Questions pH Comtroller

I have this same Ph controller it can be seen in my Bato bucket diary. It has been working good for me.  I use Phosphoric acid diluted with distilled water for Ph down. The only problem i had was not diluting it enough causing it to over shoot my desired Ph level. I was using a smaller res. so finding the correct dilution range for your setup will be important. i believe i used 1 part acid 5 parts water in a gallon milk jug, i place the suction hose thru the milk jug lid. ill get some pics when my lights are on.

Ah, you’re the one I remember seeing photos from. I remember reading a post/thread with a photo of the green doser and couldn’t remember who it was.  

I’ll appreciate seeing more pics of your setup.

TY

I was looking at the BlueLabs, but not only cost 30% it looked the doser is built in to the controller. Price is not always the deciding factor, but maintaining, repairing, and replacing components is important to me. Having a separate doser means its easy to replace .

Yeah i looked at all I could find and went with what i could afford. i did like the fact i can get each part individually. I calibrated it and its been functioning fine ever since, I try to clean the probe off weekly by using a tooth brush. 

I have the Bluelab PH controller. For me it was a waste of money but all part of the learning curve. I thought I needed one but turns out it's not that urgent of a situation for me. I've had it for over two years now and it has sat idle for the last two grows and only used as a monitor before that. You can use UP or DOWN with it. I would have down in it and the system would needed to go up. Wouldn't work. You can only set it to go one way or the other, up or down but not both. It reads PH only and not EC or temp but there is a temp read-out that's very poor. So PH only and only up or down.

Then I'd calibrate it and the Bluelab would be, .2 difference from my Hanna meter (6.0 to 5.8 the Bluelab always lower)) and even more difference from my Apera meter. So each piece has a different value on the read-out but they're all working for their read-out, right or wrong. I've calibrated till I'm blue in the face and it makes NO difference. So then when you put your probe from whichever meter you want into the PH 4.0 or 7.0 buffer solution. Then you see that the Apera doesn't hit the buffer number, neither does the Bluelab but the Hanna does. I'm not brand loyal, I don't care which one I use, but the one I use had better work or it's useless. Hence why the Bluelab isn't plugged in atm.

I'm able to check and adjust my PH once a day, along with water check. I understand some people work out of town and need this along with the wi-fi app. I would need a dual one for up and down, then two units for more than one grow. That all I know about PH controllers, I'd be tempted to build my own with simple parts and pieces. Then I could go both ways!! 🤣

If your feed is correct you won't need much adjustment for PH, but that's another learning curve.  Good luck man, hope this helps. 

I’m thinking ahead and doing research in case I need one. In my mini dwc (using for root development), I’m having to adjust down daily (I put in fresh nute’s yesterday and this morning shortly after lights on, it was 0.4 higher, granted, only 2 gal in each which I realize could be part of the problem). I realize my RDWC might react differently (larger volume of nute’s, and other process variables), but I’d rather have a plan A and plan B established just in case.

I was reading that a dropping pH can be a sign of bacteria from root disease. Algae can cause pH to rise during the day as it consumes acidic carbon dioxide. You know that already, but I know you will set me straight if I’m misunderstanding something :d  

Plus I have to keep Mrs. Sevans in mind when I’m traveling. She has little patience, so I have to make my system as painless as possible to maintain.

When you mix your nutz, be sure to bubble them ahead of time, even just two gals. Aerate it for 1 hr + and then recheck it. I'll aerate mine over night and not touch the PH till after it's bubbled and the nutrients have had a chance for their buffers to get to work. This will stabilize things. 

Temps will change reads, that why the controllers have a temp probe for compensation. I got well water coming out at 58f. Rdwc water temp is 68f, and bubble bucket is averaging 74f-75f.

Drops of .2 on the PH is fine for 24hrs, it usually mean they need more food. But if they're seedling they may not be big enough to affect the waters PH or EC, in that case then I would be looking for a bacterial bloom if the PH is rising or falling. They usually aren't big enough till 2.5 -3 weeks old, and that's with out any problems to slow them down.