I grew a couple small plants a while ago. The thing I most HATED was having to buy distilled water all the time. Now I want to grow again -- but this time, I want to use tap water. Has anyone here grown successfully using tap water? I'm thinking that as long as I PH it right, maybe tapwater will do. Anyone have opinions on that? Anything good (or bad) to say about tap water?
What I do is just fill up water bottles with tap water and let it sit for at least a full day. That lets some stuff get aired out. I don't know if they need to be out in the sun, or in a dark cool place though. I just fill up some water bottles and out in into a dark cabinet. After 24 hours, it's ready to use.
Everyone's tapwater isn't the same..I have really good tapwater so when i'm watering it goes straight from the tap to the plants.
Its a good idea to test the ph, and tds levels of your water, but unless its real bad then it should be fine just to water. I water mine fresh from the tap. Using 20g per watering, letting it sit out isnt practical and I have no problems. My ph is 7.2 and tds around 150.
Yeah read over municipal water report ( public info ) to make sure there is nothing dramatically wrong. Leaving tap water out to evap for 24 to 48 hours brings your ph to neutral or 7, so unless you are growing in coco or hydro you shouldn't need to ph. Good luck on your adventure =) And for 2nd post, putting in dark or just not in direct sunlight ( avoid algae growth ) is best =)
Buy an under-the-counter reverse osmosis system for around $150, consider it a lifelong investment, and you'll be turning that tap water into 0ppm and PH neutral water that you can use in your grows, cooking, drinking, fish tanks, etc. I've used mine now for all of the above and it's one of the better investments I've made in the last few years. Practically maintenance free, after 2 years my filters are still clean, I test the water periodically (especially when growing) and it's all still pure. Everybody's tap water is different, so nobody can answer if you should use yours straight from the tap.
Well damn I'm learning a lot from this thread! I thought RO systems cost 1000's. Does a $150 one just produce less water per day?
Are you cultivating in soil? Use a large volume, this will help buffer the pH. Look online or mail your water company to tell you the pH (range) of your tap water. I've always used tapwater, never had a problem. Sometimes it was 7.0, other times it went up to about 7.5-7.6 I've also used collected rainwater both with and without reverse osmosis. Never had any problems. Use proper soil, amended with mycorrhizal fungi, and use a large volume soil. Growing should be easy so you'd never have to buy a pH meter or use distilled water.. Best of luck mate!
My 3 gallon pressured res takes about 1-1/2 hours to refill itself. So in a typical day, I can get over 40 gallons of RO water from it if I wanted to. It comes with a counter attachment/faucet, but also another valve fitting with a perputual phase to just run it all day into larger containers if I chose to. I do this when I'm changing aquarium water and need a large amount. This is my 6-stage RO system. It was around $150 online View attachment 1518604 View attachment 1518605 View attachment 1518606 View attachment 1518607
How big a grow are you doing? if it is large I would follow the recommendations here. If it is a few plants, it is only 5 minutes to get the Ph right after letting the water sit over night. That being said, do a ph check one day on the water going in and the water coming out. I bet you see an acidic change if you are using soil. The hydro guys have to balance on the ph tight rope more than others do. Their yield results are amazing. I agree with a good soil and you can get away with tap.
That's awesome, how much installation is involved? I just watched a video and he was drilling into the existing water pipes, I'm renting right now so I'm trying to see if its worth it.
Takes about 5 minutes to install. When you first get one, you have to attach and connect all the fittings and hoses of course, but once that's done all you do is drill the 3/8" hole (what mine called for but yours will vary depending on line size) into the RETURN pvc after the p-trap just to run the return line needed for the RO system...the water leftover after the filtering. Mine makes about 1 gallon of RO from 4 gallons of tap, so thats what you're drilling a return line for...all that extra water to go down the drain. It's a waste, but it's how it's done. After you've attached the return line, just position the system under your sink. I didn't drill or attach anything else, so it's removable and when you do remove it, all that's left is a 3/8" hole in the PVC return which you can either replace cheaply if you're handy with plumbing, or plug it with some JB Quik for plastic repair. No big deal. As far as attaching to the water intake, it just uses a valve splitter which you join where your cold main line in attaches to your sink's facet cold. You just unscrew those two fittings (look like garden hose fittings), put teflon tape on the threads of the valve they will include, then attach it all together so you still have cold water on the faucet and now your RO system has an 'always on' connection. Takes about the same amount of time to break down as it does to install, and the only damage is that hole you drill in the return. Other than that, there's no sign that any kind of filtration system existed. I just hang the little counter-top faucet thing that you can install into a counter permanently, hanging off the door under the sink. So it can be accessed quickly, it's out of the way and when I leave I can take it all with me with no counter damage.
Thanks I'm pretty pumped about it now. My tap water is like 400+ ppm. You said you use it as your drinking water too? How's it taste?
My friends that come over would tell you I'm obsessed with them tasting the water out of my RO system. You can't taste a thing, I love it. I like to pour 2 identical glasses, 1 with tap and 1 with RO. The difference in the taste and smell of them is noticeable, and my area is known for having excellent tap water here in the Blue Ridge mountains. I can only imagine the difference it would be if I lived in a metro area, or back out west when I use to live near LA. Haha that would be the real test!
Sounds great, my water literally smells like rotten eggs or something sometimes. It has got to be so bad for you. My girl and I use bottled water to drink, brush our teeth, and give to our cats.