Another Newbie Question. Watering.

[Gettnpacksin]

Just curious if using tap water is ok? or if I should just buy gallons of distilled water?

 

[mrskush]

Everyone seems different on this. Lots of people use tap. I think what will ultimately matter is your water's ph. I use tap and things are going well

 

[THELORAX802]

I'd suggest finding out whats in your local tap water...........this should be #1 for your health as well as your plants if your ingesting it as well. Until you got a grasp on whats in your water i'd just use costco water or something you can buy in bulk thats not from a sketchy source. I have only grown for a few years but i'm a firm believer in you get out what you put in to your plants. energies included, by this i mean don't go into your gardens pissed off or raging.....Just a thought!

 

[JSmokes420]

I wouldn't use distilled water, pure water is a solvent from what I understand....if your on city water you can get a good idea of what is in the tap from the local water report.....that said I have used tap water for years......just make sure you let the water stand for 12-24hrs before using so the chlorine can evaporate

 

[xavier7995]

I use tap, the advice to check the city water report is solid.

 

[Gettnpacksin]

I use tap, the advice to check the city water report is solid.

Ok so I live in a small small town I am on village water. I'm not 100% percent sure of where I can obtain a water report? Village office? Dpw? Would the water plant be obliged to giving this information out? Or would going to the nearest Walmart and buying water just be easier/safer?

 

[xavier7995]

Whoever you pay your bill to should be able to provide. I would assume you could also get the info from any local college, water quality is something they tend to research. If it is through a government agency, and a small town, the county should have the info online.

I should point out that I am just speculating. It can take a bit of the Google to track down, but I would assume that all water suppliers, public and private, would have to have their water tested and publicly available.

Edit: the epa might be a good place to start.
Edit 2: welp I am a liar, per the internet only water systems serving 100k or more have to publish. If there is a local college you could ask their bio dept or something, water quality is a commonly studied issue.

 

[Gettnpacksin]

Whoever you pay your bill to should be able to provide. I would assume you could also get the info from any local college, water quality is something they tend to research. If it is through a government agency, and a small town, the county should have the info online.

I should point out that I am just speculating. It can take a bit of the Google to track down, but I would assume that all water suppliers, public and private, would have to have their water tested and publicly available.

Edit: the epa might be a good place to start.
Edit 2: welp I am a liar, per the internet only water systems serving 100k or more have to publish. If there is a local college you could ask their bio dept or something, water quality is a commonly studied issue.

I contacted my aunt she's on the village board. I will post her response when she gets ahold of me.

 

[Gettnpacksin]

So I obtained a copy of our 2015 water report. It was published in November so it's been exactly a year. Hopefully nothing much has changed with it. So what exactly am I looking for on it?

 

[JSmokes420]

So I obtained a copy of our 2015 water report. It was published in November so it's been exactly a year. Hopefully nothing much has changed with it. So what exactly am I looking for on it?

Post it up and I'm sure you'll get some great info

 

[Gettnpacksin]

2015 water report

 

[xavier7995]

Looks like your water is fine, all that stuff they test...you are well below the harmful amounts. But I defer to anyone that knows more about reading those than I do and can point to any potential issues.

 

[Gettnpacksin]

Looks like your water is fine, all that stuff they test...you are well below the harmful amounts. But I defer to anyone that knows more about reading those than I do and can point to any potential issues.

Thanks alot @xavier7995 I read through it and thought the same thing. I'm going to purchase the ppm meter just for shits and giggles. So with tap water I just run some into say a few 5gallon buckets and let it sit for 24hrs? Then just pH it Everytime I go to use it? And when I use nutrients pH it after its all mixed correct? And last question what's the pH range for soil? 7.?

 

[xavier7995]

Yeah, just let it sit for a day so chlorine can evaporate out. Tbh, I don't do that and have not had issues, but letting it sit is a best practices type thing. In theory, once you set your ph it should stay there, but it is a good idea to check it just before use...so yes, you can just ph it before use. 7 is fine, soil is pretty forgiving on ph and should adjust itself assuming you aren't putting in vinegar or something. Soil likes 6.5 to 7...but again, it should sort of regulate itself. My tap is around 7.5 and I just use as is.

 

[Gettnpacksin]

Yeah, just let it sit for a day so chlorine can evaporate out. Tbh, I don't do that and have not had issues, but letting it sit is a best practices type thing. In theory, once you set your ph it should stay there, but it is a good idea to check it just before use...so yes, you can just ph it before use. 7 is fine, soil is pretty forgiving on ph and should adjust itself assuming you aren't putting in vinegar or something. Soil likes 6.5 to 7...but again, it should sort of regulate itself. My tap is around 7.5 and I just use as is.

Thanks alot man