AquaChek TruTest Spa Digital Test Strip Reader - for Spa and Hot Tub Water Testing - Tests for Total Bromine, pH, and Total Alkalinity - Quick and Accurate Results - Includes 25 TruTest Strips (Red)

Works great..

Worse than awful, complete waste of money. It is very easy to use, but beware: I tested the same water sample three times in a row and got three widely different results. I took the same water sample to my local pool store for professional testing and got yet a different result. This product is so inconsistent and inaccurate that one can damage one's spa by thinking the chemistry is OK when, in fact, it is not.

I decided to purchase in spite of the low ratings, after reading how others had good results when following the instructions precisely. I figured: I can follow instructions precisely! ;-)My process: (1) run the jets of the hot tub for a few seconds to mix the water a bit, (2) scoop out a sample of water in measuring cup, (3) clean the reader window with the provided tool, (4) turn on the TruTest, strip in hand, press bottom button, (5) wait for countdown to say "dip", (6) dip for a second, then pull out, and shake off droplets (once only), (7) without sliding, insert strip into reader, aligning with top and making sure it lays flat, (8) do all this in the shade, and additionally cover the reader to keep external light from getting in (9) wait for readoutI did this 5 times in a row, with the same sample of water.I also used 3 regular AquaChek Total Bromine strips for comparison, waiting for 15 seconds before letting my wife do the readout (I'm color blind).Results with red TruTest digital reader and matching red strips:(Total Bromine / pH / Total Alkalinity)8.9 / 7.7 / 2401.9 / 8.0 / 1200.0 / 8.4 / 200.9 / 8.0 / 600.0 / 8.4 / 60Results with AquaChek Total Bromine strips and "wife" analog reader:1.0 / 8.0 /801.0 / 7.5 / 601.0 / 7.5 / 65As you can see, the later results match up reasonably well between digital reader and my wife's readings: I should probably add some brom tabs, shock the hot tub, and use a small amount of "down" to get back to a lower pH level. After making those adjustments, I should also keep an eye on alkalinity, to see whether I need to increase it.But the first two results are WAY different from all the rest! Even if I'd done "best out of three" (wasting extra strips in the process), I still wouldn't have made the right decisions, based on those bromine and alkalinity readings!Now I'm torn. It would be nice not to have to wait for someone else to be available to read the strips for me, but if I can't use these digital readings with confidence, what's the point?

Works great!!! Just wish I had more specific instructions about how to rectify the probelm once I find out what it is. Other than that, I love it!

I read the bad reviews on this but decided to take a chance and buy one anyway - wish I hadn't; the reviews are right, this thing is worthless. Many reviews say the key to getting it to work is to ensure you keep the unit completely shaded/in the dark while it is trying to read the test strip. I did that to the extreme - covered up the unit with a black card and my hands, to allow it to be in darkness. The results are still inconsistent and clearly inaccurate for the bromine and alkalinity readings (keeps showing both as 0 levels), but for some reason the ph readings do appear to be accurate, compared to my Taylor chemical test kit (which I bought after it was obvious this digital unit was worthless). Anyway don't bother with this one, instead get a Taylor chemical test kit.

sooo much easier to use. if you are color blind this is a godsend

I have a hard time with colors, so this is perfect

Performed several pH tests in a controlled calibration fluid of exactly 6.8 pH. Multiple tests performed only seconds apart returned pH levels between 5.7 and 10.1.Bromine levels would also swing widely between 2 and 20ppm when testing only minutes apart.All tests were performed out of three separate test strip containers to ensure that the test strips themselves were not faulty or contaminated. These units are just plain garbage. Avoid.