Exactly you got. Ph last
Growing differences between HPS and LED?
- Thread starter LabPong
- Start date
Thundercat
Well-Known Member
Yes you want to check PH last.
HOWEVER, you DO NOT want to add ph up after you mix in your nutrients. It will precipitate them out.
If your nutrients lower your PH so far that you need to raise it back up, you want to mix up a test batch, and measure how much ph up you need to add to get it right. Then throw that on your veggy garden.
Now start mixing your new batch by adding your ph up to the mix first. THEN add your nutrients, and double check to ensure your ph is where you want it. If it's too high, you can lower it.
My current nutrients pretty much lock my ph at around 5.8ish and buffer it so it stays there.
hotrodharley
Well-Known Member
There’s a recent thread on RIU where people that actually know science discussed this. I learned a lot from it including this tidbit.
Good point, not very common that this is the case but I should have included it. I always assume the calcium bicarbonate in the cal mag will be more than enough buffering but as you pointed out that's not always the case
I haven't read that thread but I'm going to make it a point to. Have a link for this lazy guy? I did run across some studies a while back that (if I remember right so please don't take this as fact) eluded to low k and low CA levels when raising K like we do in flower can lockout CA.
Again this might be completely wrong.
hotrodharley
Well-Known Member
I’ll try to find the thread. It was recent and it was long. Until then if you haven’t seen this article check it out.
https://bigbudsmag.com/marijuana-fertilizer-nutrients-lighting-for-led-grow-lights/
Sm4shMAN
Active Member
How's it fellas I grow with both and have grown with etha stand alone led's are great just messed me up for awhile not having that heat from the hps in the end it worked out too be similar price by the time I ran a column heater now I use both,with the led I had similar sized heads maby abit smaller but lots of sites consistently , where as I found I got bigger heads with my 600w's but fewer consistency where the light didn't penetrate, I'm a coco coir grower I sup cal, mag, fe after using it for years its hard to go without it haha everything just stays green
LabPong
Member
Ok......after a couple days of water only....fed them my normal mix.
I was surprised when I shook it all up and then was ready to feed with after PH'ing it. I am stupid......I should of known to ph only the full mixture of feed and not just the water.
So as it turns out I was going in the opposite direction with PH'ing the water down to 6.5 (my tap water is about 8.9-9.1 off the faucet). My feed came out to a PH of 5.9.
So my feed prior was pretty acidic.....maybe 4 something. So the plants could not utilize many nutrients like the calcium and mag especially. But luckily often I only watered with ph water at 6.5 and then added the cal/mag. I did not check to see what that ph's like yet....maybe tomorrow I will have the chance.
So I got the full mix of feed to ph out to 6.5 now so the cal/mag and a few other elements can be utilized so much better now. Hopefully in a week or so I will see some of the lighter green sections on some go away and then also no more of the "rust stains' from the calcium deficiency.
Thanks for all this back and forth info....at the least I hope it does not just help me but so many others going through the same light change process.
I was surprised when I shook it all up and then was ready to feed with after PH'ing it. I am stupid......I should of known to ph only the full mixture of feed and not just the water.
So as it turns out I was going in the opposite direction with PH'ing the water down to 6.5 (my tap water is about 8.9-9.1 off the faucet). My feed came out to a PH of 5.9.
So my feed prior was pretty acidic.....maybe 4 something. So the plants could not utilize many nutrients like the calcium and mag especially. But luckily often I only watered with ph water at 6.5 and then added the cal/mag. I did not check to see what that ph's like yet....maybe tomorrow I will have the chance.
So I got the full mix of feed to ph out to 6.5 now so the cal/mag and a few other elements can be utilized so much better now. Hopefully in a week or so I will see some of the lighter green sections on some go away and then also no more of the "rust stains' from the calcium deficiency.
Thanks for all this back and forth info....at the least I hope it does not just help me but so many others going through the same light change process.
Thanks
hotrodharley
Well-Known Member
I would have thought you already know this. You seem to have answers for everything else.
I spend my time reading a lot over the years. Growing is fascinating and it almost borders on addiction to it. I have spent over 20years growing aquatic plants and trying to understand all the processes at play. Breeding many different animals from reptiles to fish. Over the years I have picked up a lot of good knowledge and some I'm sure inaccurate. What I don't know (which is so much more than I do know... Or at least think I do) I try to learn. It's a passion and desire that is somewhat unhealthy if you ask my wife. I am far from having all the answers and I never will.
I'm not sure if you are seeing it as a competition but it's not. It's not about being right. It's about debate and learning. It's about challenging ourselves and eachother to reach the best solution. I'm wrong at times and I'm ok with that and embrace it because your don't learn from being right.
I guess some people are here for E-Peens. I'm here to learn and share. I always welcome a healthy debate. It's one of the best learning tools this forums provides. I think to many get caught up in that there is some sort of shame to be wrong... If that's the case I'm shameless