Testing sand for PH level

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M

mwemaxxowner

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Apr 15, 2020
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Pageland SC
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30000
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Chlorine
Liquid Chlorine
One of my other "hobbies" is lawn care. I use sand to level and top dress my centipede grass, in hopes of having a very nice, smooth lawn in a few years that I can mow lower than I do right now.

I need to be very careful of the PH of my sand. If it happened to come from limestone it could be bad news for my grass.

Is there a way I can use my PH test in the TF100 kit to test the sand, that y'all know of? Is it as simple as using PH neutral water, soak the sand with it, then test that water?

Thanks!
 

THE PANTRY PH TEST FOR SOIL ACIDITY OR ALKALINITY​

  1. Place 2 tablespoons of soil in a bowl and add ½ cup vinegar. If the mixture fizzes, you have alkaline soil.
  2. Place 2 tablespoons of soil in a bowl and moisten it with distilled water. Add ½ cup baking soda. If the mixture fizzes, you have acidic soil.
  • If it does not react to either test, the soil has a neutral pH.
  • A very high or very low soil pH may result in plant nutrient deficiency or toxicity.
  • A pH value of 7 is neutral; microbial activity is greatest and plant roots absorb/access nutrients best when the pH is in the 5.5 to 7 range.
OR

You can buy one of these: Soil pH Tool
 
If you mean silica or quartz sand, like from a beach or filter sand, it should not have a pH.

If you are getting dirt or topsoil from somewhere, then it will have a pH that might not be consistent.
 
Get a sample of the sand or soil and put it in a container with distilled water and let it sit for a day.

Strain the water through a coffee filter and then test it for pH, TA, calcium hardness, salinity, total hardness and TDS.

If the pH is outside of the range of the drop test, get a pH meter.

Where are you getting the sand or soil?

There are various labs that will do a soil analysis for a fee or sometimes for free depending on the circumstances.
 
For a solid to affect the chemistry, some of it has to dissolve.

For example, filter sand does not dissolve, so it won't affect the pH or other chemistry readings.

Material like calcium carbonate will dissolve and it will raise the pH, TA and calcium hardness.

Maybe weigh exactly 1 lb and put it in 1 gallon of distilled water for a day and stir or shake it periodically.

Then, strain it through a coffee filter and reweigh the remaining solids to estimate how much is dissolving.

Run the filtered water through the various tests to see what they show (pH, TA, calcium hardness, salinity, total hardness and TDS).

Maybe find a lab that will be able to evaluate the soil for the specific use and flora that will grow in the soil.

Note that the moisture content when weighing the sample needs to be the same, so you will have to try to measure the moisture content before and after or at least try to allow the sample to dry to the same amount of dryness before and after.


www.clemson.edu

Soil Testing

Clemson University is a leading public research institution located in Upstate South Carolina. Here, researchers create solutions that change the world.
www.clemson.edu

news.clemson.edu

Get soil tested at Clemson Ag Service Lab

Fall is an ideal time to test soil and Clemson's Agricultural Service Laboratory offers these tests to help growers prepare for spring crops.
news.clemson.edu news.clemson.edu
 
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