How to treat tap water

[Brudley]

There are several older threads about adjusting PH or removing chlorine or chloramine (chlorine & ammonia mix) from tap water, but I just made a major discovery that I thought I would add as a new thread. I hope this helps others as it has me.

I am growing organically so the water PH is not supposed to matter, but the chlorine/chloramine in tap water can kill or at least restrict the good microbe bacteria in your soil. I've heard of adding ascorbic acid powder (Vitamin C) to the water to neutralize the chlorine/chloramine but did not realize that will also lower the PH of the water. Hmmm, this has solved all my problems and hope it solves someone else's!!

Fortunately I have city water with a PH of about 8 and PPM of about 250, so not that bad out of the tap. I've found that I can add 1/16 tsp of ascorbic acid power (or a pinch, I actually have a measurement spoon for this) to my water containers which are a little over half a gallon, and it brings my tap waters PH to exactly 6.0! I may tweak this slightly to get closer to 6.5 which is more ideal for soil. It takes VERY little to neutralize the bad stuff so I can adjust the amount added to get the PH exactly as needed. I’ve been researching and worrying about this crap for over a year or two!! So glad that ADaminCO reminded me of using the Vitamin C. So simple. No more Prime or PH down for me!

I've based my mix calculations on:

1/4 tsp per 5 gallons is the ratio to remove chloramine,
1/16 tsp for 1 gallonish, 1/16 tsp= 1 pinch

Happy growing friends!

 

[7Dust2]

I use tap water don't do anything with it. But let it set for long time. I stocked up on water in jugs . As it sets cholrine and stuff will evaporate alot of that chemicals . I think mine is about that as well. Never really tested it. But I have a kit of pH up and pH down. I must have used when I didn't do what I do now . Just leave water out for long time.. wish I could help ya on that. Sorry.

 

[SmokingWings]

I stocked up on water in jugs . As it sets cholrine and stuff will evaporate alot of that chemicals

For growers who are new to watering their plants with city water, remember to take the caps or the lids off of the jugs of water. Otherwise very little of the chlorine will evaporate. Best bet is to pour the jugs of water into a bucket the day before the water is needed. The more surface area the faster the chlorine will evaporate.

Chloramine is becoming popular with many municipal water department and it is different. It will not evaporate or off-gas. Something has to be added to the water to remove that stuff.

 

[Roy Growin]

I use concentrated citric acid, 6 drops/L shifts pH from 7.4 to 6.0

 

[CultivationArt]

My tap is 400 ppm and 6.6 ph.


I use that for my cal mag treatments. My plants love it. Never once used supplemental cal or mag. Ever. But I wouldn drink it lmao

 

[Brudley]

I use tap water don't do anything with it. But let it set for long time. I stocked up on water in jugs . As it sets cholrine and stuff will evaporate alot of that chemicals . I think mine is about that as well. Never really tested it. But I have a kit of pH up and pH down. I must have used when I didn't do what I do now . Just leave water out for long time.. wish I could help ya on that. Sorry.

Might want to check with your local water provider. Some of them actually use Chloramine instead of Chlorine which does not evaporate off like the Chlorine does. Letting it sit out does nothing for you in that case. If your tap water has a higher PH like 7-8 which most do, the powdered vitamin C will lower to right where you need it. It couldn't be any easier! No PH down or other chemicals needed, no need to let it sit out. I'm a happy grower!

 

[7Dust2]

Might want to check with your local water provider. Some of them actually use Chloramine instead of Chlorine which does not evaporate off like the Chlorine does. Letting it sit out does nothing for you in that case. If your tap water has a higher PH like 7-8 which most do, the powdered vitamin C will lower to right where you need it. It couldn't be any easier! No PH down or other chemicals needed, no need to let it sit out. I'm a happy grower!

Didn't know the vit C . Good to know that. . Yeah I had water bottles stocked up during all this junk in world for that reason. I been using them. They been sitting down in basement for about two years now. . Might well use it for now and currilate them fresh and old.. I'll test it today If I can find my test kit

 

[7Dust2]

For growers who are new to watering their plants with city water, remember to take the caps or the lids off of the jugs of water. Otherwise very little of the chlorine will evaporate. Best bet is to pour the jugs of water into a bucket the day before the water is needed. The more surface area the faster the chlorine will evaporate.

Chloramine is becoming popular with many municipal water department and it is different. It will not evaporate or off-gas. Something has to be added to the water to remove that stuff.

That's a good point.. for people to see. I n ber thought to say that. I open mine and leave it open for about week before I use . I'm old grower a lazy one .. if not broke I don't fix it until I have too. Once I get technic I stay with it . Then when I got things rolling I then will experiment for better way .

 

[Icemud]

I use a 5 stage reverse osmosis system. 2 of the stages are carbon block (chloro plus) filters which are said to remove the chloramines as well as other voc's. The other 3 stages are R/O, Deionizing resin and a 0.6 micron sediment filter.

the system takes my water from 450ppm 8.5ph down to around 5ppm and 7.0ph

 

[ShinSeiki]

To those whose tap water is already at a good ph level but need to clear chlorine and chloramine, you can let the water sit uncovered for 24/48h. If that's not an option(DWC folk would have to store drums), you can use something called "safe" made by an aquarium supply company called "Seachem". Been a staple for years with people running large fishtanks. It's incredibly concentrated(the measuring spoon it comes with looks like a little 80's coke spoon and treats 50 gallons) however the toxicity threshold is really high(you can 100x the doseage and not hurt fish or plants). Little 50 gram bottle will set you back about 15 bucks and last for years. Been using it as dechlorinator for my plant water without issues and it really makes things easy.

 

[Emilya Green]

Unless you are working with microbes, such as in a purely organic grow or a supersoil water only grow, you probably don't need to worry about your chlorine, at all. Chlorine is actually one of the 19 elements that our plants need in order to grow... so eliminate all of it, and you are actually harming your plants.

I certainly wouldn't resort to fishtank products, and would never smoke weed that I knew had that stuff in it. Unless your tap water is harmful to you, your pets or your lawn, it is safe to use with these plants, chlorine and all. The fear of chlorine comes from the online community, where people will try to make you believe the darndest things, simply to make themselves seem knowledgeable. I actually grow organically using plain old tap water... but the Geoflora nutrients that I use replenish the microbes every time I feed, and the little bit of die off that I get from the chlorine is not a problem.

Ph is another thing that is very misunderstood. The only reason we need to pH adjust our fluids is when the nutrients are chelated so that they are not mobile until they find themselves in a narrow pH range fluid, that allows the synthetic nutrients to be unlocked and available to the plants. If you are not using EDTA chelated nutes, there is rarely a need to adjust the pH at all. As long as the pH is not so base or acidic that it burns things, the plants don't care, microbes and fungi don't care, the soil doesn't care... any pH between 9-4 is not going to hurt a thing. Again, in my organic grow I have no need to adjust pH... it simply isn't an issue. Does your tomato garden, your lawn or your trees care about the pH of your water coming out of the hose? Nope... the only time pH is important, is in a synthetic nutrient EDTA chelated grow.

 

[Vegan4life]

I use a 5 stage reverse osmosis system. 2 of the stages are carbon block (chloro plus) filters which are said to remove the chloramines as well as other voc's. The other 3 stages are R/O, Deionizing resin and a 0.6 micron sediment filter.

the system takes my water from 450ppm 8.5ph down to around 5ppm and 7.0ph

Yes the chloramine filters are a must in my area, RO membranes may last a year without them. With chloramine filter RO membrane will last up to 5 years. Water provider in my area denies using chloramines...

I add a PH filter (To raise ph level) for our RO drinking water

 

[AdaminCO]

I’m not sure the plant can use Chloramine since it’s bonded with ammonium.

To instantly break the chloramine down, use 1/4 tsp of powered ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) with 5 gallons of tap and you’re good.

I have a writeup somewhere referencing the article, just search chloramine and the link should be there.

 

[AdaminCO]

Post in thread 'What is your preferred method for removing chlorine or chloramine in tap water?'
What is your preferred method for removing chlorine or chloramine in tap water?

 

[Pat Puffer]

If that's not an option(DWC folk would have to store drums), you can use something called "safe" made by an aquarium supply company called "Seachem".

This is what I have done for my needs WHEN needed. As Emilya said there isn't much difference when watered on organic soil. My outdoor grows were on a scale that treating water wasn't logical.

I still use my AquaSafe treatment for my nutrient teas and compost teas. I was attempting to make my own fish emulsion but I used city tap water and the chloramines didn't allow the bacteria to flourish. Perhaps I misunderstood the steps and directions.

I use compost tea to inoculate my super soil and get it cooking. Afterwards the watering is done with tap water. The plants show no I'll effects from it. Cities claim that enough chloramine is added to keep the water safe but once the water reaches the spigot the amount still contained in the water is negligible.

For reference check out dudegrows/watercheck to see what your city may be using.

 

[ShinSeiki]

This is what I have done for my needs WHEN needed. As Emilya said there isn't much difference when watered on organic soil. My outdoor grows were on a scale that treating water wasn't logical.

I still use my AquaSafe treatment for my nutrient teas and compost teas. I was attempting to make my own fish emulsion but I used city tap water and the chloramines didn't allow the bacteria to flourish. Perhaps I misunderstood the steps and directions.

I use compost tea to inoculate my super soil and get it cooking. Afterwards the watering is done with tap water. The plants show no I'll effects from it. Cities claim that enough chloramine is added to keep the water safe but once the water reaches the spigot the amount still contained in the water is negligible.

For reference check out dudegrows/watercheck to see what your city may be using.

I do DWC hydro and want to take my first steps into aquaponics, so for me, dechlorination is a must in order to continue the bacterial process after i transfer the water over to the tubs. That being said, the ultimate goal is to use only tank water, in which case i won't need to dechlorinate when i take water out, only when i refill the tanks.

edit: Also, Pea Puffers are my spirit animal. Coolest fish you can keep bar none.

 

[SmokingWings]

If that's not an option(DWC folk would have to store drums), you can use something called "safe" made by an aquarium supply company called "Seachem".

The "Safe" sounds like the dry version of "Prime" by the same company.

The active ingredients of either product removes the chlorine and chloramine by bonding with them and then the filtration system traps the bonded compound in the filter material. Same with heavy metals. The Safe or Prime will bond with the metals and the filters trap it. The most important filter material being the charcoal.

The end result is that the water will not have the chlorine, chloramine or heavy metals after a few days and as long as the filter material is properly rinsed before re-use or thrown out in the trash there should be no problem with using the aquarium water after any water changes.

Most likely there are more traces of heavy metals and other 'possibly' undesirable materials that are added back into the root zone by the very fertilizers and nutrient mixes being used to feed the plants whether they are grown organically or non-organic.

After all that I want to say that I do not know how or what is involved with other brands or types of materials used for removing chlorine & chloramine and/or heavy metals from aquarium water. Don't know anything about them whether they are for aquariums or backyard Koi ponds nor have I looked them up or otherwise researched them.

Just so happens that today is my aquarium partial water change and gravel cleaning day.

 

[ShinSeiki]

That's exactly what "safe" is, prime in powder form. I have absolutely no affiliation with Seachem, my endorsement begins and ends with my own experience. I've bred some exotic invertebrates in the past(both caridina and neocaridina genus, even the odd sulawesi) and those guys just keel over and die if you even look at the water funny, untreated water will kill a tankful in a couple hours. So i'm fairly confident that if the water can hold those, it can hold anything without issues, and btw the ammount of safe i put in is so miniscule it literally doesn't show up when i measure tds.

 

[7Dust2]

To those whose tap water is already at a good ph level but need to clear chlorine and chloramine, you can let the water sit uncovered for 24/48h. If that's not an option(DWC folk would have to store drums), you can use something called "safe" made by an aquarium supply company called "Seachem". Been a staple for years with people running large fishtanks. It's incredibly concentrated(the measuring spoon it comes with looks like a little 80's coke spoon and treats 50 gallons) however the toxicity threshold is really high(you can 100x the doseage and not hurt fish or plants). Little 50 gram bottle will set you back about 15 bucks and last for years. Been using it as dechlorinator for my plant water without issues and it really makes things easy.

Now see that's what i do. Let it set few days and gone

 

[safeman]

Tap well water (filtered) or city water also - use de-natured water (water left out 24hr/s) simple and easy make 1gallon at a time