Analog TDS Sensor for Arduino

As South Africans, we are very fortunate that our standard drinking water in a large majority of the country is potable and often even tasty depending on where you live. However, this is not necessarily the case for every single person, and some people’s water is supplied from sources like boreholes or water that has been tanked over long distances. This is why, despite SA’s great standard of drinking water, we offer the specialised DFRobot Analog TDS Sensor for Arduino, which is an elegantly simple Electronics solution to testing the TDS of water to identify the overall quality of the water, as well as its potential health effects.

This Sensor Module is completely Arduino-compatible, making it an affordable choice, and is built to measure the Parts Per Million (Also referred to as Milligrams Per Litre) of Total Dissolved Solids in water. These solids are typically comprised of salts, minerals and metals like potassium, sodium, chlorides and many other “contaminants”, and in high doses these seemingly natural particles can actually be very dangerous.

Please Note that the final image is for demonstration purposes only. The Jar, Arduino board, Sensor Shield, Display and Battery are not included with this module pack.

Typical Applications for the Analog TDS Sensor:

Typically, according to the standards defined by India, Europe and many other locations around the globe, a TDS level of between 150 and 500 is good, with the lower range of this spectrum being better than the higher range. However, a TDS level lower than 50ppm (Parts Per Million) can also be dangerous to health, as it may have a lower saturation of salt than your blood, and your body will have to use the electrolytes in your blood in order to properly utilise the water that you drink.

These factors, which most of us don’t even consider throughout our entire lives, are surprisingly important, and if you’re concerned about the TDS of the water in your area or the source from which you’re acquiring it, this little module is an inexpensive solution to what could easily become a big problem over time. In fact, we even like to use this sensor to test out bottled water just out of curiosity, and we’ve found some interesting results. Of course, we don’t want to bash and brands, but you may be surprised with the results you find when experimenting with this unique but very beneficial module.

Additional Resources:

• DFRobot Official Wiki for the TDS Sensor Module
• Official DFRobot Gravity TDS Sensor Library for Arduino
• TDS Sensor Module Schematic
• TDS Sensor Layout with Dimensions
• CD4060BM96 Datasheet
• LMV324A-SR Datasheet

As self-proclaimed “Robo-holics”, DFRobot is a company comprised of over 100 staff members, of which 30% are engineers who love to build robots. It was started in 2008 with the goal of embracing and promoting open-source hardware, with a core focus on Arduino, Raspberry Pi and their very own LattePanda development boards. Since then, DFRobot have manufactured over 1300 unique modules, sensors and components that all work together and complement each other, allowing users like us to enjoy a full spectrum of cutting edge robotics and electronics without having to pay premium prices.

With the primary goal of developing and manufacturing great quality products, while making them accessible to as many people as possible, DFRobot are rapidly becoming one of the most common-place brands in the world of open-source robotics and electronics. With more than 1300 products developed in-house, and an impressive range of different categories and specialisations, there are few brands in the world who can compete in terms of quality, accessibility and genuine innovation.