is my tap water ok ? (soil grow)

on tap water, many posts suggest leaving a bucket of water out for a few days to supposedly lose some stuff thats bad for the plant, like chlorine.

i filled a bucket a few days ago and my meter read 373 ppm and 8.8 ph.
now the water reads 385ppm and 8.8 ph.

if its supposed to lose bad stuff, like chlorine, then is it gaining some other stuff while sitting there? is my water ok??

currently using distilled, but i want to switch to tap water.

id use a carbon water filter on it, the rise in ppm could be the evaporation of the water leaving the heavy metal and salts behind in a smaller volume?

The way I understand it is the city adds chlorine in the form of chloramines. This is a disinfectant, to help stop algee growth in perculation ponds for example. The stuff stays in the water. Now that is the bad stuff. Its a chemical though, not a salt. nutrients are salts. To reduce the amount of chloramines you can let it evaporate out of the water by letting water sit. You are using a PPM meter to measure the slats in the water. Not chemicals. There will be no difference in the ppm. Yours went up though, the only thing I can think of is some particals drifted into it. Temp will change PH but I dont think it has any effect on PPM's

most carbon deals will probably be more expensive or just the same than continuing with distilled.
i'm getting something around $0.75-$1.00 per gallon of distilled.

seems like many growers are having some luck with tap water, but i'm skeptical. maybe i should consider buying carbon wholesale, like 50 pounds!!!

Yea that will do it. For a soil grow all you need to concern yourself with is chlorine.
I just started a soil grow and got a filter called "small boy" by hydro logic its a sediment/charcoal filter for my green house grow.
I pay $3 for 5 gallons of distilled for my hydro grow when I cant get R/O for $1.50 per 5 gallons.

Whatever u decide don't use a pur filter they don't do shit.

i'll probably just stick to distilled and nutes.
i'm figuring about 9 to 10 gallons of water per plant during its entire growth. not a major hurt on cost, if the harvest is bountiful

try just 1 plant with tap water and see if it makes a difference for next time? I think im very lucky my tap is under 60ppm,

60ppm ?!! you are very lucky. thats great for the plants AND you.

if i could get the tap water clean enough, i would try it. i can't help but consider the influence of water quality and the medium mix (soil) overall. both most likely contribute much to differences in not just growth, but flavor and other properties of the final product. those little differences can go a long way in anything you grow.

i would suggest using a Revers Osmosis that will bring it down to 0-10 ppm

SuperChubbs said:

i'll probably just stick to distilled and nutes.
i'm figuring about 9 to 10 gallons of water per plant during its entire growth. not a major hurt on cost, if the harvest is bountiful

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9 to 10 gallons? How'd that work out for you bro lol. I use a gallon and a half every two to three days