What's going on in here?

[Budson 420]

Problem: slower then Normal rate or growth for an autoflower, munted looking leaves

Medium/grow method: soil, perlite 80/20 mix, trying a new product osmocote veggie and herb mix, I added 30% of this to my usual Yates seedling mix

Feed: and supplements used: none as of yet.

water source: tap water, left out for 24hr before use.

Strain/age: fastbuds lsd25 & dinafems blue kush, both 15 days.

light used: 600w hps, 18/6, sitting 95cm from canopy.

Climate: 25-27 degrees lights on, 20-23 degrees lights off. No control over humidity so it can range from 15% to 50% any given day depending on outside weather.

Additional info: all seems fine till day 10ish lsd25 had troubles shaking her shell when she popped so I assisted, slight damage to one cotyledon so I expected the first set of leaves to have damage and they did, but when the blue kush started showing the same retarted leaf patten I knew there was a problem, nothing but water so far I'm trying a new soil so there could also be the problem, they started under domes and the 600w was at 130cm I dropped to 70cm on day 9, after yesterday I've raised it up to 95cm

 

[Waira]

... Thanks for the info mate! ....well, I suspect the soil isn't quite right,... could be off pH, or something about the Osmo' that they don't react to well,... the nutrition is a gamble in that Osmo' product,.. No overt defc. symptoms, just slow and stunted, makes me lean toward an off-pH issue,... HPS light does mess with color badly though; are they pale?
...testing the soil pH is best with a probe unit,meters are for liquids only, and direct in-pot measurement is always best! Accurate 8 is a good, relatively inexpensive model,.. otherwise, it's the dubious run-off method.. we have an improved method here, in the highlighted sticky section above this one, so have a look,.. taking direct run-off especially from feeds will not give accurate results,.. straight water r-o isn't much better, but it can give a crude idea if it badly off or not, at least,.. must be collected in something clean too, or reading will be skewed,... next step hinges on this mate, and you need to know for future reference anyway,...

 

[Budson 420]

Thanks for getting back to me champ @Waira PH you say? This does make sense.. in my 4 years I've never ph tested anything.. and in those years I've never had a problem till now, but I will buy a pen and probe unit for future issues.
And yes they are slightly pale in colour, and the leaves are malformed it was hard to capture in the photos, the soil is still quite damp, last watering was 2 days ago, first time using perlite, thought I could water more often.. perhaps not, can the constant damp soil make matters worse?

I guess my next question is what would you recommend untill the ph gear gets here... I'll have to order it online so I'm talking 5 days untill anything gets here, I'm thinking a transplant into my usual soil? Hate transplants though, would a good flushing help any? I can't check the ph after so wether it'll be helpful or not...

 

[Waira]

... as long as it's not soggy, consistent even moisture is fine,... plenty of perlite in there, which help aerate and drain,... it's funny mate, there are some good friends of mine here, who don't bother with pH on anything and almost always have no problems,.. but they are savvy to what it all entails, and have their grow protocol very well down,.. on rare occasion shit happens, and then they get the lecture- All I can say is "you've been lucky!".... [HASHTAG]#1[/HASHTAG] problem in here mate, is pH related issues, hands down,.... 3 tools that are critical, if not always needed: pH meter for liquids (be sure to have calibration and storage solutions, clean it with pure water every time it's used), a probe for in-pot measurements, and a TDS/EC meter, to help understand your water's hardness (mineral content, CaCO3, which is what buffers pH in solution),... really hard water, 250+ppm, is an issue, with cumulative inputs, Ca-Mg use in addition... it's handy for measuring nutrient conc. if needed, and checking run-off if there's a salt build-up problem possibly in play,...
What to do,.... that won't make matters worse! transplanting is out, any root trauma and you might as well chuck'm into the can,... a soil flush is a shot in the dark, since we don't know what the actual problem is, and with no meter or TDS, you can't check that initial run-off for anything that offers hints,... so, it's a gamble you'll have to make the call on,.. use 2-3x pot volume, and 1/4 str. nutes on final pour through,... it might help, or not,.. such water logging is a stress itself, so flushing must be done fast... you can speed drainage of excess by setting the pot on a small stack of paper towels, and under that, newspaper,.. this will help wick out the excess faster, getting the roots access to the O2 they need faster,...

 

[neurotree]

... as long as it's not soggy, consistent even moisture is fine,... plenty of perlite in there, which help aerate and drain,... it's funny mate, there are some good friends of mine here, who don't bother with pH on anything and almost always have no problems,.. but they are savvy to what it all entails, and have their grow protocol very well down,.. on rare occasion shit happens, and then they get the lecture- All I can say is "you've been lucky!".... [HASHTAG]#1[/HASHTAG] problem in here mate, is pH related issues, hands down,.... 3 tools that are critical, if not always needed: pH meter for liquids (be sure to have calibration and storage solutions, clean it with pure water every time it's used), a probe for in-pot measurements, and a TDS/EC meter, to help understand your water hardness (mineral content, CaCO3, which is what buffers pH in solution),... really hard water, 250+ppm, is an issue, with cumulative inputs, Ca-Mg use in addition... it's handy for measuring nutrient conc. if needed, and checking run-off if there's a salt build-up problem possibly in play,...
What to do,.... that won't make matters worse! transplanting is out, any root trauma and you might as well chuck'm into can,... a soil flush is a shot in the dark, since we don't know what the actual problem is, and with no meter or TDS, you can't check that initial run-off for anything that offers hints,... so, it's a gamble you'll have to make the call on,.. use 2-3x pot volume, and 1/4 str. nutes on final pour through,... it might help, or not,.. such water logging is a stress itself, so flushing must be dome fast... you can speed drainage of excess by setting the pot on a small stack of paper towels, and under that, newspaper,.. this will help wick out the excess faster, getting the roots access to the O2 they need faster,...

@Waira knows exactly what's up! I just have to add that "cleaning" meant here is merely rinsing the probe head in between readings or calibrations. Do not attempt to clean the inside of the probe with H2O or store the probe in H2O as both of these will destroy the probe (which for a decent and replace-able one is like an easy 100-150$). Just my two cents

Edit: and don't bother pHing DI or RO water as this number is essentially meaningless with electric probes