If silica additives raise ph, are there any that lower the ph?

[LucidDreamGlass]

I dont post much because im a new indoor gardener on his first dwc grow with only a few outdoor grows under my belt, and im intelegent enouf to use a search button (though i cheated on spelling tests as a child and now i might as well give up on any 3 silable word). I like the idea of killing two birds with one stone when it comes to raising ph with Dyna Gro Silica, by the way the stuff hikes my ph up but not my ppms which is nice cause im vegging at 600ppm and dont have much room in my soup for stuff.

Any ideas?

-LDG

 

[GreenSummit]

i wouldnt be using silica additives, maybe silicon though

 

[1itsme]

I dont post much because im a new indoor gardener on his first dwc grow with only a few outdoor grows under my belt, and im intelegent enouf to use a search button (though i cheated on spelling tests as a child and now i might as well give up on any 3 silable word). I like the idea of killing two birds with one stone when it comes to raising ph with Dyna Gro Silica, by the way the stuff hikes my ph up but not my ppms which is nice cause im vegging at 600ppm and dont have much room in my soup for stuff.

Any ideas?

-LDG

pretty much anything you add will either raise or lower ph.

 

[LucidDreamGlass]

summit- yeh your right my bottle spells it your way lol

 

[Prawn Connery]

Soluable silica (generally potassium silicate, sometimes sodium silicate) will raise your pH, but since you're growing in hydro it's more common to want to lower pH (to around 5.5) - unless you have very acidic water or nutrients. There is dissolved silicon in most water already, but it may only be a small amount, so it doesn't hurt to add a little more. It's generally accepted that it can improves a plant's immune system, and is a good buffer against salt-based nutrients (buffers against over-fertilisation).

I've always used silica in my coco grows and while the effect may be subtle, I generally have strong plants with good resistance to heat. My rational is, the one thing missing in hydro/coco grows is soil - sand, silica - therefore I supplement it. A lot of hydro nutrients already contain silica, so if you do add a silica solution you may get the same results using half the application. Which is what I do (but I also use run-to-waste).

 

[superstoner1]

I have used silica blast for a few years now but I tried a couple of others before that and there was one that raised pH and don't that lowered it. I believeit was rrhino skin .

 

[LucidDreamGlass]

Thanks for the response everybody i learned a few things about silica/silicon which is cool but i dont think i was clear enouf on my question. Im not looking for a silica product to lower my ph, im looking for something entirely differnt with its own benifits that also happens to lower the ph. I dont even know if theres a product like this out there but if there is im sure im in the right place to find out. Also im using R.O water, GH 3 part series, Cali mag, 1 drop super thrive per gallon, Dyna Gro silica/silicon, in that order. Once i stir it all up my ph is around 7 and i use GH ph down to get to that 5.8, 5.9, 6.0 range on my blue lab BUT id rather use something elce that will actually benefit my plants instead. And i add hiesenburgs tea recipie after i get the ph down, im glad he retired from cooking ice and went to weed cause that recipie preaty much saved my grow lol

 

[KhaliBudz]

Yea I use silica blast to ph up
And believe it or not
I use
earth juice hi-brix molasses to ph down.
Hope that helps.

 

[LucidDreamGlass]

Im gonna look into that khali thanks. The only thing is hiesenburg says not to add molasses to your resivoir because you could be potentialy feeding brown slime algie in the process. I used molasses in my tea to multiply microbes (started making tea about 2 weeks ago and results are great) before i add to resivoir so only the microbes get the food idealy. On a side note, i uped my ph this morning using epsom salt which is neutral to combat the slight purpling in the stems and it worked great, right back up to 5.8.

 

[KhaliBudz]

Right on. I do drain to waste so adding a significantly amount of molasses to ph down does no harm plants love it, but everyone does things differently or should I say to each it's own that's why I enjoy reading RIU

 

[facestabber]

Im gonna look into that khali thanks. The only thing is hiesenburg says not to add molasses to your resivoir because you could be potentialy feeding brown slime algie in the process. I used molasses in my tea to multiply microbes (started making tea about 2 weeks ago and results are great) before i add to resivoir so only the microbes get the food idealy. On a side note, i uped my ph this morning using epsom salt which is neutral to combat the slight purpling in the stems and it worked great, right back up to 5.8.

Heisenburg is correct, NO organics In your rez! You should give AN ph down a try, it's super concentrated compared to the GH stuff so you'll only need a tiny bit. I've also found it to be much cheaper.

 

[Scotch089]

citric acid lowers your ph

(Lemon Juice)

 

[superstoner1]

Do not use juice in hydro, ever.

 

[BobCajun]

Could use ascorbic acid to lower pH and make plants healthier at the same time. I picked up a bottle of Pro-Silicate potassium silicate though and I'm going to see if it makes more trichs or anything. Never tried silica supplementation before but a search seemed to suggest that it may be a helpful additive. Maybe buds will be less floppy at least.

 

[whitebb2727]

Thanks for the response everybody i learned a few things about silica/silicon which is cool but i dont think i was clear enouf on my question. Im not looking for a silica product to lower my ph, im looking for something entirely differnt with its own benifits that also happens to lower the ph. I dont even know if theres a product like this out there but if there is im sure im in the right place to find out. Also im using R.O water, GH 3 part series, Cali mag, 1 drop super thrive per gallon, Dyna Gro silica/silicon, in that order. Once i stir it all up my ph is around 7 and i use GH ph down to get to that 5.8, 5.9, 6.0 range on my blue lab BUT id rather use something elce that will actually benefit my plants instead. And i add hiesenburgs tea recipie after i get the ph down, im glad he retired from cooking ice and went to weed cause that recipie preaty much saved my grow lol

PH down?

 

[BobCajun]

PH down?

Yeah, ascorbic acid for pH down. If you do a search you'll find that studies show that ascorbic acid or calcium ascorbate increases plant growth, at a concentration of 100-300 ppm. Doubt it would require that much to lower pH but people could lower the pH to the desired level with ascorbic acid and then add the rest of the 100-300 ppm as calcium ascorbate, which doesn't change pH. It will also add a little calcium.

 

[whitebb2727]

Yeah, ascorbic acid for pH down. If you do a search you'll find that studies show that ascorbic acid or calcium ascorbate increases plant growth, at a concentration of 100-300 ppm. Doubt it would require that much to lower pH but people could lower the pH to the desired level with ascorbic acid and then add the rest of the 100-300 ppm as calcium ascorbate, which doesn't change pH. It will also add a little calcium.

I meant that to be like a duh moment.

Whether a person uses that or store bought product.

My answer was to the poster that asked is there a product that lowers pH.

I'm sitting here thinking "how does the op get into hydro and not know about pH up and down products?"

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

R/O and GH 3-part? You don't need any pH down, simply use less Silicon.

Try this at the start of your next flowering DWC, or other roots-in hydro system... (roots-out systems are slightly different)
Mix nutes and water to desired strength and pH'd to 5.4
Add liquid silicon until your pH is 5.8
With a 1000w hps and a 40-45gal reservoir, you should be back to a pH of 5.4 in about 7-10 days. Leave it be until it hits 5.8 and then add nutes back until it drops to 5.4 again. When the res hits 5.8 again use nutes to drop the pH again.

Your plants will also be eating the pH down (I use GH powdered pH down) so the lowered nutrient amount will be enough to hit 5.4 without overloading the plants.

Natural pH swing, no manual manipulation. Works great and you don't end up with silicon in your flowers. Nice and soft and frangible, no need to reach for scissors or a grinder to break up your flowers.

Douglas

 

[PerroVerde]

I hand water in coco core but have found this to be a great source of silica. It has a neutral PH and mixes well.

https://www.kelp4less.com/shop/soluble-silica/

 

[Budddha]

Hygrozyme works to drop my ph a little bit when trying to get it to the sweet spot. I do not use this method for large ph changes.