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pH testing.

minds_I

minds_I

Active member
Veteran
Hello all,

I just wanted to tell everyone about these pH stix I just received in the mail.

I no longer use liquid pH solutions anymore.

These things are the schiznit for testing pH of murky fert solutions-works wonderfully. Works great for runoff tests as well.

Soil too.

Cheaper then a pen.

I got the 3 pack

http://www.ph-ion.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=205

Hope someone has use for this information.

minds_I
 
G

Guest

I get sticks like that at Walfart in the aquarium section. Also tells me how hard my water is and the amount of nitrates in the water. It's amazing how EJ after bubbling for a few days, knocks the nitrates in my tap water into the safe range.

Bout the same price too.

Cheers,
 
minds_I

minds_I

Active member
Veteran
Really, I was in my wally world just hte other week looking for them-they were out. How many tests.

I was pleased with these as the tests sticks int eh Petco were like 11 bux for 25 tests.

These have 80 tests. I am way pleased witht he result of using these over liquid tests.

minds_I
 
O

Opt1983

Member
Hmm.. aquarium section in wal-mart..never seen it! lol .. where is it bro...i mean shit...i think all wal marts are built the same...go in take a left..then a right..go straight? lmao -Opt
 
quadracer

quadracer

Active member
Measuring your PH when using organics isn't really necessary, it's like measuring the TDS in a solution, at least when using soil.
 
G

Guest

quadracer said:
Measuring your PH when using organics isn't really necessary, it's like measuring the TDS in a solution, at least when using soil.
Click to expand...


Are you serious man? What evidence/proff do you have to back-up this statement? Im curious to know because PH testing all the water takes time I would rather spend doin other shit.=)
 
minds_I

minds_I

Active member
Veteran
^^^^

That maybe so that the soil buffers the fert solution and the D.lime also serves to buffer the fert solution.

Also, using fish and EJ bloom have seriously low pH swings, I like to use a touch of potassium bicarbonate (wood ash water) to raise the pH. I could bubble it but don't like the hassle with it.

I am now using ewc/compost teas and liquid kelp for the first time. Its only been 10 days but I seem to see an improvement in my clones. My seedlings seemed to have stalled. They are 2 1/2 weeks now and were severely burnt. I think they will pull through but they are stalled. I am thinking of repotting them.

minds_I
 
Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
Mind I those look like the shit man, I've always prefered the paper tests because they don't hinge on how well adjusted or calibrated your ph meter is or if the probe is working wel, or....
Basically the paper tests are fail safe and cheap.
I have to admit I rarely check the ph of anything I feed the plants whether it's an EWC tea or a PureBlend feeding with LiquidKarma.
I do however measure runoff every now and then to stay on top of things.
As long as you've got humic and fulvic acids in the mix, a healthy soil ecosystem and are using dolomite lime you really don't have to bother with the ph adjusting your nutes or water.
 
Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
I am now using ewc/compost teas and liquid kelp for the first time. Its only been 10 days but I seem to see an improvement in my clones. My seedlings seemed to have stalled. They are 2 1/2 weeks now and were severely burnt. I think they will pull through but they are stalled. I am thinking of repotting them.
Click to expand...

I've returned to using them recently after using coco choir for awhile and I forgot how amazing my plants look when I use them, I find teas even help my ailing plants beter than any flushing could and it also seems I use less ferts when always watering with an active tea.
I find molasses, liquid seaweed, EWC and rice flour (a source of proteins for the fungi and item often overlooked) or any form of grain type unbleached protein make for some amazing ferts/additives, sometimes I supplement with LiquidKarma.

Sub's
 
minds_I

minds_I

Active member
Veteran
Suby said:
I've returned to using them recently after using coco choir for awhile and I forgot how amazing my plants look when I use them, I find teas even help my ailing plants beter than any flushing could and it also seems I use less ferts when always watering with an active tea.
I find molasses, liquid seaweed, EWC and rice flour (a source of proteins for the fungi and item often overlooked) or any form of grain type unbleached protein make for some amazing ferts/additives, sometimes I supplement with LiquidKarma.

Sub's
Click to expand...

I have been doing a lot of reading on this matter as of late.

I have these product:

Liquid kelp,

http://www.greenair.com/bio-genesis.htm#Bio-Genesis High Tide Seaweed

and this ewc/compost soil mix
http://www.organicsalive.org/organic_compost_products.html

The ad copy says they feed their worms mycorhizzae and benificials.

So I figure if I bubble the mix with molasses and oats and a little chicken shit with a dash of kelp-works great so far.

If I continuously bubble, keep the temps up and add molasses and oats I should have an active colony right?

How long do teas last?

minds_I

PS: the local hydro shop turned me on to a small sample of the OAS-seems to work beautifully
 
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Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
Those products look amazing, it saddens me there are no specialty organic stores anywhere out here, but they have every format of salt ferts in stock.....
Sounds like you have your recipe down, i would skip the chicken shit but some are of very good quality so who knows.
One would imagine that of adding a food source and bubbling it would keep things going but after doing some reading the concensus seems to be that unless we are using a professional brewer with access to a lab to analyse the tea we can't be sure of it's quality after 4+ days.
It seems that as the tea's activity gets going the balance between certain types of beneficial fungi and bacteria get upset as food sources get used in different proportions leaving residuals that boost the food source and thus competitiveness of another....you get the idea.
I am ashamed to admit that soil microbe dynamics are hard to put together just by reading articles, sort of makes me want to go back to University.....well almost.
 
minds_I

minds_I

Active member
Veteran
LOL, maybe its cause I am in N.Cal. Its not surpising really that they would push the organics. I had never heard of either of these products before I purchased them. I went in looking for EWC, Mycorhizea meal and liquid kelp.

I left with the kelp and a bag of ewc/veggie compost/ with benificial mircoherd.

Plus a sample of thier tea.

I am still looking for a tea recipe actually.

What is yoru recipe?

minds_I
 
D

duce

New member
you can also go to the water softner in wal- mart,(they just put them in)and get the 50 or 100 count test srtips,measures the same as the fish strips,i have been using both for about 2 years no problems
 
Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
My recipe is a little like my cooking, i usually don't follow it too closely but it goes something like this.

I bubble 4 gallons plain water in a 5 gallon bucket with an airstone running for 24hrs to get rid of chlorine BEFORE I add the worm castings which are my sampling of beneficial bacteria.

I add 1TBS of liquid seaweed (potassium, hormones, auxins, vitamins), 4 TBS of EWC (bacterial sampling), 4 TBS of molasses (carbon source), 1 TBS of yeast extract or rice meal (nitrogen source for proteins) to the water and let it bubble loosely covered for ~24-48hrs.

I don't use a sock to hold the EWC, it juts gets in the way.
Use a hella big air pump and get better results the air ensures the aerobic bacteria take hold, what your looking for is foam collecting at the top and it should NOT have a foul smell.

I generally water everytime with this tea, it helps as a fertilizer boost by boosting the microbes that convert the ammendments in my soil, you can add high P guano to the tea for the last couple of weeks of flowering tu supplement.

Simple and amazingly effective, natures perfect brew.
 
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