Coffee As A Cheap PH down :D

[MethKrylon]

Has anyone heard of using coffee beans or coffee grounds as ph down?Its supposed to be a neutral and helps balance your ph for a day or two.I didnt find anything on google or else im just too stoned lol. I just wanted to know if anyone has tryed this and if so what are your results.
I didnt just want to dump coffee in my tanks without knowing anything about it lol

[basementhydro]

Huh, I hadn't thought of this.

Used coffee grounds are a common fertilizer in gardens - you can get big bags of grounds for free from Starbucks (I do it all the time). Makes a great slow-release nitrogen source.

I don't think I'd put grounds or beans in a hydroponic system though. Too much chance of clogging. Don't see why you couldn't just pour a little brewed coffee in, though. (Just cool it off first.)


It's organic. What's the worst that could happen? The big question would be whether it would provide a stable reduction in pH.

[MethKrylon]

yea the clogging is what im worried about. but so far lemon has worked pretty well i just dont understand why the hydroton keeps messing with my ph... it goes from 5.5 up to 7.8 in a matter of hours...

[basementhydro]

Did you remember to thoroughly rinse your hydroton before you put it in your pots?

There's a few other things that can cause a strong, consistent rise in pH.
Walk us through a step-by-step of what you do from the beginning - what water you use, what specific things you add in specific quantities, etc.

Sometimes it's the simplest things that can cause a problem.

[Mycroft]

I wouldn't use coffee, I'd be worried about promoting mold growth. Mold loves coffee.

When I first started growing hydro I tried using household stuff to adjust my ph, and you could adjust it fine but it was never stable. You always had to retest and readjust just about every time you visited the plants.

Just buy the PH up and PH down from your hydro store. It's so much easier than trying to MacGyver something from your pantry.

[weren't me]

Has any one tried apple cider vinegar or just plain vinegar for ph. control?
Dumb?

[basementhydro]

There's a lot of things that "also work" as pH up or down. Just remmeber that there's a reason companies don't use the easy stuff as their pH up and down.

Coffee, citris juice, etc aren't terrible on their own but they are food for more than just us and plants. The standard pH up/down formulas sold in hydro shops aren't the sort of thing mold and fungus and whatnot wants to chow down on.

I may be tempted sometimes to experiment with cheaper stuff that's readily available, but I just don't like to gamble with my plants.

And to reiterate what Mycroft said - mold does love coffee. Leave a pot out for a few days (because you're lazy like me) or grounds in the trash can for a few days (because you're lazy like me) and you'll see just how true that is. Good aeration would probably curb or even halt the growth in your reservoir, but I'd rather not risk it myself.