I want to use rainwater inside in my 2x4ft living soil bed, is there anything i need to know?

[Growdo Baggins]

Everything online says it's great. I feel like there's a drawback somewhere. I'm using a blumat system for the bed. I just wanted to check and see if anyone had anything to say about it.

 

[JKD]

If you live in a city it can have some contamination from smog etc.

 

[experienced]

Rainwater comes from heaven. It is what Nature prescribes for growing all plants, animals and humans.

It is perfect except, as JKD infers above, it may dissolve acids out of smog as it passes thru the atmosphere OR it may collect fallout from traffic (lead, brake dust) that's landed on yr roof.

 

[Three Berries]

You should let the initial first 10 minutes of rain run off the roof to wash off the pollutants. No mineral content obviously. If storing it a bit of H2O2 makes a good purifier.

I use it in my humidifiers too.

 

[da kine]

Just be aware that unless there's a hard downpour, there can be contaminants, and dreaded "bug" eggs.
Certainly not trying to disuade the usage, at all. I drank rainwater for several years, but did boil it before.

 

[Three Berries]

You will get algae and yeast in the rain water no matter what. I even filter my rainwater for the ultrasonic humidifiers and before adding in the H2O2 was getting some fermentation if I added molasses.

 

[da kine]

It depends where you are. If you are out in the middle of nowhere (literally), you should be okay. I was not getting any noticeable algae or yeast growth in mine, but had a catchment tank. Each situation can be different. Try it!

 

[Firecityseeds]

If you are planting in the ground it's no problem. If in containers or a raised bed you will likely have problems because rainwater has no alkalinity and your ph will drift hard . You can add carbonates to remedy this. Look up alkalinity and meq values .

 

[NEED 4 SEED]

It's full of plastic...

 

[interluined]

If kept indoors, living soil can become a problem from insect larvae. All of sudden you will find disturbing amounts of flies albeit midges. The main problem being they are biting insects.

2x4ft living soil bed. bugs already in the soil from where its made. tee.

 

[blondie]

I switched over to rainwater a year or two ago. Unless your rain comes into contact with the ground or something else before hitting your bucket, bug eggs are an impossibility.

I’ve had rainwater stored now for over a year in one backup container. There is a small amount of some material on the top. It’s clear and looks like pollen. Other than this no algae or anything else.

So far, my grows have been pretty good. I’ve over watered some, but that has nothing to do with the water source. Rain might or might not be contaminated. I don’t see any farmers covering their crops when it rains. The groundwater where I live is contaminated. Also, A nearby town water department head would shut down a known contaminated pump a month or so before inspection. Pass inspection and turn contaminated pump back on. Hes in jail now. Is rain more contaminated than your tap?

As for ph, meters I tried never worked so I’ve stopped using. Not a concern for me. Creepy otta be along soon for some input.

 

[da kine]

If you are collecting rain water from shed runoff, especially surrounded by trees, or a dwelling, in or around the garden, bugs can be an issue. I can attest to this because I have see them both hatch and grow on the edges of my catchment cover. Trust me they are there. The solution is to have a cover, or to allow the water sit for some time.

 

[Growdo Baggins]

You should let the initial first 10 minutes of rain run off the roof to wash off the pollutants. No mineral content obviously. If storing it a bit of H2O2 makes a good purifier.

I use it in my humidifiers too.

I will have to look into H2O2, I've heard it mention or read it somewhere, but I cannot remember what it is. Thank you for the advice.

 

[Growdo Baggins]

If you live in a city it can have some contamination from smog etc.

About 60 miles away from a very major city in USA. It's very rural where I live though. Country is what we'd call it. Thank you got the info

 

[JKD]

This is a New Zealand guide to using rainwater, where it is commonly used for drinking water in rural areas.

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www.smarterhomes.org.nz

 

[Growdo Baggins]

Just be aware that unless there's a hard downpour, there can be contaminants, and dreaded "bug" eggs.
Certainly not trying to disuade the usage, at all. I drank rainwater for several years, but did boil it before.

I got one of those filters for a pressure washer, I was hoping it would be good enough to filter bad stuff out. It looks like this

 

[Growdo Baggins]

You will get algae and yeast in the rain water no matter what. I even filter my rainwater for the ultrasonic humidifiers and before adding in the H2O2 was getting some fermentation if I added molasses.

It's been sitting for a while in the 55 drum and I was concerned about that. It only took one rainstorm to fill it up. That was weeks ago. It's rained more since, but that original rainwater still has to be in there. Is that going to be okay for plants?

 

[Growdo Baggins]

If you are planting in the ground it's no problem. If in containers or a raised bed you will likely have problems because rainwater has no alkalinity and your ph will drift hard . You can add carbonates to remedy this. Look up alkalinity and meq values .

Alkalinity and bicarbonates are what I'm trying to learn about right now. That's why I'm using rainwater bc the well water I have is loaded with bicarbonates and pretty high in sodium. I'm growing in a 2x4 bed with living soil. I don't want all the stuff that's in that well water to be continually going into my soil. In an effort to learn, I got a water analysis and began trying to interpret it. I've found a lot of good info and have a decent understand of what's going on in the well water. But I'm still learning a lot everyday. Thanks for the info. I'm going to read through all this again when I get home from work. Thanks again.

Here's the water test

 

[Three Berries]

It's been sitting for a while in the 55 drum and I was concerned about that. It only took one rainstorm to fill it up. That was weeks ago. It's rained more since, but that original rainwater still has to be in there. Is that going to be okay for plants?

With a flashlight look down in it, give it a shake and sniff it. Look for tiny bubbles and a rotten smell. If nothing then it's good. I 've got a half a barrel in the garage that's been there for two years.

You can add H2O2 now too. it won't hurt anything and it will kill anything in there while dissolving any organic matter.

What you go to look out for is a sulfur smell. That's no good.

 

[Growdo Baggins]

With a flashlight look down in it, give it a shake and sniff it. Look for tiny bubbles and a rotten smell. If nothing then it's good. I 've got a half a barrel in the garage that's been there for two years.

You can add H2O2 now too. it won't hurt anything and it will kill anything in there while dissolving any organic matter.

What you go to look out for is a sulfur smell. That's no good.

I looked it up. Hydrogen peroxide. About how much would you put in a full 55 gallon drum?

Edit: will it kill microbes in the soil? I'm looking it all up now, but wanted to ask you too.