Make sure that your PH meter is calibrated and has Solution Temperature Compensation STC because temp does affect PH, the Ph of pure water will drop as the temp increases, not by much though. Getting well water from underground at low temps (50f for me) I believe effects the PH once it is exposed to air, something that it doesn't get, but city water does. I would checking the PH then compare that to after it reaches ambient temp, there also an O2 exchange happening.
I would adjust any water before I used it and water that has been adjust may or may not stay that way so I would recheck.
My well water isn't fit for watering, so if yours is- Well I'm jealous!! lol 😆
@woodi2 yup it’s calibrated I’ll have dig up the paper work to see if it compensates for temperature - it does have a thermometer.
yeah I’ve never had an issue with the well water - tastes good and is just the right softness for washing stuff.
going foward I’ll let the water get to room temp and ph just prior to use - I was just trying to mix up a few weeks worth ahead of time
@binger just curious if you’re storing the water in closed or open containers. I store my rainwater in sealed 5 gallon buckets and haven’t seen a ph issue. Although I can’t verify it, I’ve been told that leaving the bucket open allows contamination and more drift.
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@binger when I started sealing my buckets, lots of my issues went away or slowed down. Like Woodi mentioned, oxygen exchange can change the water and sealing slows that exchange down. I bought the tops for 5 gallon buckets for a couple dollars each. Maybe experiment with one sealed bucket and see if there’s a difference in stability. Admittedly, I use rainwater and the chemistry is not the same but it’s a cheap experiment.
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@binger I've noticed the closing the top of the container from air and light (lid) helps to slow down the rise atleast for me. But when I make a 40liter batch of water/feed the first day I will have to adjust the pH atleast 3-4 times but the next day maybe once and for the third day I dont need to adjust. On the fourth the water is already gone and new ones are going in.
So a few things are likely happening here, dissolved oxygen can't effect the ph directly since there is no chemical connection between the two. The biggest think that is likely happening is the temperature swing, temps will effect the ph the most, usually this is because the surface temp changes and will in turn effect the c02 solubility(which is why you would see a smaller change with a lid on as it would keep the temps more stable) then you have other factors such as organic matter decaying, if you are using an organic blend of nutrients this will be a possibility as those compounds slowly break down in the mix. I would be surprised if it's not a temp related spike tbh, you are taking the water from the tap at let's say 15c then as that water sits in the bucket with the feed in it surrounded by the warm air of the grow room it slowly increases surface temp and the ph along with it. Hopefully that all makes sense lol
I feel like a, like a slice of butter... melting on top of a big-ol' pile of flapjacks... yeah.
8.5 out of tap
That is pretty darn alkaline! My tap water is about 7.9 to 8.1, and I use a pH down that has phosphoric acid, and I don't see those kinds of swings back towards alkaline.
To see a World in a Grain of Sand, And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand, And Eternity in an hour.
― William Blake
I ph my water or feed just prior to using. If i mix a rez of water to be used over the week i ph it and the next day i have to re adjust it down some but then it usually stays after the second time.
Sativa to change the things I can, Indica to accept the things I can’t.
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