Need an advice about hard water

[Astral22]

Hey guys, i want to ask for some advice about dealing with hard water.
What can i do to soften my water besides using Reverse Osmosis and Water Softeners? Is there a smaller and simpler solution that doesn't require expensive equipment and installation? Unfortunately any of those systems are not an option due to stealth reasons, and same goes for rainwater.

The water in my apartment has a high pH above 8.5, tester strips show 9 pH. I still haven't used the TDC EC PH meter because it came without batteries, but i already know it's a very hard water and all the numbers will be too high once i measure it. For many years we struggled with hard deposits and stains in all of our household appliances, there's always limescale appearing everywhere in a short time. I don't know if the plants would survive this type of water.

Should i buy bottled water from the store every week? Or buy distilled water and mix it with my tap water? Or mix distilled + bottled water?
How much water approximately would i need per week? I know this question has a lot of variables, but i'm just looking for a rough number to plan accordingly.
I'm planning to grow 4 autoflowers in 3-gallon fabric pots, or maybe 6 autos in 2-gallon pots. I'm using BioBizz Light-Mix soil with the whole BioBizz line of nutrients.

Let me know if you need more info, thanks in advance!

Bonus question: When i water one plant and collect the runoff, can i use that runoff to water another plant? A different strain in the same soil and same nutrients? I'd hate to waste that water since i'll probably be buying it from the store.

Another bonus question: Would it be suspicious to anyone if i ordered large amounts of distilled water? I don't know what would i say if someone asks me why do i need such huge amounts.

 

[Rurumo]

Find out the PPMs in your water first. Some water has a high PH but not terrible PPMs, in which case, you can use citric acid to bring the PH down. It also reduces PPMs a bit. You can look up a report online for your city's water and find out the alkalinity, total hardness, calcium levels, etc. If you are using well water, that's different. Hauling water from one of those reverse osmosis machines at a store gets OLD real fast.

 

[ColoradoHighGrower]

Find out the PPMs in your water first. Some water has a high PH but not terrible PPMs, in which case, you can use citric acid to bring the PH down. It also reduces PPMs a bit. You can look up a report online for your city's water and find out the alkalinity, total hardness, calcium levels, etc. If you are using well water, that's different. Hauling water from one of those reverse osmosis machines at a store gets OLD real fast.

And not stealthy!!

 

[Billy the Mountain]

...
Bonus question: When i water one plant and collect the runoff, can i use that runoff to water another plant? A different strain in the same soil and same nutrients? I'd hate to waste that water since i'll probably be buying it from the store.
...

No!

 

[sonnyjim]

Hard water can be a blessing due to the high calcium content.
Get batteries for your PH meter and adjust your water down using various PH down additives. I use distilled vinegar which at wallyworld costs $3 a gal. Be consistent with measuring PH each time you water.
Nah don't use run off to water another plant.

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

Also, if you're not intending to keep organic, there's nutrients on the market designed for hard water as well. But yeah, test it first.

 

[jeepster1993]

I have bad/hard water also. Tds over 600, nearer 650.
We installed a whole house filter system for hard water. That 650 reading is after the filtering.
I use it. Its what i have. I do adjust the ph, it is very high, i bring it down with an acid to 7ish.
Tds can only be delt with a ro filter, dont have one.

 

[Three Berries]

Under the sink RO filters too, from simple to complex. Probably have to dope the RO water though a bit,.

 

[jeepster1993]

I do wonder…
If my water was “good”, tds of zero…
How much more would my crop be?
I do ok. My goal is a gram per watt. I am in that area.

 

[Astral22]

Thanks everyone for the replies, i will get batteries soon and post the readings. Although i'm absolutely sure it's gonna be higher than average. I read about plants dying from too much minerals and now i don't want to even start growing before i make a proper plan.

About buying water from the store, honestly i don't mind it, it's not a big problem for me stealth-wise. I just don't know how much water would i approximately need per week, for 4 autoflowers in 3 gallon pots. If anyone could give me a rough idea it would be greatly appreciated.

I can't seem to find a detailed online report for the water in my city. It's a small city, and they only have the general info for the whole region, and they only mention is very hard water. I'll have to call them and ask.

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

Here's a thought for you, if you find that your tap water is moderate to fairly high in hardness, and you don't mind buying some water, you could always mix your own. Distilled water at 50/50 with 400ppm would hit you at 200ppm and be reasonable, etc. You also may find that once you check, it's not horrible.

 

[Astral22]

So the reading shows 380ppm. Although it's a cheap meter from Ebay and i didn't calibrate it (no calibrating solution) i don't know how accurate it is but for now i'll have to use it as comparison. Do you think this range is ok? Or should i try to get 200ppm by mixing?

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

So the reading shows 380ppm. Although it's a cheap meter from Ebay and i didn't calibrate it (no calibrating solution) i don't know how accurate it is but for now i'll have to use it as comparison. Do you think this range is ok? Or should i try to get 200ppm by mixing?

300-400 is isn't the end of the world. I'd personally give that a try. If you have any distilled water, dip your TDS meter in that and see what it reads It should read close to zero which will let you know that it's somewhat accurate. I bet you won't have much if any trouble with it. I thought you might end up at something like 600. If you feel like it's causing you trouble or anxiety, water it down and/or consider some of the nutrients that are designed for hard water.

 

[Three Berries]

I think my well water is around 480 out of the tap at 7.4 or so. I use it initially, presoak the soil and the first couple weeks as there is so much nutes already in the Fox Farm you don't have to do much more than water and stand back. After they are up and the second set of 5 leafs are coming out I nip them off. Then start with some half strength nutes. The last couple weeks of veg I give it full strength. But I use rainwater with a cup of well water and the nutes and now am pH balancing if it needs it. Last bunch I whipped up was right at 6.5 or so when done mixing.

If I use just well water then it becomes an issue I think as the soil gets quite crusty. My well water has iron in it too which is a plus though. Thank the meteor gods.

The two I just put in the flower room I mixed road chip limestone in with the soil when initially filling the pots. Same limestone that makes my water hard. They are both doing better, taller thicker stems, than the last two under similar circumstances. In fact they outgrew the tent before the 10 weeks I had planned.

 

[Boreal Curing]

Try this for a cheap fix. Should work. But don't put it in your fridge.

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

Found out a place on the commute home from work carries this, so I grabbed some; because I can. Though the gentleman behind the counter at the hydro store looked at me as if he'd seen a cop...er...I mean ghost. Just too buttoned down for these hippie types.

FloraMicro® (Hardwater)

If you have hard water, you can easily adapt Flora Series® by using FloraMicro® Hardwater instead of our standard formula. FloraMicro® Hardwater is part of Flora Series®, the original three-part…

generalhydroponics.com

 

[A.k.a]

My tap is 430ppm and over 8ph. Definitely caused problems.


I just ended up finding this little kiosk near the gas station that does 5gal of filtered water for a dollar. Then I mix it with like 1/3 tap like somebody else mentioned.


it’s fine running a few plants but would be a pain in the ass with a decent size grow.

 

[Astral22]

Thanks a lot guys, you're all awesome

Honestly i thought my water will have more ppm, i was surprised by the result. Few different plumbers who worked in my apartment and around the building told me our water hardiness was above average, judging by the high limescale buildup in a quick time. So i thought it will be too much.
I'll test the TDS meter again with distilled water to make sure it's accurate.

Most likely i'll be mixing my tap water with distilled water and just adjust the pH if needed, hopefully it turns out perfect.

 

[LeastExpectedGrower]

Don't forget that that TDS meter has other uses too. Take stock of the runoff when you water...if your PPM is higher than your feeding PPM it can get you in trouble and lockout. So if the water after a feed is at or around what you fed at your plants aren't utilizing as much and you can cut back your nutrient levels. If it skyrockets it can stop your plants from taking in important stuff like nitrogen and you need to flush the old nutrients out of the soil.

 

[Fahn2k]

$22 dollars a year, easy to install yourself, helps make water good enough!

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