I don't think I've told you but a couple months ago I went to your few drops of fertilizer and a few drops of API Stress coat in my water and my plants are absolutely thriving!! What a difference it makes! I also use my Sansi lights and my plants have never looked better. I've learned so much from your videos. Thank you!!
Fish Poop Gold. I also have Pothos and Califia growing straight out of my aquarium. They do a better job of sucking out the ammonia than aquarium plants do.
Rain water. Obviously not practical for everyone, but if you live in a house it's very easy to set up a diversion from a downpipe and collect rainwater in barrels.
Ever since I started using marine stress coat in my water, my plants are thriving. Rich, you suggested this months ago when I first got my plants. Thanks again. Love and Peace.
I learned to set it out to eliminate the fluoride. It made a major difference for my plants. I set the water with egg shells and banana peels, and my plants do amazing. I sometimes add some epsom salts, a binch of borax or baking soda too. It far surpasses any Miracle Grow I ever used. I put it in plastic water bottles and refill until it gets stinky and then just throw it out. They sit under my sink and my plants have never been happier. My plants appreciate the Love.
@@censusgary No, I meant fluoride. Doing so did make a major difference on many plants. The stuff is poison and can burn things. It never helped teeth either. There's lawsuits for its removal.
I used to buy distilled water and used on my picky plants. All Spring and Summer I used water from the dehumidifier for all my plants with great results! Then I saw one of your videos about this water conditioner and started using it once Fall arrived in MN and it's worked great! None of the plants went through any change and they all look wonderful!
Distilled water contains no toxic chemicals, but it contains no minerals, either. That is good for some plants and bad for others. It depends on the plant’s native habitat. If a plant comes from, say, a rain forest, it is probably suited to water with low or no mineral content- especially if the plant’s an epiphyte (a plant that grows in trees). If a plant is from the desert, or somewhere with a lot of limestone in the soil, it prefers some mineral content (certain minerals, that is).
If you're going to use water conditioner please use one that doesn't have added medication included. Your plants will love it more as some brands stress coats included aquarium salt in the mixture and isn't great for plants (some brands here in Australia do include it). Also aquarium fertiliser can be good too!
I'm getting some water conditioner - today! I just ordered some plant shelves for my RV and my little cottage, and some grow lights - I've become a "making plants monster!" LOL It's just absolutely fun seeing them grow a great root system - then plant them and watch them just grow and grow and grow. Yipee.
Thanks to you, I have been using the API stress treatment to my tap water and all my plants are soooooo much happier. It was so inexpensive on amazon, and good-sized. It just takes 1 ml a gallon of water, so I have only used a few oz in 3 months. I share your videos with everyone.
Found this on my local water company website which you may find useful. Chlorine is added during the final stage of the water treatment process. Some customers may notice this more than others if they are sensitive to the taste or smell. The tast and smell on chlorine can be stronger when: You live nearby to one of our treatment works facilities (The closer you are, the more noticeable it may be) The time of day, as first thing in the morning and early evening is peak time for water use. This means the water comes more quickly from the treatment works and may contain more chlorine. The temperature of the water. For example, cold water can hold chlorine for longer than warm water.
Thanks, Rich. This has been taking up a bit of space in my brain lately, and it's because I've been told to stop putting our filtered water out for our birds and whatever else is coming by for it. So I've been filling the water jug and letting it sit all day in hopes for something to evaporate out. Then it sits outside all day. I guess it was more for peace of mind than anything, in reality. Oh, the plant drama that happened yesterday as well. Bringing in from the summer, repotting, spotting pests, planting in the ground instead (almost sure death here over winter) and swearing off any new plants into the house for the foreseeable future (save for growing from seed). I guess ol' Richard the ZZ is going to be the last newcomer in a long line of our houseplants for a while. 🙂
Good Morning Mr Sheffield!!! Thank you for continuing to tell folks about the differences in chlorine and cloramine (spelling) in our water!! How are your babies doing in your attic???
I have a “hack” because I have a fish tank and treat the water for that. I change 5 gallons of water every other week, I save this “used” water to water my plants and it often has other nitrates and nutrients that the plants seem to love.
Used aquarium water is the best! Only downside I've noticed, if your nitrates in the tank are too high, it can reduce variegation in some plants. But as long as water parameters are fine in the tank, and/or for most green plants, it's great!
@ my tank is fully planted, so nitrates are always very low as I don’t have much livestock compared to my tank volume. I also have an incredible amount of biological filtration built into my tank, definitely a full ecosystem.
@@JonnieB. Same here! I just noticed that in the tank I use for plants (it is heavily overfed for breeding), one time I let my nitrates go from 10-20 ppm to 30-40 (still within acceptable range), my pink princess started showing less variegation. Similarly I have tanks that stay near 0-5 ppm nitrates and I bet for some green plants that wouldn't be enough. That being said for the most part 95% of tanks are probably fine for 95% of plants!
Hi,can you please make a video on coconut trees as hosue plants and how to care for them in the uk I have done lots of research on them but whould love it if you made a video as I bought one from Ikea and I am struggling to care for it
I first read about using Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) for dechlorination in the USDA website, which describes it as the best method to use in water treament facilities, because of how innocuous and rapid acting it is, listing several studies explaning how it works, and proving it doesn't effect fish. And so little is required- "Approximately 2.5 parts of Ascorbic Acid are required for neutralizing 1 part chlorine", which makes 1 gram of Ascorbic Acid sufficient to neutralize 100 gallons of water with the typical 1ppm of chlorine concentration. There's no risk of appreciably decreasing ph at this level. And since Ascorbic Acid degrades in a couple of days after hydration, it doesn't build up in the soil over time. Much cheaper than those bottled conditioners, and a little 50g baggie of pure Ascorbic Acid powder, kept in the freezer, will be enough for years. I was originally looking for a cost effective solution to remove the chlorine smell from our tap water, which is our drinking water. This was perfect, because it also increased our Vitamin C intake. Been using it for our plant and aquarium water for the past 15 years.
I don't like drinking tap water. I use a fish tank bubbler & it can take 2 days to remove the taste.. So I buy bottled to drink. Also Microwaved water has made my plants go wild! tho I haven't had one in many years now. but still if you do its incredible for all your herbs. I will now be getting water conditioner! Many thanks
As many other have mentioned, I use aquarium water for a majority of my watering. That being said, I do treat water when using straight from the tap or to top off my aquariums. I use sodium ascrobate, a vitamin C powder. Approximately 1/64th tsp treats 5 gallons of water.
I watched your calathea video about using water conditioner for aquariums. I started using it on my hoyas along with msu fertilizer and everything has gone crazy with growth!
I've been trying to only use my spring water or filtered over the last year since my tap water is horrible! I have to treat the water in every wash load or my laundry is dingy,filmy and never smelled clean!! I lost a few of my older favorite plants within a year after I moved into a place with hard water. I had beautiful thriving plants for 11 years without much effort or fuss!! I couldn't believe how much a move could affect my green babies 😢 Unfortunately,I had to lose a few before finally realizing🤦🏼♀️
I started using water conditioner as soon as you advised it sometime before in one of your videos and thank God it's all right with my indoor plants. I like your videos and your advice as well. Thank you.
I read that you should use the API tap water conditioner instead of the stress coat. The stress coat has something in it for the fish that the plants do not need. What do you think?
Even for aquariums they're mostly all the same. Stress coat is easier to find, so if it's all you can find it's more than fine. When I worked at an aquarium store we only had stress coat. Other brands work too of course, like seachem prime/safe.
Since starting to use this conditioner ALL of my plants are so much happier for it!! I’m several months in and I’ll never go back!! Thanks Mr. Sheffield!! 🪴🫶🏻🪴
🙏🙏🙏Thank you for debunking this myth! Those of us with aquariums have long known water MUST be treated to eliminate chloramines and other toxic chemicals. I hope other UA-camrs will FINALLY get the message so I can stop yelling at the TV. Since using treated water, my peace lillies no longer have brown tips. (I grow them in water with an air stone.) They're absolutely HUGE now and also bloom regularly. I reduced the amount of fertilizer, too, and that was the final piece to ending ALL brown tips 😁. Note: I use humidifiers 24/7 but, surprisingly, that DID NOT stop tip browning. 💚💚💚 Thank you for your awesome videos!
Aaah! ok fair enough. Not so prevalent here in Australia. An airstone speeds up the process (Chlorine) a lot too. Rainwater is my go-to for sensitive plants. I have a couple of capture drums. Nice video.
The proper way to off gas chlorine is using 20L buckets like the ones found in hardware stores. They usually have enough surface area on top to off gas overnight. This is what we recommend aquarium owners to do. Plus it's a large volume and you can refill the watering can multiple times by just dipping it. If in doubt, test strips for clorine are pretty cheap. And of course, it still won't work for chloramines. Honestly just using water conditioner is worth it just to avoid all the hassle. Your tap water might still be too hard in some cases or have other unwanted stuff, but in most places around the world treated tap water is fine. In those rare cases though, rain collecting bucket might be the best option.
I’ve used Stress Coat ever since I first saw you recommend it. I’ve had very little problems with my plants since then. Thanks so much for sharing this.
I say it on lot's a watering videos but a Reverse Osmosis filter is cheap like £35. I have mine under my kitchen sink. Mine is on a spare washing machine tap, Main downside is it is about 40mins per litre but the filter is good for 200L per day. I have a couple of 5 litre containers and refill them after use so I am not waiting for them.
Your poor plants are not affected from your water. It’s from the amount of times they’ve gotten thrown in the garbage just for your videos. The poor plants have PTSD.😂 great video and keep it up 👍
I prefer to water my house plants with rain water but it is not always practical for me to do so and over a year I probably water with tap water about 50% of the time. My large spider plant had, arguably, an optimum environment in terms of daylight, etc., but always had crispy brown leaf tips, even on new growth. In late summer I bought a bottle of the featured water treatment and used it on all my plants. I plucked out the crispy leaves on my spider plant and within two months I didn't have even one crispy brown tip and the plant is thriving. I hadn't changed any other environmental factor. I was sceptical but for me it worked.
@joewentworth7856 better translation: chloramine won't evaporate like chlorine, try out this water conditioner that works for me, and download my FREE handbook for plant troubleshooting 🤦♀️
@@kendenta2207 your plants might be lacking trace elements and minerals in the long run (like calcium deficiency, can lead to leaves not unfurling, that is one example I can think of, that has happened to me in plants directly rooted in aquariums). Lots of fertilizers assume you have minerals in the water already. So you either need a true all in one fertilizer, or add minerals (like seachem equilibrium, also an aquarium product) on top of fertilizers. Most tap waters are fine tho with conditionners and therefore can avoid you all that hassle and be in fact better than distilled for that reason. But it does depend on each plant, some like harder water than others. Also, rain water still has some trace elements (20 or so TDS), while distilled is zero in theory. So, rain water can be considered better too in that way!
As I understand it many water companies including Thames where I live In Greater London and many other water companies add ammonia to chlorine in a specific ratio to form chloramines, which are used to maintain disinfection in the water distribution system. So thanks for the tip about Stress Coat water conditioner, I now use it with every watering.
Apparently Thames water claim they don't use Chloramine😮 I wonder if I can get local University to do a proper chemical analysis. Rainwater for the win...we all need bigger butts😂
@@RADCOMJ1 Just google do Thames water treat with chloromine and you will find a link to their own web site where I got the information that they Quote _add ammonia to chlorine in a specific ratio to form chloramines, which are used to maintain disinfection in the water distribution system._
@@RADCOMJ1 Hmmm, I just checked on their website and you are correct, they state they use a "small amount of chorine" and dont mention chloramine at all, the above info was generated by googles AI and wasnt in fact from Thames Waters webpage at all, my apologies. Still I dont suppose using a water conditioner will do any harm, so Ill continue to use it for complete peace of mind.
Im new subscriber and brand new to house plants having shyed away as always killed them off 😢 So Im trying to educate myself and learn how to properly care for them. I found a plant dumped in the whoopsy section of fruit and veg section in Asda and I felt so sorry for it and took it home, I think its a philodendron xanadu on a google search. Its pepped up and im hoping to look after it. I have no clue really so found your channel. Love your channel loads of info 💕
Mr. Sheffield, really enjoy ur shows, very helpful. I have a ponytail plant, I bought a clear nursery pot to put it in. Can I repot it now? I live in Texas. U are the only one that have ever replied. Thank u.
I agree. Water conditioners are not gonna hurt house plants! It would not be successful in the aquarium hobby, if it did. A lot of hobbyists have aquatic plants, and most of those plants start as terrestrial plants anyway. So there's really not much of a difference between the two.
so ill admit i have 5 different pitchers of water sitting about the kitchen and plant room, apparently for not !!! guess ill be looking for some water treatment options lolol
Yes BUT... stress coat is a medicated water conditioner which is ok for fish, not so great for people so like with some insecticides used for pests, use with caution on edible plants. You can purchase brands (and this brand) without the stress coat but just read the label before hand.
Shef I love your vids, HOWEVER, you are the king of edging. You’ll pose a problem and then a series of would-be solutions riddled with caveats. Stop stringing us along buddy!
Richard, what do you recommend for 1 gallon bottled water? In the US, the choices are Drinking water, Distilled water, and Spring water. Some are processed with Reverse Osmosis and others are Distilled. It's confusing.
Won't have any chlorine or chloramine so doesn't apply. Well water can have a range of other stuff though, it's always good to have it tested thoroughly at least once to get an idea of what's in it (for your sake too!). No need for water conditionner tho.
When you move I would advise you to have a water filter installed under the kitchen sink. It's not only healthier for our 🌱🌱🌱 but for the whole family. 😊 BTW you will be making the "moving with 200+ plants" video, right? I'd love to see that in case I ever decide to move and for the entertainment factor of course 😅
@@SheffieldMadePlants Great!! Can't wait! Also an update on your Amaryllis. I bought three bulbs... couldn't decide on a colour... after watching your video and they all started blooming this week. So gorgeous! And huge! But I find the roots aren't very strong and one grew so tall it tipped over, had to give it support.
Well I bought such a conditioner, not really same because it was not available in my country. But a very much similar one. Anyway it say 20ml on 80l aquarium water = 4ml per liter which is equal to aprox 20 drops. Can that be and is it a risk of too much?
@SheffieldMadePlants I have peacock plant and I'm very new for this plant so don't know how to care. Did lot of research and come across to your channel. And Thank you for your valuable answer. Will buy it that water conditioner. Hopefully my peacock plant will do better. Because recently had lot of yellow leaves. Plant look very sad. 😅
What about lime/calcium? Water filter can remove it but can water conditioner do this? Our tap water isn't chlorinated but contains a bunch of calcium and the calatheas hate it. I use destilled water or my water filter.
@@schibbolethsquad44 Brita filters won't do anything to calcium and most minerals. If your tap water is very hard the alternatives I can think of are: -Using rain water, which will always be pretty soft and have good pH for plants like calatheas. -Buying distilled water like you are doing now. It might seem wasteful but honestly it's not that expensive, and the jugs can be recycled or re-used, for a small number of plants it's not a bad solution imo. -The only way to make your own distilled water is to invest in an RO water system. They're not that expensive and it's possible to install it yourself onto a faucet, but ideally you wanna have a plumber install them directly into your plumbing system. Plus you need to keep up on changing filter cartridges every few months or so. They're a bit of a hassle unless you really need truckloads of water. I myself live in an appartment and I can't really collect rain water, plus I have a dozen or so aquariums which benefit from RO water (+ the plants) so it made sense for me to invest in an RO system. But for most, especially for a few plants, rainwater is the easiest way to go, and buying water jugs for the odd plant or so isn't too bad either!
I water mine with lidl cheap bottled water ..Thames water can GFT😂 It stops you over watering for real. Ive heard the blood of politicians that tell the truth is a thousand times better than miracle grow but its rarer than Unicorns😂😂😂
Download my FREE Plant Parent's Troubleshooting Handbook 👉 resources.sheffieldmadeplants.com/handbook
I don't think I've told you but a couple months ago I went to your few drops of fertilizer and a few drops of API Stress coat in my water and my plants are absolutely thriving!! What a difference it makes! I also use my Sansi lights and my plants have never looked better. I've learned so much from your videos. Thank you!!
That is awesome!
I use my old aquarium water, plants grow mad!!
Yeah fish poop actually helps. Use the same as recommended by my plant guy. But try to mix it a bit.
@@foodsfor_thought I only use aquarium water and get great results.....just seems to do the trick.
@@SilverbackMatt01Me too. Since ive been using my aquarium water my plants look alot better.
Fish Poop Gold.
I also have Pothos and Califia growing straight out of my aquarium. They do a better job of sucking out the ammonia than aquarium plants do.
@michelleburkholder2547 Same here, I built myself a huge filter that sits above my tank full of pothos with a pump....works a treat.
Rain water. Obviously not practical for everyone, but if you live in a house it's very easy to set up a diversion from a downpipe and collect rainwater in barrels.
Ever since I started using marine stress coat in my water, my plants are thriving. Rich, you suggested this months ago when I first got my plants. Thanks again. Love and Peace.
Nice job!
Learned this trick from Mr Sheffield a year ago and my plants have never looked better
I followed your advise in buying fish tank water conditioner for my plants and they are so much healthier because of it. Thank you
Great stuff 👍
I learned to set it out to eliminate the fluoride. It made a major difference for my plants. I set the water with egg shells and banana peels, and my plants do amazing. I sometimes add some epsom salts, a binch of borax or baking soda too. It far surpasses any Miracle Grow I ever used. I put it in plastic water bottles and refill until it gets stinky and then just throw it out. They sit under my sink and my plants have never been happier. My plants appreciate the Love.
I think you mean chlorine. Letting water stand doesn’t change the fluoride content, as far as I know.
@@censusgary No, I meant fluoride. Doing so did make a major difference on many plants. The stuff is poison and can burn things. It never helped teeth either. There's lawsuits for its removal.
I use rain water or distilled water on my plants.
That water conditioner definitely works. I have calatheas in my house that are not melting and they are actually growing new leaves 😮
I used to buy distilled water and used on my picky plants. All Spring and Summer I used water from the dehumidifier for all my plants with great results! Then I saw one of your videos about this water conditioner and started using it once Fall arrived in MN and it's worked great! None of the plants went through any change and they all look wonderful!
Distilled water contains no toxic chemicals, but it contains no minerals, either. That is good for some plants and bad for others. It depends on the plant’s native habitat. If a plant comes from, say, a rain forest, it is probably suited to water with low or no mineral content- especially if the plant’s an epiphyte (a plant that grows in trees). If a plant is from the desert, or somewhere with a lot of limestone in the soil, it prefers some mineral content (certain minerals, that is).
If you're going to use water conditioner please use one that doesn't have added medication included. Your plants will love it more as some brands stress coats included aquarium salt in the mixture and isn't great for plants (some brands here in Australia do include it). Also aquarium fertiliser can be good too!
I kept fish for years and the water conditioner works wonderfully on plants.
I'm getting some water conditioner - today! I just ordered some plant shelves for my RV and my little cottage, and some grow lights - I've become a "making plants monster!" LOL It's just absolutely fun seeing them grow a great root system - then plant them and watch them just grow and grow and grow. Yipee.
Thanks to you, I have been using the API stress treatment to my tap water and all my plants are soooooo much happier. It was so inexpensive on amazon, and good-sized. It just takes 1 ml a gallon of water, so I have only used a few oz in 3 months. I share your videos with everyone.
I was so confused about this, glad you posted a detail video on it!
I use my fish tank water to water my indoor plants. That and some GT Foliage Focus and they love life!!
Found this on my local water company website which you may find useful. Chlorine is added during the final stage of the water treatment process. Some customers may notice this more than others if they are sensitive to the taste or smell.
The tast and smell on chlorine can be stronger when:
You live nearby to one of our treatment works facilities (The closer you are, the more noticeable it may be)
The time of day, as first thing in the morning and early evening is peak time for water use. This means the water comes more quickly from the treatment works and may contain more chlorine.
The temperature of the water. For example, cold water can hold chlorine for longer than warm water.
Are you kidding me.... ARE YOU EFFIN KIDDING ME??? Why am I just now finding out about this? 😲
Ordered. 😁
Thanks, Rich. This has been taking up a bit of space in my brain lately, and it's because I've been told to stop putting our filtered water out for our birds and whatever else is coming by for it. So I've been filling the water jug and letting it sit all day in hopes for something to evaporate out. Then it sits outside all day. I guess it was more for peace of mind than anything, in reality.
Oh, the plant drama that happened yesterday as well. Bringing in from the summer, repotting, spotting pests, planting in the ground instead (almost sure death here over winter) and swearing off any new plants into the house for the foreseeable future (save for growing from seed). I guess ol' Richard the ZZ is going to be the last newcomer in a long line of our houseplants for a while. 🙂
Wow. I've tried everything with spider plants. LESS water. MORE water. LESS sun. MORE sun. But, always the brown tips! Finally something new to try.
Good Morning Mr Sheffield!!!
Thank you for continuing to tell folks about the differences in chlorine and cloramine (spelling) in our water!!
How are your babies doing in your attic???
Better now that i've moved haha
The video is very interesting and helpful; it has also helped me with many issues in taking care of indoor plants. Thank you!
I have a “hack” because I have a fish tank and treat the water for that. I change 5 gallons of water every other week, I save this “used” water to water my plants and it often has other nitrates and nutrients that the plants seem to love.
Used aquarium water is the best! Only downside I've noticed, if your nitrates in the tank are too high, it can reduce variegation in some plants. But as long as water parameters are fine in the tank, and/or for most green plants, it's great!
@ my tank is fully planted, so nitrates are always very low as I don’t have much livestock compared to my tank volume. I also have an incredible amount of biological filtration built into my tank, definitely a full ecosystem.
@@JonnieB. Same here! I just noticed that in the tank I use for plants (it is heavily overfed for breeding), one time I let my nitrates go from 10-20 ppm to 30-40 (still within acceptable range), my pink princess started showing less variegation.
Similarly I have tanks that stay near 0-5 ppm nitrates and I bet for some green plants that wouldn't be enough. That being said for the most part 95% of tanks are probably fine for 95% of plants!
Hi,can you please make a video on coconut trees as hosue plants and how to care for them in the uk I have done lots of research on them but whould love it if you made a video as I bought one from Ikea and I am struggling to care for it
I first read about using Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) for dechlorination in the USDA website, which describes it as the best method to use in water treament facilities, because of how innocuous and rapid acting it is, listing several studies explaning how it works, and proving it doesn't effect fish.
And so little is required- "Approximately 2.5 parts of Ascorbic Acid are required for neutralizing 1 part chlorine", which makes 1 gram of Ascorbic Acid sufficient to neutralize 100 gallons of water with the typical 1ppm of chlorine concentration. There's no risk of appreciably decreasing ph at this level. And since Ascorbic Acid degrades in a couple of days after hydration, it doesn't build up in the soil over time. Much cheaper than those bottled conditioners, and a little 50g baggie of pure Ascorbic Acid powder, kept in the freezer, will be enough for years.
I was originally looking for a cost effective solution to remove the chlorine smell from our tap water, which is our drinking water. This was perfect, because it also increased our Vitamin C intake. Been using it for our plant and aquarium water for the past 15 years.
After watching one of your earlier videos, I also started to add water conditioner drops.
I’ve been doing as you say and my plants look amazing. Thanks for sharing!
I don't like drinking tap water.
I use a fish tank bubbler & it can take 2 days to remove the taste..
So I buy bottled to drink.
Also Microwaved water has made my plants go wild!
tho I haven't had one in many years now. but still if you do its incredible for all your herbs.
I will now be getting water conditioner!
Many thanks
My water butt is frozen! I'm so glad I bought some water conditioner last month, because I needed it today so I could water them all before I go away
Water distillation is a great way to purify it. Or moving to the country and having a well works even better
As many other have mentioned, I use aquarium water for a majority of my watering. That being said, I do treat water when using straight from the tap or to top off my aquariums. I use sodium ascrobate, a vitamin C powder. Approximately 1/64th tsp treats 5 gallons of water.
I wonder if I can use slightly expired vitamin c tablets. However it says it's sodium ascorbate and calcium ascorbate.
I watched your calathea video about using water conditioner for aquariums. I started using it on my hoyas along with msu fertilizer and everything has gone crazy with growth!
And I gotta say my Nanouk doesn't have a speck of brown!
And I use it whenever I water anything!
How much do you use?
I've been trying to only use my spring water or filtered over the last year since my tap water is horrible! I have to treat the water in every wash load or my laundry is dingy,filmy and never smelled clean!! I lost a few of my older favorite plants within a year after I moved into a place with hard water. I had beautiful thriving plants for 11 years without much effort or fuss!! I couldn't believe how much a move could affect my green babies 😢 Unfortunately,I had to lose a few before finally realizing🤦🏼♀️
I have a spider plant that just flowered inside of my African bullfrog terrarium
I started using water conditioner as soon as you advised it sometime before in one of your videos and thank God it's all right with my indoor plants.
I like your videos and your advice as well. Thank you.
That's great!
I read that you should use the API tap water conditioner instead of the stress coat. The stress coat has something in it for the fish that the plants do not need. What do you think?
Even for aquariums they're mostly all the same. Stress coat is easier to find, so if it's all you can find it's more than fine. When I worked at an aquarium store we only had stress coat. Other brands work too of course, like seachem prime/safe.
Since starting to use this conditioner ALL of my plants are so much happier for it!! I’m several months in and I’ll never go back!! Thanks Mr. Sheffield!! 🪴🫶🏻🪴
Vitamin C aka ascorbic acid does work great. But it may mess with your pH, so be carful with that
Thanks. I’ve just ordered a bottle.
🙏🙏🙏Thank you for debunking this myth!
Those of us with aquariums have long known water MUST be treated to eliminate chloramines and other toxic chemicals.
I hope other UA-camrs will FINALLY get the message so I can stop yelling at the TV.
Since using treated water, my peace lillies no longer have brown tips. (I grow them in water with an air stone.) They're absolutely HUGE now and also bloom regularly.
I reduced the amount of fertilizer, too, and that was the final piece to ending ALL brown tips 😁.
Note: I use humidifiers 24/7 but, surprisingly, that DID NOT stop tip browning.
💚💚💚 Thank you for your awesome videos!
Thanks!
@SheffieldMadePlants
💚💚💚 You're soooo very welcome😃!!!
will try it eventhough there seems to be not much chlorine in the water where i life
Aaah! ok fair enough. Not so prevalent here in Australia. An airstone speeds up the process (Chlorine) a lot too.
Rainwater is my go-to for sensitive plants. I have a couple of capture drums.
Nice video.
The proper way to off gas chlorine is using 20L buckets like the ones found in hardware stores. They usually have enough surface area on top to off gas overnight. This is what we recommend aquarium owners to do. Plus it's a large volume and you can refill the watering can multiple times by just dipping it.
If in doubt, test strips for clorine are pretty cheap. And of course, it still won't work for chloramines. Honestly just using water conditioner is worth it just to avoid all the hassle.
Your tap water might still be too hard in some cases or have other unwanted stuff, but in most places around the world treated tap water is fine. In those rare cases though, rain collecting bucket might be the best option.
Yeah that's a lotta hassle
I’ve used Stress Coat ever since I first saw you recommend it. I’ve had very little problems with my plants since then. Thanks so much for sharing this.
Great to hear!
I fill 10x water cooler containers, 5 gallons, they sit for about 7-10 days before getting used
I say it on lot's a watering videos but a Reverse Osmosis filter is cheap like £35. I have mine under my kitchen sink. Mine is on a spare washing machine tap, Main downside is it is about 40mins per litre but the filter is good for 200L per day. I have a couple of 5 litre containers and refill them after use so I am not waiting for them.
Your poor plants are not affected from your water. It’s from the amount of times they’ve gotten thrown in the garbage just for your videos. The poor plants have PTSD.😂 great video and keep it up 👍
😂
thank you so much! I'll buy this product and I'm gonna try
I leave the seal on the water conditioner bottle and poke a hole in it with a needle so it comes out a drop at a time. No need for an eyedropper!
👌
I prefer to water my house plants with rain water but it is not always practical for me to do so and over a year I probably water with tap water about 50% of the time. My large spider plant had, arguably, an optimum environment in terms of daylight, etc., but always had crispy brown leaf tips, even on new growth. In late summer I bought a bottle of the featured water treatment and used it on all my plants. I plucked out the crispy leaves on my spider plant and within two months I didn't have even one crispy brown tip and the plant is thriving. I hadn't changed any other environmental factor. I was sceptical but for me it worked.
Here in USA in my state they put so much chlorine in the water ive been using my fish's water conditioner for years.
Taking a drink of tap water smells like driving into a swimming pool.
@michelleburkholder2547 exactly
The title has me like "what??" am i slow??? LOL
Translation. "buy my water conditioner and book."
@joewentworth7856 better translation: chloramine won't evaporate like chlorine, try out this water conditioner that works for me, and download my FREE handbook for plant troubleshooting 🤦♀️
Hey Rich. What about distilled water? . It's basically rain water. Very natural.
Yep that's fine. It has zero nutrients so leaching can be a problem long term
What's leaching Rich?
@@kendenta2207 your plants might be lacking trace elements and minerals in the long run (like calcium deficiency, can lead to leaves not unfurling, that is one example I can think of, that has happened to me in plants directly rooted in aquariums).
Lots of fertilizers assume you have minerals in the water already. So you either need a true all in one fertilizer, or add minerals (like seachem equilibrium, also an aquarium product) on top of fertilizers.
Most tap waters are fine tho with conditionners and therefore can avoid you all that hassle and be in fact better than distilled for that reason. But it does depend on each plant, some like harder water than others.
Also, rain water still has some trace elements (20 or so TDS), while distilled is zero in theory. So, rain water can be considered better too in that way!
@ nutrients leaching from the soil
As I understand it many water companies including Thames where I live In Greater London and many other water companies add ammonia to chlorine in a specific ratio to form chloramines, which are used to maintain disinfection in the water distribution system.
So thanks for the tip about Stress Coat water conditioner, I now use it with every watering.
Apparently Thames water claim they don't use Chloramine😮 I wonder if I can get local University to do a proper chemical analysis. Rainwater for the win...we all need bigger butts😂
@@RADCOMJ1 Just google do Thames water treat with chloromine and you will find a link to their own web site where I got the information that they Quote _add ammonia to chlorine in a specific ratio to form chloramines, which are used to maintain disinfection in the water distribution system._
@@RADCOMJ1 Hmmm, I just checked on their website and you are correct, they state they use a "small amount of chorine" and dont mention chloramine at all, the above info was generated by googles AI and wasnt in fact from Thames Waters webpage at all, my apologies.
Still I dont suppose using a water conditioner will do any harm, so Ill continue to use it for complete peace of mind.
Im new subscriber and brand new to house plants having shyed away as always killed them off 😢 So Im trying to educate myself and learn how to properly care for them. I found a plant dumped in the whoopsy section of fruit and veg section in Asda and I felt so sorry for it and took it home, I think its a philodendron xanadu on a google search. Its pepped up and im hoping to look after it. I have no clue really so found your channel. Love your channel loads of info 💕
Great stuff 👍 good luck
Mr. Sheffield, really enjoy ur shows, very helpful. I have a ponytail plant, I bought a clear nursery pot to put it in. Can I repot it now? I live in Texas. U are the only one that have ever replied. Thank u.
Yep repot any time
Thanks
R.o filter and im good. I have well water but it's ppm is 200+ so, we qll use Ro water and add a bit of regular water for mineral l oss
I agree. Water conditioners are not gonna hurt house plants! It would not be successful in the aquarium hobby, if it did. A lot of hobbyists have aquatic plants, and most of those plants start as terrestrial plants anyway. So there's really not much of a difference between the two.
Ok. Will go look for the stress coat!
3:23 had to freeze frame this image because it is GLORIOUS
😁
It should work just fine I've been using it in my fish tanks forever
We don't have Chlor in our tap water here in Germany
Can you use these conditioners on food plants such as tomatoes and beans for indoor growing?
Yes
So feed your plants aquarium water,
fish happy and plants grow like crazy.
Thanks! This is so helpful! Do you think it could help my poor Yucca which has always suffered with brown tips?
They tend to be less sensitive to chlorine
Strictly rainwater for mine 💦🌱
so ill admit i have 5 different pitchers of water sitting about the kitchen and plant room, apparently for not !!! guess ill be looking for some water treatment options lolol
I've got fish tanks. I just use the tank water after changes to water my plants. No chlorine and ample fish poop 😂
Is water conditioner safe to use in plants like lettuce, tomatoes or peppers?
Yes
Yes BUT... stress coat is a medicated water conditioner which is ok for fish, not so great for people so like with some insecticides used for pests, use with caution on edible plants. You can purchase brands (and this brand) without the stress coat but just read the label before hand.
Can I use Tomorite tomato plant food to feed my indoor house plants e.g. monsteras?
I think that’s better for flowering indoor plants
Thanks!
Thank you 😊
Shef I love your vids, HOWEVER, you are the king of edging. You’ll pose a problem and then a series of would-be solutions riddled with caveats. Stop stringing us along buddy!
Nothing is black and white
@@SheffieldMadePlants very true. I appreciate your content!
Richard, what do you recommend for 1 gallon bottled water? In the US, the choices are Drinking water, Distilled water, and Spring water. Some are processed with Reverse Osmosis and others are Distilled. It's confusing.
For drinking or your plants?
@SheffieldMadePlants For the plants :)
@@dlight9849 any will work. I don’t like buying in water just for plants so I condition the tap water
You have no idea how many people post that on Reddit, I have actually told them to come look you up and to use stress coat,
Thanks!
How about for well water?
Won't have any chlorine or chloramine so doesn't apply. Well water can have a range of other stuff though, it's always good to have it tested thoroughly at least once to get an idea of what's in it (for your sake too!). No need for water conditionner tho.
When you move I would advise you to have a water filter installed under the kitchen sink. It's not only healthier for our 🌱🌱🌱 but for the whole family. 😊
BTW you will be making the "moving with 200+ plants" video, right? I'd love to see that in case I ever decide to move and for the entertainment factor of course 😅
How did you know! Not decided on title yet
@@SheffieldMadePlants Great!! Can't wait! Also an update on your Amaryllis. I bought three bulbs... couldn't decide on a colour... after watching your video and they all started blooming this week. So gorgeous! And huge! But I find the roots aren't very strong and one grew so tall it tipped over, had to give it support.
Well I bought such a conditioner, not really same because it was not available in my country. But a very much similar one. Anyway it say 20ml on 80l aquarium water = 4ml per liter which is equal to aprox 20 drops. Can that be and is it a risk of too much?
Sounds like less than 20. Just a couple
Now I’m thinking about our drinking water?
Our plants are lucky, they get rainwater.
Is stress coat and API TAP Water Conditioner are different? Or i can use any of them?😅
Pretty much the same thing
@SheffieldMadePlants I have peacock plant and I'm very new for this plant so don't know how to care. Did lot of research and come across to your channel. And Thank you for your valuable answer. Will buy it that water conditioner. Hopefully my peacock plant will do better. Because recently had lot of yellow leaves. Plant look very sad. 😅
Just found your channel 😊 Thank you 🧚
What about lime/calcium? Water filter can remove it but can water conditioner do this? Our tap water isn't chlorinated but contains a bunch of calcium and the calatheas hate it. I use destilled water or my water filter.
Sorry not sure on that one
@@schibbolethsquad44 Brita filters won't do anything to calcium and most minerals. If your tap water is very hard the alternatives I can think of are:
-Using rain water, which will always be pretty soft and have good pH for plants like calatheas.
-Buying distilled water like you are doing now. It might seem wasteful but honestly it's not that expensive, and the jugs can be recycled or re-used, for a small number of plants it's not a bad solution imo.
-The only way to make your own distilled water is to invest in an RO water system. They're not that expensive and it's possible to install it yourself onto a faucet, but ideally you wanna have a plumber install them directly into your plumbing system. Plus you need to keep up on changing filter cartridges every few months or so. They're a bit of a hassle unless you really need truckloads of water.
I myself live in an appartment and I can't really collect rain water, plus I have a dozen or so aquariums which benefit from RO water (+ the plants) so it made sense for me to invest in an RO system. But for most, especially for a few plants, rainwater is the easiest way to go, and buying water jugs for the odd plant or so isn't too bad either!
You have said that watering from the bottom is your preferred method but this video you are watering from the top. Why?
Collect your rain water while it's still legal, no joke
Can you use distilled water??
Yes
@@SheffieldMadePlants thank you! I love your channel! I have learned a lot!
Distilled water will kill your fish, though.
@@barbarabrown7960 umm, ok? I don't have fish 😅
$15? what is that in £'s?
@@maxthecat14 lazy, you have the internet 🤔
@@sue.Hoo123 Was it necessary to leave a rude reply? no it was not.
leave that water out for longer than a few hours in aus and it'll be full of mozzies b4 u know it
Early!! Amen.
1st!!
I water mine with lidl cheap bottled water ..Thames water can GFT😂 It stops you over watering for real. Ive heard the blood of politicians that tell the truth is a thousand times better than miracle grow but its rarer than Unicorns😂😂😂
@@RADCOMJ1 all those plastic bottles 🫣
Thanks for confirming what I was thinking. I’m getting some water conditioner from the pet store ASAP. Great video as usual.💚🪴🌿