PH question

Hi all or should I say High all?
My ph is 8.49 out of the tap.I have one of those cheap Milwaukee Chinese knock off pens. It works really well once it's been calibrated.
I'm going to be mixing some Bat Guano and Kelp extract with water to feed to my plants.
Question is when do i adjust my ph?
Before mixing , after mixing , just before I feed my plants?
any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

After mixing before you feed the plants.

no point to adjust ph before adding ingredients as the ingredients will most likely change the ph and you'd have to do it again.

You always want to feed the plants proper ph solution so check before feeding.

p.s. Most guanos I've worked with will drop the ph in the solution, so maybe use the guano as you natural ph down in this situation, but dont go adding more than you planned to of the guano just for ph'ing purposes and overdose, the guano just may get you closer to the ph you want to set.

Good Growing.

Plus be careful with the guano also ... It is nitrogen heavy.

Budzbuddha said:

Plus be careful with the guano also ... It is nitrogen heavy.

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I only use half the recommended dose. I figure its better to under feed than over feed, same with my water.

A little tip on carbonates...

Don't measure your pH right away, when using adjusted pH'ed tap water.

As tap water becomes more acidic, the carbonates within dissolve. As the carbonates dissolve, they make the water more alkaline, and drive the pH back up. This is known as the yoyo effect. This will keep happening until all the carbonates dissolve.

The problem is, as there's less and less carbonates to dissolve, the more the acid will effect the water remaining, and most people over correct.

I suggest mixing your solution a couple hours before use, and testing pH a couple of times until it becomes stable. As you get more experience, you'll get a feel of how your tap water acts.

Good luck and happy growing.

i check the water ppm,then add the guano to get to ppm required for stage of growth,,once you have ppm were it needs to be check ph,most times the feed solution will get it were you need it,,i grow in soil and dont ph,but do keep close eye on ppm and ec

Good soil will buffer itself.....and IMO ph swing in soil is a good thing ....I'm a soil grower and never mess with my ph .....to each there own GL

Indacouch said:

Good soil will buffer itself.....and IMO ph swing in soil is a good thing ....I'm a soil grower and never mess with my ph .....to each there own GL

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Yup. That's what I preach. Make your soil right and this idea of feeding with a tea will become a thing of the past.

Good dirt will supply all nessicsry nutrients and minerals exactly when the plant wants them. Working with the micro herd of bacteria and fungi. The way the plant gets fed doesn't really matter what the water pH is. And IMO trying to use teas and nutrient solutions and the soil food at the same time is tricky. Idk I could be wrong. But I haven't used a pH pen or fed anything other than water straight from the tap for a long time. And the meds only get better and better.

green_machine_two9er said:

Yup. That's what I preach. Make your soil right and this idea of feeding with a tea will become a thing of the past.

Good dirt will supply all nessicsry nutrients and minerals exactly when the plant wants them. Working with the micro herd of bacteria and fungi. The way the plant gets fed doesn't really matter what the water pH is. And IMO trying to use teas and nutrient solutions and the soil food at the same time is tricky. Idk I could be wrong. But I haven't used a pH pen or fed anything other than water straight from the tap for a long time. And the meds only get better and better.

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Agreed

I water Straight from my hose and or well ....no issues .....good soil is the key to buffer PH....well said^^^^