How do you write it in your posts..... vis OR viz??? I read it both ways,,,,,this poll is just for fun!
Visibility
- Thread starter texdiveguy
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Keysdrifter454
Contributor
texdiveguy:
Vis is what your tank gets once a year.
Viz is the essence of life.
On informal chat boards like this I use the slang "vis" quite a bit, but in logs and more formal literature I just write the whole word out or abbreviate (i.e. "visib." or "vis.").
Scientifically I report it as water clarity or water turbidity. The former is usually measured with a secci disk or some sort of tape measure, while the latter commonly utilizes an electronic turbidometer. Turbidometers are rare as sin.
Scientifically I report it as water clarity or water turbidity. The former is usually measured with a secci disk or some sort of tape measure, while the latter commonly utilizes an electronic turbidometer. Turbidometers are rare as sin.
SuPrBuGmAn
Contributor
Way off-topic, but...
Whats involved in an electronic turbidometer? I was in a high school Marine Bio class about 8 years ago and we had a field trip to a local bay with one of the marine biologists from Daphin Island Sealab. The biologist used a flat disk that was marked in quarters with alternate quarters marked black and then white. They basically just measured the string it was hanging on at the point when you lost a visual on the disk. Is this incorrect? Perhaps the secci disk you described to measure water clarity? Whats the difference between water clarity and turbidity? LOL I'm starting to think my Marine Bio class from back in the day was a joke!
Whats involved in an electronic turbidometer? I was in a high school Marine Bio class about 8 years ago and we had a field trip to a local bay with one of the marine biologists from Daphin Island Sealab. The biologist used a flat disk that was marked in quarters with alternate quarters marked black and then white. They basically just measured the string it was hanging on at the point when you lost a visual on the disk. Is this incorrect? Perhaps the secci disk you described to measure water clarity? Whats the difference between water clarity and turbidity? LOL I'm starting to think my Marine Bio class from back in the day was a joke!
Me and my big mouth. Now I have to look stuff up... I haven't used a turbidity meter in over 10 years.
Okay, turbidimeters (or turbidity meters) measure water transparency by shining light through a collected water sample, and inferring the amount of particulate matter present. It's sort of like a spectrophotometer. Most use the NTU standard (nephelometric turbidity units), which pretty much nobody including most marine biologists has ever heard of. Turbidity meters are commonly used in government water quality labs and research facilities. They're too expensive for most other folks. Here's some on the web you can buy.
http://www.coleparmer.com/catalog/product_index.asp?cls=7360&par=0&cat=1
Secci disks are cheap as dirt, and require virtually no brains to operate. It's just a disk you drop in the water column. Most models are countershaded black and white. Textbooks and researchers sometime spell it as "secchi". Argued as far cruder than turbidity meters, and use different units (secci units are measured in feet). Secci disks are neat because divers can easily use them horizontally to determine underwater visibility. They also don't break... usually.
Okay, turbidimeters (or turbidity meters) measure water transparency by shining light through a collected water sample, and inferring the amount of particulate matter present. It's sort of like a spectrophotometer. Most use the NTU standard (nephelometric turbidity units), which pretty much nobody including most marine biologists has ever heard of. Turbidity meters are commonly used in government water quality labs and research facilities. They're too expensive for most other folks. Here's some on the web you can buy.
http://www.coleparmer.com/catalog/product_index.asp?cls=7360&par=0&cat=1
Secci disks are cheap as dirt, and require virtually no brains to operate. It's just a disk you drop in the water column. Most models are countershaded black and white. Textbooks and researchers sometime spell it as "secchi". Argued as far cruder than turbidity meters, and use different units (secci units are measured in feet). Secci disks are neat because divers can easily use them horizontally to determine underwater visibility. They also don't break... usually.
SuPrBuGmAn
Contributor
Interesting 
Thanks!
Thanks!
fookisan
Guest
I use vis in posts and in my log.
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