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#1
17-07-2005, 04:17 PM
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How can I soften my water?
Hi All,
I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed to our very hard tap water). I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the salts that my plants don't like. The sensitive plants are a Nepanthes & several Orchids. Thanks Matt |
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#2
17-07-2005, 04:35 PM
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Matt Durkin wrote:
:: Hi All, :: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed to :: our very hard tap water). :: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. :: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the :: salts that my plants don't like. Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and re-directs surplus water into your drains. -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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#3
17-07-2005, 04:48 PM
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Martin wrote:
:: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:35:38 GMT, "Phil L" :: wrote: :: ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Rainwater isn't necessarily soft. He mentioned collecting rainwater, so I assume his rainwater is softer than his tapwater -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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#4
17-07-2005, 05:03 PM
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On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 17:56:53 +0200, Martin wrote:
On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:48:15 GMT, "Phil L" wrote: Martin wrote: :: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:35:38 GMT, "Phil L" :: wrote: :: ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Rainwater isn't necessarily soft. He mentioned collecting rainwater, so I assume his rainwater is softer than his tapwater I wasn't sure if he realised just how acid rainwater can be in some places. I think you will find that rainwater is always soft, as hardness comes from the (calcium) rocks it may filter through. However acidity is another thing and you are correct to suggest that acidity (or lack of it) depends on the atmosphere that the rain has passed through. Tap water can be any combination of these depending where your water comes from, what the atmosphere was doing at the time the rain fell from the sky and how it was treated by the water company. Hardness can be temporary or permanent. I used to keep tropical fish and found acidity easy to determine with a ph kit, hardness on the other hand is a complicated beggar to test for. Your water company will tell you if you ask. -- Jim Tyneside UK |
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#5
17-07-2005, 05:40 PM
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"Jim Scott" wrote in message
... On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 17:56:53 +0200, Martin wrote: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:48:15 GMT, "Phil L" wrote: Martin wrote: :: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:35:38 GMT, "Phil L" :: wrote: :: ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Rainwater isn't necessarily soft. He mentioned collecting rainwater, so I assume his rainwater is softer than his tapwater I wasn't sure if he realised just how acid rainwater can be in some places. I think you will find that rainwater is always soft, as hardness comes from the (calcium) rocks it may filter through. However acidity is another thing and you are correct to suggest that acidity (or lack of it) depends on the atmosphere that the rain has passed through. Tap water can be any combination of these depending where your water comes from, what the atmosphere was doing at the time the rain fell from the sky and how it was treated by the water company. Hardness can be temporary or permanent. I used to keep tropical fish and found acidity easy to determine with a ph kit, hardness on the other hand is a complicated beggar to test for. Your water company will tell you if you ask. -- Jim Tyneside UK Hi All, I'm not sure how acid my rain / tapwater is, but I do know my tapwater is very hard. I don't have anywhere I can collect rainwater as there's no space to put a water butt near my house (unfortunately). just wondered what my optios are with the stuff coming out of the tap! Cheers, Matt |
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#6
17-07-2005, 07:33 PM
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Major snippage
I'm not sure how acid my rain / tapwater is, but I do know my tapwater is very hard. I don't have anywhere I can collect rainwater as there's no space to put a water butt near my house (unfortunately). just wondered what my optios are with the stuff coming out of the tap! Cheers, Matt Catch the mel****er when you next defrost the freezer. Or defrost the freezer whenever you want to water the plants. Steve |
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#7
17-07-2005, 07:45 PM
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You could buy a water softener, or leave the tap water to stand in
buckets/watering cans for a few days which reduces some of the shit in the water we recieve. -- Thanks Keith,Nottingham,England,UK. "Matt Durkin" wrote in message ... "Jim Scott" wrote in message ... On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 17:56:53 +0200, Martin wrote: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:48:15 GMT, "Phil L" wrote: Martin wrote: :: On Sun, 17 Jul 2005 15:35:38 GMT, "Phil L" :: wrote: :: ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Rainwater isn't necessarily soft. He mentioned collecting rainwater, so I assume his rainwater is softer than his tapwater I wasn't sure if he realised just how acid rainwater can be in some places. I think you will find that rainwater is always soft, as hardness comes from the (calcium) rocks it may filter through. However acidity is another thing and you are correct to suggest that acidity (or lack of it) depends on the atmosphere that the rain has passed through. Tap water can be any combination of these depending where your water comes from, what the atmosphere was doing at the time the rain fell from the sky and how it was treated by the water company. Hardness can be temporary or permanent. I used to keep tropical fish and found acidity easy to determine with a ph kit, hardness on the other hand is a complicated beggar to test for. Your water company will tell you if you ask. -- Jim Tyneside UK Hi All, I'm not sure how acid my rain / tapwater is, but I do know my tapwater is very hard. I don't have anywhere I can collect rainwater as there's no space to put a water butt near my house (unfortunately). just wondered what my optios are with the stuff coming out of the tap! Cheers, Matt |
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#8
17-07-2005, 08:01 PM
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"Phil L" wrote in message . uk... Matt Durkin wrote: :: Hi All, :: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed to :: our very hard tap water). :: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. :: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the :: salts that my plants don't like. Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and re-directs surplus water into your drains. Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? Or maybe water sold for irons? Jenny |
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#9
17-07-2005, 08:08 PM
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JennyC wrote:
:: "Phil L" wrote in message :: . uk... ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... I read it as him having nowhere to collect it *from*, IE a shed or greenhouse roof :: :: I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? :: Or maybe water sold for irons? :: Jenny TBH I can't imagine that any plants would care one way or another, many animals are water based (us included) and hardness/softness is of no importance! -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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#10
17-07-2005, 08:18 PM
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You are Wrong!
-- Thanks Keith,Nottingham,England,UK. "Phil L" wrote in message . uk... JennyC wrote: :: "Phil L" wrote in message :: . uk... ::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::: Hi All, ::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as opposed ::::: to our very hard tap water). ::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch rainwater. ::::: Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as to remove the ::::: salts that my plants don't like. ::: ::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which ::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water ::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and ::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. :: :: Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... I read it as him having nowhere to collect it *from*, IE a shed or greenhouse roof :: :: I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? :: Or maybe water sold for irons? :: Jenny TBH I can't imagine that any plants would care one way or another, many animals are water based (us included) and hardness/softness is of no importance! -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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#11
17-07-2005, 09:49 PM
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keith ;-) wrote:
:: "Phil L" wrote in message :: . uk... ::: JennyC wrote: ::::: "Phil L" wrote in message ::::: . uk... :::::: Matt Durkin wrote: :::::::: Hi All, :::::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as :::::::: opposed to our very hard tap water). :::::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch :::::::: rainwater. Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as :::::::: to remove the salts that my plants don't like. :::::: :::::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which :::::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water :::::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and :::::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. ::::: ::::: Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... ::: ::: I read it as him having nowhere to collect it *from*, IE a shed or ::: greenhouse roof ::: ::::: ::::: I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? ::::: Or maybe water sold for irons? ::::: Jenny ::: ::: TBH I can't imagine that any plants would care one way or another, many ::: animals are water based (us included) and hardness/softness is of no ::: importance! :: You are Wrong! :: :: -- :: Thanks Keith,Nottingham,England,UK. Aside from top posting which I won't mention(!) would you like to elaborate, or are you saying that *everything* I've typed is incorrect? -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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#12
17-07-2005, 11:02 PM
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"Phil L" wrote in message news  keith ;-) wrote: :: "Phil L" wrote in message :: . uk... ::: JennyC wrote: ::::: "Phil L" wrote in message ::::: . uk... :::::: Matt Durkin wrote: :::::::: Hi All, :::::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as :::::::: opposed to our very hard tap water). :::::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch :::::::: rainwater. Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so as :::::::: to remove the salts that my plants don't like. :::::: :::::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter which :::::: fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a water :::::: butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow and :::::: re-directs surplus water into your drains. ::::: ::::: Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... ::: ::: I read it as him having nowhere to collect it *from*, IE a shed or ::: greenhouse roof ::: ::::: ::::: I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? ::::: Or maybe water sold for irons? ::::: Jenny ::: ::: TBH I can't imagine that any plants would care one way or another, many ::: animals are water based (us included) and hardness/softness is of no ::: importance! :: You are Wrong! :: :: -- :: Thanks Keith,Nottingham,England,UK. Aside from top posting which I won't mention(!) would you like to elaborate, or are you saying that *everything* I've typed is incorrect? -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. Don't you find top posting easier to read,I click reply to post ,type my message & click send! its that easy. You are wrong saying hardness/softness is of no importance to plants.Most if not all plants would prefer rain water obviously to tap water. The OP was referring to nepanthes & orchids which definitely prefer rainwater,hard/alkaline water can lock up important minerals,so the plant would suffer over time. Keith |
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#13
17-07-2005, 11:17 PM
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keith ;-) wrote:
[...] Don't you find top posting easier to read,I click reply to post ,type my message & click send! its that easy. [...] Because it confuses me. Why don't you like top-posting? -- Mike. |
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#14
17-07-2005, 11:31 PM
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keith ;-) wrote:
:: "Phil L" wrote in message :: news
::: keith ;-) wrote:::::: "Phil L" wrote in message ::::: . uk... :::::: JennyC wrote: :::::::: "Phil L" wrote in message :::::::: . uk... ::::::::: Matt Durkin wrote: ::::::::::: Hi All, ::::::::::: I seem to have a number of plants that prefer pure water (as ::::::::::: opposed to our very hard tap water). ::::::::::: I only have a very small garden and nowhere to easily catch ::::::::::: rainwater. Is there anything I can do to treat the tapwater so ::::::::::: as to remove the salts that my plants don't like. ::::::::: ::::::::: Use the rainwater from your house roof, you can get an adapter ::::::::: which fits onto your downspout and directs the rainwater into a ::::::::: water butt....the ones I've seen don't allow the butt to overflow ::::::::: and re-directs surplus water into your drains. :::::::: :::::::: Phil, OP mentions NOT having room for a water butt ......... :::::: :::::: I read it as him having nowhere to collect it *from*, IE a shed or :::::: greenhouse roof :::::: :::::::: :::::::: I wonder if boiled (then cooled!) water would do ? :::::::: Or maybe water sold for irons? :::::::: Jenny :::::: :::::: TBH I can't imagine that any plants would care one way or another, :::::: many animals are water based (us included) and hardness/softness is :::::: of no importance! ::: ::::: You are Wrong! ::::: ::::: -- ::::: Thanks Keith,Nottingham,England,UK. ::: ::: ::: ::: Aside from top posting which I won't mention(!) would you like to ::: elaborate, or are you saying that *everything* I've typed is incorrect? ::: ::: ::: -- ::: If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. ::: ::: Don't you find top posting easier to read,I click reply to post ,type my :: message & click send! its that easy. So do I but when I start a reply, my cursor is placed at the bottom, where I've typed 'ZXZ' in this post, and people can follow the natural flow of information from top to bottom :: You are wrong saying hardness/softness is of no importance to :: plants.Most if not all plants would prefer rain water obviously to tap :: water. The OP was referring to nepanthes & orchids which definitely :: prefer rainwater,hard/alkaline water can lock up important minerals,so :: the plant would suffer over time. :: Keith Call me an old cynic but water is water! - and I said I doubt if any plants could care either way, how can dissolved calcium and magnesium be of any detriment to a plant? - it either utilises them or it doesn't, unless they are active poisons to a plant I can't see how they would suffer. -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. ZXZ |
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#15
17-07-2005, 11:31 PM
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Mike Lyle wrote:
:: keith ;-) wrote: :: [...] :::: Don't you find top posting easier to read,I click reply to post :::: ,type my ::: message & click send! its that easy. :: [...] :: :: Because it confuses me. :: Why don't you like top-posting? :: HTH :-p makes following a thread almost impossible are involved but when others join into a conversation it upside down, it's OK for email where only two people top posting is bad because you have to read the messages -- If God had intended us to drink beer, He would have given us stomachs. |
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