Compost tea PH adjustment options

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Tnelz

Tnelz

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This is tough bec everyone has a diff answer. I bubbled 5 gallon tea for 48 hours then dumped the tea into 30 gallon ro water. I was lazy that day and didnt do a ph test and feel like i caused a issue... Not sure yet but will find out soon.
Grab the nectar pH up and down bro. Awesome stuff.
 
J

JoDurt

4
1
So depending on your compost tea ingredients and microbial life the PH of Tea varies. I would like to discuss the different options that exist for safe PH adjustment to teas.Some people complain theire teas are too alkaline for instance 8.0 or others complain their teas are too acidic for instance 4.0

I have heard that humates like fulvic, and humic acid help to buffer nutrients so they can be absorbed across a wider PH range, but wouldn't a tea that is very acid hurt the microheard in the soil if you gave it to a plant with a soil ph of 6.5?

PH Down
Generally speaking acidifying(lowering PH) teas is not a problem. Many just add citric acid, lime juice, vinegar ect.

PH Up
This is where the problem arises. How does one raise the PH of their tea. I have heard of only two ways. Adding baking soda or Bubbling the tea for a day.


Considerations:
So does bubbling(aerating) a tea in fact raise PH?

Are there other options to raising PH such as adding Dolomite lime, hydrated lime, oyster shell flour, or coral calcium to Teas?

Yes most of those are soil amendments but is it plausible to use them for PH adjustment?
Silica is a very alkylate substance. Works great
 
J

JoDurt

4
1
So depending on your compost tea ingredients and microbial life the PH of Tea varies. I would like to discuss the different options that exist for safe PH adjustment to teas.Some people complain theire teas are too alkaline for instance 8.0 or others complain their teas are too acidic for instance 4.0

I have heard that humates like fulvic, and humic acid help to buffer nutrients so they can be absorbed across a wider PH range, but wouldn't a tea that is very acid hurt the microheard in the soil if you gave it to a plant with a soil ph of 6.5?

PH Down
Generally speaking acidifying(lowering PH) teas is not a problem. Many just add citric acid, lime juice, vinegar ect.

PH Up
This is where the problem arises. How does one raise the PH of their tea. I have heard of only two ways. Adding baking soda or Bubbling the tea for a day.


Considerations:
So does bubbling(aerating) a tea in fact raise PH?

Are there other options to raising PH such as adding Dolomite lime, hydrated lime, oyster shell flour, or coral calcium to Teas?

Yes most of those are soil amendments but is it plausible to use them for PH adjustment?
Answer to the question::
Plants change the PH by themselves after we give them "PH" water anyway. If you where to cut a plant root zone open you would find that the plant has ph levels from as low as 5.5 to as high as 11 PH. Compost tea is taking it back to Mother Nature, Mother Nature never had to PH so it is correct when they say leave it alone. Hydroponicsystems may be different that's why I went back to soul. She does a much better job then I could ever do.. Lol takes the guesswork out. Go to YouTube (Dr. Elaine Ingham) it will help explain and help you understand much better then I can. If an Oxford Dr. Of soul tells me to not worry about it then I'm not concerned. Humic acid will nutralize the clorine in water before brewing in order to protect the biological life and nutralize the water. As long as it's real compost you can compost tea every time because it is not nutrients, it's biology. Just passin through.. Jo-Durt
 
Seamaiden

Seamaiden

Living dead girl
23,596
638
This is not entirely correct. The plants (and other associated biology) can only 'self-adjust' pH IF they have the right tools available. If they don't, it doesn't matter how naturally you approach it, it's not happening.
 
Brendan C

Brendan C

7
3
I'm attempting to use compost tea with a coco perlite mix (plus a couple organic amendments) basically as a full stand alone program. I don't want to have to use anything else. I have the mix I want to use. My question though is if the ph is more important since I'm using coco and it is technically kind of like running organic hydro, because it is still all organic. I just want the boosted yield and growth speed from coco
 
S

soilsoilsoil

3
3
ok , from personal experience i have found that brewing your tea does raise the ph like someone has already pointed out , but i must warn you that some organic growers spread the idea that no ph adjustment is necessary if you make your own organic teas , even though it does work that way to a certain extent it does make a massive difference if you take the time to get your ph between 6.3 and 6.5 , if your ph is to low brew it , if your ph is to low and you need to water straight away add the tap water with the higher ph to balance it , if the ph is to high add molasses (think the ph is around 5.5 or something) the microbes love it ,

either way there is only one way and that is experiment and experiment a bit more

dmc65- i dont think the roots mind what you use as long as the ph is within the acceptable range , i use phosphoric acid (when making a clean water solution) for ph down and that shit is corrosive , but if the ph is between 6.3-6.5 they love it as long as there are nutes in the soil to feed them.

happy brewing
I am on this thread due to me brewing a tea and ph adjusting with ph up until I hit 6.2 As we have read people say it does not matter but my friend told me to always ph due to the increased benefits. Instead of using ph up from now on I think i will just brew my tea then dilute the tea with my well water that is 7.0 until I hit the optimal range. Do you think this option is better than using ph up or other solutions? I recently purchased Hades Down by Nectar of the Gods and it is phosphoric acid. So instead of using ph down with clean water I CAN/SHOULD only use this to get the ph down even if I am not mixing in anything else? Another question I have for you that I can not seem to find an answer. Does the ppm of my tea matter? My educated guess is that no it does not matter but when adding all the ph up that I did (which was a scary amount IMO) my ppm's increased obviously. But since there is no burn with organic teas ppm is not a factor? Am I correct?
 
S

soilsoilsoil

3
3
Well i see that no one knows how to raise ph of organic teas...i also would like to know as well:(
I just added a bunch of ph up to my tea last night which was the first time I ph'd my tea because a friend told me about the added benefits. It was a scary amount of ph up IMO. I think a good solution to the low ph of a tea is to brew your tea as normal. Once done brewing pour that tea into a bigger container and then add water to raise your ph. Assuming the water you are pouring in is neutral or alkaline.
 
One drop

One drop

Bush Doctor
Supporter
6,514
313
I ajust my wormtea with vinegar it dosnt need much and it seems not to damage it at all .
 
Samoan

Samoan

260
43
Bubbling molasses and kelp lowered my ph to 5.1...I believe for a fungal tea I need 6.5-7.0ph? I don't have a ph up so I adde 2 tsp of silva blast thinking it may raise my Ph....only 1 point. Should I try a bit of baking soda, or just continue on with my Aact? I plan to add ewc alpha and og bio war foliar
 
dnewsome2

dnewsome2

2,020
163
So depending on your compost tea ingredients and microbial life the PH of Tea varies. I would like to discuss the different options that exist for safe PH adjustment to teas.Some people complain theire teas are too alkaline for instance 8.0 or others complain their teas are too acidic for instance 4.0

I have heard that humates like fulvic, and humic acid help to buffer nutrients so they can be absorbed across a wider PH range, but wouldn't a tea that is very acid hurt the microheard in the soil if you gave it to a plant with a soil ph of 6.5?

PH Down
Generally speaking acidifying(lowering PH) teas is not a problem. Many just add citric acid, lime juice, vinegar ect.

PH Up
This is where the problem arises. How does one raise the PH of their tea. I have heard of only two ways. Adding baking soda or Bubbling the tea for a day.


Considerations:
So does bubbling(aerating) a tea in fact raise PH?

Are there other options to raising PH such as adding Dolomite lime, hydrated lime, oyster shell flour, or coral calcium to Teas?

Yes most of those are soil amendments but is it plausible to use them for PH adjustment?
Just adjust your pH and Brew your tea it'll be alright. Just use straight worm castings. You can put some calmag in or even some hydroponic Solutions on the conservative end. But when you start adding a lot of the other things that people suggest it will change your pH like rock dust for instance.
 
Samoan

Samoan

260
43
So depending on your compost tea ingredients and microbial life the PH of Tea varies. I would like to discuss the different options that exist for safe PH adjustment to teas.Some people complain theire teas are too alkaline for instance 8.0 or others complain their teas are too acidic for instance 4.0

I have heard that humates like fulvic, and humic acid help to buffer nutrients so they can be absorbed across a wider PH range, but wouldn't a tea that is very acid hurt the microheard in the soil if you gave it to a plant with a soil ph of 6.5?

PH Down
Generally speaking acidifying(lowering PH) teas is not a problem. Many just add citric acid, lime juice, vinegar ect.

PH Up
This is where the problem arises. How does one raise the PH of their tea. I have heard of only two ways. Adding baking soda or Bubbling the tea for a day.


Considerations:
So does bubbling(aerating) a tea in fact raise PH?

Are there other options to raising PH such as adding Dolomite lime, hydrated lime, oyster shell flour, or coral calcium to Teas?

Yes most of those are soil amendments but is it plausible to use them for PH adjustment?
I just purchased Ph Up and Down from Earth Juice.
Natural Up uses Potassium bicarbonate
Natural Down uses Citric acid crystals
I think these are awesome a little goes a LONG way!


Sodium Bicarbonate or baking soda works too as I tried it twice. A small amount got it to an acceptable range, but it went up higher about an hour later, I don't think the microbial activity would change oh that fast.

I tried dolomite lime, tried to dissolve it first in a separate cup of water to see but it does not dissolve. There may be a way though I'm not sure maybe some crush it up or heat up the water, that may work.

Also tried Silica, I had silica blast from botanic are. 2tbsp brought my 5 gal tea up 5 points so that product does not significantly raise.
 
dnewsome2

dnewsome2

2,020
163
Just adjust your pH and Brew your tea it'll be alright. Just use straight worm castings. You can put some calmag in or even some hydroponic Solutions on the conservative end. But when you start adding a lot of the other things that people suggest it will change your pH like rock dust for instance.
Some worm castings will contain Rock Dust be wary of that.
 
eastcoastjoe

eastcoastjoe

435
93
If we're talking compost tea, why would one want to PH adjust there tea ? Are we feeding soil or plants ?
 
Samoan

Samoan

260
43
If we're talking compost tea, why would one want to PH adjust there tea ? Are we feeding soil or plants ?
I was following instructions for OG BIOW WAR FOLIAR 24 Hour Brew. It calls for molasses to be added to your water, than PH to 6.5-7.0 before adding the proper amount of the of bio war contents which are beneficial microbes. -I was wondering why, I think it is because that is the ph the microbes do well or are activated in best in? Also added to the mix is earthworm castings.
 
Perception

Perception

453
93
I was following instructions for OG BIOW WAR FOLIAR 24 Hour Brew. It calls for molasses to be added to your water, than PH to 6.5-7.0 before adding the proper amount of the of bio war contents which are beneficial microbes. -I was wondering why, I think it is because that is the ph the microbes do well or are activated in best in? Also added to the mix is earthworm castings.

I saw this too on the OG Biowar site, and adjusted my water PH for the first time BEFORE adding molasses or anything else. My tap is 8.5, so I lowered it to 6.5 using vinegar before adding anything.

I always analyze my brew under a microscope... counting bacteria in frames and taking averages every 8 hours, like a total crazy person :). I didn't notice a big change after I started PH-ing the water, but my bacterial populations did get a little higher. Plant's loved it, but they ALWAYS love it.

I'm starting a batch tonight - will check ph after adding molasses, and at end of brew.
 
Samoan

Samoan

260
43
I saw this too on the OG Biowar site, and adjusted my water PH for the first time BEFORE adding molasses or anything else. My tap is 8.5, so I lowered it to 6.5 using vinegar before adding anything.

I always analyze my brew under a microscope... counting bacteria in frames and taking averages every 8 hours, like a total crazy person :). I didn't notice a big change after I started PH-ing the water, but my bacterial populations did get a little higher. Plant's loved it, but they ALWAYS love it.

I'm starting a batch tonight - will check ph after adding molasses, and at end of brew.
Mahalo for reply @Perception -I am extremely interested in teaming with microbes and learning more about them. The fact that you use a microscope to check your brews is totally awesome and as I think about it just sounds completely necessary! -I mean we check ours Ph and ppm, so let's count check to make sure our micro herd is ready to be deployed!

I will go and get a microscope today, any suggestions on what type or brand I should be looking for?
 
Perception

Perception

453
93
@Samoan I just bought a used monocular (one eye) microscope at a pawn shop for $40. It's basically a simple microscope that you might see in a high school classroom. Nothing fancy. It has 5x, 10x, 40x lenses, which combined with the 10x eyepiece makes it 50x, 100x, 400x.

400x is the magnification you want to use for analyzing the microbe populations. It's basically the standard magnification for counting microbes in samples. My eyepiece has a little needle in it (see photo), which I use to help me count the bacteria. I try to count the bacteria in a 1/8th pie-shaped area, then I just take that number and multiply by 8 to get my whole bacterial count for that frame. Every time I count, I do three different frames (just move slide to a new random location), then I take the average of those three. I do this every 8 hours, and you can see the populations growing or declining.

If you have $ burning a hole in your pocket, buy a binocular (dual eye piece) microscope. Not necessary, but lessens the strain on your eyes. If you REALLY want to get a badass scope, check out Elaine Inghams page (link below) she has scope reccomendations for analyzing microbe populations. But like I said, I highly recommend just starting with a cheapie scope that'll do 400x. http://www.soilfoodweb.com/#2778
 
IMG 8396
Perception

Perception

453
93
I saw this too on the OG Biowar site, and adjusted my water PH for the first time BEFORE adding molasses or anything else. My tap is 8.5, so I lowered it to 6.5 using vinegar before adding anything.

I always analyze my brew under a microscope... counting bacteria in frames and taking averages every 8 hours, like a total crazy person :). I didn't notice a big change after I started PH-ing the water, but my bacterial populations did get a little higher. Plant's loved it, but they ALWAYS love it.

I'm starting a batch tonight - will check ph after adding molasses, and at end of brew.

So I tested PH at beginning of brew, and FORGOT to test at end of brew. And I wasn't even stoned...

- Tap water starting = 8.3 (48ppm)
- After adding 2.5 tablespoons molasses to 5 gallons water = 7.4
- I then added about 1 teaspoon vinegar = 6.7

Wish I had remembered to do it at end of brew. But it was interesting to find that molasses lowers PH a bit right off the bat.
 
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