jojo677
Well-Known Member
I don't use GO. I'm using promix and botanicare- but my 2c...
I use rainwater, which is about ph 5.6. By the time I add a full dose of nutrient I'm down to 4 or sometimes as low as 3.8. I then ph up to about 6.5 afterwards.
Promix doesn't have the buffering qualities of soil. Good soil should be able to easily take whatever ph is thrown at it. Rainwater as I said is about 5.6- so since your solution is similar to rainwater it's not going to cause much problem. Over the course of years soil can turn acidic. You probably don't have to think on those time scales right now.
Added dolomite lime does a good job of buffering if necessary.
I do not believe ph up or down will hurt your plants.
Hey Weaselcracker, you mentioned you use Promix at a 6.5 pH. It's a soilless medium, so you should be in the hydro range! I made that mistake (using Promix too) for several months, and finally saw somewhere that it was soilless. I think this confuses a lot of people, as they typically sell the soilless mixes as "potting soil" or similar. Maybe I misunderstood you, but I've had much better luck since I made the change!