this post was submitted on 09 May 2025
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Hydroponics

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I've recently started trying coco, and when researching about it, I found out it has lots of leftover salts and unsaturated cation exchange sites from the production process.

Therefore, I first soaked it with epsom salt (MgSO4), to exchange the sodium and potassium sites with magnesium (calcium would work too), because otherwise, the medium wouldn't be pH neutral and alter the composition of my nutrient solution.

Then, I washed it thoroughly with pure water and repeated that until the EC was low enough.

All of that felt very wasteful and inconvenient.

Do you have an easier way to do that?

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[โ€“] [email protected] 2 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

Does it matter that much?

I haven't used it myself, but I've seen plenty who've used it untreated with no complaint.

Then again, I'm amateur enough that my system will destabilise in olabout 12 weeks anyway and need a full change of nutrient solution

[โ€“] [email protected] 4 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

This was my thought... I've seen folks just hit it with a garden hose and call it good.

Never used it myself though.