Fixing ph in soil?

I used to grow hydro dwc and easily knew how to adjust ph in my hydro water. Now I'm growing in soil. My soils ph is about 8 right now. How do I get it back down between 6 and 7? Feed with water ph'd at 6 or give a flush with 6 ph water? Or do I use sulfur or aluminum sulfate? I read that it can take a while to fix ph in soil. New to soil growing so I need some guidance please. Thanks

 

[Arthur]

Adjusting soil pH organically

Natural Ways to Lower Soil pH

Like people, plants have specific nutritional needs and preferences. Some like their soil sour, while others require it sweet. The sour/acid vs. sweet/alkaline balance of your garden soil is measured on a pH scale, which indicates potential hydrogen ions available to help plants process soil...

homeguides.sfgate.com

 

[NorthernLights_420]

I'm not growing organic. Using biobizz light mix and mega crop 2 part nutes

 

[Arthur]

You will still need to amend the soil to lower the pH. Personally I use peat moss, but it takes a while to do its thing. If you've got plants growing, it needs to be a bit quicker. I understand that the aluminum sulfate is a virtually instant change, but have never used it myself.

 

[NorthernLights_420]

I talked to a grower on here who been using biobizz lightmix for years and he said just to ph adjust feed and water. He said he never checks ph in the soil only his feed and he never has problems. So I think I'll go that route and test it and see if it works for me. If not I'll try your methods here. Thanks for the great info @Arthur

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

How did you measure the PH of the soil in the root zone? Regardless just fertigate with PH 6.2. Are the plants showing problems?

 

[NorthernLights_420]

With a cheap ph soil meter with 2 probes. Measures ph and light and moisture levels. Yeah I have problems with ph but its cuz I havent got a meter and ph down yet. My ph in soil was reading about 8 so I'm thinking when I do get a meter and ph up and down then I'll be able to mix some nutes up at 5.5ph and feed them
Then from there I'll hit it with 6.0 PhD water and then from there 6.5. Km thinking it will correct it. But as of right now funds are an issue. Soon as I got the funds I plan to fix it and dial it in

 

[Kinezokyprios]

Just adjust the ph of the water. Soil will do the rest. Vinegar in your water is a good solution for lowering ph. A value of 8 for the soil is not something to worry about, especially since you definitely use Cal Mag - calcium increases ph. What matters is how much the medium ph decreases when you water the plants. If for a few hours, while the plant "drinks", it drops below 6.8 then there is no problem. Don't be fooled by the long term, default ph value of the soil, that is defined by the chemical values of the particular soil you use. The changes of ph when you water is what really matters for the plants to absorb the nutrients. Also don't overdo it when you lower the water's ph. Don't go below 6. The roots will not appreciate such a drop.
If you were growing organic, I would only suggest amending the ph of water, if your water source has a heavy concentration of salts that cause a ph value of over 8 or 9. Organically grown plants have their own ways to handle ph issues, after all hemp grows everywhere as a ditch weed as long as it can find water, regardless of what the local soil is.

 

[NorthernLights_420]

I have no ph meter at the moment. Will get one soon as I can along with ph up n down

 

[Kinezokyprios]

With a cheap ph soil meter with 2 probes. Measures ph and light and moisture levels. Yeah I have problems with ph but its cuz I havent got a meter and ph down yet. My ph in soil was reading about 8 so I'm thinking when I do get a meter and ph up and down then I'll be able to mix some nutes up at 5.5ph and feed them
Then from there I'll hit it with 6.0 PhD water and then from there 6.5. Km thinking it will correct it. But as of right now funds are an issue. Soon as I got the funds I plan to fix it and dial it in

You don't need any other equipment to measure. The cheap analogue meters are actually very fine for soil ph and humidity and can also work well for measuring water ph if you dip it in the bucket.
In any case don't worry, any soil ph between 5.5 and 7.5 are within the range of ideal conditions.
I would really suggest growing organically and stop worrying about all these. Within a few grows, with your experience in organic soil grows escalating, you will have much better results than those of chemical ferts.