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DOES ANYONE KNOW WHY MY PH IN MY NFT SYSTEM IS GOING DOWN AND NOT UP, IT HAS ALLWAYS GONE UP FOR THE LAST 8 YEARS OR SO, BUT THIS LAST SIX MONTHS OVER 3 GROWS HAS BEEN GOING DOWN. I DO CLEAN MY SYSTEM AND THE PLANTS ARE GROWING AND LOOK FINE. BUT I READ IF ITS GOING DOWN AND NOT UP, THERE IS A PROBLEM, I HAVE CHANGED NUTRIENTS ON THIS GROW BUT STILL THE SAME AND THE WATER IN THE TAP IS STILL AT 7PH SO I DONT THINK THAT THE WATER IS FUNNY. ITS REALLY WEIRD.
I think your answer may be in what happened to me a few months ago, but first I want to say that PH should be going down, not up.
At any rate my Ph was going down unusually fast, and so I added PH up, several times... and by the time they were done, they certainly we not looking right. It turned out to be my ph meter. PH meters are very sensitive things (so I've learned), and the bulb needs to be kept moist (wet) and clean. In may case I was doing that, but it turned out to be the PH meter.
SN
my ph meter is only a few months old and i do calibrate it regular. like i say its only been recently that this has been happening, thats why im finding this so strange. i have to raise it daily. if i put it right to 5.8-6ph in the morning by the end of the day its at 5.2.
For at least 8 years up untill recently i would set my ph at 5.8 and it would raise to 6.2 and i would lower again to 5.8 and it would go up again not down. i allways thought this was right for your ph to go up.
Its like i have been doing something for a long time and now i have to do the opposite of what i have been doing for all them years.
I also read something saying if your ph is going down and not up there is a problem in your root zone. i do clean in between grows.
ITS SERIOUSLY BUGGING ME COS I CANT UNDERSTAND WHY!!!!!!!!!!!
We have resently added hygrozyme to the mix and when the plants are young the PH is stable. Seems as the root system is larger the PH wants to drive way down into the 4's. Don't know why but the more the tubs are topped up the more stable it gets. We had root problems and not the PH problem before. I guess that's why they make up and down.
If you don't see or smell problems with your roots you most likely don't have problems.
Have you added anything new ?
ive gone back to basics, i only add rhiztonic which is only for the first 3 weeks, to make more roots which seems to work really well for me.
the roots dont smell and the plants look pretty much perfect at the moment.
like i say its just so weird to do something for all that time then it change to the opposite, i grow in a nft system with the tank heated to 20c.
which way does anyone elses ph go who grows in a nft system. up or down.
that is weird.normally the ph increases.something is wrong with your hydro system.the nutrient has a natural tendency to increase ph.
well i have just been to my local hydro shop and hopefully found the answer,
i have my air pump inside my grow space with CO2 which i have high, he said it might be putting co2 in the water tank which is causeing the ph to go down, obviously co2 falls to the floor where my air pump is, so fingers crossed ive found the problem, i will know by the end of the day and will let you know incase anyone else ever gets this problem.
Sounds resonable. They use c02 in aquariums to lower PH.
well i changed my solution and its still going down and not up. the only thing i can think of is to use h20 and see if it sorts it out.
im out of ideas......
get a ph water test kit.after you add your nutes then test the solution.
if the water is aqua green to yellowish you dont gotta add nothing.
if the solution is light blue or blue then you must lower the ph.
when you lower the ph make the ph so when you do the test the water is aqua green shade to yellowish,not orange or red,add the ph in increments so you dont lower it to much cause you dont wanna add ph up if you dont have to.
if you lower it to a yellowish color you wont have to add more down as soon.
if you lower it to a aqua green you will have to re -lower it in like 3-5 days because the ph will climb as time goes by.
if you use well water you must use a reverse osmosis machine.