Something that I dont understand about PHing your water

Ok, so I am not a total newb, but this is kind of a newb question really.


I have seen many people advise others to get the little ph tester kit where you put the drops in your water, and the color it changes to tells you what your ph is. I got one a long time ago, and it wasnt until then that I realized that if I ph the water after the nutes in it, it is already a different color, and depending on the nutes you use, it may even turn totally opaque (not see through at all), so you more or less cant tell at all what fuckin color it is.

So...How is someone supposed to tell what color it is when you already colored the water with nutes?

Put another way, how does one use the little drops i water and color scale ph testers if you are phing AFTER you put your nutes in?

Anybody?

Not being a jerk but a meter. Paper pH should work too.

I have found that just adding nutes to my tap water (which is 7) brings the ph right where it needs to be. I only ph my plain water.

i would buy a cheap ph meter

Get a cheep digital PH meter, they're only abt $15 or so, look it up on ebay, I don't trust those test kits, like you said sometimes you can't tell the true color.

DeeTee said:

Get a cheep digital PH meter, they're only abt $15 or so, look it up on ebay, I don't trust those test kits, like you said sometimes you can't tell the true color.

Click to expand...

its funny many say its the digital meters that are inaccurate, and the paper test being nearly spot on. and u should easily be able to tell the ph of ur solution regadless of the nutes color, i figured out how much MG changes ph last year, and that shit looks like blue kool aid, and even with the coloring, ur solution is still mostly transparent and wont affect the colors of the ph scale

Mr.Marijuana420 said:

its funny many say its the digital meters that are inaccurate, and the paper test being nearly spot on. and u should easily be able to tell the ph of ur solution regadless of the nutes color, i figured out how much MG changes ph last year, and that shit looks like blue kool aid, and even with the coloring, ur solution is still mostly transparent and wont affect the colors of the ph scale

Click to expand...

this is right, and I forgot about the last part. The liquid kits DO work no matter the color the water starts.

odessa said:

I have found that just adding nutes to my tap water (which is 7) brings the ph right where it needs to be. I only ph my plain water.

Click to expand...

This def depends on the nutrients . try some organic (guano) and see what it does to ph. all the nutrients other than AN (which advertises "ph perfect" ) I've found drop ph like a rock.

DeeTee said:

Get a cheep digital PH meter, they're only abt $15 or so, look it up on ebay, I don't trust those test kits, like you said sometimes you can't tell the true color.

Click to expand...

I don't trust those cheap ph meters, throw for a bluelab.

Coho said:

Not being a jerk but a meter. Paper pH should work too.

Click to expand...

Yaint bein a jerk, Bro. Good info, and after readin all the replies, I can say I think I am gettin a meter.

Mr.Marijuana420 said:

its funny many say its the digital meters that are inaccurate, and the paper test being nearly spot on. and u should easily be able to tell the ph of ur solution regadless of the nutes color, i figured out how much MG changes ph last year, and that shit looks like blue kool aid, and even with the coloring, ur solution is still mostly transparent and wont affect the colors of the ph scale

Click to expand...

I hear ya man. A lot of my nutes make the water dark, like particulate matter in suspension dark. Kelp does that and makes the water dark, too.


I am thinkin a meter, and a roll of paper strip test shit, to check to be sure the meter stays on the straight and narrow. For the cost of a roll of that stuff, it's easily worth it.

Veg+bloom, advanced nutrients sensi, and xnutrients are pretty clear and easy enough to chech ph.

Also, try mixing up several batches at different ph ranges. Do 8.0, 7.0, 6.0, then 5.0. Use shot glasses and line up all your batches side by side so you can compare them. Try it with and without nutrients. Doing this a few times helped me get a feel for how many drops change the ph range. Then it was just a matter of making an educated guess.

SaneLawsMake4SaneSociety said:

Yaint bein a jerk, Bro. Good info, and after readin all the replies, I can say I think I am gettin a meter.

Click to expand...

I would suggest that you not get the cheapest one on Ebay, you get what you pay for. Sometimes anyway. You'll never get MORE than you pay for. Get some calibration solution to check the meter. pH is important.

Red1966 said:

I would suggest that you not get the cheapest one on Ebay, you get what you pay for. Sometimes anyway. You'll never get MORE than you pay for. Get some calibration solution to check the meter. pH is important.

Click to expand...

Yeah, both of y'all that said don't get a cheap one, I think I might have to agree. I had a cheap one, nd couldn't get it calibrated. Not even once. So I guess it's now, "what brand and model is a good value for the quality?" Got one vote for bluelab brand so far, Anyone else ?

I just picked up the Milwaukee ph55 for $50. It has a good rep, and is accurate within .1ph

Meeter is the only way to go, especialy for us color blind folks. lol

OK here are a few tips about pH testing and balance. First off the drop pH kits work great in my opinion. I always make my water 5 gallons at a time. #1. Fill a 5 gallon bucket with your tap water the day before you water and let it sit outside unless it is raining. This will allow the chlorine used by the city to purify your water to evaporate. #2. Test the pH of your water , it should be close to 7 neutral. That is standard for water that is consumed by people. Now ad nutes and stir very well until everything is dissolved , this will usually lower the pH. What ever the case , low or hi use pH up or ph down to adjust. Keep note of exactly what you use and how much to bring the balance to 7. #4 If your water is to cloudy " opaque " to test try making more at one time. This will allow for testing in larger amounts and give you more room for parts per million hence clearing the water. Now if you kept track of what you did to get your water with nutes to balance at 7 you have a recipe for your water. Try to use the same amount of everything every time keeping the plants happy. #5. Always store unused nute water in cool dry place with lid. Always pH test it before you use it again and stir it well before testing.

Looking at Ph meters now....I can spend the $200 for a good one, but really don't want to have to learn yet another fuckin skill (so far, for this "hobby" of mine, I have had to become, electrician, plumber, carpenter, farmer, and more!)

Can anybody point me to a good, reliable, durable, accurate, and easy to use meter?

I am a newbie, only on my second grow. But I could never really tell the color accurately so I just bought a cheapie pH pen off eBay. I'm very happy with it and since it was only about $15.00 if I drop it in my reservoir I won't be to sad.

Nitegazer said:

I just picked up the Milwaukee ph55 for $50. It has a good rep, and is accurate within .1ph

Click to expand...

hmmmmmm.....