Hello DGC
I know we only speak when I have a problem so here I am again. Just to start with I’ve killed two fish in my life due to my inability to get my head around pH. So here’s my problem. I started two little hempy buckets just to try really. I only had perlite. So I washed it under the hot tap to clean it and set the buckets up. Reading more (maybe I should of before, ha) perlite has a pH of 7 and the run off was 8.4 so I dropped the pH down to compensate and it creeps back up. So how do I get to keep it down? Did I need to prep the perlite some more? I’m not interested in spending money on it as I’m saving for a veg light and an AC infinity so every £10 is going in a pot. Plus I have enough things going on in soil so if I’ve fucked it, it can all go in the bin. I have enough perlite and clones to start again if it’s an easy fix, but it’s gotta be a cash free-ish fix if you get me? Thank you for your time 🙏
i did a perlite hempy awhile back and just treated it like coco so fed 5.7-5.9 and everything turned out great
i only rinsed my perlite the once out back with a hose to knock the dust off it
just feed till a bit of runoff each time and should be good
Ok mate thanks for the reply.
Possibly from nutrient buildup or very hard water source. Be sure to let nutrients stabilize before adjusting ph then let that sit and recheck ph before feeding.
Thanks mate. I’ll try that. I ph’d it down to 5.9 this morning caught the run off straight away it was 7.1. My water comes out of the tap at 8.1.
So I’ll put it all together wait a bit. Adjust ph then leave and check again then use it.
Took the water from my off-gassing bucket
Ph 7.4 with nutes left an hour up to 7.8 checked 30 mins later still 7.8 so ph down to 5.8 left an hour up to 6.2 brought it down to 5.8 again left again for half an hour still at 5.8 so I used it. Caught run off straight away In the saucer it was up to 6.4 checked again over an hour later it 7.8 so I’m guessing it something in the bucket. Even though it’s fresh everyday due to the ph rising issue, would you flush it out in ph’d or in un-ph’d water or try a transplant into fresh washed perlite or just bin it all off and never speak of hempy buckets again. Ha
So I’m guessing it’s not been helping my soil based friends or my ex fishes. I never knew the ph was that unstable.
I would flush it with ph water at whatever you are shooting for and keep testing until your waste is the same as your input. I grow in perlite and vermiculite hempy and haven’t had this issue
But my filtered water will usually ph at 6.4 so I don’t have to use much down to get it where I want it around 6.1
I use dyna grow nutes which isn’t supposed to be as bad at locking up as others but I still flush once in a while when I see my runoff ph creeping up.
Hey thanks man.
3pm today I ph’d plain water to 5.9 gave her a full flush. Emptied the water completely. Plain water with 1 ml of Biobizz grow, left for an hour it had gone up .4 so I readjusted to 5.9 checked later it was still the same so used it. I caught some run off and checked it was up .5. Just checked now at 10 pm it was 7.9??
It can’t be a build up as it’s not had more than a 1ml 5 or 6 times.
Something I’ll try again in the future… or not as ph generally fucks me off. Ha see you all next problem…. peace🙏
Sounds like your hard water anything over ph7 usual has lots of carbonate. These were probably building up in the reservoir. They will take awhile to fully dissolve and remove from your perlite. Just keep giving your solution time to adjust and you’ll slowly knock down those carbonates. If your plants are suffering lockout then go with a fulvic acid or other flushing agent to completely flush the carbonates out. Also not sure how well the biobizz will work without microbes to help break things down. Might be more suitable for synthetic nutrients.
Thanks man. 🙏
I’ve been changing the water daily by tipping the old out and holding the perlite over my kitchen sink and then 3/4 filling with slight gusto to move around the res.
I’ll be buggered if I know but she must be getting a drink somewhere down the line. She’s green and growing just very very slowly.
I’ve been using the Bio Bizz grow as I’ve moved to top dressing my soil sisterhood and shame to waste it type mindset. But I did think it might end up getting a bit minging if you get me?