Question about using Sterile water

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Ecto

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Hey, probably the wrong group but I’m starting autos next week, but a quick question on water
I have lots of 1L bottles of sterile water, can this be used to water plant?
 
mysticepipedon

mysticepipedon

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"Sterile" just means microorganisms are either dead or not present. It's probably OK, but the word sterile doesn't tell us anything about what is IN the water — only what's not in the water.
 
Moe.Red

Moe.Red

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If this is the same sterile water I have, it is literally 2 hydrogen and 1 oxygen atom bonded and nothing else in there. It's essentially distilled water except it is guaranteed to be free of any life.

Too expensive to run as a normal practice, but if you have cases of the stuff that you need to burn up, go for it. Keep in mind no buffering so PH will swing wildly until you put something in it.
 
FOE20

FOE20

Maestro Loco
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For me water is very important..Clean or not its how its used...For Distilled or very Sterile water I actually add a bit of Spring water to Buffer it...This helps the pH from fluxing dramatically when you add nutes or boosters..
I'd say test your mix either way before you feed or water but with very Clean or Pure water you can actually Pull micros or beneficials from your plant...
We as ppl drink alkaline water...Plants use a range of pH to suit their needs but even rain water has a tiny bit of residual matter in it...
@Moe.Red is on point by saying "Till you put something in it"....,,so after you do add your Nutes/etc ...then pH test it again to see how the water reacted...
Then you'll have a good idea of how it will act with your nutes and regimen...
I teach ppl that the best ranges for Veg IMO/E is a healthy flux range of 5.5-6.2 pH as N and most veg nutes are more avail in the slightly Acidic range...
for Bloom I adjust that to a flux of pH 5.8-6.8..As Bloom nutes are more avail in a more Alkaline range...
Ive used this mentality in almost all types of grow methods for over 30yrs...DWC to TLO, Organics...
hope that helps n power to it
Spicoli/FOE20
 
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Ecto

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I’m getting my water test done but as I’m in a hard water area wondered if the 0ppm water could workout better, also I’m using clover Mpc so no need for nutes for a while? Maybe just add cal mag?
 
Moe.Red

Moe.Red

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Ecto said:
I’m getting my water test done but as I’m in a hard water area wondered if the 0ppm water could workout better, also I’m using clover Mpc so no need for nutes for a while? Maybe just add cal mag?
Click to expand...
I'll try to answer the question I think you are asking

Do I need 0PPM water to start with - No.
My water is hard - what do I do? - Depends on how hard and whats in it. Is this well or city water? What is the starting PPM? If below 250 don't sweat it unless there is actual salt in the water. If it is too high most folks use a reverse osmosis filter to get it under 20PPM to start with.

Personally I would not pay for water, especially sterile water unless I needed it. I have it for other reasons to do with tissue culture and mushrooms, I would never spend the money to put it in a pot pot (hehe - see what I did there? ;)
 
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Ecto

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BF7B8CD6 1284 4435 A503 A73D2EC26A7F

How do you calculate the ppm??
 
Buzzzz

Buzzzz

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Moe.Red said:
I'll try to answer the question I think you are asking

Do I need 0PPM water to start with - No.
My water is hard - what do I do? - Depends on how hard and whats in it. Is this well or city water? What is the starting PPM? If below 250 don't sweat it unless there is actual salt in the water. If it is too high most folks use a reverse osmosis filter to get it under 20PPM to start with.

Personally I would not pay for water, especially sterile water unless I needed it. I have it for other reasons to do with tissue culture and mushrooms, I would never spend the money to put it in a pot pot (hehe - see what I did there? ;)
Click to expand...

Ecto said:
I’m getting my water test done but as I’m in a hard water area wondered if the 0ppm water could workout better, also I’m using clover Mpc so no need for nutes for a while? Maybe just add cal mag?
Click to expand...
Most tapwater is slightly alkaline or sweet or hard but properly treated will be close to 7 but can change by the time it gets to your home, it has calcium from all the limestone on the planet,some say it is good for you (bones/teeth)and will neutralize the acid in your body/stomach. Acidic/sour water is bad for you to drink and hard on the house plumbing. Extremes both ways are as bad as each other.
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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638
Ecto said:
View attachment 1261180
How do you calculate the ppm??
Click to expand...
Very hard water, sodium is double what would be the minimum for ise imo, chloride is also high.

Id recommend RO or 3/4 RO and 1/4 of that water source to get to an ideal level

What application is it being used? About the only place
id say it would be ok is outside in the ground. Not that it wont work but its very likely to cause issues in any container grow, soil or hydro
 
Buzzzz

Buzzzz

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163
Moe.Red said:
Don’t know. I measure it with a meter.

@Aqua Man
Click to expand...
Other than a meter I think professionally/lab testing, they take the sample,evaporate the water and seperate the solids then compared to the original known volume of water
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

26,480
638
Moe.Red said:
So 400 ppm on the 500 scale?

That’s higher than I run seedlings in.

What is the total hardness number telling us?
Click to expand...
Its a bit hard but doable in terms of hardness ideally in hydro we want around 75ppm or 75mg/l as a buffer. Id say 50-100 is acceptable but it will change a lot in terms if stability over that range.

But his is not acceptable for the other reasons i listed
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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638
To clarify a bit better cause i have a bad habbit of generalizing it.

the total hardness is cal and mag as carbonate.
The caco3 is calcium carbonate and the hco3 is bicarbonate

Both CaCo3 and HCO3 are different measurements of alkalinity
 
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Ecto

9
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Thanks for everyone’s input, so not sure I can afford the RO set ups at the moment, would the sterile water I have in bottles be a better option? If I add whatever it needs?
 
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