So I bought a gallon of what they say is RO water from a dispensing machine. It cost 35 cents for a gallon.Bring your own container. PPM = 33, PH was 8.4 which I can deal with. Is this a good price?
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Yes. I buy my water from one of those machines as well the 5 gallon jugs. The ppm at mine is o. Ph tends to be anywhere from 6.5 to 8.5. Great water, i think its 12 step filtration.
@Dr.DankThumb420 @Beachbound
Screw those machines outside of the stores…
You need to look for a health food store or a water dispensing store in your area…
I buy water also… no matter what it always reads the same … 0 to 5 ppm and ph 5.5… you only want to get water from a place that actually maintains the system… to know for sure your getting the same water every time… it will make your life so much easier… oh ya … I pay 20 cents a gallon … bring your own container …
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Perfect RO water is PPM 0 and pH 7.00. But RO can also be done half-assed and still be good enough for growing. I actually use Southern California tap water and it’s fine for weed. If you get well water that is very hard or has obnoxious stuff in it, you need RO. If you are trying to grow something salt-sensitive like avocados, you may need RO. Some Southern California avocado growers mix it 50:50 with tap water to cut the PPM in half.
BTW, if you use RO or rain water, you need to add calmag.
I use to use well water or Creek water, couldn’t bring myself to pay for it. Then, thanks to @raustin I discovered water conditioner. I run approximately 50gals of water in my system. I paid around $25 for ONE gallon of conditioner. For 50gal of water, I only use 25ml, so it will last a LONG time. It removes the chlorine and chloride. It’s been working GREAT for mr
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I’m really happy the water conditioner is saving you money, that’s awesome.
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I’ve always used straight tap water, chlorine and all. No sitting out to get rid of the chlorine. No dechlorinator. It’s worked fine. I think chlorine sensitivity might be a myth. Nobody growing any other crop worries about chlorine. They DO worry about water that is too salty. Avocados don’t do well with some tap water. That would be chloride, not chlorine.
Do you adjust the PH?
Always. Add the nutrients and then adjust the pH with vinegar. My tap water is sometimes as high as 8.5 so it takes a couple of teaspoons of vinegar to get it down to pH 5.8. I’m using pure coco coir and water-to-waste, so the only time I use simple pHed water is during flush in the last week. Otherwise, new clones get 1/2 strength nutes misted and in the rooting tray every 6 hours. Plants in beer cups and cloth pots get full strength nutes every day. Since I water until some runs out the bottom, the coco always contains exactly what I put in.
No worries about over or under watering, no problem with becoming root bound, roots get plenty of oxygen, no over or under feeding.