What could cause drift in a home pH meter during calibration?

[Savannah24]

I’ve been trying to calibrate my home pH meter using the standard buffer solutions, but my readings keep drifting by about 0.2 pH units after a few minutes. I’m following the procedure exactly, letting the electrode stabilize in each solution, so I’m not sure if my meter is faulty or if I’m missing something in my technique.

[StevenG]

I’ve wrestled with that drift too. Calibrate, wait, and after a few minutes the reading slides by about 0.2. I’ve wondered if the electrode is still finding its footing or if the room temp is nudging the buffers. Sometimes I just watch it drift and chalk it up to the probe chasing a stable value.

[Jason97]

Between solutions I rinse and gently blot the tip, not sure if that helps, and I still get drift. It makes me think the reference junction is doing something wonky or the buffers aren’t as stable as I expect.

[John57]

I once swapped to a different brand buffer and noticed the drift changed. Not perfect, but one brand held its value a bit better for me. Could be lot variation or storage conditions.

[Nicholas_S]

Could the problem be something else entirely, like the meter temperature compensation or how the electrode is stored when not in use?