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To salt test or not to salt test

Joebiech

Joebiech

Too ugly for a picture :P
Joined
Sep 11, 2006
Messages
426
Location
Santa Ana, CA
I have tried to find the correct answer to my question by searching through the vast amount of posts regarding digital hygrometers. What is the correct way to calibrate a digital hygrometer? Most people seem to recommend the time tested salt test method for most of their digital hygrometers. However, I have also noticed some (not too many) people saying that digital hygrometers are electric circuits and therefore are not happy when exposed to salt. As a poor recent college grad, salt is something that I can easily acquire but I do not want to ruin my hygrometer. Therefore is it okay to salt test a digital hygrometer...if not what should I do...is it necessary to purchase one of those calibration kits? :(

Any advice would be greatly appreciated
 
Joebiech said:
I have tried to find the correct answer to my question by searching through the vast amount of posts regarding digital hygrometers. What is the correct way to calibrate a digital hygrometer? Most people seem to recommend the time tested salt test method for most of their digital hygrometers. However, I have also noticed some (not too many) people saying that digital hygrometers are electric circuits and therefore are not happy when exposed to salt. As a poor recent college grad, salt is something that I can easily acquire but I do not want to ruin my hygrometer. Therefore is it okay to salt test a digital hygrometer...if not what should I do...is it necessary to purchase one of those calibration kits? :(

Any advice would be greatly appreciated
Click to expand...

Congratulations, scholar! :thumbs:

Yes, I would salt test just to know how accurate you are out of the box. There are a dozen plus threads that will tell you how. Salt is certainly corrosive to the components, but I wouldn't worry about a salt test frying the device.

The only hygro I would trust is a big bucks model certified by a metrics lab, but I don't need one. I bought Viper's 65% beads and I trust them to maintain the proper humidity in my cabinet. I only use my hygros to mark a change in relative humidity. That tells me to eyeball the beads to see if its time to add moisture. What the hygro will display is also a function of how fresh your battery is. Once the battery drops below 1v or so, what it displays will drift down. Change the battery at least once per quarter. Get the beads and trust them. For smaller humis, pay a visit to Cigarmony and check out the Puck.
 
If you don't salt test your hygro, you are guessing as to it's absolute accuracy. I replace the batteries in my three Little Havana's and salt test them twice a year, so I know what's up.

My $00.02 - B.B.S.
 
I salt tested mine the other day and ultimately saved myself lots of future irritation, as I was about 4.5% off on one.
 
Even as a newbie, I couldn't help but get viper's bead right from the start considering all the people who have supported this product not only on this forum but countless other forums. However, is it too much to assume that the 65% beads are correct and calibrate with them?
 
Joebiech said:
Even as a newbie, I couldn't help but get viper's bead right from the start considering all the people who have supported this product not only on this forum but countless other forums. However, is it too much to assume that the 65% beads are correct and calibrate with them?
Click to expand...

I suppose thats possible, but I know of no process by which to do the test. Perhaps Viper has some data. The salt test, when done correctly, will reliably produce 75% humidity +/- a few points. My point with the beads is that I trust the 65% beads to do the job without checking the hygro every few hours.
 
I deal with the effects of moist salty air on electonics every day. I can safely assure you that if you were to salt check your meter once a month for 5 years, you would still not experience green growth on your meter.

Now, 30 days stright wouldn't be good...
 
emodx said:
I deal with the effects of moist salty air on electonics every day. I can safely assure you that if you were to salt check your meter once a month for 5 years, you would still not experience green growth on your meter.

Now, 30 days stright wouldn't be good...
Click to expand...


Now that is the voice of experience!
 
So I've searched & can't find the answer to my question. I tested w/the method described here & it read 70% after 5 hrs. So I calibrated the device (Xikar) to 75% & left it in there to test for another 4-5 hrs. And I started to wonder if I should have made a new salt mixture for the 2nd test, especially since the RH was dropping. When I opened it up I realized I had put the hygro in the outer bag instead of the inner bag w/the salt mixture... :whistling: I made a new salt mixture anyway, but is it really necessary to do so for subsequent tests?

Also, I noticed there are a few differences in this method from the one pinned at the top of this forum. The one I used states to use 1 Tbsp of salt, distilled (what I used) instead of tap water & also says to wait 8 hrs. Is the test so sensitive that these differences matter? I don't seem to be able to get a consistent reading so I'm trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong.
 
Holy Necro-Bump. :whistling:

Double bag it, let it sit for 24 hrs, and then adjust your hygro. Repeat one more time if you desire to double check your accuracy. If this fails, try a Boveda calibration kit on your hygro. If this still does not work out for you, I would think it is a bad hygro.

My $0.02
 
Sorry, I didn't think it was worth a new thread.

But do I need to create a new salt mixture for the 2nd test after calibrating it the 1st time?
 
Every time I made a new salt mixture I got a different reading, so I bought the Boveda kit and saved myself further aggravation.
 
dulaney22 said:
Every time I made a new salt mixture I got a different reading, so I bought the Boveda kit and saved myself further aggrivation.
Click to expand...

I agree!

And when it comes to calibrating your hygrometer, I would leave it in the bag with the Boveda packet or salt mixture for at least 24-48 hours.
 
Hrmm never knew about the battery issue.. Thanks for the advice!

I use the boveda packs and periodically test my hygrometer, especially if they're reading outside of the norm. I use viper's 65 RH beads so when things are off more than 3 RH, I usually try to compensate by adding water or opening the door for a bit.. If the readings are still out of the 62-68 range, then I'll test the calibration.. Haven't had a problem yet..
 
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