RO water

[auntymo]

taking to heart mr breeze's advice about water quality, i've been wondering if i should lug home some RO water from work or not. it may contain quaternary ammonium which is what physan is? am i right on that?

if that won't do i can always snag some micropure water the dna techs use.

--mo--

[LJA]

Mo, that's exactly what Physan is, but I imagine it would be so dilluted in your RO water any effects would be negligible.

RO is great, but if you're going to use it exclusively, make sure you add trace elements back in. Lots of people (Gin, I think, for one) alternate between using tap and RO each watering....

[auntymo]

yes i was either just going to add it to my regular tap water, or alternate waterings with it, since i can't exactly lug gallons and gallons out at a time :P

good to know i don't have to worry about the quaternary ammonia though, that makes it much easier.

thanks!

--mo--

[Piper]

My quick and dirty (and cheap) solution to tap waterings was to put an RO filter on my showerhead. It was $40. I need to change the filter once a year. I can water half my plants in the shower directly. All the slippers and any flowering plants get dunked in a pail I fill in the shower (with the good water.)

About once every 2-3 weeks, I do a sink watering in the kitchen, which provides the Ca and Mg, along with fert and vits. (Most plants have a light dosing of Osmacote.)

Julie

[Gin]

Hi , Most of the time I use rain water collected from the green house roof and pumped into trash cans 2 outside and one in the green house that is used with a submersible pump to water , When it does not rain I use half tap with aquarium dechlor drops added and ph down drops and the other half RO. I have one of the pool test kits to get a Ph range . I bought an RO. unit last year , and use the MSU. rain water Fert. It has the trace elements . Check out some of the super markets the one here has Ro. for 39 cents a gal and they supply the jug .I got tired of dragging jugs to the store. lol . Gin

[MikeWA]

If you can grow carniverous plants like Sundew in your tap water then there is absolutely NO reason to use RO water or any other water.

[auntymo]

hehe. good point mike. i have been meaning to buy a couple of CPs.

i just can't seem to find any here.

arghargharghargh

--mo--

ps. thanks for the great tips everyone. if all goes well i should have some sort of rain collection system happening this summer (i'm picturing a bowl or an ice cream pail. hehe)