Im about to start my first grow and I need some help. The only water source I have is a well which is extremely high in iron. I do not drink the stuff its that bad. Just wondering what affect it will have on my grow, whether or not I can use the stuff, or am I buying spring water which could get expensive. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
The problem is that there is no way for us to know from here. It's not like all well water is the same. If it's high in a one metal it might also be high in many other minerals, metals, etc as well. You could test it with a TDS meter, you could try to filter it and see how it tests out after that, or you could go with distilled (rather than spring) water. You still will need to monitor and potentially adjust the pH, that's a separate issue.
You said 'extremely' high in iron.. Do you know the amount per litre? Iron toxicity occurs in very minute doses compared with other elements. If you won't drink it b/c of its iron content, then I certainly wouldn't feed it to my plants. How do you know it's really high in iron.. common knowledge around your parts? My suggestion would depend on how many plants you intend to grow. If you're doing a big grow where buying gallons and gallons of distilled water (or whatever kind you plan to buy) is necessary, you'll be better off investing in a RO system. If you have a small grow, the cost of water won't be quite as significant. Buying water is still a pain in the ass no matter how you beat that bush, and expect to pay around .75 per gallon (ouch!).