Dealing with Hardwater..

[Flail]

So i've got some pretty bad house water.

PH is in the normal range but i never see an EC out of the tap lower then 0.42 (cold water)

while the warm water tap usually give me and ec up to about 0.55

Not entirely sure of why its causing the difference.

but it has lead to another question.

Say I boiled my tap water, in theory, wouldn't that just make the ec rise even more?

having water vapor evaporating, not knowing exactly mineral make up of the water

I'm unsure weather the impurities I'm trying to rid would be more concentrated or less concentrated?

would they be likely to piggy back on the evaporation? or would they be more likely to become more concentrated.

I know what you guru's are gunna say, Get and RO filter.. Yes it is in the plans, but not in the budget right now.

thanks in advance.

[bluesteel]

interesting question....im in for the answer

[Flail]

I think i've got it narrowed down to oxidation and potential minuet rust build up due to the age of the pipes.

[Growmaster J]

You could use General Hydroponics 3 part thats specifically for hard water in the meantime.

[Flail]

You could use General Hydroponics 3 part thats specifically for hard water in the meantime.

na, i'l stick with my advanced 3 part, cheaper and the company gets back to you in a nice timely fashion.

I'm not burning my plants as is, I just want them to be eatting only the nutrients not the shit in the water.

looks like RO is seriously the only way to go.

[Dust]

I agree with DKH as it the vapor that will go off your water that will be good for watering i believe, distilation like he said ^^

I DO notice when i boil with one my pan, not all, the limestone stays glued on the "walls" after the boiling, but don't think it would be interesting.

My tap water is too at an EC 0,4-5, i just let it sit for 24h for my girls, but it's the reason why i use mineral water in the first week, cause my pipe water i'm afraid would be too hard for my baby babies ^^

try to filter it with the same thing we use to drink on dinner you know? don't know the name in english ^^ I have one, filter is supposed ot be change everymonth, i do it every 6 month lol, but i believe by keeping it longer, only takes away the bigger that gives bad taste, which could something good for us. I'll do a test this week with it to check if EC is lower if you want. would cost you 10€ perhaps ^^

[lamsbread]

Could this be the reason for the different readings?

The conductivity of a solution is highly temperature dependent, therefore it is important to either use a temperature compensated instrument, or calibrate the instrument at the same temperature as the solution being measured. Unlike metals, the conductivity of common electrolytes typically increases with increasing temperature.

Copied and pasted from - http://en.wikipedia....ductivity_meter

Something very important, temperature will effect the conductivity! The chart below shows the same solution measured at 3 different temperatures. If your connecting this to a microprocessor you can use a thermistor to compensate. If not then make sure the calibration solution is about the same temperature as the solution to be tested. One way this can be done taking a sample from the fish tank or whatever and letting it set until its room temperature. If your temperature will vary by only a few degrees then it may not even be a problem.

Measured Conductivity

at different Temperatures

EC - Temp C

3.43 - 13.72

4.16 - 22.0

4.73 - 30.0

copied and pasted from - http://www.octiva.net/projects/ppm/

A lot of nice info about EC and PPM , also shows you how to build a working EC meter if you are up for a project.

Have you tried taking measurements from the kitchen hot tap and the bathroom hot tap and comparing the readings.This may be useful as the different pipes may have different degrees of oxidation.This may be helpful in determining if oxidation is or is not the cause. Just a thought though.

Cast iron and ductile iron pipe was long a lower-cost alternative to copper, before the advent of durable plastic materials but special non-conductive fittings must be used where transitions are to be made to other metallic pipes, except for terminal fittings, in order to avoid corrosion owing to electrochemical reactions between dissimilar metals (see galvanic cell). copied and pasted from - http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Water_pipe

If a Litre of water is boiled down to 500ml, the total dissolved soilids will be twice the concentration and the EC reading will confirm this.

DKH is absolutely correct about the process of distilation.This is why distilled water is used for topping up car batteries, it contains no ions which will reduce to life and functioning of a battery.For ultra pure distilled water it is distilled twice.

A hot water tank won't boil your water and is a closed system so there is no where water vapor can go.

Make sure your EC meter is calibrated and you follow the manufacturers advice on cleaning the probe.Residues left on th the probe will effect future readings.

Regardless of cause in the different readings between your hot and cold water outlets, RO is the way forward when it comes to purifying your water.

Hope this helps

Peace Lams

[Flail]

dude you just made my brain spew its load.. great info!!!

I never realized that temperatures effected EC so much.

thanks for the knowledge

[Romeu9]

Hey Flail!

Metals and whatnot present in the water will not be absorved or used by the plants since molecules of them are way bigger then the ones plants use, so we're good about that wen using tap water, I do during bigger periods of dry weather. Gotta love the winter wen it comes to rain water, I lay some pans and other water colecters in the terrace for that same purpose.

Take care

[Dust]

very cool info lams once again, me neither didn't know temp effected ec meter ^^

but tho all my water and instrument and growroom are in the same temp, so it's ok for me

[lamsbread]

I like what Rom said, good info.

Iron Oxide would fall under the catagory of TSS (Total Suspended Solids - Particulates over 0.45 micrometers)

Where as TDS (Total Disolved Solids) is what is measured by an EC meter

This may leave you wondering how plants take up Iron, chelation is your answer.

Most living things need iron to survive and thrive. Iron is vital for healthy red blood cells in people and animals, and plants need iron to produce chlorophyll, which is vital for healthy cell function and gives the plant its green color. When dietary sources don't provide enough iron, a supplement may be needed for optimum health.

Chelated iron is simply iron that has undergone chelation, a chemical process that firmly binds the iron molecule to another substance, usually an amino acid. This forms a more stable ring-shaped molecule that is easier for plants and animals to absorb. Iron from dietary sources is bound to amino acids naturally, and chelation attempts to make supplemental iron more similar to these naturally occurring sources. Cells have membranes which allow some substances to pass through, while blocking others. Chelated iron, disguised as amino acids, is thought to pass through the cell membrane more easily, allowing the iron inside the cell where it is needed.

DKH sarted a thread on Chelation - http://www.strainhunters.com/forums/topic/3524-chelation/

Peace

Lams