Excited Roots

[Luke Skywalker]

Thanks tom, but I'm going to have to disagree on this. I use plastic flyscreen mesh to keep my drains clear and still the stuff disintergrates and blocks it. I've tried larger mesh, but the same thing kept happening. Oh well, I'll keep an eye out for that mix tho, and try it out. See whether the results are any different.

 

Other than that, cheers.

[Tom]

It could be that perlite is not suited to your system.

 

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[Luke Skywalker]

I was talking about the vermiculite tom, my perlite brand rocks....

[Tom]

I was talking about the vermiculite tom, my perlite brand rocks....

It could be that vermiculite is not suited to your system. ::

 

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[Guest Field_of_Light]

Im wondering if thats waterworld based out of south australia - that would explain the 300 plus bags they have stacked up on containers ready for shipment......

 

I use some mesh at the bottom of my pots from bunnings to stop any possible perlite loss...

 

And the yellow bag perlite is great....

 

I also rinse it b4 use to flush out any impurities......

[Luke Skywalker]

Yup, that'll be them, FoL. Fantastic stuff, but like you said, give it a rinse to clear it out....

 

:: tom, very funny.... ::

[white_cluster]

I found the opposite tom, maybe I've got a crap supplier for vermiculite.... Are there larger grades that won't clog up drains?  And how do you get around the vermiculite settling?

 

Perlite's great stuff, I only use one type though, as there are several brands sourced from different mines, this brand is much larger in avg size and seems to have a lot less dust, it also lasts quite a few changes too....

Anyway, the brand is "Premium Perlite" by Waterworld Wholesale.  It comes in a big yellow, 100l bag, and from personal experience, beats all the other perlites I've tested hands down. You should be able to get it from hydro shops, but you may have to ring around.

theres no way mate, vermiculite tends to become a pile of sludgy crap.

 

I only use perlite vermiculite for mothers these days. But when I rootprune I add perlite to the bottom to replace the roots I've taken out and vermiculite to the top. So it all evens out in the end.

 

But yeah the shit is a pain. Especially all that gold dust that is in your carpet after potting.

 

and yeah, it don't suit recirculating systems, I've never had a blockage using vermiculite in F&D or Dripper tray crops, but the resevoir always goes a bit browny for the first few weeks no matter how well I wash it. But an inline filter will take care of any sediment that won't pass through 4mm poly or drippers, My tray is actually set up for dirt.

 

and yeah there is larger grades of vermiculite, But its still gonna flake off and become thin little chips.

 

As for sediment in your pots, buy some cheap foot-stockings, once filled with wet medium they will expand to the size of almost any pot.

[Luke Skywalker]

Thanks for that whitecluster, I found the most probs in my run to waste vegie hydro boxes. So I just use the perlite, and viola! Happy plants, growing like mad! I have to make the reserve in the base a little bit larger, to take into account the larger particle size and quicker draining, but they do well anyway. I just don't like vermiculite, and by the looks of it, that isn't going to change.

 

Personal preference, you could call it, but I just don't like to pissfart around with it when it doesn't make any difference to the end product... If anything, I think the perlite by itself is much better.

 

I'm sure a thousand voices will now come up and say, "Oi, vermiculite rocks mate, you don't know what your talking about." But in the end, it's what works best for everyone eh?

 

Cheers again.

[Tom]

Personal preference, you could call it, but I just don't like to pissfart around with it when it doesn't make any difference to the end product...  If anything, I think the perlite by itself is much better.

 

I'm sure a thousand voices will now come up and say, "Oi, vermiculite rocks mate, you don't know what your talking about."  But in the end, it's what works best for everyone eh?

If something is working well for you then it would be pretty silly to mess with it, not all systems are the same so there are certain to be different benefits/problems related to grow medias in each system.

 

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[waychillin]

All this disscussions gr8. I have to say my plants are looking much more healthy in the perlite than in rockwool. But since doing more reading i've heard rockwool is more suited to run2waste and i'm recycling. Thanks Luke and Tom for the differing opinions on the subject. I still think a little more moisture retention would be benificial though so maybe a mix might suit me. But i'll look out for this yellow bagged perlite as my perlite was dusty as f*** . I lined the bottom of my grow tubs with Clay Balls as they are a coarser grade and perlite would go straight through the drain holes. It seems to have worked well xcept for the root issue.

 

phat stalks and am looking forward to even phatter buds