watering in soil

[hemdigler]

so as far as watering goes how do u all water? tap water? gallons of purified water? do u buy a tap water filter? what do u reccomend?

 

[stone69]

I use well water, but mine come's out at 112 ppm, most farmers use a reverse osmosis water filter...

 

[Papa_kush]

RO filters are pricey so if this is your first grow i wouldn't worry about it. Just start collecting gallons and letting them sit over night. Then next grow get a nice reservoir, then the following grow think about investing in an RO. Ive seen grade A grown with water straight from the tap, chlorene and all. RO is always better, but one of the least crucuial factors for beginner growers IMO.

-Mac

 

[D9420]

i do fine with tap water i let it sit out for 24-48 hours before i use it then PH it and set the PPM on the nutes and water. and my plants look great. i always been told its important to let the soil fully dry between waterings.

 

[DJXXPLATINUM]

hey hemdigler!!! i am from the midwest also!!!i have been using well water and the girlz love it!!! i would say if you have city water test it to see how much chlorine is in there!!! my well water is about 110 ppm and works great!!! i am thinking about a reverse osmosis water filter myself!!!!!peace djxx

 

[darookie2000]

my water is super high pH (like 8.5-9), and since it's my first grow and I haven't invested in an RO machine, I just use brita water (i still check the pH and adjust, especially with nutes in the water - I stupidly thought putting nutes in pH neutral water would not need to be pHed).

 

[stone69]

I always mix my nute's a day early and adjust the ph right before I water, because the ph does change.

 

[BombBP]

I use RO water. Chlorine isn't the only problem with tap. Tap has also started being treated with a mix of ammonia and chlorine...I think it's called chloramine. It will not evaporate or dissipate and is very bad for your plants. With that said, you can have a good grow with tap but you can have an even better one with RO imo.

Chloramine

NH2Cl is commonly used in low concentrations as a disinfectant in municipal water systems as an alternative to chlorination. This application is increasing. Chlorine (sometimes referred to as free chlorine) is being displaced by chloramine, which is much more stable and does not dissipate from the water before it reaches consumers. NH2Cl also has a lower, however still present, tendency to convert organic materials into chlorocarbons such as chloroform and carbon tetrachloride. Such compounds have been identified as carcinogens and in 1979 the United States Environmental Protection Agency‎ began regulating their levels in U.S. drinking water. Furthermore, water treated with chloramine lacks the distinct chlorine odour of the gaseous treatment and so has improved taste.

From Wikipedia...the most reliable source of info on the net:D.

 

[stone69]

When I started I used distilled until I got a ppm meter and realized my water isn't that bad, so if you have city water, you might want to use distilled until you get a R.O. filter or if you have well water you might wanna test it to see what ppm's you have. E-bay about $15 to $25

 

[Rural_GrowOp]

I'm in the midwest and use well water too. Never had any problems. Well water has a lot of the micro nutrients already present without all the chemicals that the city water plants add to it.

 

[Smoking Gun]

I use RO water I buy from the water machines seen at grocery stores. I pay 25 cents per gallon, and although not perfectly neutral in ppm or pH it is still clean enough for my plants.

During my first grow I had used a combination of distilled water and Fiji bottled water. For a while I had used only the Fiji water, but after a while realized the ppm in the water in combination with my nutrients was too high. But once in a while the Fiji water is actually really good for your plants. There are micronutrients found in the Fiji water that are often overlooked in nutrient regiments.

I have never used tap water, but then again I have never lived in a place that I would want to even try using the tap water. I know there are plenty of places where the tap water is still perfectly ok to use, mostly in rural towns.

 

[ReelBusy1]

so as far as watering goes how do u all water? tap water? gallons of purified water? do u buy a tap water filter? what do u reccomend?

My hose in the backyard has a different ppm and ph from the taps inside. 150 outside, 225 inside. Hard water.
I have a Brita too but it doesn't clean the water enough.
For my dwc bubbler I use the big bottled water from the store. It's ppm is about 60 and ph is 7.3 and adjust accordingly after letting it sit out to breathe like others have described.
I use the hose out back for most of the rest and adjust there too.

 

[hemdigler]

yeah i have city water... i wasn't sure that is i bought bottled RO that it might not have all the natural stuff that well or rain water has in it, i almost thought about harvesting some rain water.... alot of work though.... i bought a brita water filter for the time being but if u think that just straight RO is ok i will just buy that, its not that expensive if i refill jugs at the store... already have like 30 one gal. jugs from my fish tank. but thanks for the insight.

 

[Fear]

My water comes from the crystal springs resevoir and is 30ppm out the tap no taste no smell about 8 ph. When You ro you also loose minerals that are needed. Peace brothers. I love my water source it so good.

 

[hemdigler]

see thats what i was thinking about the R.O. is that you would have no natural minerals and such.... does anyone harvest rain water? and as far as watering your plants goes someone was telling me that he goes by how light his containers get to determine watering schedule... he lets all the water get used then soaks them? whats the best way to go about watering? i know it depends on size and such but just generally speaking...

 

[BombBP]

he lets all the water get used then soaks them?

Thats what I do too. You'll have to get used to it but you should be able to lift your container and see if they need water:).

 

[hemdigler]

yeah thats what he was saying... i just get a little nervous about under or over watering... do u do anything differant during flowering stages? i just put my purps into flowering about a week ago.

 

[buttonpusher]

I live in So Cal, and the city tap water here is awfull. Many wierd problems with my last grow. Now I'm using RO water with some Cal-mag added, and my girls are very happy now.

BP