Is the Water O.K. ?

[Connoisseurus Rex]

The ph of your runoff is low because its supposed to be. It'll rise as the soil dries. Not all elements are available to a plant at one time ph has to swing for this reason. Kool bloom to my knowledge isn't a stand alone fert, but a bloom booster make sure its npk is what you need at this stage of growth. Venting the exhaust out of the garage should help a couple degrees right now you're just circulating hot air. How much of a difference depends on the size of the garage it may not make a difference at all. good luck

5.6 in a soil grow? You don't think that's a little low?

 

[KryptoBud]

5.6 in a soil grow? You don't think that's a little low?

I never checked runoff of a soil grow and very rarely checked ph of anything goin in. Soil will buffer the ph especially using water with that low of a ppm its about as natural as it gets. I'm no pro or expert by any stretch but in my experience sometimes the more you do to fix things the worse you make them. Theres ways to test ph with soil meters and another way I think using deionized water I think, but don't believe runoff to be very accurate for ph, just my experience I could be wrong.

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

I never checked runoff of a soil grow and very rarely checked ph of anything goin in. Soil will buffer the ph especially using water with that low of a ppm its about as natural as it gets. I'm no pro or expert by any stretch but in my experience sometimes the more you do to fix things the worse you make them. Theres ways to test ph with soil meters and another way I think using deionized water I think, but don't believe runoff to be very accurate for ph, just my experience I could be wrong.

Runoff ph is the only ph that matters in terms of diagnosing a plant in my opinion. I'm no expert either, but at 5.6 that plant can't take in anything.

I also have a feeling that there is a reason OP didn't post pics. It's not a "new" thing. He's ph'ing the water and then adding those particular nutes (which happen to lower ph even more). If he's been watering at a 6.8 ph like he suggests, there is no way the runoff could be that low with that blend.

Fox farms ocean buffers between 6.3-6.5. If he was adding the correct ph from the beginning, it would be physically impossible to have that low of a ph.

I think there is a lot more OP isn't saying, especially with no pics. However, I could be wrong I guess.

 

[High Tide]

Runoff ph is the only ph that matters in terms of diagnosing a plant in my opinion. I'm no expert either, but at 5.6 that plant can't take in anything.

I also have a feeling that there is a reason OP didn't post pics. It's not a "new" thing. He's ph'ing the water and then adding those particular nutes (which happen to lower ph even more). If he's been watering at a 6.8 ph like he suggests, there is no way the runoff could be that low with that blend.

Fox farms ocean buffers between 6.3-6.5. If he was adding the correct ph from the beginning, it would be physically impossible to have that low of a ph.

I think there is a lot more OP isn't saying, especially with no pics. However, I could be wrong I guess.

hello gentlemen.............been battling temperatures inside of tent at 81-84 today and it is the cold of winter outside.........high 50's - low 60's..........hope to get every thing ok before spring..........the plants inside flower tent look ok......so i just have to address this soil ph........thank you for being patient with my laymans iq.............yes the water coming out of dehuey is high ph of 80...........i am NOT phing it down before nutes..............1 tsp of kool bloom brings the water to 6.8...................the runoff in the tray was i forget 5.6 or 5.8.....................so do i water plant maybe at 7.0 ph in hopes that runoff is 6.0?.............I'm not sure if that the adjustment to try to get correct runoff PH .......appreciate the info from everyone ...........

 

[SamsonsRiddle]

Don't let it sit; keep your sump clean with bleach and/or vinegar & the water it collects will be mold free; which btw isn't such a bad thing. Growers add fungus on purpose which promotes a healthy soil food web. If you are doing hydro then yeah don't use it but it's good for soil grows especially if you maintain a living organic soil.

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=dehumidifier+water

"Like other kinds of gray water (see Nitty Gritty), most dehumidifier condensate can safely be used for flushing toilets. Because of the presence of harmful bacteria and microorganisms, it's probably not a good idea to use condensate to water any plants you intend to eventually eat."

Bleach doesn't kill mold, either. http://cleaningallstars.com/the-truth-about-mold-removal-bleach-vs-vinegar/

I just don't see the benefit over the risk.

I'm yet to find any where in the organics section where anyone is adding mold to their microherd.

 

[SamsonsRiddle]

Runoff ph is the only ph that matters in terms of diagnosing a plant in my opinion. I'm no expert either, but at 5.6 that plant can't take in anything.

I also have a feeling that there is a reason OP didn't post pics. It's not a "new" thing. He's ph'ing the water and then adding those particular nutes (which happen to lower ph even more). If he's been watering at a 6.8 ph like he suggests, there is no way the runoff could be that low with that blend.

Fox farms ocean buffers between 6.3-6.5. If he was adding the correct ph from the beginning, it would be physically impossible to have that low of a ph.

I think there is a lot more OP isn't saying, especially with no pics. However, I could be wrong I guess.

If he has some of the east coast FFOF the runoff will come out extremely low, there's excess tree parts such as limbs and bark in those bags. I had to add dolomite lime because the oyster shells didn't do shit.

 

[Richard Drysift]

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=dehumidifier+water

"Like other kinds of gray water (see Nitty Gritty), most dehumidifier condensate can safely be used for flushing toilets. Because of the presence of harmful bacteria and microorganisms, it's probably not a good idea to use condensate to water any plants you intend to eventually eat."

Bleach doesn't kill mold, either. http://cleaningallstars.com/the-truth-about-mold-removal-bleach-vs-vinegar/

I just don't see the benefit over the risk.

I'm yet to find any where in the organics section where anyone is adding mold to their microherd.

Fine do whatever you want but don't come here with a bullshit Google link from an hvac info site just to try & prove me wrong. I personally don't give a shit what kind of water you use; was just trying to help the OP who obviously has other issues unrelated to the use of distilled water. I have been using dehumidifier water for years and know of several growers who also augment their water supply with a/c water and the like so until you have some exp don't give advice on this subject. Maybe you missed the part in organics sec about mycorrizea, bacteria, and other fungi & microbial life that lives in the soil....you have much to learn

 

[High Tide]

Fine do whatever you want but don't come here with a bullshit Google link from an hvac info site just to try & prove me wrong. I personally don't give a shit what kind of water you use; was just trying to help the OP who obviously has other issues unrelated to the use of distilled water. I have been using dehumidifier water for years and know of several growers who also augment their water supply with a/c water and the like so until you have some exp don't give advice on this subject. Maybe you missed the part in organics sec about mycorrizea, bacteria, and other fungi & microbial life that lives in the soil....you have much to learn

hello richard ........well i am using my free dehuey water which gives me more water than i need .............ill ammend with cal mag periodically..........because my machine is new......things should be clean, but do you recommend any bleach/vinegar cleaning maintenence schedule like once a month or once a year..........or until any of these invisible tigers pop out................
see what i mean......subjectively controversial............thanks for your input...........waiting for CR to explain how to raise my soil PH.........thanks again.

 

[Richard Drysift]

Clean it when you think it's dirty. If you don't let the water stagnate it'll stay clean longer.
Your soil ph does change but you shouldn't need to adjust it. Oyster flour only works at the root zone; checking runoff doesn't mean anything. Domolomite line is soluble which is why it affects ph. If you are using ocean forest soil your ph should be dialed in already. Synthetic nutrients contain ph buffers which will mess with your soil runoff ph which is not quite the same thing. Forget about your ph & just give them straight water. If you are in a hydroponic medium like coco then you'll need to be super vigilant about checking ph but if you are in FFOF soil just give water & the ph will take care of itself.

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

hello richard ........well i am using my free dehuey water which gives me more water than i need .............ill ammend with cal mag periodically..........because my machine is new......things should be clean, but do you recommend any bleach/vinegar cleaning maintenence schedule like once a month or once a year..........or until any of these invisible tigers pop out................
see what i mean......subjectively controversial............thanks for your input...........waiting for CR to explain how to raise my soil PH.........thanks again.

You need to raise the ph of your watering to stabilize your soil.

I asked if you adjust your ph before or after adding nutes and didn't see a reply. 5.6 is low for runoff, especially if your watering with 6.8.

Either your mix is fucked or you're not ph'ing right.

Can you answer the ph adjustment question? Before or after nutes?

Edit: I see you did answer the question above.

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

A pic would be great as well as I think it's been a longer issue than you're making it out to be.

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

Clean it when you think it's dirty. If you don't let the water stagnate it'll stay clean longer.
Your soil ph does change but you shouldn't need to adjust it. Oyster flour only works at the root zone; checking runoff doesn't mean anything. Domolomite line is soluble which is why it affects ph. If you are using ocean forest soil your ph should be dialed in already. Synthetic nutrients contain ph buffers which will mess with your soil runoff ph which is not quite the same thing. Forget about your ph & just give them straight water. If you are in a hydroponic medium like coco then you'll need to be super vigilant about checking ph but if you are in FFOF soil just give water & the ph will take care of itself.

The runoff is at 5.6. Even with the nutes, soil, or whatever you want to throw out there, a 5.6 runoff after consistently watering at 6.8 makes no sense.

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

 

[Richard Drysift]

The runoff is at 5.6. Even with the nutes, soil, or whatever you want to throw out there, a 5.6 runoff after consistently watering at 6.8 makes no sense.

Oh ok I see what you are saying..had to scroll up. Yes I agree and that why I hate using synthetic nutes in organic soil....all you should need is to give them clean water; your mix does the rest. Everything your plants need should be in your mix; except maybe soluble cal/mag. If you use promix which is basically a sterile medium nutes work well with that but in a ph balanced bagged soil like FFOF straight water works best. You can use nutrients to avoid deficiency in late veg through bloom but use them sparingly & give water in between feelings to rinse that crap off the root system. They don't need much especially if you are using an already relatively stout mix like OF. My 2 cents

 

[KryptoBud]

 

[Connoisseurus Rex]

Oh ok I see what you are saying..had to scroll up. Yes I agree and that why I hate using synthetic nutes in organic soil....all you should need is to give them clean water; your mix does the rest. Everything your plants need should be in your mix; except maybe soluble cal/mag. If you use promix which is basically a sterile medium nutes work well with that but in a ph balanced bagged soil like FFOF straight water works best. You can use nutrients to avoid deficiency in late veg through bloom but use them sparingly & give water in between feelings to rinse that crap off the root system. They don't need much especially if you are using an already relatively stout mix like OF. My 2 cents

I run organic now too. I had the same issues as OP when I first started. That's why I made the switch. What's not adding up is 6.8 is coming out to 5.6. Granted, runoff will be lower as it travels through the medium, it shouldn't be that far of a drop. Maybe a couple tenths.

It's either the mix is horribly wrong or OP isn't ph'ing right. Maybe they weren't testing ph at all when adding nutes before and the ph just dropped that low. I dunno, but I think a pic would clear a lot of things up. PH doesn't just drop like that over night in a stable medium, ya know.

 

[KryptoBud]

I don't think the op needs help. He's been asked several time's for pics and still hasn't posted them so must have it figured out or just being lazy. I'll let him figure it out on his own.

 

[High Tide]

a picture of ?

 

[High Tide]

I don't think the op needs help. He's been asked several time's for pics and still hasn't posted them so must have it figured out or just being lazy. I'll let him figure it out on his own.

not sure what you want to see........a pic of ph reading in and out.......pic of plant......i'm a little unclear what you want to see............just got through looking at a guy from canada talking about soil ph and he said 5.6.....5.8 is the norm......lot of opinions......but my numbers are accurate.......so what do you want to see a picture of.....and i can provide it.....ok......

 

[High Tide]

I run organic now too. I had the same issues as OP when I first started. That's why I made the switch. What's not adding up is 6.8 is coming out to 5.6. Granted, runoff will be lower as it travels through the medium, it shouldn't be that far of a drop. Maybe a couple tenths.

It's either the mix is horribly wrong or OP isn't ph'ing right. Maybe they weren't testing ph at all when adding nutes before and the ph just dropped that low. I dunno, but I think a pic would clear a lot of things up. PH doesn't just drop like that over night in a stable medium, ya know.

a picture of what? lmk and i'll provide it........