EC should be multiplied by 0.5 to obtain PPM. your meter gives it a 1:1 conversion??
No, let’s be honest here. I didn’t even look at the EC mode reading lol. Bad math and way too many bowls since I had to think about the conversion so I got it wrong lol. I’m gonna call it 500ppm and leave it at that lol.
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yes TDS usually refers to the 500 scale. if it says calibrated with NaCl you know for sure. so 500ppm would be 1EC. I have a TDS pen that doesn’t even display EC even though that’s what it’s really measuring lol. the true ppm (for unknown solution) would require chemical analysis.
If your pen can do EC use that. Even though most people use PPM it can get confusing with all the different conversion factors. EC is always the same. If you take a solution that is 1.00 EC and test it with different PPM meters it could be anywhere from 500-750 PPM. That’s a significant range, but if you use EC it will be 1.0 no matter which meter you use (as long as they’re calibrated correctly)
I’d probably go with a slightly higher pH if you are in coco also. I usually shoot for 5.8 and my reservoir drifts up slightly from there. You might get issues with Mag deficiency if you pH to 5.5. Although I think some people do fine with as low as 5.4.
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Well, up until the food I had been using tap only, and i’ve seen my tap ph as high as 8 so I didn’t think a little lower would hurt too much but i’ll keep that in mind.
Works for me 
You are in coco right?
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Yep, with about 30% perlite added in because this is cheap burpee coco bricks and I wanted to ensure it’d drain like it should.
I second that about the ph. Been doing my research and Mr Sanchez is spot on.
I think it’s fine to use tap water without adjusting pH if you aren’t supplying any nutrients. I always pH my water anyway, but if there aren’t any nutes to absorb I guess that pH wouldn’t matter. I’ve never tried it though so…
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I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that I should probably have been PH’ing my water lol.
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i stopped PHing my water. i used to add 1ml of ph up with my nutrients as that seemed to be what i was doing when i was PHing but i’ve stopped doing that even. only my smallest seedling is curling down leaves.
Whether to PH the water will be different for most unless you are neighbors or all use RO. Don’t try to copy each other if you all have different water sources.
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I’ve got hard water. 300ppm and usually a ph of 8 out the tap. I should be PH’ing mine.
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Yeah, I would pH down to 6.0 with that hard of water. I have horrible water too, so I use RO. I don’t bother to pH that.
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Another option is to use the hardness to your advantage and cut it with 50% RO water. I do that for extra minerals in my notill. There are many ways to skin a cat.
Edit: I do this some times not all the time.
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I will be investing in a RO system soon, because wifey hates anything but bottled water, and I hear it’s good for ya too lol. If it’s good for my plants I imagine it’s good for me?
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i refuse to drink tap water because of fluoride. i cook with RO water too. but i just bought an office water cooler (because i love cold water) n pay like $4 for 5 gallons or whatever it is. best thing i ever bought. my plants get tap water though could use the extra minerals
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2 coats of paint and it’s still leaking light through my plastic door lol.
Looks like i’ll be painting it in the dark haha
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TLDR: Don’t paint plastic with latex paint. Use Oil Based.
So, Pro Tip for anyone who ever wants to use the plastic cardboard for a door. I just fixed all my light leaks with one coat of oil based paint.
Preparation of the surface:
Ideally you should lightly scuff the surface until the “glossy” appearance has gone from the plastic you’d like to paint. I did not do this and considering my background in the coating industry I should have done this.
Since it’s plastic, the only thing you can wipe it down with is alcohol. You might be able to use mineral spirits but test a scrap piece first to make sure it isn’t going to melt or soften the plastic.
Paint choice:
I just figured out that oil based paint has a better coverage (often called payoff) than the latex paint on this material. Theory is that since plastic is made from oil, oil based paint will bond better, especially if you created tons of micro scratches on the surface.
Edit:
No pics because I just painted the door,
but my seedlings are in the cab with my DIY 135w (9w*15 bulbs) LED fixture (screw in bulbs) as pictured below
Note, I took this while building it, it’s fully wired up and rocking all the bulbs.
Another edit: (Damn I do this alot… is this prefered to making another post?)
I have to leave tomorrow for work, will be gone till wednesday morning so all my goodies should have arrived in the mail by the time I get back. No work on the cab until Wed.
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i generally edit if it’s an afterthought or the same day and no one else has commented. i usually edit every post 2 or 3 times immediately after i post it.
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