Hydroton Alternatives...?

shadysmalls · Sep 21, 2015

Whatsup RIU? So basically like the title says am looking for an alternative to Hydroton? Am on my 3rd grow with the same re-used Canna aqua pellets in a brummie bubbler system and their still leaving too much dust in my res for my liking. Anyone recommend any alternatives?
Peace
Shady

fishdeth · Sep 23, 2015

shadysmalls · Sep 23, 2015

Thanks Fish appreciate the reply, cant find these Grow Stones anywhere in UK though unfortunately, sucks cos they look ideal!
Peace
Shady

rkymtnman · Sep 23, 2015

fishdeth said:
View attachment 3506148

best medium i've tried. and they are made in the good old USA too.

i order off Amazon. do they have them on the UK version? shipping would probably be expensive though.

shadysmalls · Sep 23, 2015

rkymtnman said:
best medium i've tried. and they are made in the good old USA too.

i order off Amazon. do they have them on the UK version? shipping would probably be expensive though.

Hey Rocky, Have just found somewhere in UK that stocks these, looks perfect for what i was after, can you confirm that unlike hydroton they dont keep releasing dust into the res once theyve had a good wash? Thanks

hotrodharley · Sep 23, 2015

shadysmalls said:
Whatsup RIU? So basically like the title says am looking for an alternative to Hydroton? Am on my 3rd grow with the same re-used Canna aqua pellets in a brummie bubbler system and their still leaving too much dust in my res for my liking. Anyone recommend any alternatives?
Peace
Shady

I have used pumice (lots of sediment but holds moisture well - rinse in a collander before using), barbecue lava (also sediment at first but the millions of holes hold oxygen and water -also rinse prior to use), fish tank gravel . . . . ..

rkymtnman · Sep 23, 2015

shadysmalls said:
Hey Rocky, Have just found somewhere in UK that stocks these, looks perfect for what i was after, can you confirm that unlike hydroton they dont keep releasing dust into the res once theyve had a good wash? Thanks

hey shady, just follow the directions on the bag. if i remember, you soak them for 12 hours or overnite, then rinse then do it again. they will give off a bunch after the first rinse, much less on the second rinse. i think they recommend to soak in pH adjusted water but i never did that.

this is my third grow with them. i do the soak, rinse, repeat before each grow and have zero to very little "dust" coming off them.

their abililty to hold the most air and water of any medium is what sold me on them.

shadysmalls · Sep 23, 2015

hotrodharley said:
I have used pumice (lots of sediment but holds moisture well - rinse in a collander before using), barbecue lava (also sediment at first but the millions of holes hold oxygen and water -also rinse prior to use), fish tank gravel . . . . ..

I did consider the fish tank gravel as i have a few bags lying round but have been sold on the growstones, thanks again though bro

shadysmalls · Sep 23, 2015

rkymtnman said:
hey shady, just follow the directions on the bag. if i remember, you soak them for 12 hours or overnite, then rinse then do it again. they will give off a bunch after the first rinse, much less on the second rinse. i think they recommend to soak in pH adjusted water but i never did that.

this is my third grow with them. i do the soak, rinse, repeat before each grow and have zero to very little "dust" coming off them.

their abililty to hold the most air and water of any medium is what sold me on them.

Awesome bro thanks, yeah it was the holding 3 times more water and 10% more air than my current hydroton that sold me along with fixing my residue/dust problem, thanks again fam

fishdeth · Sep 23, 2015

rkymtnman said:
hey shady, just follow the directions on the bag. if i remember, you soak them for 12 hours or overnite, then rinse then do it again. they will give off a bunch after the first rinse, much less on the second rinse. i think they recommend to soak in pH adjusted water but i never did that.

this is my third grow with them. i do the soak, rinse, repeat before each grow and have zero to very little "dust" coming off them.

their abililty to hold the most air and water of any medium is what sold me on them.

I do the same, rinse several times in a colander with a garden hose, tossing like a salad as I do.
Then I soak them in a bowl of water for a day whilst adjusting the PH to around 5.5.
NO further dust !

fishdeth · Sep 23, 2015

fishdeth said:
I do the same, rinse several times in a colander with a garden hose, tossing like a salad as I do.
Then I soak them in a bowl of water for a day whilst adjusting the PH to around 5.5.
NO further dust !

Oh... BTW, the soaking and PH-ing had nothing to do with the dust/sand that rinsed off the stones.
As I rinsed them, they absorbed a lot of my tap water that has been running a little high lately, around 7.4.
So you soak them and adjust, then a few hours later, give them a good stir and adjust the PH as necessary.
Repeat this till it stabilizes where you want it, then when introduced to your system, there will be no adverse effects.

Hope I clarified... :eyesmoke:

Darth Vapour · Sep 23, 2015

Turface or 1/4 " gravel or rock wool broken up into lots of pieces lol

churchhaze · Sep 23, 2015

Hydroton is better than growstones. It's a PITA to sort out the odd shaped pieces of porous glass so you can make everything fit just right in your netcups. I went back to hydroton.

sanjuan · Sep 23, 2015

I thought the Hydroton clay quarry and kiln closed in Germany? It works well in my hempy buckets, glad I bought a big bag a few years ago.

DirtyMcCurdy · Sep 24, 2015

Grow Stones work really well but, in my experience, are a bit of a pain do to the sediment that seems to continuously keep coming off of it. No matter how long I went I would always end up with sediment in my flood tables and reservoirs.

fishdeth · Sep 24, 2015

DirtyMcCurdy said:
Grow Stones work really well but, in my experience, are a bit of a pain do to the sediment that seems to continuously keep coming off of it. No matter how long I went I would always end up with sediment in my flood tables and reservoirs.

You simply didn't rinse them enough.
I am on my 3rd time using them.
VERY gritty out of the bag.
LOTS of rinsing then no more sediment for me !

PKHydro · Sep 24, 2015

Lava rock FTW...just give a good wash before using.

firsttimeARE · Sep 24, 2015

I started on growstones. I use expanded clay pebbles now...the "plant it" brand.

They are just as dusty as growstones but cheaper. The dust from growstones is glass particles...not good for lungs.

The growstones do hold oxygen and water better.

I fill a 5 gal bucket halfway with pebbles and the rest with water and swirl the pebbles around. Use a netpot to move them to another bucket. Empty dirty water and repeat a few times. By the third time the water drained is mostly clear.

dbkick · Sep 27, 2015

Sunleaves rocks is the best value I can find.
20 bux for a 65 pound bag and they rinse clean very very easy.

70's natureboy · Sep 30, 2015

dbkick said:
Sunleaves rocks is the best value I can find.
20 bux for a 65 pound bag and they rinse clean very very easy.

Those are my favorite rocks too. I also like them mixed with hydroton. They last for years. The Growstones are too light, and float in my ebb and flow, and too light for much support in small netpots. They also crumble if you step on them.

Hydroton Alternatives...?

Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member