Plants need water as we all know. There are different types of water with other qualities you can use for your indoor plants such as rainwater, fish tank water, distilled water, or tap water.
Not everyone has the means, time, or money to regularly get access to rainwater or other exquisite plant water types and honestly, for the regular plant owner, it is not necessary as there are some simple and easy ways to make tap water a decent alternative.
In a regular household, tap water is the most convenient water to use for indoor plants and is best used at room temperature, by letting it sit for 1-5 days, and with organic fertilizer added every second week during summer.
In this post, I will share some practical and easy but effective tips on how to prepare tap water for your indoor plants without much effort. Plant care doesn’t have to be quantum science after all! Enjoy reading!
Tap Water: Always Accessible for Regular Households
The type of water everyone has readily available at home is tap water (unless you live in a mountain cottage without running water – who knows!).
Using tap water for your indoor plants is the most convenient as you can just pour it out the tap 24/7 and it comes at no extra cost to you.
However, the quality of tap water depends a lot on where you live:
- If you live in an area where it is perfectly fine to drink tap water and everyone drinks the tap water, then it will probably be fine for your plants, too.
- If you live in an area where tap water is not drinkable and for yourself you buy bottled water, then your tap water needs to be treated or filtered before using it for your plants.
Tip: Are you wondering what the alternatives are to tap water and if you can find a type of water that is better? Check out my post on what water is best for houseplants and what the pros and cons are for each type of water.
5 Tips to Prepare Water for Your Indoor Plants
There are easy ways to make your tap water a little better for your houseplants and there are some tips to keep in mind for any type of water you use for your plants. Here’s how you prepare your plant water the right way:
Always Use Water At Room Temperature
This tip applies to whatever type of water you are using for your indoor plants:
Make sure you always use water at room temperature.
Why is this important? The plants’ roots are used to the temperature around them. If you use water that is either too cold or too hot, it can shock the root system and cause damage or even roots to die off. You wouldn’t want this to happen to your plants.
Tip: Are you not just looking for tips on how to prepare water but also on HOW TO WATER your plants with it, then click right over to this complete guide with practical tips on how to water plants the right way.
Add Fertilizer Every Second Week in Summertime (Leave Out in Wintertime)
Another tip for any type of water you use:
During the growing season in the summertime, add fertilizer to the water every second week. In wintertime, you can leave out the fertilizer as the plants are in their dormant phase.
I recommend using organic fertilizer as it is better for the environment and comes closer to the natural nutrients plants would find outdoors.
You can also create your own fertilizers and resistance boosts for your houseplants such as by making banana water or cooking water every other week. If you’re keen to learn more about what natural ingredients make for good plant water additions, read more in my post where I explain what ingredients can be used and their pros and cons.
Use the Same Container or Watering Can for Your Plants All the Time
If the container you water your plants with has a spout like a watering can or at least some sort of outlet such as a jug or a pitcher, that will make watering the plants much easier and you will not make a mess each time.
I recommend using the same container each time for watering your plants and using this container solely for that purpose. That way, no traces of other stuff gets into plant water and no traces of fertilizer get into anything else, either.
Please Note: Whatever you use for watering your plants, try not to clean it too often, and if so, use only warm water and, if at all, a bit of soap to do so. You want to avoid having any residues of aggressive cleaning agents in your plant water.
Let Tap Water Sit for 1-5 Days in an Open Container or Can
One of the potentially problematic ingredients of tap water for houseplants can be high levels of chloride. Does your tap water smell like an indoor swimming pool? That’s the chloride in it.
Luckily, chloride dissipates when exposed to air. An easy way to get rid of excess chloride is therefore to let your tap water sit for 1-5 days before using it to water plants.
Another benefit of this method is that any heavy metal residues present in tap water will also sink to the bottom of the container. Just make sure to not stir the water when using it and to pour out the last bit of water.
What doesn’t dissipate though is fluoride. Depending on where you live there might be higher or lower amounts of fluoride in your tap water. To get fluoride out of your tap water, you need to filter it. That brings us to my next tip which is probably the most convenient way of filtering tap water.
Reading Recommendation: If you want to know for sure what levels of potentially harmful ingredients such as fluoride and heavy metals are in your tap water, the only way to find out is to get local data on your tap water quality. Check out my post linked here on how to find out whether your tap water is completely safe for plants and what to do about it!
If You Have a Filter Pitcher At Home: Filter Your Tap Water
This might not be a household item everyone just has at home but I do know many people who have it.
If you already have a filter pitcher at home, just filter your plant water with it. It will clear out elements that aren’t good for your plants such as fluoride and chloride.
If you don’t have a filter pitcher at home yet, consider buying one. It doesn’t cost a fortune and the filters do not have to be exchanged often. Also, filtered tap water it’s not just good for your plants but also your own health.
Related Questions
Do Plants Need Drainage Holes?
Plants need water to live but what plants certainly do not need is sitting in water permanently (unless you have an aquarium at home).
Creating enough drainage in your plant pots is essential for your houseplants’ well-being. Find out why drainage is essential for plants and how to create appropriate drainage in your pots by clicking on this link.
What Kind of Light Do Plants Need?
Not just water is essential to plant life. Light is, too!
But does any type of light work for plants? Do all plants need sunlight?