pH keeps climbing in tap water

QuentinQuark

Well-Known Member
Does anyone have a way to hold the pH down in plain tap water?

I have a few seedlings in aero and the damn pH keeps climbing, I am having to correct it like 3x per day!

Thanks for your help.
 

atombomb

Well-Known Member
Are you using General Hydroponics ph down? If so I have heard of people having this problem , buy a different kind you will be all set.
 

doniawon

Well-Known Member
i use gh ph and i just hooked up two 55 gallon blue res's to my 27gallon res... the water in my 55's went from 220ppm to 440ppm the next day and then stays stable from there.. the ph remains the same though?????????????? nice post .. what's the dill piclkle
 

doniawon

Well-Known Member
stays the same meaning i adjust to 6 and it stayed at 6 all while 2x'ing .. do i need aerators????
 

The Martian

Active Member
Hiya M8.
Dunno if this'll help, and I hope its not, But I had bad PH fluctuations, (rising almost uncontrolably), at the onset of root rot.
Check it out, and add some hydrogen peroxide (h2o2) just for safeties sake.
If you have none, get some. I will never Hydro without first disinfecting everything with it first again.
 

JohnnyPotSeed1969

Well-Known Member
The problem is you have no buffer in your water, and the Ph down is interacting with the minerals already present in your tap water. Either switch to RO water, or mix up some weak nutrients for the buffer they provide.

:peace:
 

QuentinQuark

Well-Known Member
The problem is you have no buffer in your water, and the Ph down is interacting with the minerals already present in your tap water. Either switch to RO water, or mix up some weak nutrients for the buffer they provide.

:peace:
That makes sense. I don't know how I would get my hands on RO water... would distilled do?

Is it possible to just buy some buffer?
 

JohnnyPotSeed1969

Well-Known Member
You can get some RO at your local grocery store, in those water dispensing machines. Distilled water is okay, but you have to check to make sure that the Ph meter you have can be used in distilled water. Mine says not to use with distilled water because it will destroy the probe. Your mileage may vary.

:peace:
 

QuentinQuark

Well-Known Member
Dammit, I talked to the company that makes my pH probe and they said I can't use it with distilled or RO water :(

Do you think it will have the same problem with water from the Mr. Clean AutoDry thingy?
 

doniawon

Well-Known Member
the mr. clean in not reverse osmosis... so no..
there is a purifier like a britta type but larger selling at home depot right now.. i think its called zero pure .. but it comes with a free ppm digi stick.. the thing kicks the shit out of my sunleave ec probe.. anyway they are giving the ppm away to prove that their filter reduces all tap to 000... if your scandalous you can easily open the box get the ppm reader,, but who doesnt need a bad ass filter... i think its 70 bucks all together
 

doniawon

Well-Known Member
oh and basically all store bought purified or spring drinking water is simply RO.. but the ph almost always needs to be adjusted..
on the other hand distilled is ph neutral 99% of the time and has 000 ppm.. great for seedling and clones either way
 
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