Ph trouble in soil Help!

BlazinUSA

New Member
Ill post pics if needed but check it out:

I really need some advice on my ph bullcrap!!! When i flushed last time and followed the directions on the back of the box 2 my soil ph tester i was getting good readings at about 6-7 and thought i was in good shape.

I used like 6-8 gals of water to like 5 gallons of soil and had just flushed a few days prior to when it was in a 3 gal pot with like 4 gals of water.

I realize some of the shock i am seeing to the plant is from all the damn water but i have checked the ph again while not completely following the directions to the ph meter (by this i mean the directions say to test ph in soil during watering, when the soil is still mucky.) So by not following the directions i have only not gotten the water mucky but it is still moist.

My concern is that when i put the probes in and near the root ball of the plant i am getting low low readings like 4-5. When i go out toward the edge of the pot to fresher soil i get readings like 6-7 and my other plants are also reading at a good level wet and or dry soil!!!!

What should i do?
 
Re: Ph trouble in soil Help!!!

I really need some advice on my ph bullcrap!!! When i flushed last time and followed the directions on the back of the box 2 my soil ph tester i was getting good readings at about 6-7 and thought i was in good shape.

I used like 6-8 gals of water to like 5 gallons of soil and had just flushed a few days prior to when it was in a 3 gal pot with like 4 gals of water.

I realize some of the shock i am seeing to the plant is from all the damn water but i have checked the ph again while not completely following the directions to the ph meter (by this i mean the directions say to test ph in soil during watering, when the soil is still mucky.) So by not following the directions i have only not gotten the water mucky but it is still moist.

My concern is that when i put the probes in and near the root ball of the plant i am getting low low readings like 4-5. When i go out toward the edge of the pot to fresher soil i get readings like 6-7 and my other plants are also reading at a good level wet and or dry soil!!!!

What should i do?

Watsup man, I just got done fixing up a ph problem myself.
Are you testing the ph on your water before watering?
What kind of soil are you using?
Nutrients?
Are your leaves being affected by your ph problem yet or did the problem just start?
 
Re: Ph trouble in soil Help!!!

Watsup man, I just got done fixing up a ph problem myself.
Are you testing the ph on your water before watering?
What kind of soil are you using?
Nutrients?
Are your leaves being affected by your ph problem yet or did the problem just start?

K im goona answer in order:

For like a month i was using tap water with no ph tester, the whole time the water was like 8.5 ish.
Since i got a water ph tester just the General hydro 1 with the solution drops 4 your water, and a soil master ph moisture and light tester i found out my ph for my water before any nutes was like 8.5.
And the ph in my soil in a 3 gallon pot was like 3.5 in some places.

I got her now in like 6-7 gallons of promix mixed with perlite.

For a couple heavy waterings in a row i was using full strength general hydro flora line and didnt know that i should have been using nutes at least every other water.

At the same time i noticed some ph spots yellow/brown/red in various places on different size leaves, i also noticed a small amount of nute burn on a couple of the larger fan leaves as well. Amongst these 2 problems the tips of a better majority of the fan leaves have yellow/brownish tips and the freshest leaves are a little curly looking at their tips.

I trimmed the real bad fan leaves with ph problem signs and have been paying close attention to see if any more leaves get any type of problem nutrient or ph.

Since noticing all of this i have made like 2 or 3 attempts at flushing each time with more water than the last and also transplanted into like 2x as much fresh soil with a ph of about 6.5.

Since flushing i havent noticed really any new burn or ph problem if any at all, the freshest leaves are still curly a bit and the fan leaves tips are pointing downward.

I have fed no more nutrients since the problems first started. Its been about 3 days since i flushed the last time and my root ball is still reading with ph like 4 while the soil closest to edge of the pot reads like 6-6.5 even 7 in places
 
I would guess the heavy feedings gave you a buildup around your roots causing a lockout since you said you were not giving them fresh water in between feedings right? My tap water comes out about 8.8 PH before adjusting, so were not far off in that area. Have you checked around for pulverized Dolomite lime?? Or used in in general? It will fix your PH problem if done correctly.
I am having trouble finding it in my area though a few places told me it was seasonal, yet Im sure it can be found or ordered if it came down to it. I am currently using PH Up by advanced nutrients, It seems to work great, You just have to be careful because it is a pure concentrate so its very strong, Just a couple of drops per gallon will change the PH dramatically if overdone.

Also, did you check your PH before you added your nutrients or after? because your PH will chance again once nutrients are added in most cases.
 
I would guess the heavy feedings gave you a buildup around your roots causing a lockout since you said you were not giving them fresh water in between feedings right? My tap water comes out about 8.8 PH before adjusting, so were not far off in that area. Have you checked around for pulverized Dolomite lime?? Or used in in general? It will fix your PH problem if done correctly.
I am having trouble finding it in my area though a few places told me it was seasonal, yet Im sure it can be found or ordered if it came down to it. I am currently using PH Up by advanced nutrients, It seems to work great, You just have to be careful because it is a pure concentrate so its very strong, Just a couple of drops per gallon will change the PH dramatically if overdone.

Also, did you check your PH before you added your nutrients or after? because your PH will chance again once nutrients are added in most cases.

OK yes you are right i didnt know what i was doing and was not giving regular ph'd water in between feedings and i am sure that there is some build up down there as well.

While i was feeding i did not even have a cheap ph test so i wasn't checking at all stupidly enough.

So let me get it right then, i have some ph up and down for my water, if start out with my ph at 8.5-9 out the tap what do i want to bring it down to if anything before i add it to the soil?

Will a higher alkaline water eventually balance out an acidic ph in your soil?
 
OK yes you are right i didnt know what i was doing and was not giving regular ph'd water in between feedings and i am sure that there is some build up down there as well.

While i was feeding i did not even have a cheap ph test so i wasn't checking at all stupidly enough.

So let me get it right then, i have some ph up and down for my water, if start out with my ph at 8.5-9 out the tap what do i want to bring it down to if anything before i add it to the soil?

Will a higher alkaline water eventually balance out an acidic ph in your soil?

Hey Blazin....Yeah a higher alkaline water will help balance out the acidic soil. But I agree with Ganja Toker the lime will raise and stabilize the ph. I got a 40lb bag from home depot for ~6 bucks. For now just top dress the top 2 or so inches of your soil then flush. Once your soil dries out water normaly and check the ph of your run off. You can add more lime if needed then feed low dose nutes ph'ed of course. Just plain ph'ed water twice between feedings works well for most.For your next grow just mix the lime into your soil before potting to maintain ph (covers cal/mag also).
 
Hey Blazin....Yeah a higher alkaline water will help balance out the acidic soil. But I agree with Ganja Toker the lime will raise and stabilize the ph. I got a 40lb bag from home depot for ~6 bucks. For now just top dress the top 2 or so inches of your soil then flush. Once your soil dries out water normaly and check the ph of your run off. You can add more lime if needed then feed low dose nutes ph'ed of course. Just plain ph'ed water twice between feedings works well for most.For your next grow just mix the lime into your soil before potting to maintain ph (covers cal/mag also).

awesome good to know, i am not sure of the availability of the dolomite lime in my area but i will definitely do some looking around.

Say i dont find any tho where should i start out ph wise to balance everything out. Like i said near the outer edge of my pot my ph is like 6.5 or even 7, where near the root ball i get really low readings. where should i start ph wise with the tap water to balance everything out?

Seems to me like i better just find or order some like considering the large range of ph differences in the soil, i think with the lime ill be able to balance and stabilize where trying to mess with the water will just end up raising the ph of the outermost soil 2 high.
 
awesome good to know, i am not sure of the availability of the dolomite lime in my area but i will definitely do some looking around.

Say i dont find any tho where should i start out ph wise to balance everything out. Like i said near the outer edge of my pot my ph is like 6.5 or even 7, where near the root ball i get really low readings. where should i start ph wise with the tap water to balance everything out?

Seems to me like i better just find or order some like considering the large range of ph differences in the soil, i think with the lime ill be able to balance and stabilize where trying to mess with the water will just end up raising the ph of the outermost soil 2 high.

You said your tap was 8.5 so I would use that check run off and ajust from there....you want your run off to be 6.5-7.0 range. Wouldn't worry about the edges getting too alkaline your soil will get more acidic over time as it decomposes and salts build up. Best indicator of nute availibility is run off h20 in the right ranges.
 
You said your tap was 8.5 so I would use that check run off and ajust from there....you want your run off to be 6.5-7.0 range. Wouldn't worry about the edges getting too alkaline your soil will get more acidic over time as it decomposes and salts build up. Best indicator of nute availibility is run off h20 in the right ranges.

cool man thanks, with that said then i guess i have to believe that i am ok and should probly just add some lime to keep that ph balanced a bit better and watch for signs of new growth, it has been stunted since all this crap started.

But last time i ran alot of water thru and checked the run off and it was right around 6.5 so we shall see if the lovely lady starts shootin up again, the soil is finally dryin out a bit since i added new drainage holes.
 
OK yes you are right i didnt know what i was doing and was not giving regular ph'd water in between feedings and i am sure that there is some build up down there as well.

While i was feeding i did not even have a cheap ph test so i wasn't checking at all stupidly enough.

So let me get it right then, i have some ph up and down for my water, if start out with my ph at 8.5-9 out the tap what do i want to bring it down to if anything before i add it to the soil?

Will a higher alkaline water eventually balance out an acidic ph in your soil?
Its all good man, Every mistake opens a new door for learning, Thats why were all here to help each other out!

ALSO, What is the brand of your PH up and PH down?? You must be careful because if your using PH up and PH down that IS NOT ment to be used together you will have a chemical reaction from the acids. The PH up I use Is a pure concentrate so I have to be careful on how much i add and not to mix it with a PH down that will cause it to react badly.

Yes a higher alkaline will help balance out your soils PH, BUT it IS NOT going to neutralize your soil, and thats what you want. That is were the dolomite lime comes in handy on bringing the levels up on your soil and keeping them neutral. Sometimes the dolomite lime is a real pain in the ass to find during these winter months so you may have to order it!

Everything will work out man, You are experiencing the stunted growth from the nutrient lockout you are most likely experiencing, What I do is flush over and over with a high PH'ed water. Some may think its to high, but I like to flush any were from the highest of 8.5-9.0 over and over, You will start seeing salt like buildup in the bottom of your tray, This is good, It means they are leaving your soil, making it easier for your roots to bring in nutrients and breath. I flush until the buildup is mostly gone, and until my PH runoff is about 6.8. Im now letting it dry back up and preparing to put her back on her nutrient schedule since my soil is now reading 6.5, A lot better then before when it dropped well below 5.5 and I experienced a bad case of nutrient lockout. Good luck man, PH can be a real bitch, But once you get it under control and add the dolomite lime to your soil BEFORE your next grow you will be golden and everything will go smoothly man! Good luck BlazinUSA, And let me know if there is any questions I can try and help you answere. :grinjoint:
 
Its all good man, Every mistake opens a new door for learning, Thats why were all here to help each other out!

ALSO, What is the brand of your PH up and PH down?? You must be careful because if your using PH up and PH down that IS NOT ment to be used together you will have a chemical reaction from the acids. The PH up I use Is a pure concentrate so I have to be careful on how much i add and not to mix it with a PH down that will cause it to react badly.

Yes a higher alkaline will help balance out your soils PH, BUT it IS NOT going to neutralize your soil, and thats what you want. That is were the dolomite lime comes in handy on bringing the levels up on your soil and keeping them neutral. Sometimes the dolomite lime is a real pain in the ass to find during these winter months so you may have to order it!

Everything will work out man, You are experiencing the stunted growth from the nutrient lockout you are most likely experiencing, What I do is flush over and over with a high PH'ed water. Some may think its to high, but I like to flush any were from the highest of 8.5-9.0 over and over, You will start seeing salt like buildup in the bottom of your tray, This is good, It means they are leaving your soil, making it easier for your roots to bring in nutrients and breath. I flush until the buildup is mostly gone, and until my PH runoff is about 6.8. Im now letting it dry back up and preparing to put her back on her nutrient schedule since my soil is now reading 6.5, A lot better then before when it dropped well below 5.5 and I experienced a bad case of nutrient lockout. Good luck man, PH can be a real bitch, But once you get it under control and add the dolomite lime to your soil BEFORE your next grow you will be golden and everything will go smoothly man! Good luck BlazinUSA, And let me know if there is any questions I can try and help you answere. :grinjoint:

I guess at this point my cheap ass soil tester is hard to trust but considering it is reading 7 just about everywhere now i think its easy to at least want to believe it lol.

I did notice however the plant wasnt stinking at all the past week or so and today i could clearly smell it when i got right down by it. Also looks like the new growth is coming back, with some close monitoring on the ph soil and the new growth i am not 100% sure but i do think its coming back.

The soil is finally starting to dry out a bit now and i think i found some dolomite lime around here at a tractor supply but the lady wasnt sure if its dolomite, however the local hydro shop should have it if anything else.

To answer your question i have both up and down ph from general hydro.
And i didnt know any better at the time but i think i flushed like 3 different times and used 7ish ph'd water everytime so i hope i finally got this balanced out, i want to see some good new growth tho before i feed any more nutes, and i guess if that means i have to water heavily 1 more time to test the run off i will but hey thanks very very much for the info.

I am sure when i get my ph and tds pens along with some lime i will be much much better off, in the mean time tho ill know what not to do with my clones comin up behind this baby.
 
I guess at this point my cheap ass soil tester is hard to trust but considering it is reading 7 just about everywhere now i think its easy to at least want to believe it lol.

I did notice however the plant wasnt stinking at all the past week or so and today i could clearly smell it when i got right down by it. Also looks like the new growth is coming back, with some close monitoring on the ph soil and the new growth i am not 100% sure but i do think its coming back.

The soil is finally starting to dry out a bit now and i think i found some dolomite lime around here at a tractor supply but the lady wasnt sure if its dolomite, however the local hydro shop should have it if anything else.

To answer your question i have both up and down ph from general hydro.
And i didnt know any better at the time but i think i flushed like 3 different times and used 7ish ph'd water everytime so i hope i finally got this balanced out, i want to see some good new growth tho before i feed any more nutes, and i guess if that means i have to water heavily 1 more time to test the run off i will but hey thanks very very much for the info.

I am sure when i get my ph and tds pens along with some lime i will be much much better off, in the mean time tho ill know what not to do with my clones comin up behind this baby.

In most cases the bag should state pretty clearly its dolomite lime,
and that is a great sign your are seeing new growth man! Your soil's PH is going up and allowing your plants to get out of that lockout, and there soaking up all of that fresh water! I would suggest to flush it once more and check the drainage just to make sure the soil holds that neutral PH.
And always make sure to check the PH AFTER you add your nutrients before watering, because it will change depending what is in your mixture.
And no problem on the help man, Good luck with your grow, I hope you get some big dank nuggets! :grinjoint:

One more important thing!
Make sure when you get your dolomite lime you get the the most broken up version you can find! stay away from the pellets, they wont work fast enough.
I believe what you want is called pulverized dolomite lime, The finer the lime is the faster it will break up! Stay away from the hydrated dolomite lime also, it can jack your PH waaaaay to high up if not very careful and give you a issue since it is not as forgiving.
 
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