Hardwater Thread!

[smoke1sun]

I second superman's comment. Go organic, bubble tap water for 24 hours to remove chlorine (very important!), throw a bit of ascorbic acid in there (vitamin C) to neutralize the hard water, plants also use it. Then use that water to make teas. This has been working for me for some time. I do buy distilled or spring water for seedlings, just to be safe. Peace

Do you have anymore info regarding the use of ascorbic acid(Vitamin C)
I've heard this before but dont know how use it effectively. And would like to know in what ways it will benifit my hard water?

THANKS!!!!!

 

[cr0n]

Do you have anymore info regarding the use of ascorbic acid(Vitamin C)
I've heard this before but dont know how use it effectively. And would like to know in what ways it will benifit my hard water?

THANKS!!!!!

I have the same question about the vitamin C. Please enlighten us.

I can not decide between the RO system and the Zero water system.
I am going to research this "Small boy filter with a chlorimine filter upgrade" also.

 

[smoke1sun]

I have the same question about the vitamin C. Please enlighten us.

I can not decide between the RO system and the Zero water system.
I am going to research this "Small boy filter with a chlorimine filter upgrade" also.

I dont know about the Zero water system, I'm sure it works for some folks situation, but if i were gonna go this route I would really have to figure the cost. Because I can get an RO unit at a pretty decent price, with replacement filters not costing much from here.

http://www.purewaterclub.com/
The cheapest one i see here is a 4 stage portable RO unit for 58.00. Now I know this isnt top of the line, but if im comparing it to the zero water who knows.

But my issue with the RO is
1. The amount of water it waste.
2.Im taking out the Mag just to have to by more nutrients to put it back in.

I have very hard water and it shows if you seen my plants. So i trying the rezipe in coco, and so far I have some of my healthiest looking plants in flower, so we will see.

 

[bigwity]

I ordered mine today...After all the headache the past year with lockout/ph issues the few dollars they cost will atleast let me know if The water is the REAL problem im fighting..
Cost threw walmart 1 zero pure machine,1 case extra filters=125.$$ spent more then that out to dinner with the ole lady,So ill pay the price and see how she works.
My h2o varies from month to month,storm to storm...My plants appear to lockout during flowering....As ive kept track and ruled out most potential problems im left thinking that im either dealing with excess calcium carbonate,raiseing alkilinity and participating out the phosporus OR excess sodium from road salt run off locking out nutes....Either way my end weight is severly diminished and my leafs are falling off bleached yellow by the end.Good note is no need for flushing as the flavor taste and smell[high to] are all there.....I dont want to start changing fert again,looking for a more acidic reaction,or spend the big bucks and spring for the new well[no garurntee with that either] so ill start with a cheap zero pure machine ,mix that water with mine keeping the number at say 50-75 ppms[keeping some of the natural alkilinity]and track from there...At least it will give me stable number to start with when mixing fert or phing water.
Sorry for the long ramble my water been an issues for WAY tooo longggggg.. E/C out

you sound like you know the score but just to make sure are you certain it isnt the strain as some go yellow in flowering more than others the mango i have loses all its shade leaves in week 5 or 6 no matter what you feed it

 

[xeasyx]

i use vitalink for hard water my ppm's are between 300 an 400 and my ph between 7.2 to 7.9 straight out the tap it changes daily between them numbers with vitalink max a & b and bloom a & b going with the dosage on the bottle i get a stable 600 ppm's @. 5 and ph 5.9 within 24 hours so carnt see why it wouldnt work with harder water
Hope you get it sorted and keep it green cheers EASY

 

[chunky_nugs]

I dont know about the Zero water system, I'm sure it works for some folks situation, but if i were gonna go this route I would really have to figure the cost. Because I can get an RO unit at a pretty decent price, with replacement filters not costing much from here.

http://www.purewaterclub.com/
The cheapest one i see here is a 4 stage portable RO unit for 58.00. Now I know this isnt top of the line, but if im comparing it to the zero water who knows.

But my issue with the RO is
1. The amount of water it waste.
2.Im taking out the Mag just to have to by more nutrients to put it back in.

I have very hard water and it shows if you seen my plants. So i trying the rezipe in coco, and so far I have some of my healthiest looking plants in flower, so we will see.

yeah like i said it works for me and i use prob a min of 20 gallons a week, and replace filter every 2 months.

So just passing on a solution I found that has been working really well for me.

 

[cr0n]

i use vitalink for hard water my ppm's are between 300 an 400 and my ph between 7.2 to 7.9 straight out the tap it changes daily between them numbers with vitalink max a & b and bloom a & b going with the dosage on the bottle i get a stable 600 ppm's @. 5 and ph 5.9 within 24 hours so carnt see why it wouldnt work with harder water
Hope you get it sorted and keep it green cheers EASY

can you give me more info on the vitalink? I did a quick search and could not find any.

 

[emerald city]

you sound like you know the score but just to make sure are you certain it isnt the strain as some go yellow in flowering more than others the mango i have loses all its shade leaves in week 5 or 6 no matter what you feed it

Good question but no ,its not a strain related issue.I have run all the breeds in various enviromental situations so im quite familar with thier indivdual traits......Aprox exactly a year ago in this particular spot,i truely believe the water table shifted/fractured during a small earth treamor[no not cali- but Maine]and dirupted the water table causeing basement flooding that had never been seen before going back 14 years.....Previous years during spring melting season we didnt notice many plant related problems,then [under new management]after changeing from miricle grow for tomatoes and peters super bloom 10/50/10 to general hydroponics ferts we would see more exagerated lock out signs but they still only lasted for a month during mud season...As of last year the h2o has been between 100-350 ppm changing weekly at times....
The lab says the alkilinity is fine but all my lock out symptoms appear to be a ph related problems [icon of pulling my hair out] .Its like my waters ph is trying to climb higher all the time.Set the water to a number ph 5.5 come back a day later to find it has climbed back up to 6, add a few drops ph down and on and on....am i not waiting long enough for it to setle?
By the way my plants are grown in promix hp and ive given up useing any extra lime as im always useing new soil and transplanting up....end of ramble thanks for listening to another hard water story. E/C out

 

[OsWiZzLe]

Great for taking showers with

 

[xeasyx]

www.vitalink.eu/en/_beginners/nutrients.htm

all you need to no about the vitalink range you'll find here and they do one for hard water aswell as one for very hard water so something for everyone cheers EASY

 

[hobb3s93]

now, im getting well water through an r/o filter and its coming out at like 120-140 ppm is that ppm count too high? what should it be lowered to if it is?

 

[emerald city]

just got the zero water system in home today...Ran through a couple gallons to see if it works...My h2o went in at 160 ppm and came out 0.000 now for the ph....My h2o ph starts at 5.7 and climbs to 7,the zero water came out at ph 4.3..Im going to wait 24 hrs to see if the ph climbs or not before i add ferts and see what happens..
Im aiming for a end ph of 5.8-6.2 useing promix hp[sound right?] report back tomorrow.

 

[cr0n]

just got the zero water system in home today...Ran through a couple gallons to see if it works...My h2o went in at 160 ppm and came out 0.000 now for the ph....My h2o ph starts at 5.7 and climbs to 7,the zero water came out at ph 4.3..Im going to wait 24 hrs to see if the ph climbs or not before i add ferts and see what happens..
Im aiming for a end ph of 5.8-6.2 useing promix hp[sound right?] report back tomorrow.

That sounds good EC. I also use promix now. Please keep us posted about your results

I am starting to lean towards the RO, but I am not sure yet. I may buy the 5gal jugs of RO water and just run a couple of plants that way to see how much of a difference it makes. I am also switching to Coco and following Head's recipe so we will see

 

[greenmatter]

worthless if you have over 50gal, worthless

even if you use it for only 10gal a week it won't survive a year's worth of abuse

@croniholic - you need a water softener and an R/O system
to clean your water correctly, way cheaper and you best solution

or spend a fortune at your local supermarket once every 2 weeks filling 50 - 100 gal

think about your investment of time space energy involved and all
total it up
is it worth it in the long run?

do you need both systems? if so why?

 

[greenmatter]

now, im getting well water through an r/o filter and its coming out at like 120-140 ppm is that ppm count too high? what should it be lowered to if it is?

what do your ppm's start at? what is your water pressure?

 

[emerald city]

just got the zero water system in home today...Ran through a couple gallons to see if it works...My h2o went in at 160 ppm and came out 0.000 now for the ph....My h2o ph starts at 5.7 and climbs to 7,the zero water came out at ph 4.3..Im going to wait 24 hrs to see if the ph climbs or not before i add ferts and see what happens..
Im aiming for a end ph of 5.8-6.2 useing promix hp[sound right?] report back tomorrow.

What ive ended up trying is,mixing 1/2 gallon of zero h2o with a 1/2 gallon of my well water..By mixing the 2 together[and waiting 24 hrs] ive kept enough alkilinity to stablize the ph along with striping "most" of the tds/ppm from my well water...End result was water testing out at 5.9 ph/50ppm...I then added a 1/4 tsp of botanicare cal/mag which brought the ppm up to a total of 150 ppm,and watered the we ones.....Ill keep tracking and report back with new findings when i see em wish me luck...E/C out

 

[hobb3s93]

just cleaned out the filter coming from the well, it was going into the r/o at 400+ ppm, now that the filters clean its comin out as 10-14 ppm it varies every few hours. ph of 7.4-7.5

 

[greenmatter]

just cleaned out the filter coming from the well, it was going into the r/o at 400+ ppm, now that the filters clean its comin out as 10-14 ppm it varies every few hours. ph of 7.4-7.5

check your water pressure. it could actually be on the label of your pressure pump. the membranes in the RO system don't like it to high and if you blow a membrane you will learn where 80% of the price of the RO system comes from. pressure regulators are much cheaper. a back flush system would be worth looking at too, costs now=saves later. just my 2 cents

 

[chunky_nugs]

What ive ended up trying is,mixing 1/2 gallon of zero h2o with a 1/2 gallon of my well water..By mixing the 2 together[and waiting 24 hrs] ive kept enough alkilinity to stablize the ph along with striping "most" of the tds/ppm from my well water...End result was water testing out at 5.9 ph/50ppm...I then added a 1/4 tsp of botanicare cal/mag which brought the ppm up to a total of 150 ppm,and watered the we ones.....Ill keep tracking and report back with new findings when i see em wish me luck...E/C out

glad to hear it is working hopefully.
I found it to be a pretty simple solution without getting fancy.

 

[cr0n]

I will be testing out using store bought 5 gal bottles of RO water on 2 plants. I have to finish my current run first. So, in about 5 weeks I will start my experiment. I may mix some tap water in with the RO to get the PPM up to about 100. I will keep all posted with the results.