FAQs

Water is a living organism. Its mineral content, overall health, and environment can alter its state of charge (pH). This state of charge (pH) has direct effects on the growth rate and health of plants, which are electric, and bio-magnetic in nature. The XpH kickstarts, and then maintains a balanced state of charge (pH) within the water by storing a large amount of charged ions. These charged ions are slowly released and interchanged to interact with other minerals and elements in the solution, creating a stable pH and re-energizing the water. Due to all these varying properties of water, the State of charge (pH) of any given system of water, will vary some from one to another and can change during different stages of growth. Typical ranges are between 5.7-6.5, The XpH can be thought of as battery device, or storage cell for your water’s charge.

Generally, with the Automated pH Regulator (XpH), the pH will stay in the range of 5.7-6.5, though most systems will balance between ~5.8-6.2. There may be occasional instances of pH moving slightly beyond this range temporarily, but this should not be a cause for concern, as most healthy hydroponics systems will have some variance from time to time.

An improper pH is a symptom of an imbalanced charge environment in your water nutrient mix. Improper pH is caused by an imbalance between hydrogen and hydroxide ions in your solution, and diminished water vitality.

The ideal pH for a hydroponics system is a frequently debated topic and there are many misconceptions regarding it.  A grower might maintain pH within an adequate range by using acid/base additions or chemical buffers but this does not combat the root cause of the waters’ tendency to lose charge and vitality. 

The Automated pH Regulator significantly reduces water and nutrient consumption by reducing the need for frequent reservoir changes, and maintaining a healthy state of charge (pH), and overall water vitality.

The Automated pH Regulator (XpH) will store and release charged ions to maintain water health and pH. The plants can absorb the nutrients in solution with significantly more efficiency.

By maintaining a healthy charge state of the water, the plants are able to better utilize the available nutrients and less nutrients go to waste, helping to preserve the chemical stability of the reservoir for a longer period of time . Keeping pH stable without the need to add new acids or bases can prevent salt/mineral build-ups that would require more frequent reservoir changes to correct.

Less reservoir changes are required in a system using the Automated pH Regulator, and thus water & nutrient consumption is significantly reduced. 

Potential Causes: 

If no change in pH is observed when using the XpH, and using Reverse Osmosis, or soft water, try adding some Calcium and Magnesium (Cal-Mag) to the water, to help kick-start the charged ion interaction.

Circulation: see ‘Is water circulation flow rate or pump schedule a factor when using the Automated pH Regulator?’ or ‘My pH seems a bit high or low at times in my small-sized hydro setup or tank, what should I do?’

Recharge :

If the pH of your system is higher than the ideal range, and using the Legacy models, you may want to run an initial recharge of the unit (with the Automated pH Regulator Recharge Solution) to help ensure your unit and system are functioning together at optimal efficiency.

Nutrient/Additive Incompatibility:

See nutrient requirements/recommendations in the question ‘Are there any additives/buffers/fertilizers/microbes that could interfere with the Automated pH Regulator?’

Reservoir Temperature:

Significantly high reservoir temperatures can increase the pH in some situations. If the temperature of the reservoir is too high this could interfere with the device working to its full capacity, and could potentially result in a pH reading up to a full pH point higher than the ideal range. Lowering the temperature of the reservoir can resolve this issue.

An initial makeshift test can be done by freezing a couple of water bottles into ice and dropping them into the system to see if it has any effect. If using a chiller, a user can turn the setting to a cooler temperature to remedy any temperature issues. We recommend the reservoir temperature typically be in the range of 65-75 F (18-24 C), though some systems may continue to function properly within a wider temperature range.

Media Pre-Treatment:

If the reservoir temperature is within the recommended range and you are still experiencing a high pH, in a recirculating system and using rockwool/clay media that has not been treated, proper pre-treatment of the media may resolve this issue.

Although many people consider clay or hydroton media to be relatively inert, it can cause pH rise due to its basic or alkaline nature, which will buffer the system upwards. This effect can be magnified with clay or hydroton that has been sitting for long periods of time. The solution to counteract this upward buffering is the following:

Leave the hydroton/clay in a solution of 1 part vinegar, 2 parts water for over 48 hours. Rinse with water thoroughly to remove any remaining vinegar and return the media to the system.

For larger recirculating systems where removing the media may be less feasible, we recommend to run a pH 3-4.5 buffer over the media within the system for several days, adding additional buffers if the pH drifts. When the pH becomes stable the solution is ready, and the media will no longer interfere with the Automated pH Regulator’s ability to most effectively regulate the system’s pH. Common buffers that could be used include the following: phosphoric acid/hydrogen phosphate and acetate/acetic acid.

Water circulation is an important factor when using the Automated pH Regulator. It is recommended to run the pump more frequently when using the Automated pH Regulator. Make sure the pump is free of debris and has a suitable slow and steady flow rate to process the water/nutrient volume through the Torus pH regulator. Too high of a pump flow rate can cause the water to bypass the ion beads without having enough time to interact properly.

We recommended using the smallest pump that still allows a healthy rate of water changeover, 300 Gallon Per Hour/1135 Liters/Hour or less is recommended). This is why most people prefer to run the XpH Toroid/Inline Edition on a dedicated small secondary pump, separate from the main pump running the hydroponics system. 

Though there is not currently a set recommended schedule, if using a flood-and-drain system or system where the pump is not running continuously, it is recommend to run your system with relatively frequent flood/pump cycles. It is important that there is significant circulation for the Automated pH Regulator to work properly.

It is generally recommended to run the pump for a 15 min duration every 2 hours while grow lights are on, though this may be dependent on specific system variables.

If running a more frequent flood-and-drain schedule is not preferred, this can be solved by using the XpH Toroid/Inline Edition connected to a pump and sitting in your reservoir (regularly circulating the water/nutrient mixture in the reservoir through the unit). 

The Automated pH Regulator can be used with most types of hydroponic systems except aquaponics. Systems that can be used with the Automated pH Regulator include:

Deep Water Culture (DWC) / Recirculating Deep Water Culture (RDWC) / Recirculating Bucket Systems – such as

Current Culture systems

Nutrient Film Technique (NFT)

Flood-and-Drain / Ebb-and-Flow

Aeroponics

Drain-to-Waste (DTW) / Run-to-Waste (RTW) / Drain-to-Use

Drip Systems (Non-Recirculating) / Non-Recirculating Bucket Systems – Such as AutoPot or The Bucket Company systems

Standalone Reservoirs / Tanks (such as FlexiTanks, drum tanks, IBCs, etc)

Drip Systems (Recirculating)

Cloner Systems

Hybrid Systems

For high-flow recirculating systems with frequent circulation, such as DWC/RDWC/NFT/Aeroponics and Flood-and-Drain systems with frequent flood schedules, the Automated pH Regulator capsule model can be used, placing the capsule directly in the tank or reservoir.

For lower-flow recirculating systems(like drip systems, cloner systems, and flood-and-drain systems with less frequent flood schedules), (like DTW/RTW or standalone reservoirs/tanks), XpH Toroid/Inline Edition is required and can be used by connecting the unit directly to a pump and placing the pump and unit inside the reservoir tank (circulating the water/nutrient mixture in the reservoir regularly through the unit).

Yes, however this will drastically fluctuate how often Refill Pods need to be replaced or to conduct another recharge (for the Legacy Model).

Examples:
 -A 35 gallon XpH Capsule unit will last about 2x longer in a tank size of 17.5 gallons.
– A 35 gallon XpH Capsule unit will last about 2x shorter in a tank size of 70 gallons (not recommended).

Nutrient/Additive Incompatibility:

Some organic fertilizer nutrient mixes may be less effective with the Automated pH Regulator, depending on the specific formulation used. Humic or fulvic acid-based blends should especially be avoided. Organic heavy metal additives that are chelated, such as Fe IDHA, are compatible.

Use of un-stabilized silica as an additive can cause the Automated pH Regulator to work less effectively, or cause the pH to increase. When using silica with the Automated pH Regulator it is recommended to use a brand that is pre-stabilized and dose as recommended by the manufacturer. Using a bit of pH down when adding silica can help offset this pH rise if needed as well.

When using the Automated pH Regulator Inline Edition, it is possible that the water flow rate can be reduced in some instances due to the ion bead bag becoming dislodged within the housing and blocking some of the water flow. This can be remedied by removing the Automated pH Regulator from your system, unscrewing the large black cap and re-situating the ion bead bag in the form of a coiled spring for optimal water flow.

A hydroponics system free of large debris is a good safe practice, though if running a nutrient line containing large sediment or if you experience debris buildup such as plant root material etc, we recommend removing the Automated pH Regulator Inline Edition from your reservoir occasionally to clean out the screen and ion bag or a more permanent fix would be to install a debris filter placed in front of the Automated pH Regulator Inline unit.

In some situations it may be advisable to upgrade the system pump to a higher flow rate or better quality to overcome the reduced flow caused by the Automated pH Regulator Inline Edition. We recommend using a quality water pump as a good safe practice. 

Oxidizing agents such as Hydrogen Peroxide or other oxidants used for sterilization are not recommended for use with the Automated pH Regulator.

Regarding use with microbes with the Automated pH Regulator, the effect will be hard to predict as different microbes will tend to cause different effects, however in general they will tend to form biofilm on the ion beads, which will degrade their efficiency as they will basically not be able to contact the nutrient/water solution effectively.

Yes, however the buffering capacity of plain water is extremely low and so is it’s ability to perform ion exchange. Nutrients will need to be added for the Automated pH Regulator to create an ionic exchange. Once nutrients are present, connectivity vastly increases, thus enabling a viable exchange between the Automated pH Regulator’s ions and the protons from added nutrient solutions. 

Yes, the Automated pH Regulator can be used in a system without actively rooted plants (such as a standalone tank or DTW/RTW system) if using the Inline model.

When not in use, keep Automated pH Regulator in water. Store at temperatures not exceeding 122 F / 50 C.

In order to keep your Automated pH Regulator working optimally, it is required to periodically remove the Automated pH Regulator from the reservoir and recharge with the Torus Hydro Automated pH Regulator Recharge Solution.

To do this, if using the capsule model remove from use and place the unit in the included plastic tube or other container, and fill with the Recharge Solution until the unit is submerged. Leave for 2 hours. After 2 hours, remove the unit from the Recharge Solution and rinse thoroughly with water before returning to use.

If using the Inline model (Legacy model), place one of the included end caps on one end, pour the Recharge Solution into the open end until the unit is filled with the solution. Cap the open side and allow the solution to sit for 2 hours. After 2 hours, empty the Recharge Solution from the unit, rinse water through the unit thoroughly and return to use.

This releases the build up of ions that the Automated pH Regulator has captured from your system. This should be done when the pH rises outside of the crop specific optimal range.

This depends on several variables of your system, but typically growers will change their reservoir when observing a PPM increase over time, as well as visual salt buildup in the reservoir. Maintaining a proper state of charge of your water, will allow your water to maintain and improve in health over time, and significantly increase its lifespan, and therefore, reduce the need for reservoir changes.

When using the Automated pH Regulator, many growers observe that their grow can run sufficiently for more time before this PPM rise and salt buildup occurs. Depending on the exact system specifications, when using the Automated pH Regulator, some growers find they can go weeks longer than usual without a need for a reservoir change, whereas others have have run 12 week harvests without any reservoir changes and found this to be sufficient (just topping up water and nutrients as needed). 

This depends on the size of your reservoir, the number of plants in your system (if using a recirculating set-up), and the model/size of Automated pH Regulator you are using.

For example, the Automated pH Regulator (Legacy Model) 35Gal capsule will typically work optimally in a 35 gallon reservoir for 4-8 weeks before needing a recharge, depending on number of plants and root mass, as more plants and a larger root mass will lessen the time before a recharge is required.

A 70gal Automated pH Regulator could be used in a 35 gallon reservoir, increasing the time needed before regeneration. Inversely, a 35gal Automated pH Regulator could be used in a 70 gallon reservoir, but would require more frequent regeneration.

As well, the time between recharges can also be affected by the way the unit is used in your set up. When adding water/nutrients to the system, if the initial pH is far out of the ideal range, it is recommended to use a bit of pH up/down to bring it into the proper pH range. If the unit has to pull the pH up or down into range, this can deplete the charge must faster, depending upon how far out of range the start pH. See ‘set it and forget it’ section for more info on this.

The Automated pH Regulator Recharge Solution is currently available in select regions, contact for details.

The Automated pH Regulator is Designed & Assembled in Los Angeles, California.

On items from www.torushydro.com:

90 day refund for any reason, lifetime replacement if the unit stops working

The Automated pH Regulator includes a 90 Day Money-Back Guarantee, no questions asked. 

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