How important is “PHed” water?

[Waxwingz]

Hey everyone,

First time indoor grow, looking for the most cost effective solutions to my grow!

How important is checking ph?

Do I need to worry about it?

Is tap water okay for my plants?

whats the cheapest way to monitor my water ph?

cheapest way to control it?

sorry for the lengthy question, I’m compiling a personal grow guide and need some help. Thanks guys

 

[whitexcloud]

Hey everyone,

First time indoor grow, looking for the most cost effective solutions to my grow!

How important is checking ph?

Do I need to worry about it?

Is tap water okay for my plants?

whats the cheapest way to monitor my water ph?

cheapest way to control it?

sorry for the lengthy question, I’m compiling a personal grow guide and need some help. Thanks guys

Get a PH measuring pen, it will save you in the long run and is more accurate than the tab solutions.
There are PH up/down solutions at your local grow store.

From what I hear PH is quite important but I can't give you specifics

 

[ru knuts]

If you search the net, there things you probably already have in you house to control pH, but I think you'll be adjusting more frequently than you want.
Ppm if you have municipal water you can get a copy of the waters contents. Well water can have it's own issues. My well water has way to much iron to use on my plants, some people have very good well water.
Get yourself a pH and ppm pen $20-25 it will save you the headache if things go south in your grow adventures.

 

[Grapefruitroop]

Ph is very important in plant nutrition, you need to understand it
But if you grow organic ammended soil and simple water with sometimes some extras then thers no need to be obsessed about it cause the a well done soil mix will regulate it by itself....you could just get away with some cheapass ph drops test just to make some test for your personal curiosity....

On the other hand if you have a medium with no nutes or not enough and you add your nutrients with water then its essential to check and adjust the solution to the medium needs...
I always grew organics for years outdoor and indoor without having a meter , never checkd the ph,almost laughing at peeps that were obsessed with it...... but now that i started my trip with dry salts, coco etc...then i started to monitor ph and ppm every time i water/feed....
in this way you have a very accurate control over it...its almost mandatory..
good luck!

 

[MIGrampaUSA]

In soil grows, if your water falls in a range between 7.0 and 8.0, no need to make any pH adjustments. Your focus should be on starting in a nutrient rich soil that pH's at 6.5 +3/-2 (6.3 - 6.8 with 6.5 being the sweet spot.) If you do this, most things will fall in line without a ton of extra effort. We usually get in trouble trying to force things ... like feeding too much in nutes. Or trying to radically adjust the soil pH using chemicals in the water. Set things up right before you plant your seeds and growing becomes a lot easier.

Yes, I do pH my tap water. I want to VERIFY that its in it's normal range. I'm not likely to adjust the pH of my already normal tap water ... unless I added nutes.

 

[PipeCarver]

Hey everyone,

First time indoor grow, looking for the most cost effective solutions to my grow!

How important is checking ph?

Do I need to worry about it?

Is tap water okay for my plants?

whats the cheapest way to monitor my water ph?

cheapest way to control it?

sorry for the lengthy question, I’m compiling a personal grow guide and need some help. Thanks guys

Check your run off ph.... more important than input ph. If its low below 6.00 then add a bit of up to your next water feed and read again if the reading is higher your on the right track if lower you may need alternative measures ie: lime or a bit more up next time. Vise versa if you're over 7. I had this issue last year and the folks here helped me out. Mine was down to 5.3 lime helped get the reading up into the 6's after a bit. I find that Ph down takes just a drop to lower 1/2 point but up takes 2 -3 mil of the up to move the ph up the same 1/2 point

 

[Jimster]

Like what @MIGrampaUSA said, if you cn get your soil or medium to around 6.5, give or take a little, you shouldn't have any problems. You shouldn't need to Ph your water unless it's way off of neutral. Above 8 I might Ph adjust it, but it would also depend on it's mineral content (PPM measurement). Most mediums will buffer the Ph to some degree and trying to adjust the medium's Ph by using Ph'd water can cause all kinds of issues as some fertilizers don't play well with others depending on the Ph.
I don't check my Ph or stuff anymore as I am using the same process that I've used for decades and know the quality of the water and nutrients. Anymore, it's like clockwork... that's what is known as being dialed in. Each grower is different and that is what makes this effort interesting. Keep up the good job and use restraint and patience. Rewards will be coming!

 

[Waxwingz]

Like what @MIGrampaUSA said, if you cn get your soil or medium to around 6.5, give or take a little, you shouldn't have any problems. You shouldn't need to Ph your water unless it's way off of neutral. Above 8 I might Ph adjust it, but it would also depend on it's mineral content (PPM measurement). Most mediums will buffer the Ph to some degree and trying to adjust the medium's Ph by using Ph'd water can cause all kinds of issues as some fertilizers don't play well with others depending on the Ph.
I don't check my Ph or stuff anymore as I am using the same process that I've used for decades and know the quality of the water and nutrients. Anymore, it's like clockwork... that's what is known as being dialed in. Each grower is different and that is what makes this effort interesting. Keep up the good job and use restraint and patience. Rewards will be coming!

Thanks for the advice. trying to keep it simple and let her grow.