KEL]

You should at least test it before saying its a fake, if it does not give an accurate reading just tell them its a fake and send it back.

 

[Chris34]

You should at least test it before saying its a fake, if it does not give an accurate reading just tell them its a fake and send it back.

Testing it and it working doesn't mean it's not a fake. I'd fully expect it to work, although how accurately I wouldn't like to guess, the fact is I've bought a HM Digital tds meter and what I've been given doesn't look like what I've bought. Even their own photo is completely different to the product I've been supplied.

 

[ched999uk]

Well the way that they work is with a baseline of 0. Using a high ppm fluid allows for more accuracy.

What do you use as a zero reference though? Maybe I have the wrong idea of how the calibration on these things works as they do only have 1 adjustment - maybe it's just gain. As long as the calibration fluid is on the right number the zero must be correct, but if that's the case for our use it really doesn't matter if any reading above zero is out or not as we only want to ensure we have 0 TDS water.

 

[THL4KEL]

Report them to trading standards then.

 

[Iron Giant]

If I bought it from a reputable dealer at that price and thought it was a fake I would give them a ring and diplomatically express my concerns and see what they had to say .

Exactly this, but as it's now been revealed that it's PF I'd hardly call them a reputable supplier as they are known to buy stuff straight out of China without even checking it over and after the black resin saga which I almost forgot about as well.

There is only one place to buy certain items and that's daqua.co.uk

 

[Part Timer]

Exactly this, but as it's now been revealed that it's PF I'd hardly call them a reputable supplier as they are known to buy stuff straight out of China without even checking it over and after the black resin saga which I almost forgot about as well.

There is only one place to buy certain items and that's daqua.co.uk

I have always said I put PF engineered equipment up with the best, if you compare cost and quality, but I wouldn't buy anything else from them

 

[scottish cleaning service]

Bought a bottle of TDS Calibration fluid, handy to have.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001VE99X8/?tag=wcf01-21

 

[Mattlekim]

What do you use as a zero reference though? Maybe I have the wrong idea of how the calibration on these things works as they do only have 1 adjustment - maybe it's just gain. As long as the calibration fluid is on the right number the zero must be correct, but if that's the case for our use it really doesn't matter if any reading above zero is out or not as we only want to ensure we have 0 TDS water.

As far as I understand it, it's gain. I have a TDS probe for Arduino and have been messing with it months ago.

So at 0 the probe is not sensitive enough to read voltage across the probes.
In fact without a voltage amplifier the voltage difference between 0ppm and 100ppm is hard to read.

The dial as far as i know where ether changes the amplification of the voltage between the 2 probes, or the voltage between the two probes goes to a potentiometer, creating a voltage divider between the probes and the potentiometer with That voltage then been amplified.

Ether way calibrating to a higher TDS value means that the device is more accurate by an order of magnitude.

 

[Chris34]

I would try it just out of interest pure freedom are now owned by wcw so good luck getting any ware with them ???let us know what they say

I emailed them saying that the product is a non genuine product and sent the photo. They emailed me this morning saying that if I'm not happy I can return for a full refund but they didn't comment about it not being a HM Digital meter.

So they dodged it. If it was genuine then they would have said so. They're also insisting I pay the return costs which I'm almost certain is not the case in law. I don't think I can be bothered directing them to the legal guidelines regarding distance selling and products not as advertised.

The main thing is to alert all other window cleaners to do their due diligence when purchasing important equipment and don't assume the main suppliers can be trusted. I don't mind them selling TDS Meters that are not HM Digital, the problem is being mis-sold a product making out it to be something it's not. So given that they've done this with TDS Meters it means they are more likely to do the same with other products that are hard to distinguish fake from original.

I agree with what Part Timer says, I'll be very careful who I select to buy from for items that are hard to distinguish fake from original because some things you have to trust the supplier is buying from source as there is no way of telling the difference.

I think it would be good to have a page on this forum that has a list of known good suppliers for products like this. Like a credited supplier list that is recommended by the manufacturers. It could help all the window cleaners, it would help legitimate suppliers who are trying to compete against not so trusting suppliers and it would help manufacturers who are being screwed over by people selling copies of their products.

 

[Pjj]

I emailed them saying that the product is a non genuine product and sent the photo. They emailed me this morning saying that if I'm not happy I can return for a full refund but they didn't comment about it not being a HM Digital meter.

So they dodged it. If it was genuine then they would have said so. They're also insisting I pay the return costs which I'm almost certain is not the case in law. I don't think I can be bothered directing them to the legal guidelines regarding distance selling and products not as advertised.

The main thing is to alert all other window cleaners to do their due diligence when purchasing important equipment and don't assume the main suppliers can be trusted. I don't mind them selling TDS Meters that are not HM Digital, the problem is being mis-sold a product making out it to be something it's not. So given that they've done this with TDS Meters it means they are more likely to do the same with other products that are hard to distinguish fake from original.

I agree with what Part Timer says, I'll be very careful who I select to buy from for items that are hard to distinguish fake from original because some things you have to trust the supplier is buying from source as there is no way of telling the difference.

I think it would be good to have a page on this forum that has a list of known good suppliers for products like this. Like a credited supplier list that is recommended by the manufacturers. It could help all the window cleaners, it would help legitimate suppliers who are trying to compete against not so trusting suppliers and it would help manufacturers who are being screwed over by people selling copies of their products.

I would report it to trading standards they are selling a fake or copy which is advertised as the real thing is illegal , I would contact my credit card company telling them the purchase a fake they should reimburse you and cancel the payment to pf
Thanks for the update shows what kind of company they and wcw are avoid bu from them would be my advice unless it’s so they have made like reels or systems

 

[Iron Giant]

I think it would be good to have a page on this forum that has a list of known good suppliers for products like this.

daqua.co.uk and the owners name @doug atkinson must on average get dropped about 2-3 times a week over the course of the year and most likely has been the case for the last 5 years and don't think myself and other members can shout it any louder

 

[THL4KEL]

Never had a problem with Pure Freedom and I've spent thousands with them. One order arrived damaged and it was replaced a couple of days later.

 

[Chris34]

I would report it to trading standards they are selling a fake or copy which is advertised as the real thing is illegal , I would contact my credit card company telling them the purchase a fake they should reimburse you and cancel the payment to pf
Thanks for the update shows what kind of company they and wcw are avoid bu from them would be my advice unless it’s so they have made like reels or systems

I'll see if they change the advert and if not...

 

[Chris34]

Never had a problem with Pure Freedom and I've spent thousands with them. One order arrived damaged and it was replaced a couple of days later.

I've ordered big items from them and the service has been excellent and during lockdown my controller failed and Ian sent out a replacement the next day free of charge, it absolutely rescued my backside as money was very tight being the first year in business. I couldn't fault the service and the products at that time. However that was a few years ago and like PJJ says, they've now been bought out by WCW , so I don't know what the set-up is but the owners are different so things may now be done differently.