Brown leaves on seedlings. HELP

[scottcc5s]

Guys:

Need some help with what's going on with my 2 week old seedlings. Just in a couple of days the leaves started getting brown. Up to just few days ago had been using distilled water now have 5.5 PH tap water going and they are in rapid rooter cubes under florescent lights

Ideas of what is going on and how to fix??

Help appreciated

scottcc5s Reviewed by scottcc5s on 06-08-2010. Brown leaves on seedlings. HELP Guys: Need some help with what's going on with my 2 week old seedlings. Just in a couple of days the leaves started getting brown. Up to just few days ago had been using distilled water now have 5.5 PH tap water going and they are in rapid rooter cubes under florescent lights Ideas of what is going on and how to fix?? :( Help appreciated :) Rating: 5

[nexusmick]

Looks like heat stress to me. Try lifting the light another inch or two. They are babies still, so are very fragile.

[tinytoon]

PH is kinda borderline low also. if it could be kicked up a 10th or 2 wont hurt. 5.7 is a good place to be, kinda in the middle of what most say.

[LOC NAR on probation]

Go back to the distilled water your TAP water is burning them or worse Chlorine or chloramine is burning them. Flush them with distilled and wait to see if they green back up. It may take a while. You may want to start more now just to be sure.

[scottcc5s]

Thanks guys for feedback, going back to distilled and get PH a little higher (5.6 to 5.7). I will start up a few more seeds as back up.

How long is it OK to run with distilled water?

[LOC NAR on probation]

Run distilled untill you can check your tap water with a meter. It maybe ok when they get bigger.

[scottcc5s]

Run distilled untill you can check your tap water with a meter. It maybe ok when they get bigger.

Will do and very much appreciate the help/support. Just checked my tap water with my meter. PH comes in at 8.5 and my PPM is 388, I have the PH up and down but have no clue if 388 PPM means OK or not for my tap water. I just started to soak some more seeds as back up if a few current ones go down hill.

Just frustrated delays and VERY eager to use my new ebb/flow toys I bought....yes a newbie but one of these days I will figure things out.

Thanks again

[tinytoon]

388 if I am not wrong means you have a hard water situation from tap. That there is something I have not had to deal with so I'm not gonna lie to you.

I see you have the ebb & Grow system. That thing is the rats ass. Mine has 18 buckets atm and running really well. Make sure you clean and soak that new hydrotron in ph adjusted water. Keep checking the water you are soaking in till ph stabilizes at what you adjusted it to. New hydrotron can make ph drift upwards so thats why we soak :jointsmile:

[scottcc5s]

388 if I am not wrong means you have a hard water situation from tap. That there is something I have not had to deal with so I'm not gonna lie to you.

I see you have the ebb & Grow system. That thing is the rats ass. Mine has 18 buckets atm and running really well. Make sure you clean and soak that new hydrotron in ph adjusted water. Keep checking the water you are soaking in till ph stabilizes at what you adjusted it to. New hydrotron can make ph drift upwards so thats why we soak :jointsmile:

Tiny:

Thanks for the heads up on soaking hydroton and getting them to stabilize.

QUESTION: When my seeds get big enough I was going to put my rapid rooter's cubes into 4x4 rockwool cubes and let them veg before then going into my buckets...good idea??

[GetThisOrDie]

Whats up?
388 is on the high side for tap water but it should be ok. I use 350ish tap water for my seedlings. If I were have to guess it was probably the very low PH. Distilled water lacks minerals and such that the plants need. Its good if you supplement those minerals but tap water makes it much easier because all that shiz is already there.
Maybe you have reallly bad chlorine levels but it was probably the PH...

Just my 2 cents.