Got my ppm pen, now what? What am i looking for, what do numbers mean?

Morning,

I got my little PPM pen. 20 bucks. Great reviews. But no explanation or much in the way of direction came with it.

1) My super duper filter system on my kitchen tap..always has a seven or so PH. 3 tests with PPM pen all read 7.

2) Stuck it in my tap water filter mix in a 5 gallon bucket I plan on watering out of...it read 99 PPM. ?? PH 0f 6.5 after I pHED it.
IS THIS SAFE TO WATER WITH? Or should I use my filtered water that reads a 7? My tap water reads 99 but it takes only a few moments to fill vs. my filter water nozzle...20 minutes.

Any help with PPM ok numbers PPM not-ok numbers would be great!

Thanks people, hope everyone is right on track in all their efforts!

I think now, it's figuring out what works best for each plant situation you have. Each strain demands different care.

I'm no expert so here's a quick SEARCH I did for you... https://www.rollitup.org/general-marijuana-growing/296705-ppm-reading-using-nutradip-ppm.html

https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+read+a+ppm+meter+marijuana&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Only use your filtered water.
your filter systems taken out all your minerals. You need to get them back.
go to the website of your nutrients. They should have a feeding schedule.

Did your pen come with a liquid to set your ppm?

Your tap water is a pretty low ppm to start. Very safe to water with that. I use reverse osmosis and it gets ppm to basically zero but my tap is 300ppm to start.

This might answer some of your questions.


I calibrate my pen each week.

Thanks for the chart! HELPFUL

no..it didnt. Says my tap water is 99...my filered tap water is 7. Im going to check it some more for accuracy reading.

99ppm is not alot as far as regular tap water but the problem is you dont know what those 99 parts per million consist of. could be chlorine. have you let the tap water sit out and then tried to measure the PPM?

you will need a calibration solution to make sure your getting accurate measurments.

basically you buy a solution, the solution will read different PPM at different temps so you will need to check the temprature of the solution and compare to the chart on the side of the calibration liquid. then use a small flathead screwdriver to adjust the ppm reading on the meter so that it is at the same PPM as the solution is supposed to be,

calibration fluid for PPM and PH pens are essential. i paid around 35 bucks for all 3 solutions and they will last forever. no need to dispose of them after your done calibrating just return them to thier bottle and your good.

http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-Calibration-Solution-Volume/dp/B001VE99X8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361459581&sr=8-2&keywords=ppm+calibration <---for PPM

http://www.amazon.com/7-01-pH-Calibration-Solution-Ounces/dp/B003AK5HFK/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1361459605&sr=1-4&keywords=ph+calibration <----for PH

http://www.amazon.com/General-Hydroponics-4-01-Calibration-Solution/dp/B003AK1PWO/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1361459655&sr=1-4&keywords=ph+calibration+4.01 <---for PH

remember PH is equally important as PPM when growing in hydroponics. if your growing in soil im not really sure why your bothering but to his thier own i suppose.

it sounds like he might have been checking ppm with ph pen in his filterd water.

DOYOUSMELLTHAT said:

Morning,

I got my little PPM pen. 20 bucks. Great reviews. But no explanation or much in the way of direction came with it.

1) My super duper filter system on my kitchen tap..always has a seven or so PH. 3 tests with PPM pen all read 7.

2) Stuck it in my tap water filter mix in a 5 gallon bucket I plan on watering out of...it read 99 PPM. ?? PH 0f 6.5 after I pHED it.
IS THIS SAFE TO WATER WITH? Or should I use my filtered water that reads a 7? My tap water reads 99 but it takes only a few moments to fill vs. my filter water nozzle...20 minutes.

Any help with PPM ok numbers PPM not-ok numbers would be great!

Thanks people, hope everyone is right on track in all their efforts!

Click to expand...

My public water is 60ppm. I use RO water and its at 7 ppm. Your tap water isn't that bad, but why not use the good stuff? I started using RO water because of Advanced Nutrients.. but it sucks.. yet I still use the RO water because of quality. The closer you are to distilled water, which is what occurs naturally, the better off you are IMHO. Invest time in the plant and it will be waaay better in the end.
Good luck!

Also, when you read the recommended PPM for your nutrients, shoot for about 2/3 what they say. With enough oxygen at the roots your ppm should be somewhere in the 700-950 range. There's lots of variables that changes this value but its a good ballpark.