what ph to soak rockwool cubes?

[mrsmokey1]

I read to soak rockwool cubes at ph 5, what do you do??

[bongonaussie]

hi there mrsmokey1..

 

I would go a tad higher, up around 5.8 odd..

 

[Pure]

Grow Cubes are quite alkalinic themselfs and whilst in the water will change it a little so it's best to soak at a ph of around 5.4 so that the cubes themselfs balance out to around 5.6 - 5.8

[jimbojones5678]

Yeah I find that soaking at 5.5 is the go.

 

Jimbo

[mrsmokey1]

ohhhh, i putem in at 4.9 like that other guy said hmmm 4.9 to come out at 6ph, oh well they should be ok at above 5ph i guess, the rhizo in water made it about 9ph before i made it 4.9.

[Luke Skywalker]

From what I know they don't recommend adding rhizo before rooting?

 

But yeah, make it mildly more acidic. It depends to a large degree on the hardness of your own water supply and the pH buffer that gives it. Pure water like RO or Rainwater will likely require a slightly lower pH adjustment than high e.c. waters from coastal areas like Perth. (pH 8.5 and an e.c. of 0.8 out of the tap where I am.)

[mrsmokey1]

yeh well i added more water and today its at 6ph so its al good.......my tap water is 7.6 and e.c is .2 or 140ppm

[mrsmokey1]

i didnt put alot of rhizo like 2.5ml in 4.5ltrs water to soak them cubes.......should i plant seed root facing down like soil???

[Al B. Fuct]

Grodan suggest you soak cubes for 24hrs in ph5.0, then drain the cubes fully- I use a salad spinner. This 5.0 soak will react with any remaining limestone dust in the cube and prevent a persistently rising pH through the life of the cube. After that, just apply nutes at appropriate strength @ pH 5.3-5.8, as you do for rockwool cubes, slabs or floc. If you're using RW cubes to start but another medium like clay pellets for the rest of the life of the plant, set pH to 5.5-6.0 once roots are grown into the pellets.

[jimbojones5678]

Good info there Al...

I agree with Luke from experience that the Rhizo is best left out of it until roots are showing - I don't know why but the success rate is vastly improved.

BTW Al...what the f*ck is a salad spinner? Got a pic?

 

Jimbo