hey bigzbudz, welcome mate. What nutes are you using and whereabouts are you roughly? Us C.U.N.T.s are everywhere and we might be able to give you an average local EC (mine has read 4 from the tap for years, it gets abit softer after a lot of rain and creeps up to about a 5 after long drought, pretty consistent Briz) If you spen the money on a high quality 2 part nute you can safely trust the instructions not to steer you wrong too far and if you run at half strength you will still grow mad dank, for cheap, without ever testing EC. Yes I buy nutes and good ones coz cheap shit or homemade is a little too much hassle. I run at full strength of Xml/l, always check with my bluelab truncheon and always think "why do I still bother checking?" as it is always just a little under the max EC. I do use an oversized res though, for a little advantage called "Buffering capacity". I reckon with canna or something I could do a blind grow, never testing EC but otherwise yeah, bite the bullet. Blulab make some good shit and it will last for ever(and self callibrating).
@'ome- Brother I can't sex you from here yet either. You speak like a man, but then so does my lesbian sister!
Also, I don't have a problem with anyone per se, I think that is a misunderstanding, but I will call bs if anyone talks through their arse and I will stick up for my homies