Grow Beds

[badflash]

OK, who has suggestions for pre-built, ready to go, grow beds and media?

I found these:
http://www.grotek.net/products/guide/pr ... floodtable (http://www.grotek.net/products/guide/product.asp?code=floodtable)
Looks to be about $140 for a 4'X8'.

I'm also looking into expanded shale. They heat the stuff until it puffs up. Very light weight at around 55#/cubic foot. Soaks up water and sinks. Cheap. Local to me is this product:
http://www.norliteagg.com/

[jackalope]

OK, who has suggestions for pre-built, ready to go, grow beds and media?

I found these:
http://www.grotek.net/products/guide/pr ... floodtable (http://www.grotek.net/products/guide/product.asp?code=floodtable)
Looks to be about $140 for a 4'X8'.

These appear to be in Canada, are there export/import charges, etc?

I'm also looking into expanded shale. They heat the stuff until it puffs up. Very light weight at around 55#/cubic foot. Soaks up water and sinks. Cheap. Local to me is this product:
http://www.norliteagg.com/
If they can pass this stuff below from the MSDS (I've read that some people put acid in the tank to adjust the PH), I'd say it might be a pretty good test product if the price is right ;) Most of our "shale" or "slate" around here is actually a limestone ..... wouldn't that add calcium to the water?
INCOMPATIBILITY (Materials to avoid) Contact with powerful oxidizing agents such as flourine, boron triflouride, chlorine triflouride, manganese triflouride, and oxygen diflouride may cause fire and/or explosions. Silica dissolves in hydroflouric acid producing a corrosive gas-silicon tetraflouride.

[badflash]

They don't use limestone. Shale is primarily compacted clay. Once fired it becomes a ceramic. Limestone turns to powder (lime) when it is fired, so it wouldn't work.

If you use colors in your fonts, please pick ones that stand out better. I couldn't read the green at all.

[Ironfish]

BadFlash,

I'm using pea gravel in 1/2 barrels. I'm looking into making a floating raft system next, for more production per square foot.

IronFish

[badflash]

I'll look forward to seeing what you have. Rafts are great for lots of things, but I've read they plants that work are limited. I think a combo of Flood/Drain and raft will be what I'll try. Flood drain to remove the particulates, raft for salad veggies. Flood & Drain seems the way to go for most of the more common non-salid veggies.

What is your experience?

[jackalope]

If you use colors in your fonts, please pick ones that stand out better. I couldn't read the green at all.

Done that ! Is that better :-D

[jackalope]

BadFlash,

I'm using pea gravel in 1/2 barrels. I'm looking into making a floating raft system next, for more production per square foot.

IronFish

I've decided to go with pea gravel too. It took about 5 times to wash the mud off the lava rock, I think I lost about half the lava rock :(. I went today and bought some pea gravel at the concrete company ..... 50 cents for a 5 gallon bucket .... I got 5 buckets full, virtually no washing needed since it's been snowed on all winter, and it looked washed already. I think a little sand will be better than lava dist sediment :-D

[JeffW]

I used river bed stone last year (too heavy-over kill) and also I tried lava rock which was "harsh" and not so easy to work with plus it cut's into roots when I did maintenance on some the hydroponic tomatoes.

So this year pea gravel is in, so far I like the stuff..cheap & easy to work with imho.

[badflash]

I've been researching this product since last fall:
http://www.norliteagg.com/horticulture/green_roof.asp
It is made from fired shale and is available by the ton quite cheaply. I can get a pick-up load for about $70. The stuff is light weight and porus so water loggs quickly and sinks. Only about 50# per cubic foot. This means the weiight of the grow bed is significanly reduced over using gravel. It is a ceramic and adds nothing to the water. Chemical tests show it to be safe to use.

They make it just north of Albany NY, so I can drive up and get a load.

[seaspritefarms]

.http://www.dura-tech.ca/

[commander]

Those tanks look like they were tailor made for a production AP system.

[jackalope]

I know this is an old thread, but I'd kinda like to get an idea of everyone's favorite GB media - I gave up on 'lava rock' from the hardware store (I think it was some kind of manufactured stuff that eventually dissolved - (not like the lava we had in Idaho along the roadways years ago) - Pea Gravel worked well for me, but I think I could have used some Scuds to keep down the sludge, I know some people swear by the Hydroton,or coco mats (like they use in Hydroponics), but I'm curious what everyone else is using/experimenting with nowadays :mrgreen:

[Aloha Don]

I am using black and red cinder (lava rock). It is a pain to clean but I read that it provides aded nutrients to the plants. If I use this would I still need to add iron?
Thanks,
Don

[keith_r]

i like hydroton, but it's too expensive.. it went out of production and last i heard they were having problems with the quality of the clay..
river rock has been working pretty well for me (#57)

[SimonB]

I am also looking into a suitable grow bed media now.. currently i have (the local version of) Hydroton under investigation as well as Perlite, both of which i can get 100L for 50€ which seems to be the cheapest alternative. I currently have a small batch of expanded clay used in construction works but that media floats so that will do me no good in the grow beds, as it will move around and/or overflow the bed.
Anybody have any experience with Perlite?
Also, anybody tried charcoal beds? from what i have found out this evening that might be a viable alternative :)

[keith_r]

perlite won't work very well in ap, floats to easily and will end up everywhere

[SimonB]

How about rock wool? would it be worth it to pack the beds with it and maybe add some expanded caly or stones on top just for show?
i want to keep my beds lightweight so i'd rather not go or gravel..