Limiting Calcium Buildup from Tap Water use in Humidifier (using white vinegar)

~PLAN
I'm planning a new grow and want to know if I can add a small portion of white vinegar to my humidifier without killing the plants.
I'm wanting to run it like this throughout the grow whenever I need humidity (will be using a humidity controller).
I plan on using tap water as I don't want a bunch of jugs of distilled water lying around nor do I have room for this(jug storage).
I'm also too cheap for a water filter.
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~WHY I WANT TO USE IT
I want to use my humidifier, but don't want calcium buildup to clog the humidifier or build up on the walls/fans.
The walls are not really an issue, but the fans are. These are a pain in the ass to clean.
Most importantly, I don't want to harm or kill the plants.
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~HOW IT'S SAID TO HELP
The calcium in water turns to calcium carbonate when heated (which happens in the humidifier) (this is what the google told me).
White vinegar turns the above(calcium carbonate) into calcium acetate which is a more bioavailable form of calcium and is readily available for plants.
The acetic acid content in white vinegar limits the buildup from happening by softening the water thus taking the stress of mineral buildup away from the humidifier.
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~ISSUE
The pH of white vinegar is said to be 2.5.
My tap water pH is around 6.8.
Not sure what pH this equals to when mixed (haven't tested it yet).
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~QUESTION
Would the low pH of water+white vinegar in the air harm the plants in any way?
I know some people use vinegars to adjust pH., but haven't heard of people using it in their humidifiers when growing (only using it when cleaning a humidifier out).

The acetic acid content in white vinegar(and other vinegars) is also said to limit powdery mildew and mold growth as well.
White vinegar mixed w/ water is said to be less effective than pure vinegar, but it should still have an effect long term (or so I think).
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Thanks for any feedback.

oooh. im watching this one, id like to know this as well. ive had a bit of the calcium buildup also and freaked me out thinking it was PM.

euphoria526 said:

oooh. im watching this one, id like to know this as well. ive had a bit of the calcium buildup also and freaked me out thinking it was PM.

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My fans+walls were caked with it and it gave me a freak out when growing. Was very relieved to find out it was just crap from the water in the humidifier. Towards the end of my grow I had humidity issues(too high) because I didn't have a controller. So eventually all that shit caked up inside the humidifier and rendered it inoperable to the point where it wouldn't function properly. I used white vinegar to clean it out and it works perfectly now. All this is what sparked the post. I can clean it weekly, but would rather just set and forget if I could by adding white vinegar to it.

I looked into adding water softening tablets to the water inside the humidifier, but I also read that the softening tablets create new chemical salts that form when the breakdown of the minerals occurs and can create new buildup issues with those different salts (or so that's what google says). Having the constant bombardment of white vinegar in the water should help things pass much easier and prevent the above (or so I think anyways).

I add a few ml of h202 to my humidifier water once a month or so to keep it clean and functional.

It sounds like your problem is that your humidifier generates aerosols. Filtering your output (or getting a better humidifier) are better bets than trying to add vinegar. Calcium acetate will cake on your fans etc. and possibly be corrosive to the electrics. Jmo

cannabineer said:

Filtering your output (or getting a better humidifier)

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Yeah, the cool mists with the filters trap the white stuff.I use a couple cheap sunbeams. I have one of those ultrasonics (?) the ones that heat the water, work better than the cool mists, but put off that residue horribly.


Cool idea OP has, I like the idea of it preventing pm if it worked.

natureboygrower said:

Yeah, the cool mists with the filters trap the white stuff.I use a couple cheap sunbeams. I have one of those ultrasonics (?) the ones that heat the water, work better than the cool mists, but put off that residue horribly.


Cool idea OP has, I like the idea of it preventing pm if it worked.

Click to expand...

Op needs to know how much calcium is actually in the water, and add enough vinegar to make the acetate, not too little and not too much. For that, he (?) must do some molarity-equivalent math. Google has better instructions for that than I care to type up now.

Alternatively, you can just use RO water for your humidifier. Buy a cheap RO filter or buy the 5gal fillable jugs at Wal-Mart.

For cleaning, Look for a product called CLR (Calcium Lime Rust)
It works great

Vinegar isn't something I use

Most any acid will work to clean up Ca or Mg carbonate. I use my pH down. Don't use sulfuric or nitric on metal.

And remember ALWAYS pour acid into the water, NEVER pour water into a concentrated acid
(for when you buy H2SO4 at auto parts store and dilute for cheap pH down that doesn't mess with NPK ratios)

Both of humidifiers were bought in 2016. One has pot metal around the buzzer. The other is completely plastic. The one with the pot metal started to corrode from tap water when it was less then a year old.

Like everyone else. Once I figured out where the white dust was coming from (I first thought it was sheetrock dust). I went to RO water. I'm also using some copper wire in the tank. So far it's been working really good.

I know my previous grows where I used tap had a taste. From being coated in calcium and the rest of the crap tap has in it.

vinegar is organic, i wont put that in a humidifer.
water softeners soften the water by exchanging Calcium and Magnesium carbonate hardness to NACL salt, still a salt leaving residues.

RO water is the only usefull water i think for a humidifer.