Perlite as a crutch

[Wayne55]

When it comes to perlite, are people using the chunky or not chunky?

I've never tried chunky but I was hoping it would be less prone to working its way to the surface.

 

[MICHI-CAN]

When it comes to perlite, are people using the chunky or not chunky?

I've never tried chunky but I was hoping it would be less prone to working its way to the surface.

1/8'"in soil. And barely rises unless drowning containers.

 

[Wayne55]

1/8'"in soil. And barely rises unless drowning containers.

Looks like I'm watering too fast

 

[curious2garden]

View attachment 4927504
Two of those and then onto some Sol beers.

Oh no!! A double IPA (great label though). That takes me right back to being 8 and having my mother wash my mouth out with soap for saying fuck. For some reason really hoppy beers have a soapy taste to me.

I like Sol, Tecate, Pacifico, Modelo, ok I like a lot of Mexican beers. I was born and raised in So Cal so I come by it naturally.

The thing with perlite is it has a huge carbon footprint in it's manufacture. So do hydroton balls tho so where do we draw the line when growing indoors is a huge carbon footprint on it's own.

I've never washed perlite either. My plants love sludge.

Thanks that's the type of information I was looking for and that is upsetting. I switched from NFT rails because of my environment needing a chiller. I moved to Advanced Sunshine Mix #4 which uses Peat so I moved to Coco.

Coco pith was so dense it held the heat in at my roots. I actually thought about using my old Hydroton to lighten the mix but I HATE Hydroton. I tried coco coir and bark and wasn't pleased with how it handled or the results. I tried adding x-large Perlite to the mix and it worked like a champ. Air is not a great heat conductor. So Canna Coco pith mixed 50/50 with XLG perlite keeps me in livable balance.

I live and grow in the Mojave Desert. I don't sell and I focus on strain and pheno hunting for pain relief strains and then breed and work on the genetics I find. Therefore living in extreme weather, high temp and extremely low humidity and different goals I use different methods. I use swamp cooling to increase humidity and decrease temp along with a few other tricks. Running several rooms etc... electrical use and costs mount. So I try to balance electrical use with environmental options.

For example I put in a 25,000 gallon heatsink in my backyard. I also swim in my heatsink for exercise LOL. I vent the hot air from my grows to my attic and then pump cooler water to my roof to help cool heat and obscure my heat signature. I save energy there by only needing the pump to move the liquid to the roof once. After that gravity sets up a siphon effect that keeps it circulating. During the winter my grow heats my home.

Anyway that's why I use Perlite and it seems a reasonable balance of cost to environmental benefit for me. My grows don't follow the rules and I get a little less then you harvest when my canopy is over 100 for months on end but still less than a 10% difference than during the winter when I'm closer to ideal parameters. But I have different goals. Anyway thank you all for chiming in. I always appreciate learning and I always learn from almost all you guys on here.

PS No I don't rinse my perlite.

 

[MICHI-CAN]

Oh no!! A double IPA (great label though). That takes me right back to being 8 and having my mother wash my mouth out with soap for saying fuck. For some reason really hoppy beers have a soapy taste to me.

I like Sol, Tecate, Pacifico, Modelo, ok I like a lot of Mexican beers. I was born and raised in So Cal so I come by it naturally.


Thanks that's the type of information I was looking for and that is upsetting. I switched from NFT rails because of my environment needing a chiller. I moved to Advanced Sunshine Mix #4 which uses Peat so I moved to Coco.

Coco pith was so dense it held the heat in at my roots. I actually thought about using my old Hydroton to lighten the mix but I HATE Hydroton. I tried coco coir and bark and wasn't pleased with how it handled or the results. I tried adding x-large Perlite to the mix and it worked like a champ. Air is not a great heat conductor. So Canna Coco pith mixed 50/50 with XLG perlite keeps me in livable balance.

I live and grow in the Mojave Desert. I don't sell and I focus on strain and pheno hunting for pain relief strains and then breed and work on the genetics I find. Therefore living in extreme weather, high temp and extremely low humidity and different goals I use different methods. I use swamp cooling to increase humidity and decrease temp along with a few other tricks. Running several rooms etc... electrical use and costs mount. So I try to balance electrical use with environmental options.

For example I put in a 25,000 gallon heatsink in my backyard. I also swim in my heatsink for exercise LOL. I vent the hot air from my grows to my attic and then pump cooler water to my roof to help cool heat and obscure my heat signature. I save energy there by only needing the pump to move the liquid to the roof once. After that gravity sets up a siphon effect that keeps it circulating. During the winter my grows heat my home.

Anyway that's why I use Perlite and it seems a reasonable balance of cost to environmental benefit for me. My grows don't follow the rules and I get a little less then you harvest when my canopy is over 100 for months on end but still less than a 10% difference than during the winter when I'm closer to ideal parameters. But I have different goals. Anyway thank you all for chiming in. I always appreciate learning and I always learn from almost all you guys on here.

PS No I don't rinse my perlite.

I hate beer and the liquid dish soap for verbal transgressions of youth.

Still I highly suggest Dos Equies "gold" really close to production date and ice cold. I'd pay for one on a hotter than yes day as a non consumer.

And you can get fresher than I there. LOL.

 

[curious2garden]

Yeah I've noticed no difference either. Even in drainage so I don't even bother adding it now.

I use it for adding air spaces which reduces heat conductivity within my medium.

I don't usually talk much about what I do or how I do it because it's not something anyone else should try but crazy as it is it works for me

 

[twentyeight.threefive]

Oh no!! A double IPA (great label though). That takes me right back to being 8 and having my mother wash my mouth out with soap for saying fuck. For some reason really hoppy beers have a soapy taste to me.

I like Sol, Tecate, Pacifico, Modelo, ok I like a lot of Mexican beers. I was born and raised in So Cal so I come by it naturally.


Thanks that's the type of information I was looking for and that is upsetting. I switched from NFT rails because of my environment needing a chiller. I moved to Advanced Sunshine Mix #4 which uses Peat so I moved to Coco.

Coco pith was so dense it held the heat in at my roots. I actually thought about using my old Hydroton to lighten the mix but I HATE Hydroton. I tried coco coir and bark and wasn't pleased with how it handled or the results. I tried adding x-large Perlite to the mix and it worked like a champ. Air is not a great heat conductor. So Canna Coco pith mixed 50/50 with XLG perlite keeps me in livable balance.

I live and grow in the Mojave Desert. I don't sell and I focus on strain and pheno hunting for pain relief strains and then breed and work on the genetics I find. Therefore living in extreme weather, high temp and extremely low humidity and different goals I use different methods. I use swamp cooling to increase humidity and decrease temp along with a few other tricks. Running several rooms etc... electrical use and costs mount. So I try to balance electrical use with environmental options.

For example I put in a 25,000 gallon heatsink in my backyard. I also swim in my heatsink for exercise LOL. I vent the hot air from my grows to my attic and then pump cooler water to my roof to help cool heat and obscure my heat signature. I save energy there by only needing the pump to move the liquid to the roof once. After that gravity sets up a siphon effect that keeps it circulating. During the winter my grow heats my home.

Anyway that's why I use Perlite and it seems a reasonable balance of cost to environmental benefit for me. My grows don't follow the rules and I get a little less then you harvest when my canopy is over 100 for months on end but still less than a 10% difference than during the winter when I'm closer to ideal parameters. But I have different goals. Anyway thank you all for chiming in. I always appreciate learning and I always learn from almost all you guys on here.

PS No I don't rinse my perlite.

The DIPAs are for variety. Modelo is my go to for light beers. Just grabbed some Pacifico and these Sol for vacation, not widely available around here so grabbing them while at the big store.



Variety is the spice of life.

 

[Wizzlebiz]

Whatever perlite that comes in the soil I buy is the only perlite my plants see.

I think one of the bags of soil I use has pumice instead of perlite.

 

[MICHI-CAN]

Whatever perlite that comes in the soil I buy is the only perlite my plants see.

I think one of the bags of soil I use has pumice instead of perlite.

Same here. I use it for all my other plants. Just use a heavily concentrated starter mix with all the other goodies to cut. LOL.

 

[Kassiopeija]

should be washed first. Perlite dust makes a sludge after watering.

you can wash it by watering the pots, or even better: take a shower with your plants, to have a 3-in-1 wash-water-wash session. saves about half an hour each day... time is money, think!

 

[twentyeight.threefive]

you can wash it by watering the pots, or even better: take a shower with your plants, to have a 3-in-1 wash-water-wash session. saves about half an hour each day... time is money, think!

Or save even more time and don't use it.

 

[Jjgrow420]

Yeah that whole 30 seconds it takes to dump the bag in is a real painstaking process

It should be washed first. Perlite dust makes a sludge after watering.

You guys need to just throw down
We're all in Ontario ya? I'll be the ref. Meet up somewhere like Burlington and just throw bows till one is left standing.

 

[OldMedUser]

If environment was your true concern you would be growing in 1/16-1/8 washed gravel. LMAO!

And I'd be growing under the sun only instead of using high wattage grow lights so what's your point?

I'm too old to worry about the environment anyways. I got grandkids that can do the worrying for me.

 

[Jjgrow420]

And I'd be growing under the sun only instead of using high wattage grow lights so what's your point?

I'm too old to worry about the environment anyways. I got grandkids that can do the worrying for me.

Spoken like a true old man

 

[V256.420]

Is the Mother Earth 70/30 coco/perlite any good?

 

[OldMedUser]

[QUOTE="OldMedUser, post: 1638995.

I've never washed perlite either. My plants love sludge.

Maybe the American sludge is worse than Canadian sludge?
[/QUOTE]

Without a doubt!

 

[MICHI-CAN]

And I'd be growing under the sun only instead of using high wattage grow lights so what's your point?

I'm too old to worry about the environment anyways. I got grandkids that can do the worrying for me.

Projection amongst others. I wish you peace.
Glad one cannot make the change needed. And share that sentiment with your grandchildren. They may enlighten you.

Please help me avoid further stressing you by not pissing at me. TY.

 

[OldMedUser]

Oh no!! A double IPA (great label though). That takes me right back to being 8 and having my mother wash my mouth out with soap for saying fuck. For some reason really hoppy beers have a soapy taste to me.

I like Sol, Tecate, Pacifico, Modelo, ok I like a lot of Mexican beers. I was born and raised in So Cal so I come by it naturally.


Thanks that's the type of information I was looking for and that is upsetting. I switched from NFT rails because of my environment needing a chiller. I moved to Advanced Sunshine Mix #4 which uses Peat so I moved to Coco.

Coco pith was so dense it held the heat in at my roots. I actually thought about using my old Hydroton to lighten the mix but I HATE Hydroton. I tried coco coir and bark and wasn't pleased with how it handled or the results. I tried adding x-large Perlite to the mix and it worked like a champ. Air is not a great heat conductor. So Canna Coco pith mixed 50/50 with XLG perlite keeps me in livable balance.

I live and grow in the Mojave Desert. I don't sell and I focus on strain and pheno hunting for pain relief strains and then breed and work on the genetics I find. Therefore living in extreme weather, high temp and extremely low humidity and different goals I use different methods. I use swamp cooling to increase humidity and decrease temp along with a few other tricks. Running several rooms etc... electrical use and costs mount. So I try to balance electrical use with environmental options.

For example I put in a 25,000 gallon heatsink in my backyard. I also swim in my heatsink for exercise LOL. I vent the hot air from my grows to my attic and then pump cooler water to my roof to help cool heat and obscure my heat signature. I save energy there by only needing the pump to move the liquid to the roof once. After that gravity sets up a siphon effect that keeps it circulating. During the winter my grow heats my home.

Anyway that's why I use Perlite and it seems a reasonable balance of cost to environmental benefit for me. My grows don't follow the rules and I get a little less then you harvest when my canopy is over 100 for months on end but still less than a 10% difference than during the winter when I'm closer to ideal parameters. But I have different goals. Anyway thank you all for chiming in. I always appreciate learning and I always learn from almost all you guys on here.

PS No I don't rinse my perlite.

I just brought up the carbon footprint aspect to rattle some cages.

We're fighting the cold a lot more than heat up here but it's looking like a warm summer coming up. I'm growing a bunch of plants outside this year so I can stock up and grow less inside over the winter. Power is not cheap here so got to knock that bill down a bit.

I couldn't imagine living where you're at. I'm melting now and it barely hit 80F today but was down to 38 early this morning around 5:30 and dawn just beginning. I can handle -40C/-40F no problem at all but +40C/105F is death to me. 30 min in the hot sun and I'm lobster red and about that dead.

I've been checking soil temps in my little garden then checked the temp in the one in a pot and it was hitting 39c/104F so made a little DIY reflector for the pot. That's a little Mazarilla fem auto from Urban Legends. Two more in the patch. Note the absence of any sludge in my good Canadian perlite.

 

[MICHI-CAN]

I just brought up the carbon footprint aspect to rattle some cages.

We're fighting the cold a lot more than heat up here but it's looking like a warm summer coming up. I'm growing a bunch of plants outside this year so I can stock up and grow less inside over the winter. Power is not cheap here so got to knock that bill down a bit.

I couldn't imagine living where you're at. I'm melting now and it barely hit 80F today but was down to 38 early this morning around 5:30 and dawn just beginning. I can handle -40C/-40F no problem at all but +40C/105F is death to me. 30 min in the hot sun and I'm lobster red and about that dead.

I've been checking soil temps in my little garden then checked the temp in the one in a pot and it was hitting 39c/104F so made a little DIY reflector for the pot. That's a little Mazarilla fem auto from Urban Legends. Two more in the patch. Note the absence of any sludge in my good Canadian perlite.

View attachment 4927579

Copper Harbor , MI is my learning ground. About the same as you. And all good if civil.

P.S. What sludge after it is mixed in? LOL.

 

[curious2garden]

I just brought up the carbon footprint aspect to rattle some cages.

We're fighting the cold a lot more than heat up here but it's looking like a warm summer coming up. I'm growing a bunch of plants outside this year so I can stock up and grow less inside over the winter. Power is not cheap here so got to knock that bill down a bit.

I couldn't imagine living where you're at. I'm melting now and it barely hit 80F today but was down to 38 early this morning around 5:30 and dawn just beginning. I can handle -40C/-40F no problem at all but +40C/105F is death to me. 30 min in the hot sun and I'm lobster red and about that dead.

I've been checking soil temps in my little garden then checked the temp in the one in a pot and it was hitting 39c/104F so made a little DIY reflector for the pot. That's a little Mazarilla fem auto from Urban Legends. Two more in the patch. Note the absence of any sludge in my good Canadian perlite.

View attachment 4927579

Carbon footprint wise I'm not as careful as my kids but I try to do what I can within reason. Sometimes I think about moving north but having lived here for so long and having things dialed in for my life I'm relatively happy.

The xlg perlite I use is a lot larger so I get useful air gaps. But you understand the problem I was having. Thank you for showing it. It makes it a lot easier to understand when you can see it.

You grow autos! I have a question. How does transplanting an auto hurt it? I only grow photoperiods so I'm clueless. Thank you.