Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up?

happyguy

New Member
Hi guys ... first time hydro setup here ... almost month and a half into veg grow and I'm finding my PH at approx 7.5 - 8 (....yes way too high). Can I use my products i have for my swimming pool to adjust the Ph level in my reservoir container(Ph Up & Ph Down)? Also, just wondering how much water I need for 6-8 plants; I have 5 going right now but i think 60-70 litres (16-18 gallons) might be too much. I have some yellowing going on on my White Widow and just a little on the a branch or two of my Sweet Tooth. The temp in this enclosed space in basement closet pantry (I have kids in computer room beside it :)) was way too high at first due to poor ventilation - i finally got it down on monday to about 78 F. I am using a continuous drip.

also, Anyone in the Toronto GTA with recommendations where to find a stanley blower for my flower room give me a shout - I currently have a 120 cfm inline Nutone fan but it is not effective in drawing the air thru my air cooled HPS light and filter thru 20 feet of duct to outside). :))
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

no, you can't use pH up or down made for pools or aquariums because the main ingredient is Sodium Phosphate or a similar compound using those 2 elements which will become toxic to the plants due to the high sodium content, you need a specifically designed pH up & down which are made by a couple companies, I picked up a 1 gallon/ 4 liter bottle of pH down made by Technaflora for $18 today, General Hydroponics also has their own line but they're a little bit more expensive. See if you you have a hydro store or garden center by doing a google search in your area, a hydro store definately will and some garden centers might...

You need to get a bottle asap b/c you're going to get major nute lockout soon at that high of a pH.
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

no, you can't use pH up or down made for pools or aquariums because the main ingredient is Sodium Phosphate or a similar compound using those 2 elements which will become toxic to the plants due to the high sodium content, you need a specifically designed pH up & down which are made by a couple companies, I picked up a 1 gallon/ 4 liter bottle of pH down made by Technaflora for $18 today, General Hydroponics also has their own line but they're a little bit more expensive. See if you you have a hydro store or garden center by doing a google search in your area, a hydro store definately will and some garden centers might...

You need to get a bottle asap b/c you're going to get major nute lockout soon at that high of a pH.


Hi ..... i picked some pH down at pet store after work today and immediately started dripping it in but needed to use my pool test strips for now until i can get a new battery tonight and get back inside after the kids go to bed... thx
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

well you might be able to use it as a very short term solution but as I said it will give you problems down the road whereas hydro pH up and down won't.
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

I got a Question....
I bought TOP FIN ph down at the pet store... it has sodium methanal sulfoxylate, and water... could that cause a cal. defin.?
Check out my journal and you can see my problem.
Thanks
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

I use cider vinegar or lemon juice to make it more acid, Baking soda for alkaline. Start small, mix in growing solution very well. Ck Ph again and repeat till desired Ph.
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

I use cider vinegar or lemon juice to make it more acid, Baking soda for alkaline. Start small, mix in growing solution very well. Ck Ph again and repeat till desired Ph.
Those will work for emergencies but they lack buffers which keeps the adjustment steady. Your ph will drift more often, sooner and more drastically with the vinegar, juice and soda. the best bet is to buy a bottle of the real stuff. it's cheap and a few drops go a long way.
 
Re: Controlling PH with Pool products Ph Down & Ph Up???

Seriously go buy the right stuff already. Racefan and 311 stoner are dead on and have given you excellent information. You should follow it.
 
the best and cheapest way I have found to lower and stabilize ph is battery acid,auto parts carry it and it is concentrated sulfuric acid and works great for hydro farming at about 20 bucks for a gallon and a half it is far better and cheaper than the grow shop alternatives hope this helps you p.s. the ph level is critical in cannabis farming
 
Some people do use sulfuric acid and it seems to work fine. One thing to be careful about with it- it reacts with bleach to form chlorine gas- so be careful of those two things together. Unlikely I know- but definitely possible if you're cleaning things with bleach.
 
yep,mustard gas,nasty stuff,used during the first world war,but once the acid is in the water and diluted there is no risk of poison gas ,only a risk if the concentrates come in contact with one another
 
I've used the pool ph up for years with no ill effects. The stuff available where I am is sodium hydroxide. This is also known as lye.

Perhaps I 'should' order some more ph+ in the mail. It's not available where I live.

Lye is very caustic in it's concentrate form. Be careful when using it as a concentrate. It's strongly alkaline. I mix it at about 10 to 1 with water.

Other than the caustic nature I don't know of any health issues or other problems with it. It has many uses. One of them is as an ingredient (much diluted) in some types of commercially available 'health drink', as apparently some people believe that drinking alkaline solution has healthy benefits.

As for the fact that it is sodium and therefore likely to give you toxic salt buildup-
If I mix a nutrient solution of ppm of about 900 ppm- which is a common maximum for most of my plants-I end up with a ph of about 4. To raise it to around 6 which what I need- I have to use 30 -or at most- 40 ppm of this form of ph+. Since, in my understanding, all nutrient available to plants comes in the form of salts, or is turned into a salt by the plant before use- adding 40 more ppm of sodium can't be much of an issue. Can it?

I haven't seen any ill effects that I'm aware of- but I keep an open mind. If anyone has any more info on why using potassium hydroxide is a bad idea, it would be great to know.
 
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