Check soil ph?

2absolute2purity2

2absolute2purity2

Active Member
Cheapest way to check soil ph? Easiest way? I appreciate bluelabs accuracy but their prices are wayyyy too much. I cant afford a soil ph pen for 190$ w only a yr warranty for it to go bad right after the yr is up n basically end ip w a $200 per yr ph pen subscription. Im a super new grower on my first grow ever plz help n resources i can read would be much appreciated ty!
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
Wtf are you talking about I've had my bluelab pens for years. Spend the money or spend it ten times over buying cheap junk. You want precision instruments you are going to pay money for them. Plus you can get one on sale for much less than 190.
You don't even need a soil pen. I use mine more often to measure the pH of my nutrient soultions then the soil itself. Ya it's nice to have but if you don't know what you're doing you can end up getting more confused and causing more issues.
 
Boatguy

Boatguy

Well-Known Member
Depends on what you are trying to do.
Are you trying to check your outdoor garden, name brand potting soil, or your own creation?
Slurry test is probably the cheapest and will give you a ballpark idea of what is going on.
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
Boatguy said:
Depends on what you are trying to do.
Are you trying to check your outdoor garden, name brand potting soil, or your own creation?
Slurry test is probably the cheapest and will give you a ballpark idea of what is going on.
Click to expand...
If you're measuring ph and trying to adjust things with accuracy how would being in a ballpark help in anyway? I think op is diving too deep into this. Most people never use a soil pH pen. Doing so without a deeper understanding of things imo is going to cause him way more problems.
 
Boatguy

Boatguy

Well-Known Member
Jjgrow420 said:
If you're measuring ph and trying to adjust things with accuracy how would being in a ballpark help in anyway? I think op is diving too deep into this. Most people never use a soil pH pen. Doing so without a deeper understanding of things imo is going to cause him way more problems.
Click to expand...
Outdoor soil i can understand wanting to adjust and send out samples, same with homemade soil.
Only way to truly know what you have.

Trying to monitor your soil ph during a grow is a pointless battle
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
Boatguy said:
Outdoor soil i can understand wanting to adjust and send out samples, same with homemade soil.
Only way to truly know what you have.

Trying to monitor your soil ph during a grow is a pointless battle
Click to expand...
Or use a bluelab soil probe?
Agree with it being a pointless battle. Only confuses people more
 
2absolute2purity2

2absolute2purity2

Active Member
Jjgrow420 said:
Wtf are you talking about I've had my bluelab pens for years. Spend the money or spend it ten times over buying cheap junk. You want precision instruments you are going to pay money for them. Plus you can get one on sale for much less than 190.
You don't even need a soil pen. I use mine more often to measure the pH of my nutrient soultions then the soil itself. Ya it's nice to have but if you don't know what you're doing you can end up getting more confused and causing more issues.
Click to expand...
Other ppl have ran into that issue i have read also one i bought on Amazon i did everything according to their instruction vid and it had errors so i had to return. How much cheaper and where? Ty
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
2absolute2purity2 said:
Other ppl have ran into that issue i have read also one i bought on Amazon i did everything according to their instruction vid and it had errors so i had to return. How much cheaper and where? Ty
Click to expand...
Never heard of issues with bluelabs. If you're judging based on reviews just remember there's alot of dumb people out there that can barley keep their shoes laced nevermind operating instruments that require calibration and care.
Once I had a problem with my TDs meter and I emailed them. They got back to me within 24hrs and guess what. It was my fault. I was using old calibration liquid. Got new stuff and calibrated right away.
 
2absolute2purity2

2absolute2purity2

Active Member
Boatguy said:
Depends on what you are trying to do.
Are you trying to check your outdoor garden, name brand potting soil, or your own creation?
Slurry test is probably the cheapest and will give you a ballpark idea of what is going on.
Click to expand...
**OUTLINE OF MY RUN:**

  1. Indoor or outdoor? - size of grow? A: Indoor 48x48x80” tent 5 plants only.
  2. Origin of seeds? A: Gdp, harlequin, Pineapple Express #2, platinum og.
  3. Regular, feminized, or autoflower? A: Fems. photoperiods 18/6.
  4. Origin of water. PH, EC/TDS of source water? A: tap. Dechlorinated in 5 gal bucket w air stone 24/7. 8.4tap ph before gh ph down to 6.5
  5. PH and TDS/EC of if mixed solution? A: 6.5 gh ph down used.
  6. Grow method? Soil, Soil-less, Coco, Hydro, Aquaponics. Please explain. A: soil. FF oceanforest & happyfrog 50/50 mix w 5% coco added also a bit more of perlite and wormcastings
  7. Nutrients or fertilizer system used. A: Gaia green 444&284 50/50mix only 1 tbsp each & bit of wormcastings.
  8. What type of lighting are you using? LED, HID (MH, CMH, HPS), or Fluorescents? Please elaborate. A: spiderfarmer sf4000 LED 40% 24ish” 132watts above tops of plants.
  9. What are the temps in your growspace? Day / Night? A: 68-70 night. 71-77 day. Drafts make this hard to control.
  10. What is the RH = relative humidity in your growspace? A: 48%-68%. Day - mostly 60-68% night- mostly 48-58%.
  11. AC, Humidifier, De-humidifier? A: Yes, All 3 when needed. Heater on almost 24/7 tho
  12. Do you have a Ventilation system? Size? 4", 6"? A: Yes 6”
  13. Co2 Yes / No? A: no.
  14. How long have you been growing? A: First timer. On week 3 flowering
  15. What budget have you set in order to grow successfully? A: Cheap as possible for essentials only w longevity.

  16. I just recently used 1 tbsp of dolomite lime in a 5 gal bucket of water for them and it seemed to correct a lot of issues. Purple fan leaf stems, n some lower level droopy leaves w yellowing in middle but not spots.
 
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2absolute2purity2

2absolute2purity2

Active Member
Jjgrow420 said:
Never heard of issues with bluelabs. If you're judging based on reviews just remember there's alot of dumb people out there that can barley keep their shoes laced nevermind operating instruments that require calibration and care.
Once I had a problem with my TDs meter and I emailed them. They got back to me within 24hrs and guess what. It was my fault. I was using old calibration liquid. Got new stuff and calibrated right away.
Click to expand...
Also encountered this first timing. But they told me and others did that the solutions last 30 days after opened and u can store n reuse them. But the calibration liquid is quite expensive of a subscription right? Im hoping for something miraculous
 
Boatguy

Boatguy

Well-Known Member
2absolute2purity2 said:
**OUTLINE OF MY RUN:**

  1. Indoor or outdoor? - size of grow? A: Indoor 48x48x80” tent 5 plants only.
  2. Origin of seeds? A: Gdp, harlequin, Pineapple Express #2, platinum og.
  3. Regular, feminized, or autoflower? A: Fems. photoperiods 18/6.
  4. Origin of water. PH, EC/TDS of source water? A: tap. Dechlorinated in 5 gal bucket w air stone 24/7. 8.4tap ph before gh ph down to 6.5
  5. PH and TDS/EC of if mixed solution? A: 6.5 gh ph down used.
  6. Grow method? Soil, Soil-less, Coco, Hydro, Aquaponics. Please explain. A: soil. FF oceanforest & happyfrog 50/50 mix w 5% coco added also a bit more of perlite and wormcastings
  7. Nutrients or fertilizer system used. A: Gaia green 444&284 50/50mix only 1 tbsp each & bit of wormcastings.
  8. What type of lighting are you using? LED, HID (MH, CMH, HPS), or Fluorescents? Please elaborate. A: spiderfarmer sf4000 LED 40% 24ish” 132watts above tops of plants.
  9. What are the temps in your growspace? Day / Night? A: 68-70 night. 71-77 day. Drafts make this hard to control.
  10. What is the RH = relative humidity in your growspace? A: 48%-68%. Day - mostly 60-68% night- mostly 48-58%.
  11. AC, Humidifier, De-humidifier? A: Yes, All 3 when needed. Heater on almost 24/7 tho
  12. Do you have a Ventilation system? Size? 4", 6"? A: Yes 6”
  13. Co2 Yes / No? A: no.
  14. How long have you been growing? A: First timer. On week 3 flowering
  15. What budget have you set in order to grow successfully? A: Cheap as possible for essentials only w longevity.
Click to expand...
I have grown for years in just bagged soil and added liquid ferts as needed in later flower. Never had a ph or ec pen.
Temps and humidity arent an issue unless they are way way off.
The easiest way to ruin a grow is to do too much, harvest early, or dry improperly.
Drying is the only part of the grow that needs ideal conditions.
 
Boatguy

Boatguy

Well-Known Member

The Ultimate Soil pH Testing Guide

This all-encompassing guide will help anyone who is just starting out with soil pH testing. (And experienced growers will be able to learn something, too!)
blog.hannainst.com

You can do the test with regular ph strips, or a pen.
This will not work in a pot with a rootbound plant.
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
2absolute2purity2 said:
Also encountered this first timing. But they told me and others did that the solutions last 30 days after opened and u can store n reuse them. But the calibration liquid is quite expensive of a subscription right? Im hoping for something miraculous
Click to expand...
Subscription? Not sure what you're talking about... I bought 7,4ph and 2.44ec calibration solution and it cost like 20 something bucks for everything. The last time I bought some was over a year ago. You pour some out into another vessel and calibrate it there then you can keep that solution for sometime. Personally I calibrate and dump it and use fresh each time.
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
Why do you have such a hard-on for a soil probe if you can't afford it? Again, it's not even necessary. I'd stick to a solid ph meter and a tds pen. (Bluelab, Hanna) Then when you find one on sale and you got the money, splurge!
 
speedwell68

speedwell68

Well-Known Member
Boatguy said:
I have grown for years in just bagged soil and added liquid ferts as needed in later flower. Never had a ph or ec pen.
Temps and humidity arent an issue unless they are way way off.
The easiest way to ruin a grow is to do too much, harvest early, or dry improperly.
Drying is the only part of the grow that needs ideal conditions.
Click to expand...
I have been growing in bagged soil for years too. I have a Ph pen, I have never used it.
 
Jjgrow420

Jjgrow420

Well-Known Member
PadawanWarrior said:
I wouldn't buy one from Amazon. I got mine from Growers House I think. So far so good with mine. I got the Blue Lab Soil Probe.
Click to expand...
Why. What's the diff. I bought mine on Amazon. Never had an issue. Sorry but I've owned bluelab pens my entire career. The only one that broke was because I dropped it and broke the probe on the concrete floor. I've told countless people to buy bluelabs and none of them have had an issue (that I'm aware of). 95% sure his issue was user error.
They've been making instruments for 30 years. I think they got it figured out.
 
Richard Drysift

Richard Drysift

Well-Known Member
Just water your plants. You are growing in soil so don’t worry about ph so much unless you have absorption issues later on. If you simply keep adding worm castings and some form of fertilizer on top ph should stay inside proper range for absorption by itself; the soil you are using is ph balanced. Unless you know you have a ph issue there’s no reason to bother worrying about it nor do you even need a blue-lab pen. If you are mixing up your own soil then yes it’s a necessity but honestly I have not even checked my own soil ph in years.
 
PadawanWarrior

PadawanWarrior

Well-Known Member
Jjgrow420 said:
Why. What's the diff. I bought mine on Amazon. Never had an issue. Sorry but I've owned bluelab pens my entire career. The only one that broke was because I dropped it and broke the probe on the concrete floor. I've told countless people to buy bluelabs and none of them have had an issue (that I'm aware of). 95% sure his issue was user error.
Click to expand...
I don't trust Amazon for stuff like that, or a lot of grow stuff. Could be used and returned. I bought a Vortex VTX once from them and it was obviously opened and resealed. I sent that shit back.

Some jackass could have mites and molds and shit, use it for a month and send it back. Fuck that shit.

Amazon is convenient, but I avoid it whenever I can. Not to mention they helped ruin my hometown bringing their shit there. And I'm not a fan of monopolies.
 
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