CYCLOPS INSTRUMENTS Antifreeze Premium Refractometer for Automotive Antifreeze System, AdBlue, DEF, Battery Acid, and Windshield Washer Fluid | Measures Freezing Point Temperature and Concentration

This tester will check battery acid, DEF fluid, Windshield washer fluid as both Propylene and Ethylene Glycol based antifreeze. Very good instructions

Very Accurate instrument but must be initially calibrated. Delivers a more precise analysis of antifreeze condition and quality. A great value!

Im really impressed with the refractometer kit! It comes with clear instructions for calibration and use, a dropper for putting liquids to be tested onto the glass plate, a screwdriver for calibration, and a hard-sided case to keep this precision instrument safe amidst my other tools. Ive used it to check my antifreeze, which was very helpful. It also allows for testing of battery acid and washer fluid. The one note I would make is it was not clear exactly where the calibration screw is from the directions. Remove the rubber cap to reveal the hole where the calibration screw is, then turn the screw for calibration as clearly described in the instructions. Hope that helps!

These are a great way to insure your coolant is rated/mixed properly for your climate. Being a motorcycle repair shop its nice to verify coolant especially for winter storage, and summer riding. I have used this to upsell customers on a coolant flush, since alot of liquid cooled bikes never ever get coolant flushed and they need it to. I prefer my tools measure in freedom units, but I keep conversion charts on the wall for quick reference anyways. The meter seemed to be accurate when tested against fresh coolant, using the non diluted rating for comparison. I love things that come with a case for storage, so its nice to see they included needed accessories as well as a case to protect the tool. Overall very happy with the tool.

This is an excellent way to ensure your coolant and windshield wiper fluid have enough antifreeze. Without a proper level your engine may overheat, your engine block may crack or a wiper fluid reservoir could crack. It can also be used to test battery electrolyte health. I first tested some distilled water and found it to test out right at the waterline with no additional calibration required. As others have indicated, this can be a bit finicky to use until you get the hang of it. While my distilled water reading was very easy, my first attempt at Honda coolant was more difficult. The Honda coolant had no distinct results line until I gave the tester some vertical inclination and the line clearly popped showing -40 degree Fahrenheit (had to convert from Celsius). You may want to visually examine your coolant or wiper fluid before testing to ensure it looks normal as contaminants in it would skew the accuracy of the refractometer (e.g. wiper fluid created with hard water rather than distilled water, oil contamination in coolant). A nice tool at a low price. While I wont use this every time I buy coolant Ill be sure to use it if I do a brand swap or if I am concerned antifreeze protection is waning.

This instrument relies directly upon the optical properties of some common automotive fluids to reveal meaningful information. For me, the big questions were: Whats the charge state of the battery? At what temperature does the [antifreeze|washer fluid] risk freezing? A couple of drops of fluid on the instrument gave me instant, actionable answers. Prefect.

It is easy to use, seems like it will last a while, and works great.

I dont have a large garage, so I didnt want to deal with having a traditional bulb reader taking up room. This, however, serves the role perfectly (maybe even better) while taking up way less room. The unit is well made in metal. After a quick calibration with water, testing is quick and kind of fun. I feel more confident that my fluids will stay fluid, and also that Im not wasting any by not diluting enough.

The instructions were very poor. I had to refer back to the item description on Amazon to get the information I needed. Once I had the info it was easy to use the item. I found it very easy to use and extremely accurate. There are several scales for different liquids so this tool is very useful. The antifreeze scale is marked in centigrade so I had to convert the reading to Fahrenheit for my local use. It would be handy if the instructions included a conversion chart. This tool gives much better results than the tube wilt floating balls . It is nice to get a tool that works well and doesnt require batteries. Just point it at the daylight and it works. I like that they included a dropper for getting the sample from the radiator to the tool. Overall very good tool , poor instructions, good value. I would get this again.

This enables you to buy a higher grade antifreeze and then add water to get it down to the level you want. I learned this trick from our Boat club yard manager. They buy -200 antifreeze and then water it down to the level they want. Good utility for this and a reasonable price.