Coco Growers Unite!

vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
Scroggsy said:
I have a question regarding PH in coco coir. I have just started using canna coco in airpots and tap water with a ph of 7.0. The runoff from the airpots is coming out at 6.0 and within 4 hours is returning to ph 7.0. This is straight tap water. it goes in at 7.0 and the immediate runoff is 6.0, 4 hours later the same runoff solution is ph7.0:lol:

Also I have just started using a 1/4 strength solution canna A+B with some Rhizotonic for some seedlings. I used GH powdered PH down to get the nute solution to ph 6.0 and 4 hours later I tested the remains of the jug and the ph had returned to 7.0 :lol: I am using drops to measure ph.

Does this mean that the coco is holding a nice stable ph for my plants ? will this effect continue throughout the grow? Do I need a ph pen or is coco no worries?

Thanks. Scroggsy.
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It sounds like the problem is the way you're testing your water. I'd get a decent or good PH pen. I have 2 pretty good pens that I use. One does everything (PH, EC, PPM, Temp) and the other is just PH pen. The PH pen is used on my outdoor plants and the other stays in the room. I've tried using strps to test and it just doesn't cut it and satisfy my need to be super precise.
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
HippySmoke said:
Hey folks just got a brick of coco hydrated but on rinsing... I have had coco issues before and someone reccomended I flush the coco thoroughly for a couple of days before mixing it with my perlite and toss using it for the transplant but I just realized I hydrated it in the shower with straight shower water, so have I just increased the salt content therefore meaning I will have to rinse it more? and has anyone else had this salt issue?
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Like ODLAW said just get pre-buffered coco. I used coco that wasn't pre-buffered once and I will never go that route again. It's way to much work for the few dollars you save. I basically did it once to see how the process works and it's not worth the time put into it. Think about it, say you pay yourself minimum wage to buffer coco and guestimate how long it takes you. Now see how much money it costs you to buffer that coco, not including the cost of the coco. It's easier and more cost efficient to buy pre-buffered.
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
The only compressed coco brick on the market (that I know of), that is pre-buffered is from Nutrifield. I've used it and it's good stuff. My plants love it and all I did was expand it with tap water and transplant as normal.
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
Sorry for all of the repetitive posts, it's just one of those days that I have time to post.

Plus it looks like this thread needs a little more action, as of lately there hasn't been much activity.
 
S

Scroggsy

Active Member
vdubb808 said:
It sounds like the problem is the way you're testing your water. I'd get a decent or good PH pen.
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But the drops are surely accurate enough to distinguish between ph 6.0 (yellow) and ph 7.0 (blue). It's a pain though to have to swill out the vial before taking another test and measuring it out etc.

Basicly I want to know if the ph of the coco coir will start to rise towards 7.0 the longer the grow goes on?
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
Scroggsy said:
But the drops are surely accurate enough to distinguish between ph 6.0 (yellow) and ph 7.0 (blue). It's a pain though to have to swill out the vial before taking another test and measuring it out etc.

Basicly I want to know if the ph of the coco coir will start to rise towards 7.0 the longer the grow goes on?
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Your medium PH should stabilize, if it's always fluctuating something doesn't sound right.
So it changes 6 to 7 PH on a daily basis ?
 
S

Scroggsy

Active Member
vdubb808 said:
Your medium PH should stabilize, if it's always fluctuating something doesn't sound right.
So it changes 6 to 7 PH on a daily basis ?
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No the runoff is constant ph 6.0 at the mo. Even If I pour straight tapwater ph 7.0 into the pots and immediately test the runoff it's ph 6.0 I dont have a way to actually test the coco itself. But I have noticed that once the water is out of the coco it returns to ph 7.0 within hours which leads me to believe that the coco keeps a stable ph 6.0 or there abouts.
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
Scroggsy said:
No the runoff is constant ph 6.0 at the mo. Even If I pour straight tapwater ph 7.0 into the pots and immediately test the runoff it's ph 6.0 I dont have a way to actually test the coco itself. But I have noticed that once the water is out of the coco it returns to ph 7.0 within hours which leads me to believe that the coco keeps a stable ph 6.0 or there abouts.
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I don't know what's going on and I don't have a good answer for you. But this is what I would do from what you're telling me. If it comes out at 6.0 PH, I could live with that and I'm pretty sure the plants will too. I'd go ahead and use it. I'm not a scientific type of grower, but I live my life by making sense of things. And it sounds like it's PH'd to approximately 6.0.

I'd just adjust my water when feeding to PH of 5.8. I check my res twice a day and it's always PH'd at 5.8 precisely.

Not to long ago, someone posted how to get a good PH test of your coco and it sounded like it would be accurate. I didn't really pay attention or remember what was said because I get my coco pre-buffered, but try to find that post and use that method of testing the PH of your coco. I'll try to find it for you, as long as I don't get distracted before I find it. The internet always seems to distract me so easily.
 
HippySmoke

HippySmoke

Active Member
Yes a method for PH testing coco would be appreciated here too. And honestly I only read the first 20 pages and skimmed the rest so if you know where it is thank you.
 
odlaw

odlaw

Active Member
i dont bother with testing my coco or run off i just buy pre buffered coco coir and make sure my soup ph is at 6 for veg going in and 5.8 for flower
coco is a very stable medium as long as its right when u start it shouldnt change much if any at all as long as you dont fuck up bad as it takes ages to break cocos ph
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
When I first started with RIU and this thread, JBerry and Zen Master were super knowledgeable and great contributors to this thread.

I really miss the good knowledge they would share. I wonder where they're at now ?

I know there are a lot of good, knowledgeable contributors to Coco Growers Unite, they were just the active ones when I started hanging out here. And I never went back before I started and read this whole thread. So I apologize if I left anyone out. PEACE.......... = )
 
vdubb808

vdubb808

Active Member
odlaw said:
i dont bother with testing my coco or run off i just buy pre buffered coco coir and make sure my soup ph is at 6 for veg going in and 5.8 for flower
coco is a very stable medium as long as its right when u start it shouldnt change much if any at all as long as you dont fuck up bad as it takes ages to break cocos ph
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I do the same when I Veg, I PH a little higher 6.0PH. I don't know if it helps, but I do it cause I read it in a magazine. I only Veg clones for 2 to 3 weeks tops.
 
Snow Crash

Snow Crash

Well-Known Member
ronicolman said:
Depending on how the waste is burned, the substance may be very much like terra preta, which has many of the good properties of soil organic matter, including moisture holding capacity and a high cation exchange capacity (the ability of the soil to hold certain nutrients, but release them to plants).
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What?!?!

If you're trying to say coco is similar to Terra Preta... No. They are extremely dissimilar. Terra Preta is some good stuff though, nothing like 2,500 year old Amazonian compost pit.
 
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