Lol, do the research. It's science. Your medium controls the the PH not the solution/water. Your alkalinity can change your mediums PH over time. My water's PH is 7.2. I use half tap and half RO which puts my alkalinity at abut 35 ppm. Science says that so long as your medium is PH buffered you DO NOT NEED to PH your water or solution. I bet your using good ol' phosphoric acid to lower your PH aren't you. Did you know that your adding a shit ton of P to your water/solution. Botanicare list the NPK of their PH down as 0 15 0. So instead of feeding at whatever your nutrient NPK is your feeding at that level plus all that P, see where this goes. I'm not pulling this out of my ass, here is a little bit of science behind what I believe.
Water Quality: pH and Alkalinity
Recently, some growers have expressed concern about the "high pH" of their irrigation water and its potential adverse effects on plants. The purpose of this article is to allay some of these concerns by pointing out the difference between "high pH" and "high alkalinity".
Alkalinity and pH are two important factors in determining the suitability of water for irrigating plants.
pH is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in water or other liquids. In general, water for irrigation should have a pH b etween 5.0 and 7.0. Water with pH below 7.0 is termed "acidic" and water with pH above 7.0 is termed "basic"; pH 7.0 is "neutral". Sometimes the term "alkaline" is used instead of "basic" and often "alkaline" is confused with "alkalinity".
Alkalinity is a measure of the water's ability to neutralize acidity.An alkalinity test measures the level of bicarbonates, carbonates, and hydroxides in water and test results are generally expressed as "ppm of calcium carbonate (CaCO3)". The desirable range f or irrigation water is 0 to 100 ppm calcium carbonate. Levels between 30 and 60 ppm are considered optimum for most plants.
Irrigation water tests should always include
both pH and alkalinity tests.
A pH test by itself is not an indication of alkalinity. Water with high alkalinity (i.e., high levels of bicarbonates or carbonates) always has a pH value ÷7 or above, but water with high pH doesn't always have high alkalinity. This is important because high alkalinity exerts the most significant effects on growing medium fertility and plant nutrition.
Acidification of High Alkalinity Water
Many greenhouse operators inject acid (e.g., phosphoric, nitric, or sulfuric acid) into water with problematic high levels of alkalinity.
Acidification of water having high pH but low alkalinity is rarely necessary. The use of acid injection sh ould be considered very carefully for several reasons. First, it is an extra step in production which will require additional materials and equipment. Second, acids are dangerous to handle and may damage some injectors and piping systems. Third, phosphoric or nitric acid are sources of P and NO3, so the regular fertilizer program may need to be modified to take into account the addition of these nutrients. This would depend on how much acid must be used to neutralize the alkalinity and reduce pH. Fourth, sometimes acid injection causes the solubilization of normally precipitated (unavailable) forms of trace elements resulting in levels toxic to plants.
The amount of acid required to reach the desired pH (i.e., neutralize alkalinity) is determined by laboratory titration of a water sample with the appropriate acid or by a calculation procedure. Some "fine-tuning" may be needed later when actual inject ion is started. Acid is always injected prior to the addition of fertilizer or other chemicals.
Prepared by Douglas Cox
Plant and Soil Sciences
University of Massachusetts
Amherst
August 1995.
And as so far as my plant's "are not perfect", please point out what's not "perfect" in the pic below as my eyes see perfection.
There is nothing organic about my grow 100% mineral salts in Promix HP.
View attachment 3312520
