What's new
By:
GrowWeedEasy.com
You're browsing as a guest. Sign up to join the conversation, share your grows, and get help from thousands of fellow growers — it's free and takes less than a minute.

Very important to everyone EC/PPM

9fingerleafs

9fingerleafs

Well-known member
hey guys i stumbled upon a youtuber veggie grower, very educated and he makes the fastest and most informative videos about serious growing ive seen, you will not see any weed in there, but the whole knowledge is right there. super recommended his name is "Everest Fernandez"

so the thing with this video is it explains the whole EC/PPM meter scales confusion in a easy to understand and fun way, new growers come everyday to this forum asking about the same things over and over and many people that dont really understand tries to explain it. im not trying to upset anyone i just noticed this information is very scarse and it would be great if nebula could add it to the site, i know im no one to demand such things so all i can do is bring you guys this video hoping this information will help everybody understand so we can help new growers with real understanding and not just "advices" wich pretty commonly are "do what i do"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uI9D-ONNdHg

good vibes everyone happy growing
 
Man, that was awesome. I didn't know any of that,
I was considering buying a TDS meter this week, but after seeing this it makes me feel like it won't be as useful as I thought..

PS. I haven't seen any stores sell TDS calibration solution. I'm assuming the TDS meter will be practically useless without calibration solution, correct?
 
not exactly, unlike ph meter, tds/ec meters stay calibrated for way longer, when you want to calibrate you need to look for the solution used by the manufacturer so the software will function properly. meaning if you buy a NaCl meter you need NaCl solution to calibrate, ill ad a chart to compare scales.

now you know a TDS meters actually measure EC and then converts by software buy one you can afford and have access to the soutions. and when ever you see someone talking ppms ask what EC are they feeding or at least what meter they measure with so you can convert and understand better
 
IMG_1782.PNG
This Is the chart
 
This video, like many of his videos, are good for increasing knowledge about the science of growing.

That being said, what we do, is use our feeding schedule, which is in some measurement (like ml) per gallon. We take a reading with any of the available meters and then go water our plants.
Depending on how our plants react we give either more, less or the same next time around. When we give less we expect a lower reading on our meter, and if we give more we expect a higher reading.

We keep track of this stuff so our next grow will be better than this grow, hopefully. Notice that I have not mentioned any type of meter because they all work for growing, accurately.

If I am missing something important here, help me out by letting me know what it is.
 
Yes. That right. So with this info we'll be able to exchange information and experience. we will not be so limited to just out grow but others too. We just need a common unit of measurement and it could be mS or regular EC. The trick is to get everyone to understand how to convert their ppms meter readings to standar mili Siemens
 
I don't have a problem with the communication. I record EC on my notes, but if I have EC 1.8 and you have EC 1..8 that, in no way, means that we are feeding the same.
My EC is only valid for my grow and conditions
 
There's a lot more to elaborate on this cause those N-P-K ratios we see on the nutrient bottles are calculated with all this irregularities. So every manufacturer uses a diferent scales to convert the conductivity to ppms in their nutrient solution. And based on this ppms (mg/l) they calculate what percentage of "nutrients" they got for each compound. Sounds complicated but I'll add another chart to clear out
 
here are some more charts :)

this are the most popular meters and the scale they use
Screen Shot 2017-03-15 at 1.18.06 PM.png

Screen Shot 2017-03-15 at 1.18.18 PM.png



this are the most common nutrients and theis scales (see how many are calculated with OR water and some with tap water )

Screen Shot 2017-03-15 at 1.18.38 PM.png
 
Electro conductivity plays a very important role on nutrient intake and is this single factor what differs between feeding and flushing. But it doesn't stop there. The plants EC and the difference in values between medium and plant is what is going to let you "feed" the plant aggressively when its needed and the way you make sure it doesn't not stop "eating". This is where we need to share. Every single strain has a limit and a very diferent one. So even when it doesn't mean you and me are feeding the same at 1.8 EC if you tell me you are getting nutrient burn and we're running similar systems with the "same strain" I would have a better idea of the strains EC limit so I can feed <1.8

What you call nutrient burn is actually EC burn. Every different nutrient toxiticiy has its own symptoms and with the exception of nitrogen is way more common to find EC burn than other toxiticys. And as you well know this stuns and delays the plant developement so every one should avoid it


I know it sound very specific but that's the kind of information you get from breeders and seed banks to better grow their seeds. And that's what we want right? :)
 
I just purchased a cheap EC/ppm meter (switches between both). How should I start using it in regards to my grow?
What should I be trying to accomplish?

I'm reaching the end of week 4 flower btw.
Cheers.
 
NPK values you see on nutrient bottles have nothing to do with ec or ppm. They are strictly a percentage of that nutrient in the bottle.
A fertilizer with a NPK of 1.2.3 would contain 10 grams nitrogen 20 grams phosphorus and 30 grams potassium available in the from quoted in the ingredients which is where it can become confusing
Take for example Nitrogen, which can be added as ammonium nitrate NH4NO3. The maker could add 100grams of NH4NO3 per litre and give it a NPK of 10.0.0 but you don't get 100 grams of Nitrogen, you actually get 22.5 grams NH4 and 77.5 grams of NO3, but only 35 grams N
 
Last edited:
you are wrong growmore, its calculated by EC not by weight, a nitrogen atom is 14g/mol and potassium is 40g/mol every single compound has different weight and density and cannot be just added together, please check the charts i added and read up online how to calculate percentages in chemistry
 
you should check your EC going in and out to keep track of the plant´s and medium´s EC, thus understanding how much nutrients are still on the medium, how much to add or to leach, finding the right feeding needs for each plant and avois "nutrient" burn
 
I don't want to argue with you but I am correct. I don't need to check online to work out chemistry as I have a degree in biochemistry and currently work as a consultant in plant nutrition, both hydroponics and in ground. Check my earlier post and work out the maths and you will see I am right. If it is easier for you to understand then I will quote in .molecular weights
N 14.
H 1
O 16
Therefore NH4NO3 has a MW of 80 convert that to a percentage and you come up with the same answer I posted earlier.
 
arite "doc" let me put it in words you understand, you cannot compare two or more different molecules when they have different weights and densities, so grams are out the question, the only thing you can count is how many molecules there are, so a solution with 10g N , 10g P and 10g K is not a 1-1-1 ratio, but a solution with 200ppm of each, no matter how much they weight, is always going to be 1-1-1. im not saying you are not what you say you are, im just saying anyone who took chemistry 101 knows its not the same one gram of gold than a gram of cotton.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top