proper PPM range

S

Shafto

Active Member
Seems to me they can handle a wide range in DWC.

I burned one of my plants a little while after my first seeds sprouted in Sunshine#4 with some nutes I mixed. Later on I discovered a couple male plants and eliminated them, but I experimented with the clones. I hadn't done any DWC yet but I put one of them in a styrofoam floater over an airstone in the res that burnt the plants so I could watch it die really fast from burning. But what happened? It didn't do anything! It thrived!

So I thought, Hmm.. it's been a while.. maybe these nutes have somehow dropped off in here. I watered the other male clone in the peat pellet with the same res water and it burnt to shit.

Conclusion for me is that in soil or flood-drain or anything where the roots dry out, you need less PPM, as it goes wayyyy up as things dry out. If they stay wet all the time, like DWC. You can pump a lot in there, and it'll just go down as the plants eat it.

My nute formula works out to 1100PPM in veg. And I just give them that right after they root straight through until I switch them to bud. Then it's 1430 until I start jacking up the sugar daddy and awesome blossoms a bit more right near the end. The growth seems to be the same whether there is 1100PPM in the res or only 300PPM left near a change. I think they just take what they need, as long as you're within reason. My observations anyway. I love DWC, so easy.
 
aleksandr2010

aleksandr2010

Active Member
disposition84 said:
There is no set number, your plants will let you know what they want. If over time the PPM's go up
while your reservoir level is going down, that signifies your plants cannot drink the amount you're
giving them and to back off. If your PPM's are going down and your res levels going down then your
plants are drinking more than you're offering them. If you find a constant level that's where your plants
are drinking at and where you want to try to keep it, but this level will change throughout your growth as
well so you need to keep close records if you want to maintain the optimum levels.

If you look up stink buds recommendation I'm pretty sure he casually goes well over 1700ppms on a lot
of the grows he shows. I think a lot of his followers are doing the same as well and their results look
really good. But what's the point in running things that high when your results could be just as good
with a lower regiment? It's only going to cost you more, I typically try to stay much lower myself as
they still seem to thrive.

I have heard that some growing methods help you utilize the nutes better than others. I'm not sure
which is which but I want to say things like HP Aero you can run much lower nutes because of the
fine breakdown of nutes with the sprayer heads. I've also heard that higher DO levels help your plants
utilize the nutrients you feed them better as well so you can tune your system to help the effectiveness
of your nute levels as well.
Click to expand...
I really like that response! I'll have to keep an eye on my nutes using that method.
 
Illegal Smile

Illegal Smile

Well-Known Member
I think people stress over this way too much. I threw my ppm meter away after one grow. Now I just add nutes according to Humboldt's weekly schedule, and no I don't flush I just add to whatever is left from last week. I wouldn't be doing it if it weren't working.
 
D

disposition84

Well-Known Member
Not trying to attack you man, but that's kinda bad advice to be giving out to the
many newer growers who probably wont have the same luck as you. Don't throw
away your meters, use them.

The meters are designed to help you tune your grow, if you're checking your nutes
regularly, you can start to see how much of your nutes your plants are using. If you
can optimize their nutes you should see the best results.

Flushing is also something that isn't necessary, but people do it to help prevent salt
buildups which can really put a damper on your grow. Sometimes some of the things
people do aren't completely necessary but are more preventative methods from avoiding
the issue all together.
 
BeaverHuntr

BeaverHuntr

Well-Known Member
disposition84 said:
Not trying to attack you man, but that's kinda bad advice to be giving out to the
many newer growers who probably wont have the same luck as you. Don't throw
away your meters, use them.

The meters are designed to help you tune your grow, if you're checking your nutes
regularly, you can start to see how much of your nutes your plants are using. If you
can optimize their nutes you should see the best results.

Flushing is also something that isn't necessary, but people do it to help prevent salt
buildups which can really put a damper on your grow. Sometimes some of the things
people do aren't completely necessary but are more preventative methods from avoiding
the issue all together.
Click to expand...

I agree in DWC the 3 most important things in your grow will be PPM , PH , and Reservoir Temps.
 
S

Sr. Greensea

Member
ppm meters go by different formulas so you really need to know the formula of the meter you have and than do the math so you know the true EC. IMO its freakin bs that the companies do this. My meter is 500*1 and others i think are around 750*1...... when my tds (ppm) meter needs to be replaced i will buy a EC meter..
Ph and EC meters are a must and will only help you dial things in quicker and keep them where they belong. nosence in just wingin it...
TDS @ 500*1 conversion would make a EC of 2 = 1000ppm
TDS @ 700*1 conversion would make a EC of 2 = 1400ppm
TDS @500*1....................................EC of 2.8 = 1400ppm
TDS @700*1....................................EC of 2.8 = 1960ppm
 
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