Hi guys, fist of all I'm new to this with just one harvest and 3 weeks in to my second grow with I'm planning on will go way better then the last one, so i got a new ph meter and i have an old ppm meter (I'm not sure ppm and ec is the same so plz correct me if i don't make sense) so anyways, I've been reading a lot of information and as u all know with mixed information. my tap water is around 200 ppm, and I'm using GHE nutritions micro,bloom and grow, extra cal-mag cuz of the led lights and dimond nectar and bio roots, this alone will give me about 1400 ppm and I'm not even using the recommended dosage yet I'm using about 80 percent of it but i just started to add more nuts as i know at the beginning its not necessary to use full recommended dosage, so my question is, is this normal that u get so high reading for ppm when ur not even using full strength of whats recommended? can someone please guide me in the right direction if i should stick to the recommended dosage or pay more attention to my ppm meter? there is a possibility that the ppm meter is off cuz its old, does 200 ppm sound about right for tapster? i live in a country almost free from mayor polution and we drink the tap water and it tastes great, I'm saying this cuz i travel a lot n most parts of the world u don't drink the tap water so maybe thats an indicator that 200 for "good" tapster is to high. And the ppm meter is not calibrated, haven't got the time to pick up a new one just yet and it all depends on ur anwers if ill spend a 100 usd for a new ppm meter, I'm thinking ok, this ppm meter might be a bit off but the readings will still be too high with the recommended dosage cuz 200 ppm I've red is normal for tap water so I'm assuming the ppm meter isn't that off, just not only spot on. peac
200 ppm for tap water isn't horrible, but it depends on what's in it. If your tap water has an adequate amount of calcium and magnesium you shouldn't have to use cal -mag - my tap ppm is 160 and I never have to use it. I don't know why you need extra cal-mag because of led lights? Which scale does your ppm meter use? 1400 ppm's could mean 2.0 ec or almost 3.0 ec depending on the meter. I've been growing in coco for years and I don't even own a ppm/ec meter. If you're using the GH 3 part nutes - consider using the Lucas Formula for coco - 6ml micro and 9ml bloom per gallon of water - no ppm meter required.
yes obviously it depends on whats in the water more then the ppm reading, GOOD point bro! i don't have a good answer to why to use cal-mag for led lights only that I've been reading it on many different sites, also i got defisensy on my last grow that went away in just a few days adding cal-mag so I'm adding it from the start this time. I have no idea which scale my ppm meter is, how can u tell? i didn't use anyone on my first grow i just followed the instructions on the feeding schedule that i got with the nuts and it worked fine i just wanted to be more thurow this time. Whats the lucas formula? does that mean ur not using the GH flora grow at all?
The specs from your ppm meter manufacturer will to tell you whether it's the .5 or .7 scale. If you had no problem on your first grow without it, then using it to be more accurate won't help anything - especially in coco. The more additives you use the higher your ppm will be - the only additive I use is silica blast for strong cell walls and branches - a complete quality nutrient line is really all that is needed. Google the Lucas Formula for more info. And yes, you don't use the grow at all when doing the Lucas Formula - the micro contains enough nitrogen.
kinda make sense if it worked out fine with out a ppm meter the first time...i just red the manual of the ppm meter n googled the model n didn't come up with any ec info so i can't tell if its a .5 or .7 scale but then again what do i need it for if it works fine, don't try to fix what isn't broken, will read up on the lucas formula and thank u soo much for sorting me out bro!