tank farming
Rockwool has long been a pop medium for grow hydroponic yield , veggie and herbs . However , I ’m going to make the character against rockwool and fence why you should never expend rockwool again because rockwool is harmful .
This post has gotten a lot of attention recently , and as a result is in the appendage of being updated to include more information . I cite studies and in no style reference book any particular troupe – I am talking about mineral woolen as a growing medium in this post .
If you require better alternative to rockwool , please check out myhydroponic media guide .
It’s Not Environmentally Friendly
I believe in environmental sustainability – it ’s one of the reasons I ’ve chosen to grow hydroponically . Rockwool does n’t score well on the environmental scale . It ’s not a rude fabric . Manufacturers use combine chalk and rock and then heat them up to around 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit . Next a stream of air is blown through it , resulting in extremely thin fiber of the rocky textile . As the strings are blown out , they cluster together and form the material that you see for sales agreement at the local hydroponics store .
fundamentally , they are taking two materials that are 100 % lifelike ( chalk and rock ) and turning them into a hybrid cloth that will remain in that form forever . When you throw away your old rockwool it ’s going to sit in a landfill look just like that for a retentive , LONG meter . If you absolutely assert on using it , assay to salvage your rockwool in between your growing season and reuse it .
It’s Not Healthy To Be Around
Not only is rockwool unfriendly to the surround – it ’s also potentially harmful to your health . young blocks can check a lot of dust and loose fibers that can get in your eyes , rima oris , skin and lung . It ’s similar to asbestos in the sensory faculty that the short fibers can lodge themselves in your lungs if you ’re act with it a mess . It may not be as toxic as asbestos , but why take the risk ? Not something that I ’m willing to risk with if I do n’t have to – there are plenty of other hydroponic media pick ! If you ’re using rockwool , you should be using a mask , goggles and gloves when you make for with it to protect yourself .
Here is what a 2002 survey on man - made mineral fiber found :
TheInternational Agency for Research on Cancer(IARC ) has reviewed the carcinogenicity of serviceman - made mineral fibres in October 2002 . The IARC Monograph ’s working group concluded only the more biopersistent material continue classified by IARC as “ possibly carcinogenic to man ” ( Group 2B ) . These admit stubborn ceramic fibres , which are used industrially as insulating material in high - temperature environment such as blast furnace , and certain particular - purpose shabu wool not used as insulating textile .
The significant part :
In contrast , the more unremarkably used vitreous fibre wools , include insulant field glass wool , gemstone wool and slag wool , are see “ not classifiable as to carcinogenicity in man ” ( Group 3 ) . – Wikipedia clause on mineral wool safety
A note on the IARC study :
Some manufacturing business of insulation production have cited this book while making erroneous claims that “ IARC scientist sustain safe of mineral wool insularity ” . These claims are just false . The findings in this volume are not a finding of non - carcinogenicity or overall guard .
What this means is that the study was not able to determine if it these mineral woollen stimulate cancer or not . Again , my original point : why gravel with it when there are effective options ?
If you ’d wish to translate the original study , click here .
More imagination on Mineral Wool Safety
It Has a Naturally High pH
If you utilise rockwool right out of the package , you will likely have a problem once you plant seeds or seedlings in the fabric . It ’s pH is much higher than other media , so it requires treating before it can be safely used with plants . Not only is this annoying and a fuss to deal out with , it just slows down your full cognitive process and pose a roadblock in front of your rise travail . Even when you get the pH correct , it can fluctuate much more than other types of growing medium . You ’ll have to see the pH levels of your rockwool like a war hawk to make certain there ’s no nourishing closure to your source . The last thing you want is for your media to in reality slow down the increase of your plant alternatively of speed it up .
If you ’ve been convince to try something else out , you might be wonder what option are out there . I ’ve put together ahydroponic growing media guidethat breaks down the advantage and disadvantage of some of the most popular growing metier , but if you need some quick guidelines , here they are :
What do you think ? Do you use rockwool ?
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