Digital Refractometer Comparison

[SeanD]

Thanks, John. How do you clean out the well where the sample drops go? Does the whole stainless piece lift out of the reader?

[johnallin]

I clean it with a shot of water then some IPA from a small spray bottle...it needs to be perfectly clean to get an accurate reading.
The only moving part on it is the hinged lid/cover for the prism.

[Swingpure]

It won’t be a popular answer, but I liked the optical refractometers for a hobbyist. I let the hot syrup cool for about 10 seconds before measuring the sugar content. I would shoot for 67 Brix and later when I would open a bottled, obviously cooled down syrup, I would get the same reading. People would always tell me it was the best syrup they ever tasted.

I have to say, I did not trust a single reading, I would normally check it about three times, to make sure the Brix was what I wanted.

That was my experience with refractometers and it worked for me.

[SeanD]

I ended up going with the Misco. I was leaning that way then I found it a little less expensive here and that sealed the deal.
https://selectumllc.com/i/Misco-PA202X-304-305

I'd still be interested in hearing about people's experience with the Hannah, though.

[johnallin]

I think you’re going to be very happy with the Misco.
Great Ohio company with excellent customer service.
Just give it a minute or so with hot syrup off the bottler.
Room temp it’ll be spot on, it’s what most judges use in syrup competition.
Nice job.

[DrTimPerkins]

We've used about every type of refractometer you can imagine, but for the past 10 yrs have standardized on the Misco. Most of these devices are good and work well, but like any tool, they should be used appropriately. Done incorrectly, any refractometer will give erroneous readings. People have a tendency to accept results from a digital tool without question.

The main thing is that the sap or syrup needs to come to thermal equilibrium with the device. Measuring cold sap or hot syrup can lead to errors if not allowed to warm or cool to the device temperature.

The Misco has a couple of features that make it a bit better. The larger well size, a sapphire prism (instead of glass or plastic), the sample cover, and an (optional, but highly recommended) rubber case all make it the better choice in my opinion, although that comes at a higher price. It's also a good size to hold in your hand and also to fit in your pocket (Hannah is a bit too big, PAL-Maple by Atago is a bit too small, MISCO is just right).

That said, we have broken several of the units over the years, either by dropping them (hence my recommendation to get the rubber case) or by the seal going bad around the sample well (it's real hard on the device to go from boiling hot syrup to cold syrup...the seal gives up after a while). Of course, our units are worked pretty hard and tend to spend a lot of time banging around in our pockets and are in daily use (sometimes for dozens of measurements daily over the entire season).

We've used pretty much all the others. They will function just fine and give decent readings if used correctly. The primary benefit of those is lower cost. If they're mostly sitting in your sugarhouse or kitchen and get used only a few times each week, then with care to take measurements correctly (let temperature equilibrate), any of the units should work.