Water hard or soft

I’m just trying out Flower Power nutes and they tell me to mix with HARD TAP WATER. My tap water is pretty soft, I think. What should I do about it?

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What is the pH of your water? It doesn’t really matter what it is really, it will just need to be adjusted with pH UP or Down after mixing the nutes and the water. My tap water here in MA is 7.2 out of the tap. @rocksteadyrocks

BTW those nutes get really high ratings from the members who use them!

If you are in the US I will post some links from Amazon if you would like them for a pH Meter and up and down

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I don’t use flower power or know the composition. But that would usually signify that it lacks cal/mag. Double check that’s accurate, perhaps someone using will be by soon. But you should be able to get an additive to supplement pretty easy without breaking the bank.

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Thanks for your reply. I’m living outside the US and cannot order much from Amazon. My tap water is 7.0. I do have a ph Meter. Should I lower the ph? My soil mix after watering is 7.0 too.

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I’m guessing they want to avoid you using softened water to keep the sodium levels down.

@rocksteadyrocks

The ppm of your water is typically what signals if the water is hard or soft. Hard water usually has a higher mineral content where soft water may lack calcium and magnesium and could lead to some issue- but can be offset with a cal mag supplement. If you test the ppm of you water it should give you a good idea of what the content of minerals is in your tap water. Also not sure- but you can always check to see if there is a posted water report which would lay out the contents.

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Ok, thanks for your help.

In their instructions they say: 0.5 to 0.75 gram of NPK-fertilizer dissolved in 1 liter of hard tapwater equals an EC (Electrical Conductivity) of 1.0 to 1.3 mS/cm.
I’ve never seen anything about Electrical Conductivity in relation to plants before.

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Yes, you need to lower it to 6.5 if you are growing in soil and 5.8 in soiless or dwc growing,

All I can say is I wouldn’t overly concern yourself with the hard/ soft water thing. Collect rainwater and use that or get a TDS meter and check your tap water. Or your municipal water supplier should have a water quality report online or at the govt offices.

If your water is too hard, consider using a flushing agent such as sledgehammer to help prevent salt buildups. (not a bad idea anyway!)

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All tds meters measure electrical conductivity or EC and convert into ppm, milli siemens or micro siemens and to further confuse everyone, calibrated off of either salt (NaCl or 500 scale) or Potassium Chloride 700 scale.

They are giving you a volumetric measurement in metric scale and the tds in millisiemens. There are conversion charts galore on the interweb.

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I believe ec is just foreign standard for what we call tds or ppm. In fact, I think you can even find conversions.

The pH is important, just as @bob31 says. However, the pH can be good, bad, or indifferent regardless of water being soft or hard. Everywhere I’ve seen a recommendation like using with hard water it’s been associated with lack of calcium and/or magnesium in the nutrient line. So of you have soft (low ec or tds) water, you would typically need to supplement them if the nutrient line doesn’t already.

People using ro water usually take this into account. Will almost always have to add cal/mag if their nutrient line doesn’t. It’s pretty standard, and not a big deal.

@Myfriendis410 beat me to it lol

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@dbrn32 I hope it wasn’t a contest because I’d lose to you dude!

Very much enjoy this and interacting with you and @bob31 and @Countryboyjvd1971 and you know the names. It helps me to learn this crap too haha.

I had to go to school on the different scales of solids measurement and it was interesting as well as informative to hear from the experts here as well.

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Not at all! Fact is I type slow on my phone, and I’m usually halfway disposed into about 3 different things while on here.

A little tab that pops up telling you someone else has posted while you’re active in text box would help. Hint mods… lol

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Actually i noticed the other day on my smartphone running chrome for android I was entering a message and saw two other user icons in the right side beyond the toolbar and they were typing too! @Myfriendis410 @dbrn32

Oh and I learn something new everyday! Especially when it comes to Lights! lol

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You know what, I have actually seen that too. For whatever reason, if I scroll up I don’t see any additional posts. After I post, or if I refresh the page I will see them.

I’m not sure if it’s something on my end, or what. Do we know that those icons mean someone is posting, or could they just be reading thread?

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I thought it meant they were posting, but i will keep a closer eye on it and see if i can figure it out @dbrn32

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Thanks @bob31. That would make sense, perhaps I’m just using a dated version of something and doesn’t automatically refresh for me.

As far as the other stuff goes, I definitely learn a lot here daily! From very in depth scientific type of things that I would never come up with, to the so simple it’s easily overlooked. I’m thankful for all the good resources that are available, and take the time help. It’s nice to be able to contribute here and there.

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exactly me too! I have learned so much and I think it is good to give back to the community! @dbrn32

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Yeah, I saw that on my tablet the other day.