Indoor How does a ppm meter work?

[aceboogie]

sup guys. im sorta new to growing and was wondering what a ppm meter is used for. at first i thought it was for hydro only but seems like people check the ppm on soil also. how is this measured and whats the ideal ppm? any info appreciated. thanks in advance.

 

[aceboogie]

is there anything else besides ph and ppm that i should know about?

 

[Muddy]

PPM can be used to measure the strength of your feed solution. Base water will contain a certain amount of minerals so, depending on your water source, it may read anywhere from 5 or 10 up to 250 or more. When you add your nutrients the reading will go up. Again, how much depends on what you start with. I use rain water and my base PPM can be anywhere from around 60 up to 125. I'm using AN pH Perfect nutes. When I add 1/4 strength it usually goes up to around 250 - 300. Half strength, 300 - 400 range.

 

[exploring]

pH is the "potential hydrogen" of a solution, but you know it as alkalinity or acidity at its extreme ends.

PPM means 'parts per million', and is usually a reference to the TDS (total dissolved solids (which is a misnome, because...) which works off of EC or (Electrical Conductivity), that is, the 'dirtier' the water, that is, the more conductive solids it has in it, the higher the value will read.

pH will be different for hydro and soil, with hydro tending towards slightly more acidity than soil.

PPM will vary depending on what mix of nutrients and additives you use, and at what strength. It's something you'll need to dial in yourself.

 

[auto-p]

A ppm meter measures total dissolved solids (TDS).

It can be used to determine the quality of your source water, and can be used to determine concentration of nutrients in a nutrient solution.

Not really needed for a regular soil grow.

Used for hydro, or for grows with nutrient free media to determine strength of added nutrients.

 

[auto-p]

Wow, what a cascade of answers!

 

[aceboogie]

PPM can be used to measure the strength of your feed solution. Base water will contain a certain amount of minerals so, depending on your water source, it may read anywhere from 5 or 10 up to 250 or more. When you add your nutrients the reading will go up. Again, how much depends on what you start with. I use rain water and my base PPM can be anywhere from around 60 up to 125. I'm using AN pH Perfect nutes. When I add 1/4 strength it usually goes up to around 250 - 300. Half strength, 300 - 400 range.

thanks muddy. so is there an ideal ppm for each stage?

 

[aceboogie]

Thanks guys. so the importance of keeping track of my ppm is to see what range works considering the nutes and strain?

 

[Muddy]

Not really as it will vary depending on the type of nutes your are using. When I used the GO Biothrive line my ppm ran a lot higher.

 

[aceboogie]

ok. yea thats what i meant that it would be different depending on nutes and strain.