Water: The Most Essential Compound

Tragic420

Tragic420

Well-Known Member
i got clear water from a stream will that help or make things worse? the in the stream is bout 18'' deep and flowing over rocks... has some melted snow it....most of that has cleared now,,, got 20 gallons of it
 
doc111

doc111

Well-Known Member
Tragic420 said:
i got clear water from a stream will that help or make things worse? the in the stream is bout 18'' deep and flowing over rocks... has some melted snow it....most of that has cleared now,,, got 20 gallons of it
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As long as it's not polluted it should be good for growing. The only thing I feel I should caution you about is using water from an outdoor source inside. It's really easy to bring hitchikers (bugs, spores, etc.) into your nice, clean indoor environment. Just be careful and you should be good. Some people boil water that they bring in from the outside. That can be a real pain in the ass if you have a lot of plants.:cuss:
 
fabfun

fabfun

New Member
speaking of which i glad u told me to get my new wells water tested
didnt realize at the time this is also my water for plants so im going to definitely have this done

and i would never bring anything from outside into my grow room now for outdoor plants it would be fine but as doc said to much shit out there that would love to mess up your grow



doc111 said:
As long as it's not polluted it should be good for growing. The only thing I feel I should caution you about is using water from an outdoor source inside. It's really easy to bring hitchikers (bugs, spores, etc.) into your nice, clean indoor environment. Just be careful and you should be good. Some people boil water that they bring in from the outside. That can be a real pain in the ass if you have a lot of plants.:cuss:
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Kingrow1

Kingrow1

Well-Known Member
Ok so i just read the whole thread back to front! Wow this is good, no great! I know a bit about my water but this blew me away. I live in an area of soft water, always round pH7 and most of the rock in the whole country is slate so i guess this is why we have soft water and low mineral content. The pH is down to the great water companies and we are prized for having tasty refreshing tap water. I didn't realise the importance of cal/mag to water. I recently been having what looked like cal mag problems and couldn't work out why. Must be the water, i'd sumarise that this is what is lacking in my water and causing me to add to my plants from the first few weeks onwards?

So if i was to check this what would i need, will an ec tester do it? or is there anything else i should consider?

On a note about the brita filters, are they reverse osmosis filters? What would the filtered water ppm's be approximatly? Says they are loose granular carbon filling with an ion exchange? We live in an area where chlorine disapates from the water in 24hours, the good kind of chlorine so to say but was under the impression this was not harmfull to plants or humans?

Sorry if i have lots of questions but your thread was very eyeopening, i use to drink bottled mineral water but now might change to somthing better. Brita seems to get a bad rap on here but i would only be filtering my tap water.

One last question, i run the biobizz grow and bloom with seaweed extract, says that a ppm/ec meter will not read organic nutrients, is this true? Am seriously considering buying a hanna ph,tds/ec all in one meter as well.
 
doc111

doc111

Well-Known Member
Kingrow1 said:
Ok so i just read the whole thread back to front! Wow this is good, no great! I know a bit about my water but this blew me away. I live in an area of soft water, always round pH7 and most of the rock in the whole country is slate so i guess this is why we have soft water and low mineral content. The pH is down to the great water companies and we are prized for having tasty refreshing tap water. I didn't realise the importance of cal/mag to water. I recently been having what looked like cal mag problems and couldn't work out why. Must be the water, i'd sumarise that this is what is lacking in my water and causing me to add to my plants from the first few weeks onwards?

So if i was to check this what would i need, will an ec tester do it? or is there anything else i should consider?

On a note about the brita filters, are they reverse osmosis filters? What would the filtered water ppm's be approximatly? Says they are loose granular carbon filling with an ion exchange? We live in an area where chlorine disapates from the water in 24hours, the good kind of chlorine so to say but was under the impression this was not harmfull to plants or humans?

Sorry if i have lots of questions but your thread was very eyeopening, i use to drink bottled mineral water but now might change to somthing better. Brita seems to get a bad rap on here but i would only be filtering my tap water.

One last question, i run the biobizz grow and bloom with seaweed extract, says that a ppm/ec meter will not read organic nutrients, is this true? Am seriously considering buying a hanna ph,tds/ec all in one meter as well.
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Thank you! Cal-Mag deficiencies are very common in cannabis so if your water is relatively soft you could be experiencing one or both. Cal/Mag (there are several different brands) is a good thing to have on hand. An EC/PPM tester is a good indicator of overall water quality (hardness) but it does not tell you what is in your water. You'll need a detailed analysis from a laboratory with special testing equipment in order to give you a complete break down of what is in your water. Your water company may provide one for you at no charge. It never hurts to ask. Brita filters are NOT reverse osmosis filters. They will remove some inorganic impurities but don't really affect the overall hardness of the water. Chlorine is typically not harmful to plants but some people who grow organically are concerned about it killing off beneficial microbes and fungi. Chlorine is actually needed by plants and animals in miniscule quantities. Chlorine does evaporate relatively quickly but Chloramine does not. Chlorine and Chloramine disinfection are both highly controversial topics amongst growers, especially organic growers. I've never been able to find a study that shows the affect these chemicals have on soil microbes. Neither chemical is harmful to humans in small quantities. That is true that ppm/ec meters won't read organic nutes. The reason for this is they are not broken down into ionic forms that the plants can use. They will alter the ppm's a bit but it doesn't give you an accurate idea of the nutrient capacity. Hope this helps and welcome to RIU. :blsmoke:
 
Kingrow1

Kingrow1

Well-Known Member
Thanks doc, i have since done a lot of reading on water, pretty complicated subject but my understanding is a lot clearer now. Once again thanks and great site/info. I think i do have cal/mag issues and will proceed to buy a hanna all in one meter to clear this up. I will probably have more questions one day but probably best i do a bit or growing and learning first. What can i say for all the great info on this thread and answering my questions but thanks a million.
 
Oldreefer

Oldreefer

Well-Known Member
Great water breakdown doc.....as a retired chemical consultant, it was always essential that water used in factories MUST be checked occasionally so we could advise on various surfactants required to allow any chemicals to their jobs as designed....Vegetables and MJ are no different.....
 
Kingrow1

Kingrow1

Well-Known Member
Hiya again, yes it's me, the one who asks all the questions, well i'm sorry but i got a wondering mind and nature!lol! Anyway i have a slightly more advanced question for you doc and it is spurned on from reading the threads about the water filters and my new found knowledge of reverse osmosis and distilled water. This may sound crazy but i can't find the answer anywhere so here gose-

Q. Say i made pure water from a reverse osmosis machine and its ppm was '0' (i am guessing its EC would also be '0'), it would have all its salts removed thus its '0'ppm, so if i wanted to reconstitute this back to normal drinking water that was good for humans to drink and plants too (not forgetting the little green fellas, we love you weed plants!) would this be possible by adding the relevant ratios of just calcium, magnesium and sodium?

Q. What of the other minerals and stuff in mineral water like potassium, bicarbonates etc

I know it might sound stupid or off the beaten track but i had a crazy idea involving a RO machine and a bunch of salts, i could basically replicate any mineral water in the world from my home tap water. I know noone really dose this when their tap water is of great quality but hell i get weird urges to do pointless stuff. Thanking you in advance, your humble servant KINGROW the First.
 
Knox

Knox

Member
Great thread doc! The importantce of water can be paramount. I know too many people who will sink hundreds of dollars into snake oils but overlook the simple investment of an R/O Filter. Keep up the good work.
 
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