FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I have sprayed the crap out of my peat with tap water and squeezed little handfuls to get the tap out a few times. Then I let it soak in distilled water in the sun for a few days and squeezed tiny handfuls to get the water out. Then I did the same with distilled that I did with tap water a couple times, and I realized somewhere along the way that no, in fact the tap water is NOT a shortcut for rinsing.

TDS is jumping between 66 and 72 still so I dumped more distilled in, squeezed, dumped distilled in again and it’s sitting in the sun again.

What I would like to know before I lose my mind because the next couple of days are supposed to be in the 90s (and feel like 100), can I spread the peat out on baking sheets in the sun for those few days and bake off the excess stuff I don’t want to leech off of it?

Please God say yes. My vertigo is extremely unhappy with me at the moment.

ChefDean wrote: ↑Sat Jun 15, 2024 7:17 pm I've never had a problem with peat, but I use rain water to rehydrate it. Just use distilled to rehydrate the peat, then gently flush it a couple of times and, unless your TDS is high, you should be good.
Kinda curious what you're trying to bake out if it though.

I always kinda thought that in addition to the rinsing so it doesn’t (now I forget the primary reason I feel quite stupid this eon), you were also making sure the water on the other side of flushing was low TDS right? I’m around 70, so I feel like it needs more? I’ve been trying to get it as low as possible with a lot more rinsing I guess?

Well no I think it might have been the tap water honestly because the last time I just used distilled and I was definitely under 50ppm or I would have bugged you guys lol.

I got a huge bale of Premier, so if it doesn’t lower in a few more rinses I will just get new out of the bag and try not using tap water.

The reason I’m just randomly rinsing peat is because I have a lot of health issues and I figured instead of worrying about getting the TDS as low as possible (I really need to just accept under 50, but my OCD keeps telling me I can get it a lot lower if I just repeat the process more), I’d just rinse some peat and perlite and store it in freezer bags so I could rehydrate and actually rinse instead of the washing I’m trying to do whenever I get a plant I need to repot.

I’m trying to slow down on my collection but getting new plants and learning about them and caring for them is basically the only thing that makes me feel a little better.

I’ll check the TDS in it after the heatwave and if it’s off I’ll just throw it out and try new. If that’s off I’ll be ordering a new bale from somewhere. Thanks for the better understanding that I’m doing too much over here. It’s a relief.

Yeah I need a few more buckets anyhow. I’m going through distilled bought from the store like it’s going out of style. It has rained enough for me to get 2 gallons in the last few weeks.

I do overthink lol. I just don’t have any set aside yet, and I wanted to mix more because after a lot of reading I’m considering replanting the Sarr I got. I’m probably just going to give it a month or so first to see if I’m jumping the gun. I also got those baby drosera, and they’re starting to pop back up from the paper towel cover so I can keep track of their needs. I just thought I had to like actually wash the peat. I thought if I was flushing it enough that it was wet I should be making it more on the slightly damp side by wringing it out.

I try to get as close to exact with plant care as possible which is good but I think I’m taking “exact” to an unhealthy degree probably. Right now I’m still in the helicopter parent phase of having plants in general and CPs specifically. Although I think my VFTs have benefited from me looking at them constantly. Besides adding water and very occasionally trimming a dead leaf I’m at least being hands off about it. I’m just really enjoying watching the Lowe’s typicals grow.

I really had my heart set on a DC XL or a B52, but I’m super happy I spent the money to get a bunch of regular ones. They’re very beautiful and fun to watch grow.

Jade, what is the TDS ppm of your tap water? Using it may be adding more minerals to the peat moss than what it starts with. Rinsing the peat moss with low-TDS water will get rid of a lot of the minerals but what I think I really like is that rinsing it seems to lower the incidence of mold, mildew, and “odd” things growing in/ on it.

Using a TDS meter to measure the rinse-through water for peat moss isn't particularly useful. TDS = Total Dissolved Solids. There are lots of things other than minerals in that water after it has passed though the peat moss.

Intheswamp wrote: ↑Mon Jun 17, 2024 3:02 am Jade, what is the TDS ppm of your tap water? Using it may be adding more minerals to the peat moss than what it starts with. Rinsing the peat moss with low-TDS water will get rid of a lot of the minerals but what I think I really like is that rinsing it seems to lower the incidence of mold, mildew, and “odd” things growing in/ on it.

My tap is around 148ppm so yeah it’s not good. I have distilled gallons I buy every week or two as well, but I was also trying to save it. No real rain lately and the next few days might be in the 90s and feeling like 100, so I try to keep a few gallons in case of emergency, but I really need an extra source that doesn’t depend on rain and won’t break my bank for now. I’m paranoid I’ll be out sometime and the store won’t have any. I’m also spending a lot more as I get more plants.

MikeB wrote: ↑Mon Jun 17, 2024 3:04 am Using a TDS meter to measure the rinse-through water for peat moss isn't particularly useful. TDS = Total Dissolved Solids. There are lots of things other than minerals in that water after it has passed though the peat

I’m not sure why I got the idea that if you rinsed it enough the water on the other side should be at least 10ppm or less with the TDS meter. It’s actually a relief to know this because I was basically going to be straight up washing my peat for the next few years. I feel like I can actually handle getting some media mixed and set aside. I have been wondering most of this time how people rinsed their peat and got those readings. Feeling dumb, but still relieved.

For what it is worth, I never rinse my peat except when I am germinating particularly fussy seeds.

Similarly, I never rinse my peat either, normal watering will wash out any excess minerals quite easily. If you are paranoid about it empty the tray of the collected water for a few weeks.
Cheers
Steve

If you're running low on water, you might consider getting a RO unit. There's a small, portable one called the RO Buddie that can work quite well for small amounts.

I agree with this. I added the RO unit to my water storage solution and it works very well. If you have very high TDS water, or low water pressure, I recommend adding the booster pump.

My water storage solution. post382605.html#p382605