its going to be my first hydro grow pretty soon. im doing a switch from soil to ebb flow buckets with a 55 gal. res. i was just wondering if someone could tell me what ph/ec meter is good for this setup. i want a meter that i can just drop the probes in and get a constant reading. also want a brand i can trust that any hydro store will have replacement probes if needed. i seen some hanna's out there but dont want to get those cause i heard they do a different conversion on the ec readings in the US. please help with a model and name of it, much apreciated guys.

Get a truncheon stick... they seem to be really durable and easy to use.

example #1: ec/ppm meter
Original Truncheon Meter (EC/PPM)

example #2: pH
Bluelab Instruments pH Truncheon Meter: J from Kalyx.com - Hydroponics & Gardening - Testing, pH, TDS, EC

They're a bit pricey, but well worth it, and you didn't say "cheap." Maybe even go ahead and order some replacement parts to save some heartache and shipping in the future

Keep us updated!

All probes have a limited life, about 18 months.

now I find out that there is a brand that has a strip
when the meter can't be calibrated you just pull out a little more of the strip,not sure if you cut off excess.

I wouldn't worry about the dif. in conversion, its available as a comparison chart

I have a millwalkii tri-meter, but the probe still only lasts so long,I'm on my second $85 probe,wish I would have known what I do now,next probe is a generic off the net for $35

do you think this meter is good and will be the only meter i will need to start with? also does this meters probe need to be constantly wet like my ph pen? do i just leave the probe in my res with this one? thanks guys! sorry for this dumb question.

Milwaukee SM802 SMART pH/EC/TDS Combined Meter/Tester - eBay (item 370181371170 end time Apr-29-09 12:36:50 PDT)

yep the 802 is the one I have,, the probe needs stored in a bottle of storage solution when not in use, rinsed before useing and before returned to storage,
I believe it can be left in the nuit solution,,this will also cause the EC barbs to corrode
you will need a small 9 volt DC power supply,or the batt. will need replacing often
The cheap generic probe is only Ph not a combo,but the EC probe barbs can be cleaned many times

check out the tri-meter by nutridip,it has seperate probes for Ph/EC, and useing the $35 generic probe makes it cheaper to maintain