my tap water is the same ph. get a ph test kit and a bottle of vinegar. wal-mart sells ph test kits in the fish/aquarium department. add a few drops of vinegar to lower the ph. just a few drops at a time.
Buy the ph up and down kit. It doesnt cost to much and a little goes a long way. Get the up and down in case you lower it to much by mistake. I think it runs around 15 bucks or so
I have the ph up and down kit that's the one I tested my water with but how do I adjust my watering water with the kid accurately.
Get a proper ph meter and a bottle of ph up and ph down. Fill a five gallon bucket with water and test with meter. Then add ph down till it gets to the ph ur looking for. Ph down is extremely potent so start with a few drops, mix well and retest Then water ur plants with properly ph'd water
Mine 7.4 tap water! Only use a tiny bit ph down as stong stuff. If im just need a few liters water i put ph down into a small glass with about 200ml water. I then use the glass( which is very very low ph) to get my main 2 liter jug ph down. Having it milder in the glas wi a bit of water makes it easier and more forgiving.. xx
You can buy a pH up and down kit at pretty much any pool store or grow store and adjust it that way. But the pH ranges are just a few points apart for the hydro and the soil. I assume you're growing in soil here since you can't run a hydro setup without a way to measure and adjust the pH of your reservoir. If you really want to know your pH and deal with it the easiest quickest way, buy yourself a good pH tester pen. It'll cost you $60+, but worth every penny as far as I'm concerned. We have a bit bigger operation than most though and I water plants from 5 gallon buckets. But the pH range of your water and feed solution plays a big part in the overall health of the roots of your plant. Watering out of range can lock up the root system of your plants and the plant can't take in nutrition. Yours runs about where ours runs...right around 7 or so. I can run a 5 gallon bucket of water, add my root enhancer that I put in every watering (just a few drops), and add 10 drops of pH down and it's almost always sitting right at 6.5 when I test it. But do know that the pH of your tap water can fluctuate and will at times, so it's important to check it every time and don't take for granted it's the same as it was last time. If you want a Cadillac pH tester, buy a Blue Lab. I just got a new one the other day and boy, it's the bomb. It cost me about $80, but it's fast and right every time and I really like that. The other one (I think it was made by Milwaukee and cost me around $60) worked fine, but it was slow and you had to give it plenty of time to register and stop on a particular value. This one gives you the reading in about 10 seconds and that is super time saving for me. The main thing, regardless of how you do it, is to get the pH of your water and feed solution in the right range. The roots, though you never see them, are the brain of your plant and the most important part of the whole thing. Keep them happy and you'll be happy at harvest time. Good luck!! TWW
There are a few things that should not be skimped on with cannabis growing , it is my belief that ph testing, and adjusting is very high on that list, opinions vary, and it is a bit more important when you are growing in hydro,, Some of the organic soil folks say you don't really need to , some say you do , When I started I bought a Hanna ph pen, and it worked for a while then I upgraded and bought a blue lab TDS/ ph kit and I have never had any problems with over / under feeding, lock out / deficiency , etc
If you are in hydro or soilless get a meter and some ph down. If you are in soil, use good soil and add a little lime and don't worry about the ph.
That's what I use, ocean forest or happy frog but use about 20% perlite and half a cup of lime per 5g of soil. To ph or not is personal choice in soil as you can see. If your tap ph was 8.5 it might be a different story but 7 is fine. My suggestion is to try it both ways and see which you prefer. Personally tossing my ph meter for soil grows was one of the best descisions for me. If anyone says you CANT grow in soil without checking ph, it simply means that THEY can't grow without doing so. There are plenty of growers that do not have that problem. Quality and yield can be just as good if the grower knows what they are doing.