MaloMAL
Active Member
That's what I've been doing. Dropped it 5.7 with a 5.8 fluctuation when I woke before shutting the light pH was @6.2 with the excpetion of 2 plants that were @6.2 -6.3 fluctuation.
PICTURE incl. Ph. FLUCTUATIONS start @5.8 end in 6.5 end day. KEEP adjusting or leave alone ?
MaloMAL
Active Member
Thank you, that confirms my decision on removing the faucet water. Idk what to use in exchange of faucet water. I refuse to overspend on water. If My beef steak tomatoes can drink this faucet water with an unadjusted pH why not this "weed" with an dj usted pH. That poor way of thinking is why I'm facing these pH issues... what should I use as a cheap alternative ? Also I pH adjusted to 5.7 with a 5.8 fluctuation at 8:30am I turn lights on at 4:30 and tested pH @6.2 with a 6.3 fluctuation. I'm assuming this is normal right ? I mean it's not going way up and is within nutrient soluble range, correct ?
MaloMAL
Active Member
How do I go about making the right decisions prior to avoiding this in result ?
Bakersfield
Well-Known Member
I have a similar problem with my ph rising.
My well water is ph6.5 and 12ppm with a little iron in it.
After mixing 7grams per gallon of MaxiBloom @ 890ppm to my rez, my ph drops to 4.8
after 48 hours the ph rises up to 5.9. This is run to waste.
My well water is ph6.5 and 12ppm with a little iron in it.
After mixing 7grams per gallon of MaxiBloom @ 890ppm to my rez, my ph drops to 4.8
after 48 hours the ph rises up to 5.9. This is run to waste.
The_Enthusiast
Active Member
Have few PH down (different acids) and mix them so you don't scramble you "NPK ratio" two much. Sulfuric acid is good as it doesn't change the ratio and plants (all plants not just this) can handle 50-1000 ppm of S (I'm not saying you need to put 1000 ppm of S but that you can have 150-400 probably without ILL effects)
Or best way - filtered water (RO is the cheapest route)
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
I totally understand mL but when talking about how much nutes you are adding to how much water it's used like 0.5mls/L or 0.5mls/gal so someone reading it knows the quantity of nutes in relation to the volume of water. The way you were posting it I couldn't tell whether you were referring to mLs per liter, gallon or the total volume of your reservoir.
When I do DWC I just add nutes as I go along until after the stretch then generally do a flush and refill with a flowering mix for the final 5 or 6 weeks of an 8 week strain.
I very surprised that you have problems with the lights lower. These are HPS bulbs and not some LED lights right? I looked up the name on the hood the lights are in and it says HPS. I have two of those and I think one ballast just died on me. I was using it to light up the lower portions of my plants as I have seeds ripening down there. I swapped in my 85W - 5000K CFL to finish that job.
Are the 150w bulbs just standard HPS or some special type for growing with? I know they make ones that give MH type light from an HPS ballast for vegging but they are damned hard to find when you don't shop online.
These are all Ceramic Metal Halide bulbs made for HPS ballasts.
Eyelighting.com sells a 150w Cera Arc. Model: CM150/U/837/MOG/EN
SunPulse has one, SPCMH15032K
And GE makes a couple that use standard size sockets so you need an adaptor, E39 - E26, to use it in the larger mogul socket. I got one at Home Hardware for about $6. Using it now with that 85w CFL.
Models: 150U830Med/0 and 150U942MED/0
The thing with net pots is that they just act like a support for the plants. The root system is in the pail or tub so the size of the pot makes no difference to the roots. Just that the larger the pot the deeper it sits and takes up space for more nutes in a single pail or tub. With a recirculating system it doesn't really matter about that.
These 5" net pots worked pretty good with 5 plants in each.
When I do DWC I just add nutes as I go along until after the stretch then generally do a flush and refill with a flowering mix for the final 5 or 6 weeks of an 8 week strain.
I very surprised that you have problems with the lights lower. These are HPS bulbs and not some LED lights right? I looked up the name on the hood the lights are in and it says HPS. I have two of those and I think one ballast just died on me. I was using it to light up the lower portions of my plants as I have seeds ripening down there. I swapped in my 85W - 5000K CFL to finish that job.
Are the 150w bulbs just standard HPS or some special type for growing with? I know they make ones that give MH type light from an HPS ballast for vegging but they are damned hard to find when you don't shop online.
These are all Ceramic Metal Halide bulbs made for HPS ballasts.
Eyelighting.com sells a 150w Cera Arc. Model: CM150/U/837/MOG/EN
SunPulse has one, SPCMH15032K
And GE makes a couple that use standard size sockets so you need an adaptor, E39 - E26, to use it in the larger mogul socket. I got one at Home Hardware for about $6. Using it now with that 85w CFL.
Models: 150U830Med/0 and 150U942MED/0
The thing with net pots is that they just act like a support for the plants. The root system is in the pail or tub so the size of the pot makes no difference to the roots. Just that the larger the pot the deeper it sits and takes up space for more nutes in a single pail or tub. With a recirculating system it doesn't really matter about that.
These 5" net pots worked pretty good with 5 plants in each.
Kingrow1
Well-Known Member
I asked the same questions a while back when trying some rockwool, before i bought an aero propogator. My water rised the same as yours and im not running hydro to piss about with acids once a day, hydro should be low maintance, simply set and come back in a few days although there are those that disagree.
Long story short, i couldnt be arsed and went back to soil. An alternative was an ro machine and some suggested more stable or buffering ferts. I dont know what works best and you need to consult a decent hydro guy. Ive only ever heard the mention of waters ionization constant being ph4.2 and at that point all alkalinity is neutralized with no more rises once or twice in all my time here.
My water really bums for hydro and i refuse to be chasing ph daily, i think big commercial growers have constant ph adjustment automated with acid delivery systems and thus easier, probably have different water too.
I hear ro water is cheap from a lot of shops unless you live in the uk and bottle of ferts cheap again if you find out its a better way.
Kingrow1
Well-Known Member
Cool root systemI totally understand mL but when talking about how much nutes you are adding to how much water it's used like 0.5mls/L or 0.5mls/gal so someone reading it knows the quantity of nutes in relation to the volume of water. The way you were posting it I couldn't tell whether you were referring to mLs per liter, gallon or the total volume of your reservoir.
When I do DWC I just add nutes as I go along until after the stretch then generally do a flush and refill with a flowering mix for the final 5 or 6 weeks of an 8 week strain.
I very surprised that you have problems with the lights lower. These are HPS bulbs and not some LED lights right? I looked up the name on the hood the lights are in and it says HPS. I have two of those and I think one ballast just died on me. I was using it to light up the lower portions of my plants as I have seeds ripening down there. I swapped in my 85W - 5000K CFL to finish that job.
Are the 150w bulbs just standard HPS or some special type for growing with? I know they make ones that give MH type light from an HPS ballast for vegging but they are damned hard to find when you don't shop online.
These are all Ceramic Metal Halide bulbs made for HPS ballasts.
Eyelighting.com sells a 150w Cera Arc. Model: CM150/U/837/MOG/EN
SunPulse has one, SPCMH15032K
And GE makes a couple that use standard size sockets so you need an adaptor, E39 - E26, to use it in the larger mogul socket. I got one at Home Hardware for about $6. Using it now with that 85w CFL.
Models: 150U830Med/0 and 150U942MED/0
The thing with net pots is that they just act like a support for the plants. The root system is in the pail or tub so the size of the pot makes no difference to the roots. Just that the larger the pot the deeper it sits and takes up space for more nutes in a single pail or tub. With a recirculating system it doesn't really matter about that.
These 5" net pots worked pretty good with 5 plants in each.
View attachment 3869912
MaloMAL
Active Member
Based on you ppm. That's the answer right there. I just help a buddy of mine fix this issue literally an hour ago. I won't know until tomorrow if it's helped him. We leaked out fluid from his res, topped it with some RO water along with pH adjusted water. The ppm DROPPED his temperature dropped not ten minutes from when we did that and his pH rose from a low ass 4.4 tom 4.8 without any adjustment. I'm confident this will help him, again I'll have a definite answer tomorrow
MaloMAL
Active Member
Haha I don't blame you for needing that clarity lol. However I thought I included that when I mentioned I'm using 3gallon ~ 2.75gallon. I should have wrote it properly. Sorry, seeing how very informative you are I would love to be as clear as you néed me to be....I totally understand mL but when talking about how much nutes you are adding to how much water it's used like 0.5mls/L or 0.5mls/gal so someone reading it knows the quantity of nutes in relation to the volume of water. The way you were posting it I couldn't tell whether you were referring to mLs per liter, gallon or the total volume of your reservoir.
When I do DWC I just add nutes as I go along until after the stretch then generally do a flush and refill with a flowering mix for the final 5 or 6 weeks of an 8 week strain.
I very surprised that you have problems with the lights lower. These are HPS bulbs and not some LED lights right? I looked up the name on the hood the lights are in and it says HPS. I have two of those and I think one ballast just died on me. I was using it to light up the lower portions of my plants as I have seeds ripening down there. I swapped in my 85W - 5000K CFL to finish that job.
Are the 150w bulbs just standard HPS or some special type for growing with? I know they make ones that give MH type light from an HPS ballast for vegging but they are damned hard to find when you don't shop online.
These are all Ceramic Metal Halide bulbs made for HPS ballasts.
Eyelighting.com sells a 150w Cera Arc. Model: CM150/U/837/MOG/EN
SunPulse has one, SPCMH15032K
And GE makes a couple that use standard size sockets so you need an adaptor, E39 - E26, to use it in the larger mogul socket. I got one at Home Hardware for about $6. Using it now with that 85w CFL.
Models: 150U830Med/0 and 150U942MED/0
The thing with net pots is that they just act like a support for the plants. The root system is in the pail or tub so the size of the pot makes no difference to the roots. Just that the larger the pot the deeper it sits and takes up space for more nutes in a single pail or tub. With a recirculating system it doesn't really matter about that.
These 5" net pots worked pretty good with 5 plants in each.
View attachment 3869912
Man I'm so glad that your saying this. It only confirm my initial intention as far as nutes. I was intending to add small volumes of nutrients as the plant adapts to the smaller portions. The fact you do it this way only verifies my way of thinking for the most part is right on track. Thanks so much you don't even know how excited I am.
YES they are HPS. don't be surprised man. It could have everything to do with type of walls I have in my Grow room. They aren't very well insulated and the heat and light reflects on it very easily I'm assuming that could probably be one reason.
They are mini Sunburst HPS 150W. It comes with Built in digital ballast. Yea I found them online. One think I notice being an advent traveler is that many states have different demands so one place could have far more than others....
Are you recommending I purchase any which item you've provided information for ?
I would hate to replace what I have for something else you know, I don't have money in my trees yet hahahaha ....
Yes I'm not recirculating though so I don't want to come across these issues....
Attachments
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
As MH light is the best to use for plants in the vegging stage I thought you might be interested in some bulbs to do that and will work with your existing ballasts. Many ballasts sold now are switchable between MH and HPS and come with both bulbs. I see them on Amazon, EBay etc all the time.
I just noticed that yours are digital ballasts so I'm not sure if those lights will work but one or more may. They seem to work on these ballast types. M102/M142/S56 ballasts and the first two are digital I believe. You could check to see what ballast you have as I can't get the actual type of ballast used even at the manufacturer's site. Should be a number like M102/M142 inside the box it's in. The S56 is the magnetic ballast that I have.
Not saying you should rush out and buy any but something to think about for the future.
I've been slowly building up my grow room equipment for the last 15 years and often had to make something out of bits and pieces to get something I needed but couldn't afford to buy so I know what that's like. I recently came into a bit of money and spent almost 2G on stuff I'd wanted for a long time and still didn't get everything but plenty enough to grow my brains out.
I would loved to have been living out near Vancouver again where I could be more directly involved in the Cannabis Culture but I made the dumb move to northern Alberta in '01 and then a dumber move of buying a small acreage with house and shop a couple years later. Hell of a deal and much cheaper than rent so now stuck with it and my wife.
Helping others in the forums is my broke-ass way of giving back to the community and I learn new stuff all the time too. Enough that I don't have to think much about growing and for years just do all sorts of experiments to see what happens. When I see someone asking about something chances are I've tried it and can give them decent advice. Have a couple grow bibles here to look lots of stuff up with too.
Like going a whole grow in DWC without ever changing nutes. Done a half dozen grows like that and it works fine but you need practice reading your plants so they get what they need.
I just noticed that yours are digital ballasts so I'm not sure if those lights will work but one or more may. They seem to work on these ballast types. M102/M142/S56 ballasts and the first two are digital I believe. You could check to see what ballast you have as I can't get the actual type of ballast used even at the manufacturer's site. Should be a number like M102/M142 inside the box it's in. The S56 is the magnetic ballast that I have.
Not saying you should rush out and buy any but something to think about for the future.
I've been slowly building up my grow room equipment for the last 15 years and often had to make something out of bits and pieces to get something I needed but couldn't afford to buy so I know what that's like. I recently came into a bit of money and spent almost 2G on stuff I'd wanted for a long time and still didn't get everything but plenty enough to grow my brains out.
I would loved to have been living out near Vancouver again where I could be more directly involved in the Cannabis Culture but I made the dumb move to northern Alberta in '01 and then a dumber move of buying a small acreage with house and shop a couple years later. Hell of a deal and much cheaper than rent so now stuck with it and my wife.
Helping others in the forums is my broke-ass way of giving back to the community and I learn new stuff all the time too. Enough that I don't have to think much about growing and for years just do all sorts of experiments to see what happens. When I see someone asking about something chances are I've tried it and can give them decent advice. Have a couple grow bibles here to look lots of stuff up with too.
Like going a whole grow in DWC without ever changing nutes. Done a half dozen grows like that and it works fine but you need practice reading your plants so they get what they need.
Dr. Who
Well-Known Member
BULL SHIT om "holding" an "exact" pH value!!!! You want a normal fluctuation! 5.7 - 6.3 is a good one! You see nutrients are better available at differing pH values! This "master grower" is not!
It is fluctuating too fast.....What is the water source? What is the waters ppm before you add nutes?
I'll bet you done't have enough buffer in the water to start with. How much Ca/Mg do you add?
MaloMAL
Active Member
Yea buddy I reread what I responded during the first paragraph. I failed to mention that the pH to fluctuate is normal. As when the plants break down nutrients; what's recycled raises the pH. I was highly aware of what a normal fluctuation is within my general knowledge of a plant. However, cannabis may have a different regulations as far as pH and what needs to be done to rectify if it's an issue. Which i know not much of. That's why I'm here on this forum. Right now I'm solely concerned with how high it's gotten in the past. That problem has been solved it goes only as high as 6.4 before 7.1 . I was concerned with how many times I've reduced it and if I should continue. I apologize for miscommunicating. I hear you I'm not trying to be that guy who mentions master growers to contradict helpful information. Obviously, in a non condescending way, if I was going with only what's he's feeding me I wouldn't post questions on my Forum. I appreciate folks such as yourself and I appreciate your responses and information. Sorry man....
Source: Faucet Water
pH of water before nutes: @9.2
PPM before nutes of water: @85
Fluctuation varies from when I adjusted @5.8 on 1/4/17 to @6.3 1/7/17 without adjusting . It has risen between that range (5.8 - 6.3) within 3 days absence from adjusting. I believe my fluctuation, with remedies I've performed, have kept my pH fluctuations at a normal level. This is based on notes Ive taken via iPad on an everyday bases.
BTW if I confused you with misinformation in any responses. I apologize but I've looked over my notes and the information above is the MOST accurate information In pertinence to the grow room...
My pH hasn't been adjusted in 3 days. I currently just checked for the sake of responding with accurate up to date information..... pH @6.3 excluding plant 2 @6.4 with a slight variation of 6.3. Tested 1/7/16 10:37pm EST.
Last edited:
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
Sounds like you're getting it dialed in MaloMAL. Should be smooth sailing now. (Ignore the man behind the curtain)
MaloMAL
Active Member
Hey man I'm glad you mentioned it. Since you have I went on ordered and 2xT5 agro brite. I purchase them for very very cheap. If it weren't for your advice I wouldn't have thought of using this during my NEXT vegetative growth. I appreciate you. For sure I'll post photos when they arrive. Idk when I'll put them up as I'm working under legal conditions and don't know when my next cycle would be due just yet. I will post that as well though.As MH light is the best to use for plants in the vegging stage I thought you might be interested in some bulbs to do that and will work with your existing ballasts. Many ballasts sold now are switchable between MH and HPS and come with both bulbs. I see them on Amazon, EBay etc all the time.
I just noticed that yours are digital ballasts so I'm not sure if those lights will work but one or more may. They seem to work on these ballast types. M102/M142/S56 ballasts and the first two are digital I believe. You could check to see what ballast you have as I can't get the actual type of ballast used even at the manufacturer's site. Should be a number like M102/M142 inside the box it's in. The S56 is the magnetic ballast that I have.
Not saying you should rush out and buy any but something to think about for the future.
I've been slowly building up my grow room equipment for the last 15 years and often had to make something out of bits and pieces to get something I needed but couldn't afford to buy so I know what that's like. I recently came into a bit of money and spent almost 2G on stuff I'd wanted for a long time and still didn't get everything but plenty enough to grow my brains out.
I would loved to have been living out near Vancouver again where I could be more directly involved in the Cannabis Culture but I made the dumb move to northern Alberta in '01 and then a dumber move of buying a small acreage with house and shop a couple years later. Hell of a deal and much cheaper than rent so now stuck with it and my wife.
Helping others in the forums is my broke-ass way of giving back to the community and I learn new stuff all the time too. Enough that I don't have to think much about growing and for years just do all sorts of experiments to see what happens. When I see someone asking about something chances are I've tried it and can give them decent advice. Have a couple grow bibles here to look lots of stuff up with too.
Like going a whole grow in DWC without ever changing nutes. Done a half dozen grows like that and it works fine but you need practice reading your plants so they get what they need.
I have fully reviewed my box, light specification slip, and light information and instructions catalog. None included the ballast Part#. It is Digital though. 150w mini sunburst HPS/w lamp. I have 4 in total....
I'm amazed by your nature, it takes a person so much to operate the way you have for so long. I appreciate your information and the mentality you have to help others grow. It's unfortunate only samaritans such as yourself take the opportunity to speak to me. I consume so much and I use the majority of what I learn as a resource. I would hope others take the time you have to share how life and growth coincide. As many can learn from it.
Man I dislike to buy things like "books" I've been trying so hard to obtain them via internet.
I will keep trying as all is possible with a feasible mind....
Im comfident I will have lucious growth following advice. I am proud of my home garden with all of the fruits and vegetable they produce. Can't forget my FAMOUS 24hr bloom span Orchards lol haha , yea I love them sorry. I've learned each of what I harvested to a keen over the past years. I'm hoping this ability Could be used with cannabis. I'm sure that'll be possible. With good people like you around. Thanks keep on giving ¡
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
I found a great spot to download FREE POT BOOKS I downloaded Jorge Cervantes Grow basics books and getting some more. No web site but just a page of links. Just right click on what you want and then "Save Link As" to download. They got lots. Book looks great and complete like the real one.
Dr. Who
Well-Known Member
Oh yeah, your good now! Let her swing!
Ya, I thought you were jumping around .5 tenths in 8 hrs or less...
Dr. Who
Well-Known Member
Even I found some I wanted! Great list with very little missing!I found a great spot to download FREE POT BOOKS I downloaded Jorge Cervantes Grow basics books and getting some more. No web site but just a page of links. Just right click on what you want and then "Save Link As" to download. They got lots. Book looks great and complete like the real one.