So, I feel like I see a lot of bad information perpetuated by folks here and other cannabis forums who are just repeating what they've read from other stoners (no disrespect). When you search keywords, it's amazing how through the years the same ideas are passed on and so little in the way of scientific reference. I thought it'd be cool to dispell some of these as folks hear them and can provide scientific facts to set folks straight. I postulate that chlorine (and chloramine) is not harmful enough to warrant the use of anything other than tap water...straight out of the tap. Other than my own personal experience with growing any kind of plant, I offer this link from Colorado State University Extension, Denver Botanic Gardens, and Green Industries of Colorado, Inc. http://www.ext.colostate.edu/ptlk/1548.html Thoughts?
"My" thought is, ignore the 'stoners' and listen to what actual 'gardeners' have to say. You know, the ones who see mj as just another flowering annual and not an alien life form. Wet
ABSOLUTELY RIGHT!!!! For a couple of years I wandered around in "water world" myself. For some reason, the guy I started with who supposedly had the grow experience (cough, cough) decided that only natural spring water was correct for our plants. Yet he never checked for pH and never had a clue how strong his nutrient solution was and consistently burned our crop to a crisp...and I was allowing him to take care of our plants. LOL Lesson learned. I got smart and realized he was an idiot without even a clue and kicked his butt out the door. It was my money had that funded the whole operation and after sinking around 5K into this thing (and finding out that he was on probation so he couldn't go to the cops if I showed him the door), I wasn't about to let him screw it up for me. I started over and learned how to do it myself...the right way. The best thing that ever happened to me was finding the growing forums. I made a friend from Southern California who sort of took me under her wing. She was the one who filled me in on water. I cringe when I think about all the jugs of water I bought and wagged home from the store. My fault. I should've bothered to learn these things BEFORE I started but instead, chose to fly by the seat of my pants for awhile. Not recommended! But I've been using water straight out of the tap for well over a year now and my plants have never been more beautiful. So, though it's only through my own personal experiences, I can tell you that plain old tap water works great. It's crazy how people get hung up on things like that and never even know about other vital aspects of the growing process that can determine the success or failure of a grow. Oh well...everybody has their own way. Thanks for the thread! TWW
water quality is the most important aspect of a grow and not everyone's water is the same so filtering with carbon filters or an RO system is the best bet to maintain a consistency in your water. I use RO as the tap water here is heavily chlorinated and has a lot of heavy metals. Best thing I would recommend anyone growing with tap is to visit your local water company and get a data sheet on what is actually in your water then make a decision from there. As far as chlorine and chloramine I don't want that in any of my water even if the micros do bounce back. Why would you want to kill them? Besides in a container environment safe to say you would probably severly diminish the micro herds ability to do its job if you dumped chlorinated water into your soil.
high blade This was a topic a few days ago. Basically chlorine which can be removed by aeration or evaporation ( same thing?idn) but in city water chloramine is mostly used for whatever reason. Chloramine cannot be evaporated. It has to be dispersed. A good handful of Ewc or compost per gal causes the chloramine to react itself out of the water as it contacts the microbes. Credit gimik. Swim proposes it is chloramine in your city water and when used for irrigation it was being dispersed in the soil. The long term effects are unknown but speculation indicates it's ok. It kinda has to be Swim thinks have enough compost to replenish life, then feed and occupy this life. Take precautions to remove chloramine( swim adds Ewc then aerated)
A few considerations. 1. Every municipal water source will be different, and the results from using tap water in your grow can range from fantastic to detrimental. 2. Cannabis can be grown in sterile soil, devoid of microbiological activity. However, IF microbiological, fungal and bacterial populations mater to you in your grow, then chlorine is an enemy, especially in indoor grows were the microbial population in a small pot will be much less resilient than an outdoor garden. 3. Chlorine is not always the biggest concern when it comes to tap water. My municipal water only has 1.2 ppm chlorine, but actually has a total dissolved solid (TDS) between 750-800. That number is astronomically high. It mostly consists of calcium, magnesium, and npk. For years I unsuccessfully tried to grow healthy cannabis plants indoors using my tap water, and it wasn't until I switched to filtered RO did I achieve the results I expected. If you live somewhere with good tap water, consider yourself lucky and use it. But not all water is created equal, so get to know yours. And not to sound conspiratorial, but don't always just blindly trust the city data provided. Test it yourself if you have the means. My colleagues and I have tested and consistently produced results different from the official results provided by our municipality.
To be honest, I've only checked my water PH once and never checked PPM. I'm sure that is very important for hydro but I don't think it is for soil grows...or at least it hasn't been for me so far. Also, nobody does that for any other plant that I'm aware of.
Wow, my city water tested at a minimum of .05 ppm and a max of .23 ppm chlorine. Yours sounds plenty higher but many magnitudes lower than what that website suggested was impactfull. "In order to kill soil microorganisms to 6 inch soil depth, water containing 65 parts per million of chlorine was required in one study."
An excellent article from Colorado State University that may throw some light on the subject and set some minds at ease - Impact of Watering Lawns & Gardens with Chlorinated Water - "Many water providers add chlorine to drinking water to keep it clean for human consumption. Chlorine prevents bacterial growth in water distribution systems. Many residents use chlorinated water to irrigate their lawn and garden. If chlorine is added to drinking water to kill bacteria, what impact does it have on beneficial soil microorganisms? Does it kill beneficial organisms in compost piles, too? Researchers have found that chlorinated drinking water may kill a number of microorganisms in soil or a compost pile. However, their reproduction rate is so rapid that populations rebound in a short time. Under normal conditions, chlorinated water will not threaten microorganism populations. Microorganisms reproduce rapidly. In one study, researchers continuously applied highly chlorinated water to soil for 126 days. Two days after they stopped, the soil microorganism populations reached pre-treatment levels at all depths of soil. One reason chlorinate water has little impact is that chlorine binds to soil particle surfaces. This immobilizes chlorine and reduces its ability to kill microorganisms. The organisms in the topmost surface of soil or a compost pile may be affected after irrigation but as the water moves downward little chlorine remains. In one study, researchers found that water chlorinated at 5 parts per million killed organisms only in the top half inch of soil. Organisms deeper than one half inch were thriving. The amount of chlorine in drinking water is quite low. In order to kill soil microorganisms to 6 inch soil depth, water containing 65 parts per million of chlorine was required in one study. Drinking water usually contains much lower chlorine levels. For example, Colorado Springs Utilities water contains between 0.05 to 0.90 parts per million of chlorine, 70 times below the threshold level. Cite: http://www.ext.colostate.edu/ptlk/1548.html J
Hmmmmm... That article looks familiar, J'. //static.grscty.com//public/style_emoticons/default/smile.png
Here's another thing that I see a wide variety of recommendations on...decarb temps and time. I've seen some charts but not a lot of context surrounding those charts. I've tried lower temps for greater times and greater temps for lower times. I think this ties into vaping as well since most folks seem to be extracting more THC out of the AVB, thus they aren't getting a very full extraction when they vape in the first place at the temps that they're vaping at. I've found the following articles to provide the most solid evidence for decarb temps and times (300 for 15 min).
I watered from the tap exclusively this growing season and we have chloramine in our water here. I saw absolutely no difference from when I gassed off my water last season before watering. I will be watering from the tap for now on.
Mostly I follow Badkats directions on Decarb as she's done it over many years with local lab testing she trusts.. Seems to be spot on as all my hash caps and tinctures are kick ass.. 215-220 degrees for 40 min covered is what I use on my hash.. Decarb will vary with the age and storage of the material.. Fresher material will need longer times.. About an additional 10 to 15 min.. http://forum.grasscity.com/index.php?app=core&module=search&do=search&fromMainBar=1 Decarb search of her thread.. I usually work up 5 grams at a time in each of the small stainless dishes from petco.. This batch was destined for Tincture.. My salvaged toaster oven works just fine for this and keeps the smell outside and the wife happy BNW
I know this to be correct, but will continue to sit my watering can out overnite, so the water gets to air temp good find