How to Test pH of Water Without a Kit? Best DIY Method 2023

Last updated on January 2nd, 2023

Are you searching for how to test the pH of water without a kit? Because there are many domestic and environmental applications for a pH tester, one may determine the acidity or alkalinity of a given liquid using different methods. One of them is using strips of litmus paper, the most popular form of pH testing equipment.

The ability of litmus paper to change color depends on whether the fluid is acidic or basic. There are other methods of determining pH besides utilizing litmus paper; a majorly approached solution is testing water Ph without a kit. Here we will look at some of the methods to check water pH without using a kit.

🧪 How to test pH of water without a kit?

Using Red Cabbage

The fact that red cabbage is an excellent material for generating a pH-testing solution may surprise you. Anthocyanins are water-soluble pigments that can change color when mixed with either an alkaline or an acidic solution. This vegetable includes anthocyanins.

Anthocyanins keep a bluish to purplish color even when dissolved in a neutral solution. When combined with an alkaline solution, the anthocyanin takes on a hue between dark purple and bluish-green. If you combine this pigment with an acidic solution, you will see that it changes color to a crimson hue.

Because anthocyanins react to the hydrogen or carboxyl ions in a solution, you can use practically any other food item high in this component instead.

🤔 How to check the pH of water with Red cabbage?

TotalTime: 5 Mint

Supply: Distilled Water

Tool: Bowl, Red Cabbage

Step 1: Grind the cabbage

Cut up red cabbage and place it in a bowl and add in a grinder made of clear glass. Add one cup of distilled water to the cabbage and grind it well. 

Step 2: Leave in water for a few minutes

Leave the ground mixture in the grinder for about half an hour while stirring it every so often.

Step 3: Remove the liquid

A chemical reaction in the cabbage causes the pigment molecules to change the color of the water that has been distilled. Sieve the liquid that has been produced, which has a color that is somewhere between red and purple. You can now start using this as your pH indicator solution right away.

Step 4: Add indicator solution

Pour the liquid produced into a separate container made of transparent glass or plastic. The pH indicator solution should then have a few drops added to it, and you should shake this container.

Step 5: See results 

You will now see a change in the color of the watercolor, which will indicate whether the substance is acidic (pink or red), neutral (purple), or basic alkaline (blue, bluish-green, or greenish-yellow). You can determine the numerical value on the pH scale by comparing this color to a color chart and finding a match.

Using Litmus paper strips

If you wish to test the pH of water without using a kit, another material you might want to prepare is litmus paper.

For this method, you will require filter paper to make pH test strips. One illustration of this is the filter paper utilized in drip coffee makers and pour-over coffee makers. Because of the porous nature of the paper, the pH test solution is absorbed by it, preparing it for the day’s testing.

To correctly interpret the color changes in the solution, you should always have a pH color chart on hand. Each color has a pH value that is approximately equivalent to it.

🤔 How to test the pH of water with litmus paper strips?

Testing strips produce a more accurate color and can help determine whether the water you use is acidic or alkaline.

1. The thing you need to do is insert the testing strip into a tube made of clear glass or plastic.
2. Then you have to add water to the tube and ensure that it completely submerges the pH test strip.
3. After a few seconds, take it out of the solution and compare the color it has produced to the pH color chart.

Using Blueberries

Another type of naturally occurring indicator is found in blueberries. A substance known as peonidin is responsible for the pigmentation or the dark blue color that blueberries have. This pigmentation gives blueberries their distinctive appearance. 

Peonidin is reactive to both acids and bases, so its color can shift when exposed. As a result of this quality, blueberries have the potential to be an accurate pH indicator.

The following is a guide on how to fashion a pH indicator out of blueberries:

Chop the blueberries:

First, you need to chop the blueberries into tiny pieces with a knife. Since peonidin is found primarily in the fruit’s skin, removing the pulp from the inside of the fruit keeps the skin intact. It will ensure more accurate results.

Boil for a few Minutes

Put the skin of blueberries in some water. Now bring the blueberry and water mixture to a boil and cook it for five to fifteen minutes. If the water evaporates completely, you will need to add some more. Take the mixture away from the heat, and allow it to cool down for a while.

Pour It Out

It would be helpful if you pour the mixture through the coffee filter, and collected the liquid in a small jar. You might need to give the filter a light press with a spoon to extract more juice from the fruit. 

See Results 

At this point, the mixture ought to be a shade of reddish-purple comparable to strawberry pulp.

Utilizing a dropper, remove a portion of the liquid from the jar. A part of the liquid should be poured onto a surface, like a plate, and it should be the size of a coin.

Before adding a few drops of water, which you need to test, into the mixture, you should first rinse the dropper with some water. If the water is acidic, it will cause the reddish-purple to lighten up, become redder, or turn a very faint shade of pink.

Using Red Onions

Many vegetables contain anthocyanins, which are pigments sensitive to pH and can alter color when exposed to alkaline or acidic substances. You can also find these kinds of chemical compounds in red onion. 

In acidic solutions, red onions produce a bluish-red color, whereas, in the alkaline situation, it produces a green color.

Using Soap Scum

When soap is exposed to hard water, the residue left behind, known as soap scum, transforms into a substance with significant medicinal value. 

On a national level, soap scum is formed when calcium and magnesium particles in the water combine with the soap to create a structure that eventually becomes the cleanser scum substance.

If you have a significant buildup of soap scum in your water, this indicates that you have hard water. Since hard water is alkaline, it contains a high concentration of minerals. To get the pH right, you must check your water levels frequently.

It indicates that if water Ph is above 8 levels, it will cause severe health issues. It is how soap scum will help you to know the pH of water.

Tips to neutralize the pH of the water 

• You can install a filter right where the water enters your house. To reduce the acidity of tap water, calcium carbonate, the calcium salt in carbonic acid, is added. Acidic water can be tempered by adding a synthetic magnesium oxide material.
• Put in an injection system at the point where the water enters your house. To restore the pH balance in acidic water, soda ash can be injected. Vinegar, citric acid, and alum all contain acetic acid that can be used to reduce the alkalinity of water. When compared to filtering systems, injection systems are more high maintenance.

Frequently Asked Questions 

🤔 How can I check if I don’t have a testing kit for my water hardness?

Add a few drops of pure liquid soap and shake the bottle vigorously for a few seconds. Hard water can be identified by a lack of foamy bubbles and a murky or milky appearance.

🤔 How to test the acidity or alkalinity of water?

The acidity or alkalinity of water is measured with a pH meter by scientists. The water is either tested on-site with a portable meter or in a lab with a bigger benchtop meter. A glass probe with two specialized electrodes and a cup holds the water sample on the tabletop meter.

Conclusion

Here we have given you different methods and processes on How to test pH of water without a kit. It does not take much time or effort to figure out how to test the pH of water without using a kit. You need to follow the above steps to convert almost any other anthocyanin-rich food in your kitchen into a pH tester.

These approaches are excellent when time is of the essence. Nevertheless, there is a purpose behind the production of pH testing kits. You should consider investing in equipment that can provide optimized and specific information to your needs if you want the best results about the pH of water.