FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

So my tap water, at this time comes in between 30 and 35 PPM. I understand that so long as it is under 100 that it is suitable to use on CP's. Although I have yet to try it on any of my plants, I am considering doing so due to having an abundance of plants. Even with our torrential rains in the PNW, using a 60 gallon rain barrel and as many 5 gallon buckets and other means just is not going to be enough, especially once our summer arrives in mid July.
So my question is, what do the larger grow operations use? Distilled water has gone up about 30 to 40 percent since inflation kicked up so high 3 years ago. I do not need anything fancy since my water does come in pretty low. I have used aquarium test strips also to check for other impurities and they come in within acceptable ranges. I use the test strips that test for pretty much everything. I just want to process the water to make sure it is not going to kill off my plants. I was thinking of using one or two of my plants as "test" plants but it is hard to pick any that I would not be devastated if I kill it. I currently use a Zero water tank/filter for our home drinking water but they are way too slow. It would take several days to process the amount of water I need on a daily basis. Also, the filters are where they get you as they are not cheap. Would a reverse osmosis system or something similar work?

Mix the rain water 50/50 with your tap water. now your TDS is 15 :b
Really though, a TDS of 30-35 is just fine. an RO filter would be overkill. You could get an Aquatic Life RO buddy and just run the deionization stage (which is basically what the zerowater filter does) to get it to zero if you realllly wanted to. the tiny bit of trace minerals in your tap water might even be good for your plants.

Would the presence of chlorine or chloramines affect the plants? (They may not even be used, though.)

Chlorine and chloramines are a challenge with tap water. If your water is from a well at 30-35, then you are fine to use it. I used 75ppm water on my outdoor plants for years. Even then, it was low in calcium and magnesium, which are the big problems for carnivorous plants. Also, they were outdoors and got flushed regularly by the rain.

If you don't have a well, you need to find out if the water has chlorine or chloramine added. Chlorine can be removed with a simple carbon filter. Chloramine is not that easy to get rid of.

If you're at ~30 ppm, use it straight from the hose. Any chlorine in the water will evaporate within 24 hours, faster if it's warmer.
My tap water is 100-110 ppm, and I water right from the hose when my rain water runs out. Another member who used to live in my city exclusively used the hose for almost five years with no ill effects

One of the nurseries in my area uses ground water (about 70 PPM) when the rainfall is lacking. None of their carnivorous plants have any complaints about it.

A thumb's up to elaineo's suggestion of mixing rain and tap water 50/50 to stretch out your supply.

Do you have room for an IBC (Intermediate Bulk Container)? The "small" size holds 275 gallons, measures 48” L x 40” W x 46″ H, has a 6-inch top-fill port and 2-inch discharge valve. You can find one for as little as $100 on Craig's List. Just make sure that it's listed as "food grade" (wasn't used to transport any nasty chemicals). You can connect several IBCs together for a huge rainwater stash. An Internet search for "IBC rain barrel" will turn up all sorts of useful info.

One note: Find a good, sturdy site to hold the IBC. A gallon of water weighs 8.34 pounds, and the IBC itself weighs 135 pounds. Filled with rainwater, we're talking just over 2,400 pounds. That will have no trouble sinking into soft ground.

Thanks all. I do have room for the IBC. I currently have a 60 gallon rain barrel next to my tool shed that will very soon have a gutter on it leading to the rain barrel. I am considering replacing the current tool shed as it has seen better days. I plan to pour a concrete foundation in which I can add room for a couple IBC's. I might just start filling 1 gallon containers with our tap water and let them set at least over night. Maybe I will just end up experimenting with a couple different options to see which works best. Our chlorine level is very low. I think the chloramine was within range the last I checked it. Our hot water runs about 60 PPM. Again, thanks for all the help and suggestions.

We have an under-sink RO filter for drinking water that brings the ppm down to about 50 (higher than yours sans filter), which is what I've been using, except for seedlings that can't feasibly be flushed out. If I had your #s I don't think I'd bother for the mature plants. Seedlings were getting distilled water from the supermarket but then I tested the water from the "Glacier" water dispenser down the street and it came in at ~18ppm and 50 cents/gallon, which is cheaper than the distilled water or (so it seemed from my calculations) a Zero Water pitcher's filter over its lifetime, so now they're on that. But I'm only using about a gallon/week if that.

I spotted this on my newsfeed today. It's called a WC-100 and pulls water out of atmospheric humidity. The article says it can do about 100 gallons per day. It's pricey, around $500, and the output (and cost) is probably more than the average hobbyist would need. Also, it seems to work best if the humidity is above 40%.
Personally, I'll stick with Zero Water filters. I stockpile water during the winter and store it in drinking water jugs in the garage.

Edit: After a little more digging, I learned that the $500 is just an upfront "reservation" fee for a $20K unit. $20K will buy a lot of Zero Water filters or a nice high-capacity recirculating RO system, including a 10-year maintenance contract.

my tap water is 24-26 and in the summer i keep floating plants in my water tubs and it keeps my TDS very low even just topping it off over and over. For shallow treys i suggest "Salvinia minima".

I keep it in my aquarium over the winter here is a shot from above. It cleans the water so well i can have 400 platy fish in a 10g the max suggested is 20

every fish in this video was born in that 10g tank, the local pet co lets me drop of small amounts every other week
https://imgur.com/XMKaIfk

The fish don't eat the plants? I have some aquatic plants, Utricularia inflata, vulgaris and intermedia in an aquarium now. Did not know they would work for cleaning water. I bought them to put in my pond once completed.

plattys will not eat Salvinia minima. they will pick at the roots but most floating plants can double there mass in 24 hours.

I forgot, I also have some Salvinia and some Pin Wheel plants. They are quite cool to watch work.

optique wrote: ↑Thu Jan 11, 2024 10:32 pm plattys will not eat Salvinia minima. they will pick at the roots but most floating plants can double there mass in 24 hours.

Do you have a pump in your tank? I have a small one but even it seems to pump too quickly and my salvinia turn brown and die off after a few weeks. My aquarium is, however filled with them and the Utricularia inflata, vulgaris and intermedia all have grown like weeds.

I have a sponge filters ran by air pumps. i have floating air line and air line fittings forming a floating barrier to keep the plants back and to pop the bubbles when they hit it.