Please tell me everything there is to know about Rockwool!?!

[sweetolmaryjane]

Hello i have herd a lot of speculation and people telling me to use rockwool, i just bought some and I have no idea what to do with it. Please help..

 

[neverbreak]

use it for seedlings and clones. just don't overwater it as it retains plenty once wet.

neverbreak

 

[Botanikos]

Stays very wet, you'll have to gently squeeze to prevent it being too wet! Good starter... more info at ( http://www.mandalaseeds.com/Guides/Soil-Guide#Product Information in North America )

 

[TrichromeFan]

Rockwool is really not that bad to deal with at all. Presoak your rockwool at 5.5ph water for 1/2-1hr. Then plug your starter cubes with seedlings or cuttings into the holes. Water next with 1/2 strength nutrients at about 5.6 . DONT water again till they feel light, but are not wilted yet (This could take a few days). Then water again. Next waterings work your way up in nute strength till you are at about 1.4EC (700PPM on a .5 scale). Hope that gets you started.

-TF

 

[bobby]

rockwool is awesome. it provides an ideal air/water ratio in the root zone and it's sterile. If you use it correctly, I think it will produce some of the best and most dense flowers you've ever grown. Go to grodans website and learn more.

depending on your veg time, use 4x4x4 cubes on 6 inch slabs.....it's great for dtw or recirculating....and also did I mention it's sterile? no pests....instantly half of our problems are solved.

 

[ttystikk]

rockwool is awesome. it provides an ideal air/water ratio in the root zone and it's sterile. If you use it correctly, I think it will produce some of the best and most dense flowers you've ever grown. Go to grodans website and learn more.

depending on your veg time, use 4x4x4 cubes on 6 inch slabs.....it's great for top drip, dtw or flood and drain....and also did I mention it's sterile? no pests....instantly half of our problems are solved.

No growth medium is a panacea, and while rockwool has its advantages, it is no better than plenty of other media out there. Trichome fan's primer on how to get started with rockwool is excellent; don't over think it.

I'm finding that 50/50 coco/hydroton is also an excellent growth media.

Lastly, few gardeners get pests through their media, unless it's all organic or compost in origin. Most pests come in by traditional means- and they will happily infest rockwool, too. Rockwool may START out sterile, but fungus gnat larvae especially seem to like it as it's porous and easy for them to burrow through to get to your cuttings' tasty roots! Overwater it and you'll see how much pythium likes it, too...

 

[bobby]

No growth medium is a panacea, and while rockwool has its advantages, it is no better than plenty of other media out there. Trichome fan's primer on how to get started with rockwool is excellent; don't over think it.

I'm finding that 50/50 coco/hydroton is also an excellent growth media.

Lastly, few gardeners get pests through their media, unless it's all organic or compost in origin. Most pests come in by traditional means- and they will happily infest rockwool, too. Rockwool may START out sterile, but fungus gnat larvae especially seem to like it as it's porous and easy for them to burrow through to get to your cuttings' tasty roots! Overwater it and you'll see how much pythium likes it, too...

I never said it was better or worse than any other medium...and I especially would not recommend it for a beginner. I actually prefer coco for numerous reasons. But over the years I would say that the best product I have ever seen, came from rockwool gardens...and when I used it, it was simply amazing. finicky as hell, but amazing. It was my first hydro grow, and I remember how amazed I was with the speed of growth...so maybe I have a weird bias towards it because the speed shocked the hell out of me. I remember thinking "no wonder people make rap songs about hydro..."

Also, rockwool is the only medium I was able to achieve a completely 100% pest free room, without ever using any pesticides....it was really nice never having to spray anything or worry about any type of bug. If you bring them in, then you bring them in...but I think bringing in pests through coco or soil media is a 50/50 shot...

 

[Danoid]

Rockwool is such a royal PITA to dispose of properly. Major security risk in disposal. That is the only reason I stopped using it. Coco/hydroton 50/50 is way better for someone new to growing. Good Luck however you go

 

[carBon.14]

not a fan of rockwool. stays way too wet.

 

[TrichromeFan]

Well, I would say that you can get great results in any medium if you are it's master. I would also say that I agree that rockwool is more wet than other mediums. With proper size selection and watering intervals, you have a pretty easy time.

Danoid, how do you dispose of all of your coco/hydroton? Do you re-use it all? Do you treat it to do so? Just curious what you find better for you.

-TF

 

[datDANK]

i just bought some 1.5" squares for $10 bucks 94 count
i soaked in RO water for a few hours
then drained
soak in RO water again for few hours
and drained
soak in RO water again for longer
and drained
now gonna just hose it with RO water for a few minutes to make sure that shit is as clean as can be

now I will soak 1gal RO water with 1 or 2 ml calmag w/micros
2mls a1 ROOTS
1ml superthrive
citric acid pH to 5.5 over night
in the morning i will let it drain for over an hour
just making sure the cubes are already losing water instead of soaked
45 degree cut with a stanely razer and dome them up.. should see roots in 7 days


as soon as i see roots i let them sit on A1 supersoil with no dome and drip some General Hydro rapid roots hormone on it and will spray water every now and then with a spray pump and wand

of course i am working with a 2x4 t5 8 bulb

 

[sky high]

Bravo, datDank.

You are the first person I've seen who actually >flushes< their cubes of the limestone dust (which is what raises the pH) before soaking them in the 5.5-5.7 solution. This is what a top Grodan rep told me to do years ago ...FWIW....yet....very few people do anyhting but soak their cubes.

good info....

s h

 

[ttystikk]

Rockwool is such a royal PITA to dispose of properly. Major security risk in disposal. That is the only reason I stopped using it. Coco/hydroton 50/50 is way better for someone new to growing. Good Luck however you go

Do you dispose of or reuse your chowmix from one run to the next? If you reuse it, what do you do to recondition it?

Edit: lol, saw Trichomefan asked first. well... enquiring minds wanna know!

 

[Danoid]

ttystikk I am planning on recycling it. I am now on my fourth run first two were under overdriven t8's and third/fourth(fourth run has 4 1/2 weeks left to go) run were just under a 400 watter. What I have done with the potts from the first three runs was get as much of the roots and hydrotron out. Now it is soaking in the corner in my own lactos b enzymes. I would really like someone to start a coco recycle thread as I am treading in unknown territory so take what I say with a grain of salt. Good luck

 

[GanjaAL]

Alot of people love it and can grow with it.... for me and only me, it made me want to gouge my eyes out with sand paper and a rusty nail. Just my epic fail to get the hange of using it as I slam my face on my plaster walls. ;)