Nova max ketone meter fails

[Mimis mom]

Anyone else have a hard time with this machine? It seems like every time I put a test strip into it- some kind of error happens!
I’ve given it enough blood before and I’ve still gotten an error message- saying I didn’t, or just error messages for no reason. Tonight I wasted 5 strips -
And at $2 a strip...
I don’t know if the test strips I have are somehow defective or what. This is the third bottle I’ve gone through where about only 2-3 of the strips in the bottle worked properly.

 

[Mimis mom]

. The aftermath of many failed attempts and lots of blood drawn.

 

[Sarah&Soph]

Are you currently using the Freestyle lite meter for testing BG? And are you sure you’re getting the blood on the strip for this meter correctly? I ask because I started out using the AlphaTrak which has similar strips to the Freestyle and when I switched to the ReliOn prime, which looks like it has similar strips to this meter, I could not for the life of me get it to work and it was because I wasn’t getting the blood correctly.

 

[Noah & me (GA)]

After checking the expiry date on the strips and making sure they're completely dry change the battery and start again.
"New" batteries can sit in a warehouse in for years and worse yet counterfeit batteries are a big problem. A counterfeit set of computer speakers almost burned our house down.
Also check the manufacturers site for recalls. I had some bad AccuChek strips and the recall was buried deep in their website, the pharmacy had no idea either.

 

[Larry and Kitties]

I you tried testing yourself as a test? If unsuccessful then I would call the company. Just do not say you are using them on a cat. I would just say that I'm a caretaker for someone else if they ask if you are using them on yourself. Usually a telephone number is listed on the back of the meter.

 

[Johann_marcel]

Anyone else have a hard time with this machine? It seems like every time I put a test strip into it- some kind of error happens!
I’ve given it enough blood before and I’ve still gotten an error message- saying I didn’t, or just error messages for no reason. Tonight I wasted 5 strips -
And at $2 a strip...
I don’t know if the test strips I have are somehow defective or what. This is the third bottle I’ve gone through where about only 2-3 of the strips in the bottle worked properly.

I've had a very similar experience. My solution was making sure there was a decent bubble of blood that appeared on the ear before even touching it with the strip, like enough where there was no question whether there will be enough blood. Having an amount in the form of a bubble helps with the quicker uptake into the strip. I dunno, I kinda viewed it like how I would handle a similar situation in my lab at work, like using a hemocytometer.

 

[Mimis mom]

Are you currently using the Freestyle lite meter for testing BG? And are you sure you’re getting the blood on the strip for this meter correctly? I ask because I started out using the AlphaTrak which has similar strips to the Freestyle and when I switched to the ReliOn prime, which looks like it has similar strips to this meter, I could not for the life of me get it to work and it was because I wasn’t getting the blood correctly.

No this is to test ketones

 

[Mimis mom]

I've had a very similar experience. My solution was making sure there was a decent bubble of blood that appeared on the ear before even touching it with the strip, like enough where there was no question whether there will be enough blood. Having an amount in the form of a bubble helps with the quicker uptake into the strip. I dunno, I kinda viewed it like how I would handle a similar situation in my lab at work, like using a hemocytometer.

Ya I’ve had to make sure it was a good bubble of blood. Like a LOT.. it’s a very “touchy” machine- even inserting the damn strips aren’t that smooth. There’s always a tiny resistance while inserting them... today was extra crazy though- i got at least 4 different types of error messages. It should work better considering how expensive the strips are...

 

[Johann_marcel]

Ya I’ve had to make sure it was a good bubble of blood. Like a LOT.. it’s a very “touchy” machine- even inserting the damn strips aren’t that smooth. There’s always a tiny resistance while inserting them... today was extra crazy though- i got at least 4 different types of error messages. It should work better considering how expensive the strips are...

I agree. I'm sure you were doing everything correctly. It truly baffled me getting that many error codes when I thought I did everything by the book and this confusion doesn't help when you are in an urgent situation! Good luck with future use, you are not alone with getting those error codes! :/

 

[Sarah&Soph]

No this is to test ketones

Lol yes I know it is for ketones I was just noticing that in your signature it says you’re using the FS meter, which the strips have a difference mechanism than these ones appear to have and they look similar to the meter I now use

 

[Mimis mom]

Oh! Alphatrak and FS are the same company! Is that what you meant? I’m just amazed that Nova created such a jenky machine for the price.

 

[Mimis mom]

Well here are some others that have said the same thing! Guess it’s not all in my head or I’m just not using them correctly. Perhaps non of us are? Well then, Nova, make a better product!

 

[Sarah&Soph]

Oh! Alphatrak and FS are the same company! Is that what you meant? I’m just amazed that Nova created such a jenky machine for the price.

Yes! When I started home testing I was using the AlphaTrak and for those strips you just simply put the little notch right into the blood droplet. But when I switched to the ReliOn, which looks similar to the Novamax strips, I wasted a lot of strips because they’re slightly different. You have to put the end directly into the blood drop and then it sips up into the little slit and for the life of me I couldn’t get it right. But based on those reviews you posted maybe the strips are just wonky