Do you have to ph test your water when growing in soil?

KK26

KK26

Well-Known Member
BanjoPu$$ywhistle said:
Sorry, but this is terrible advice. Lets say your tap water was slightly acidic at 5.9 by the time you add nutes its gonna be around a 4.9 pH or lower. I dont care how much buffering soil does, you aint growing shit watering with 4.9 pH. ALWAYS pH and ppm your input, doing anything else is just lazy and asking for issues.
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That's fine.

I've grown shit weed for decades and not PH'd.

Always had, what I thought was very good plants and healthy yeilds by the amount of full jars I have but.....

I must be shit as my weed and would love some of your PH'd fire weed which I have missed out on for decades.

What an idiot I've been and I must take more advice from newbies such as your fine self who is just on his/her second ever grow.

Using Blurple lights too and clear pots as plant pots.

Oh gosh, thinking about that...do I have to master grower?
 
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90'sStoner

90'sStoner

Well-Known Member
KK26 said:
EXACTLY that
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But what if your constantly giving water at a high or low pH? I'm only at this about 4 years, soil with top dressings and teas, but when I moved location and swapped from rain water to the water tank in the attic I started having issues, turned out to be a zinc lockout because the water in the attic was so alkaline. Using pH down sorted it for me. Tbh i keep the soil recipe fairly basic so I dunno if I've added any amendments that help with buffering
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
the original question has 2 answers. I think the conflict here is because of that. The answer is different if your in the ground versus in a pot. Outdoor in the ground is harder to control ph of soil. In pots indoor however its much easier to adjust soil ph. Bottom line is it does matter.
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
90'sStoner said:
But what if your constantly giving water at a high or low pH? I'm only at this about 4 years, soil with top dressings and teas, but when I moved location and swapped from rain water to the water tank in the attic I started having issues, turned out to be a zinc lockout because the water in the attic was so alkaline. Using pH down sorted it for me. Tbh i keep the soil recipe fairly basic so I dunno if I've added any amendments that help with buffering
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Most likely the alkalinity was due to carbonates. The pH down neutralized the carbonates. Any nutrients issues were occurring in the nutrient solution before it even was introduced into the medium.
In layman terms it's know as hardness of the water. 99% of the time anything under 200ppm from the tap is fine for growing. There are certain cases where even a hardness level of 100ppm can cause issues.
And in your case the problem could have been caused by water contacting the tank itself. Assuming it was an older metal tank. Even older galvanized pipes in a structure can taint a perfectly good water source.
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
cowboylogic said:
Most likely the alkalinity was due to carbonates. The pH down neutralized the carbonates. Any nutrients issues were occurring in the nutrient solution before it even was introduced into the medium.
In layman terms it's know as hardness of the water. 99% of the time anything under 200ppm from the tap is fine for growing. There are certain cases where even a hardness level of 100ppm can cause issues.
And in your case the problem could have been caused by water contacting the tank itself. Assuming it was an older metal tank. Even older galvanized pipes in a structure can taint a perfectly good water source.
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Your soon rite. My ppms run 230 to 270 at the tap. Its a pain in the ass.
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
And I'll add this. Over use of pH up over time can cause issues in container grows. They are usually potassium carbonate. Which over time will build up in the medium, especially peat based mixes. Yes the sweet spot is 6.5-6.8. But plants can do very well in a much larger range. I personally think the majority of problems new growers run into is chasing pH. Creating their own drama and issues. That otherwise may not even occur if they would just leave things be and allow nature to take its course.
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
cowboylogic said:
And I'll add this. Over use of pH up over time can cause issues in container grows. They are usually potassium carbonate. Which over time will build up in the medium, especially peat based mixes.
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What about a little h2o2? I sometimes use that to ph up if I got a long way to adjust. It adds a bit of oxygen to the root ball too.. I usually just use GH ph up. Whats your thoughts on that?
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
Gorillabilly said:
What about a little h2o2? I sometimes use that to ph up if I got a long way to adjust. It adds a bit of oxygen to the root ball too.. I usually just use GH ph up. Whats your thoughts on that?
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Being that H2O2 is generally is acidic, like 4.5. I'm not sure how it works for you. I've never heard of anyone using it as a pH up. As far as oxygenation, I doubt there really are any oxygenation benefits when it comes to the root zone in a soil grow.
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
cowboylogic said:
Being that H2O2 is generally is acidic, like 4.5. I'm not sure how it works for you. I've never heard of anyone using it as a pH up. As far as oxygenation, I doubt there really are any oxygenation benefits when it comes to the root zone in a soil grow.
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Yea, down not up. Sorry. I use a light baking soda or sodium hydroxide for up, but only in a pinch. Generally I just use the GH. Thoughts on using that?
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
And generous helping of EWC in your mix will tend your pH for you for 3 months or longer. They are the magical set it and forget it amendment to container mediums. Plus they contain beneficials along with other nutrients your plants will appreciate.
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
Gorillabilly said:
Yea, down not up. Sorry. I use a light baking soda or sodium hydroxide for up, but only in a pinch. Generally I just use the GH. Thoughts on using that?
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Baking soda is as poor a choice as a grower can use. The carbonates it contains will create bonds in the medium that can be near impossible to break. Use too much and you set up a situation that is near impossible to recover from.
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
My tap water is highly chlorinated. I use potassium bicarbonate to neutralize it. Same think I use when making beer. Is that ok?
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
Gorillabilly said:
My tap water is highly chlorinated. I use potassium bicarbonate to neutralize it. Same think I use when making beer. Is that ok?
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If it is chlorine and not chloramine just allowing it to set out open after drawing it from the tap 24-48hrs will evaporate the chlorine off.
 
Gorillabilly

Gorillabilly

Well-Known Member
Oakiey said:
I just wonder how many useless crap in bottles a person could buy.


Dum. Mas
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Water chemistry is important indoors, moreso than outdoor. Lots of ways to skin a cat when it comes to ph. Especially. When I find people who seem knowledgeable I pick their brains, its how I learn. Sorry if you find that as an indication of my intelligence.
 
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