NORTHERN LIGHTS Hydro grow: PH Out of Control...Tried Everything...HELP!

OldMedUser

OldMedUser

Well-Known Member
jaa soo said:
What's the PH on with a RO system? I know ppm is close to 0.
What's the different with UV purification and RO?
I'm asking cuz I'm looking to buy a system, one last question , what PPM miter u use?
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pH in RO water is neutral. It doesn't really have a pH until you add something to it. If it's not 0ppm it may have a slight pH up or down depending on what minerals are getting through the RO membrane.

UV will sterilize water but does nothing to alter the ppm. Any ppm pen will do but get some calibration solution when you buy some to make sure it's correct. Same with pH pens tho you should also get some some storage solution for it to sit in between uses. Do not leave a pH pen soaking in RO or distilled water as that will ruin the probe.
 
Budley Doright

Budley Doright

Well-Known Member
OldMedUser said:
pH in RO water is neutral. It doesn't really have a pH until you add something to it. If it's not 0ppm it may have a slight pH up or down depending on what minerals are getting through the RO membrane.

UV will sterilize water but does nothing to alter the ppm. Any ppm pen will do but get some calibration solution when you buy some to make sure it's correct. Same with pH pens tho you should also get some some storage solution for it to sit in between uses. Do not leave a pH pen soaking in RO or distilled water as that will ruin the probe.
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So RO is 7 then?
 
BobCajun

BobCajun

Well-Known Member
Bubbling water through the solution makes it gradually more alkaline. I don't know exactly why, maybe something gets oxidized to a more alkaline compound. All I could find was the explanation that it drives off CO2, which is acidifying. Just doesn't sound that credible to me, though I guess could be true. Anyway, whatever the reason, bubbling does alkalize it. I can't guarantee that's why YOUR solution is rising in pH, but it might be it. You pretty much need an automatic pH monitor/injector or some kind of pH buffer. GH nutes have buffers and so do Advanced.
 
J

jaa soo

Member
BobCajun said:
Bubbling water through the solution makes it gradually more alkaline. I don't know exactly why, maybe something gets oxidized to a more alkaline compound. All I could find was the explanation that it drives off CO2, which is acidifying. Just doesn't sound that credible to me, though I guess could be true. Anyway, whatever the reason, bubbling does alkalize it. I can't guarantee that's why YOUR solution is rising in pH, but it might be it. You pretty much need an automatic pH monitor/injector or some kind of pH buffer. GH nutes have buffers and so do Advanced.
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so u think air stone/bubbling make the ph go up? I always have use tap water with some ph down and never had a problem, now I use air stone to keep the water moving.
I keep looking up what could be the problem, and my believe is the tap water and not the bubbling, but I'm not sure, I'm going to buy a osmosis system and see what happened
 
BobCajun

BobCajun

Well-Known Member
Well that's what I read anyway, about the bubbling raising pH. I just use pots and top feed so I don't have that issue. My suggestion would be to buy GH nutrients, the Flora liquid series or MaxiGro powder. Maybe the buffers will work to maintain your pH at least for a week.

Actually I also suggest just using pots of medium and top feeding, as I mentioned. DWC is rather complicated. I just use perlite myself. I reuse it over and over after pulling out most of the dead roots. It works better after it gets a good amount of dead roots in it to help hold water. It becomes basically a soiless mix, but with the peat replaced by dead roots. I let the used pots of mix sit covered for a few weeks between crops so the roots have time to break down considerably. I've been using the same perlite for over a year now. If you ever want to clean it better you can just put it in a container of water and swirl it around and then scoop it from the surface, where it floats. The crud sinks.
 
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Niblixdark

Well-Known Member
jaa soo said:
so u think air stone/bubbling make the ph go up? I always have use tap water with some ph down and never had a problem, now I use air stone to keep the water moving.
I keep looking up what could be the problem, and my believe is the tap water and not the bubbling, but I'm not sure, I'm going to buy a osmosis system and see what happened
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Make sure you use Cal Mag with osmosis as the lack of minerals can cause the plants to become deficit when they are much bigger, especially in the first 3 weeks of flowering.
 
J

jaa soo

Member
Niblixdark said:
Make sure you use Cal Mag with osmosis as the lack of minerals can cause the plants to become deficit when they are much bigger, especially in the first 3 weeks of flowering.
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Thank you for the info... I'm going to be using the full fox farm nutrients on a soilless mix, you think I should still mix Cal Mag on it?
 
thenotsoesoteric

thenotsoesoteric

Well-Known Member
Niblixdark said:
I'd just like to mention I use 2 long air stones in my res and my pH is very stable. I use tap water de-chlorinated.
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I was just about to say the same thing. Air bubble will not raise your ph. It may produce more bacteria which then may help dissolve salts and cause fluctuations? If air bubbles caused ph then dwc would not be so popular.
 
PetFlora

PetFlora

Well-Known Member
Budley Doright said:
I stopped using airstones due to PH fluctuations, I read it somewhere lol, and my water is way more stable :).
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I switched away from air stones this grow to a small recir pump on a timer, still have the daily rising pH problem. I always do from midflower on, which is normal, ubt I 'think' it's because I am now adding APTUS FaSilitor which strengthens stalks
 
J

jaa soo

Member
BobCajun said:
The pH rises as nutrients are used. That's why with recirculating or DWC you have to keep adding phosphoric acid, or use a brand with buffers.
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I'm going to be using Milliard Citric Acid 100% Pure Food Grade NON-GMO for PH down, should I verify and stable my PH before and after adding my nutrients to the water?

Is any different on the ideal h2o 75gpd VS 100gpd? Or same, just the gpd is the different
 
N

Niblixdark

Well-Known Member
jaa soo said:
I'm going to be using Milliard Citric Acid 100% Pure Food Grade NON-GMO for PH down, should I verify and stable my PH before and after adding my nutrients to the water?

Is any different on the ideal h2o 75gpd VS 100gpd? Or same, just the gpd is the different
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Always put nutrients in first then pH after. Then let it drift and adjust as necessary.

I prefer 2 air stones per each plant. You want allot of bubbles (O2) for explosive growth !

SM90 will take care of pathogens from starting or taking over. I run a sterile system and trust me, it's the only way to go. Unless you like gunked up lines and hoses along with big pH swinging.

With a line that is blocked, it could cause nutrient deficiency over time as the nutrients are not cycling through the bucket.

That's all you need!
 
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J

jaa soo

Member
Niblixdark said:
Always put nutrients in first then pH after. Then let it drift and adjust as necessary.

I prefer 2 air stones per each plant. You want allot of bubbles (O2) for explosive growth !

SM90 will take care of pathogens from starting or taking over. I run a sterile system and trust me, it's the only way to go. Unless you like gunked up lines and hoses along with big pH swinging.

With a line that is blocked, it could cause nutrient deficiency over time as the nutrients are not cycling through the bucket.

That's all you need!
Click to expand...
thank u for t he grate info.
I'm actually top feeding my pots, but I do planting to build a dripping system
 
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