soil ph too high

I am using an organic soil consisting of Kellogg Patio Plus mixed with 25% perlite in 5 gallon containers. I just transplanted my plants about two weeks ago & I have noticed that I cannot get my ph lower than 7.5. my plants were doing fine until a few days ago I noticed that they were not thriving any longer. in fact they are showing signs of mg and maybe zinc defs. I added some epsom salt to help but I understand that if the ph is off then lockout is the likely culprit. Its too late to remix the soil and I am hoping that someone will have some tips on how to lower my ph to a suitable level like 6.5 so that my lil one will be able to suck up what they need. they are all about a foot tall now. Any help would be appreciated. Unable to post any pics at the moment but I will as soon as I fix this damn computer! thanks...

get some pH down (for gardening, not aquariums), and water with a pH of around 5.5 - 6.

You can also get a soil test kit to see what your actual soil pH is as well as NPK.

How are you testing pH now???

I just bought a cheap ph meter until I can buy a good one. I know that they are not too accurate due to hotspots an what not so I have been testing the runoff water as well as the soil. I haven't used any nutes yet so im not worried about the npk. im almost positive its a micronutrient problem. Maybe a dunb question but can I use the ph down I would use for my jacuzzi? Also... what about dolomite lime or sulfer products? Thanks for your time...

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Originally Posted by skunkystyles

I just bought a cheap ph meter until I can buy a good one. I know that they are not too accurate due to hotspots an what not so I have been testing the runoff water as well as the soil. I haven't used any nutes yet so im not worried about the npk. im almost positive its a micronutrient problem. Maybe a dunb question but can I use the ph down I would use for my jacuzzi? Also... what about dolomite lime or sulfer products? Thanks for your time...

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You can't use the pH down for the jacuzzi. If you had to use something easy to get, try apple cider vinegar. Lime raises pH. Never tried using soil sulfer.

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Originally Posted by skunkystyles

I just bought a cheap ph meter until I can buy a good one. I know that they are not too accurate due to hotspots an what not so I have been testing the runoff water as well as the soil.

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If it's a soil probe, your numbers are off. I've never met one that does anything beyond telling you when soil is acidic (wet) or alkaline. (dry). Avoid soil probes, and the bullshit info they offer you.
If it is a soil probe, you can not ph a liquid with it. (none I've seen or used works in water) This includes the runoff ph. The best way to test ph is a ph pen. Next, is a freshwater aquarium ph test kit. But with the test kit you can't ph runoff because the runoff tints the water, which skews the color-coded results.

If you are in a commercial potting mix, it's likely a pre-buffered peat-based medium and is not an issue at all. (depending on how long the plants have been in it, or what you've added) Regardless, with a peat based medium the soil ph will crash, not rise.

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Originally Posted by skunkystyles

I haven't used any nutes yet so im not worried about the npk. im almost positive its a micronutrient problem. Maybe a dunb question but can I use the ph down I would use for my jacuzzi? Also... what about dolomite lime or sulfer products? Thanks for your time...

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Well, you can either get the right tool(s) for the job, or keep shooting yourself in the foot. Your choice. No pool nutrients or shock treatments, no soil ph-adjusting additives, and no more cheap meters that do nothing. It's a live and learn thing, but they are cheap enough to learn a lesson from.

What nutrients will you use, and why are you not using them now?

Has someone else instructed you to use the epsom salt, or told you you have a micronute issue...or are you tring to do your troubleshooting solo? Adding stuff without knowing how or why is a great way to do major damage. Your questions lead me to believe you have no clue what you are doing. If this is the case, likely a self-diagnosis approach should be abandoned.

Fill-out the troubleshooting form as completely as possible if your plants are showing abnormal growth or colors.

Rusty you are absolutely correct. I am very aware that it is a live & learn thing. I am normally an outdoor grower but I just moved to a new home & have a nosey neighbor so I decided to try indoors for a change. because of my inexperience I decided to use some seeds from a good bag I had before (unknown strain) & not to use any of my ice or skunk 1 seeds so I wouldn't waste them with the mistakes I knew I would make. My plants are 5 weeks old & they are about a foot tall now. The research I did on my soil had many positive reviews & the pH is supposed to be in the 6.5-6.8 range. I will get a real pH meter asap. The only thing I added was perlite (25%) into the soil. Does that affect the pH level? The plants were doing great till they started twisting & taco-ing in the new growth. My growspace temp is a very cool 70 to 75. My light is a 175 watt MH (only growing 4 plants) & I am using 5 gallon buckets with excellent drainage. I checked around on many forums & everyone states it is likely a magnesium &/or zinc deficiency so I used epsom salt (1/4 tsp to a gallon of distilled water) for the magnesium once about a week ago. I understand that if the pH is high or low that certain nutrients get locked out (maybe you can educate me on which ones?) so I got that cheap probe to check the level... apparently a bad move. I was planning on using fish emulsion for veg & super bloom for flowering but I need to make sure of th pH first, right? im told that many probs stem from a pH imbalance which is why im trying to make sure its right. Just tryin to find someone that wants to help a fellow smoker get it right. I would appreciate any help given to me in order to be as successful as you seem to be... Thx in advance!

Perlite does not affect ph.

Potting soils and soilless potting mixes are usually pre-buffered. The more important ph numbers will come from your water. A ph pen is the most valuable troubleshooting tool you can get as an apprentice. It'll ph anything liquid regardless of color of the water. Handy for ph'ing ingoing water and nutrients, and finding out runoff ph. (shows the interraction between the water, medium and additives)
Next best would be an aquarium ph test kit. At least it shows the ph or your water before you add nutrients. But any tinting of the water can and will skew the results.
One I would never purchase (again) is a soil ph probe. Have never met one that did it's job, and doesn't work for ph-ing water. (jusy my personal preferences)

If for instance, you get an aquarium ph kit, you can ph your water to the high end of the ratio, at least on feeding days, and you should be fine. Most nutrients lower the ph a tad.

Even if fish emulsion is labeled "deodorized" it still stinks. Would be careful with it when getting close to switching to 12/12. Organic solids take a long time to break down, and can still add (small ammounts of) nitrogen through flowering.

You can find a decent cheap digital pH pen on the bay for 20-25 dollars.... They aren't the top of the line, but they do what they're supposed to do... You should invest in one. Hell, invest in two, it's never a bad thing to have a spare around :)

ok... I finally got the ph pen! my runoff is at 7.4! still too high, right? So how do I get it to balance out? Do I use ph'd water as suggested by Dorje? Also, I was right about the mg deficiency. The research I did also suggested a possible zinc deficiency so I used a weak blooming solution containing manganese, zinc, & iron & foliar fed every other day to the affected areas. The leaves on the new growth are looking very healthy now & the twisting & taco-ing is no longer an issue! Cool! I've decided to place the two plants that aren't fairing too well outside & hope they will thrive out there & keep the two that did very well inside to focus all the light on them. Hopefully I hid them well enough in my yard. They will get some good direct sunlight but not as much as I'd like. I think I will just start flowering the two indoors in a couple of weeks & start over from seed & chalk up a minor defeat on this grow. Will still get some buds so it won't be a total loss. Like I said before... that's why I experimented on some good seeds & not some great ones!