Bought a New Tester

[smilley]

So, I bought this inexpensive kit from Amazon.

It's a cheapo for sure but hopefully some of it works. I stopped testing for ph after my 4th pen stopped working properly. I've been flying blind for years now with reasonable results but I get leaf yellowing about 7 weeks into flowering which I believe is causing reduced yields. It'll be here in a couple of days. I'll give my initial thoughts when it arrives.

 

[Creeperpark]

So, I bought this inexpensive kit from Amazon.


View attachment 18903171

It's a cheapo for sure but hopefully some of it works. I stopped testing for ph after my 4th pen stopped working properly. I've been flying blind for years now with reasonable results but I get leaf yellowing about 7 weeks into flowering which I believe is causing reduced yields. It'll be here in a couple of days. I'll give my initial thoughts when it arrives.

I have used all three and the probe tester is unreliable. The first two are a good buy.

 

[exoticrobotic]

So, I bought this inexpensive kit from Amazon.




It's a cheapo for sure but hopefully some of it works. I stopped testing for ph after my 4th pen stopped working properly. I've been flying blind for years now with reasonable results but I get leaf yellowing about 7 weeks into flowering which I believe is causing reduced yields. It'll be here in a couple of days. I'll give my initial thoughts when it arrives.

you might want to remove your postcode from the amazon page

 

[smilley]

Thanks for the heads up. I fixed it...

 

[smilley]

I got the kit today and calibrated the ph tester. My tap water tested at 7.8. I added 8 ml of ph down (to 3 gallons) and my nutrients and watered the plants with a ph mixture at 6.5. Maybe I should have gone lower as the soil was probably at about 7.2. I'm guessing about the soil ph as I don't water until run-off, I add 1/3 gallon per pot every couple of days. Regardless, all of the previous waterings were at about 7.2.

I also tested the tds of the tap water and it's bang on 200ppm. With my nutrients added it came out to 486 ppm. Maybe I should increase the nutrients, I just don't know anything about tds or ec. I'm looking for some input here if anybody has some suggestions?

I'll be up-potting the plants from 2 to 5 gallon pots in the next couple of days. I'd like to get things dialled in soon. Here's a pic of the current crop at the end of stretch.

Zamal Bliss

 

[exoticrobotic]

My tap water tested at 7.8. I added 8 ml of ph down (to 3 gallons) and my nutrients and watered the plants with a ph mixture at 6.5. Maybe I should have gone lower as the soil was probably at about 7.2.

Nice lookin plants.

I grow in soil too but don't own a tds meter or pH meter.

I find the soil buffers pH quite well itself so don't need to add pH up or pH down.

 

[Creeperpark]

Nice lookin plants.

I grow in soil too but don't own a tds meter or pH meter.

I find the soil buffers pH quite well itself so don't need to add pH up or pH down.

The meters are for liquids and can be very helpful with the liquid intake and the liquid discharge. Here some Examples

If I start with 4000 ppm discharge in the very beginning and in two months find that I'm at 1500 ppm discharge it can be very beneficial information to make adjustments.

Also if I have a super growth and start to experience problems having a pH meter can help rule out pH issues. Not needing them in soil is ok but having them just in case can save one's ass during problems.

In horticulture greenhouse work, we always have the meters just in case. I like soils that are self-sufficient and amended. However, monitoring is in the best interest of greenhouse production to catch problems before they become problems. .

 

[smilley]

I repotted the plants into 5 gallon pots today. The roots were yellow(ish), not pure white as I would have liked see. I adjusted the feed and the ph to 6.2 and 860 ppm. I'll continue with this regime and see how the plants respond. Hoping to see darker green foliage and more rapid bud development. I'll give it a week or 10 days and report back.

So far, it seems that the ph meter and ec meter are working as advertised. I gave the soil tester to my wife for her house plants. She already has one that she's been using to check soil moisture and I'll get some feedback from her as time goes on.

 

[Creeperpark]

I repotted the plants into 5 gallon pots today. The roots were yellow(ish), not pure white as I would have liked see. I adjusted the feed and the ph to 6.2 and 860 ppm. I'll continue with this regime and see how the plants respond. Hoping to see darker green foliage and more rapid bud development. I'll give it a week or 10 days and report back.

So far, it seems that the ph meter and ec meter are working as advertised. I gave the soil tester to my wife for her house plants. She already has one that she's been using to check soil moisture and I'll get some feedback from her as time goes on.

The soil meter probes are active on the tips and will give a reading of where the tips land. If you check at the top of the pot vs the bottom you will get two different readings. Making sure the tips are in the right place is Key.

 

[linde]

I got the kit today and calibrated the ph tester. My tap water tested at 7.8. I added 8 ml of ph down (to 3 gallons) and my nutrients and watered the plants with a ph mixture at 6.5. Maybe I should have gone lower as the soil was probably at about 7.2. I'm guessing about the soil ph as I don't water until run-off, I add 1/3 gallon per pot every couple of days. Regardless, all of the previous waterings were at about 7.2.

I also tested the tds of the tap water and it's bang on 200ppm. With my nutrients added it came out to 486 ppm. Maybe I should increase the nutrients, I just don't know anything about tds or ec. I'm looking for some input here if anybody has some suggestions?

I'll be up-potting the plants from 2 to 5 gallon pots in the next couple of days. I'd like to get things dialled in soon. Here's a pic of the current crop at the end of stretch.

Zamal Bliss
View attachment 18904304

EC is more widely used than ppm. It is just double of the ppm. So if u have 1000ppm it will have an ec of 2.0 or 2000. There are plenty of conversion charts and optimum rates for diff stages of cannabis feedings. Yes those green probe pH testers are not at all accurate.

 

[smilley]

My meter reads both. If EC is the standard convention I'll use those figures from now on. You're right that it reads double. My reading on the last feeding was EC = 1.7. This included tap water, ph down PBP Bloom, Liquid Karma and Cal/Mag. I don't know whether that's too high or low , just that the additives were added at conservative amounts relative to the manufacturer's recommendation. I'm kinda working blind here but if my regime works out good I'll know exactly how to feed even if the meters crap out.

 

[linde]

At the plants flowering stage that's in the ballpark. But remember read the plant and not always the tester. Your plant will let you know when something isn't right.

 

[linde]

The glass electrode soil pH testers are as accurate as they come. $35 well spent

 

[smilley]

Nice set you have there. What is the device at the bottom of the pic?

 

[linde]

That is the probe. It's a glass electrode that screws onto the white tester. The tip is kept in solution so it doesn't dry out. Same basic unit used in college science labs.

 

[linde]

It's accurate up to .01 of a pH point. Gotta be careful when inserting into soil the glass tip is fragile.

 

[zachrockbadenof]

Yes those green probe pH testers are not at all accurate.

not accurate... they SUCK.. i have tried 1/2 dozen diff ones, still have '3' - i use em for house plants to test moisture ... thats about all they are good for...

 

[linde]

not accurate... they SUCK.. i have tried 1/2 dozen diff ones, still have '3' - i use em for house plants to test moisture ... thats about all they are good for...

Correct. Either of these are accurate. Though the yellow one tests water temp pretty good. The only accurate testers are the glass probe ones shown in my last post.

 

[smilley]

I watered the plants again today. The ph tester stayed calibrated and the ph ended up at 6.2 and the ec level was 1.65 so very similar results to the last measurements. The meters appear to be functioning correctly and hopefully will continue to function correctly till the end of my growing season (June next year).

I stopped using ph meters about 5 years ago after many failures and prohibitive costs. They used to be about C$100 each. At current prices it's cost effective to replace them on a yearly basis. I'm not seeing any real change with the plants themselves but it'll probably take a week or two to notice any difference. The real test will be at the 7 week mark when the leafs used to start yellowing on a grand scale.

 

[smilley]

When I first ph'd the feed mixture I noticed a lot of "the claw" going on. I attribute that to lockout followed by excess available nitrogen with proper ph. Most of "the claw" has unwound itself after two weeks and I expect it to be completely gone in another week.