Question
Hi, I have bought many plants from you guys over the last few years and I
now have quite a collection! But, water has always been a pain because I have
to buy it in 2.5 gallon containers at the store. My husband bought a
"Siemens" deionizer tank for washing his cars. It's huge. The guy who
installed it said we could get a filter from home depot that would remove
even more sediment and chlorine. What do you think? I live in so cal and the
water from the tap is deadly to my plants but I am wondering about the new
set up. What do you think? Is deionized water like distilled or purified?

Thank you for your time,
Jeni Mendes

Answer
Hi Jeni,

If this unit truly is a deionizer, and not a softener, it would be great water for your plants.  Deionizers remove minerals from water, which are the big offenders when it comes to carnivorous plants.  Chlorine and sediment are less of an issue.  Calcium, magnesium and iron cause the most problems.  The reason softeners don't work for cp is they just replace the hard water minerals with sodium (salt).

What you need to do is test the water to see what the unit has taken out.  If the water is 50 parts per million (ppm) or less, it is fine for your plants.  This can be done with a TDS meter or hardness test kits available at aquarium stores.  You could also get "Zero Water" filter pitcher, which is also a deionizer.  They include a TDS meter to test the water.  Those are available at Target and Bed Bath and Beyond.

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.cobraplant.com