what is Rockwool http://www.bhocenter.com/rockwool/rw.html , http://www.genhydro.com/artfaqrw.html , http://members.ozemail.com.au/~accent/fivesys/fsys0012.htm , http://futuregarden.com/knowledge_tree/about_hydroponics_soilfree_mediums.html
, http://www.hydrofarm.com/content/articles/rock_substrate.html
sources of Rockwool http://www.bhocenter.com/index.htm , http://shop.store.yahoo.com/hydroponics-garden/grodrociswid.html , http://www.nwhydroponics.com/products.asp?id=61
health concerns... http://193.51.164.11/htdocs/monographs/vol43/43-01.htm ,
i know it is a lot of reading, each site has different info.
a note to people with sensitive skin like i do... maybe u should use some plastic gloves in handling rockwool. i tried to plant some seeds this afternoon. i noticed some itching sensation around my hand, after handling rockwool.
when i process the rockwool, i had a basin filled with warm water. so from the plastic bag, the rockwool went straight into the basin.
i used pair of scissors to cut to size, to produce a neat cut. separating them apart, i find ruin part of the next 'potting media'.
read on Rock wool...
Thanks SO MUCH MaVieRose for taking the time to find all these very informative and interesting articles on rockwool. I greatly appreciate the links you provided to make it super easy for everyone to read up on this inert growing medium. Anyone who is thinking of using this hydroponic growing material needs to read the articles before using it.
Make sure to protect yourself by wearing gloves and a face mask too. Your health is too important to take for granted!
u're welcome Shirley1md.
i read almost everyone like this material to start seeds in. it never dawned on me to research it prior to using. since i noticed, the itchy sensation, i had to find out. i can not keep this info to myself, since i find out a lot thru reading.
i hope it help others too.
I am hoping to get a job at the school board,removing Asbestos,would be a great job,my friend Madjack does it.
They replenish the air at 1 time per minute.
If you use moisture first,there will be no problem.
Airborne,this may be a problem,but with proper care,I see no need to worry.
I worked with mine today,I took out of packing,set in a container,then softly sprayed.piece of cake.
Don't get me wrong,not something you want to handle dry and wipe your eyes.
But,if we look at all the things that we deal with each day,this is no different.
I only have a problem with the fact,it was delivered to my home,with no warning.
Here was my comment I made yesterday on Kell's thread, "I Am Sold".........."if rockwool is potentially harmful if inhaled, shouldn't the manufacturers be required by law to put a printed message with the rockwool and state the precautions that one should take when using it?"
Yes!!!I was reading,where a box came damaged UPS,I did not know what to think,I just figured a company was using new boxes to ship,mine came in a panasonic film cartridge box,so I guess what we're dealing with is,a small company?
Well, I just read every link Ma Vie posted and I feel so much better! I am not even going to wear a mask. I will use common sense in handling it. I won't shred it and throw it in the air either but the fact that none of the articles describing rockwool even mentioned health effects and then the one that did has varying results and was talking about workers who dealt with it every day all day. And that article said it was rated as:
Rockwool is possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B).
Well just about everything is possibly carcinogenic to humans!
And this is after studies on people who work with it all day every day for years. I think we have a better chance of getting lung cancer from the second hand smoke we are subjected to or even cancer from the fat content in the food we eat!
Thanks Ma Vie. I feel so much better!
edited to add it seems that they now have improved the safety by adding oil binders in the manufacturing of it.
This message was edited Jan 18, 2004 6:59 PM
Rooty,
.....Sounds Like U are dealing with a small company. May I ask who it is?
I only deal with http://www.bghydro.com
No 'mickey-mouse' stuff here.
OR- maybe with the flood of orders we caused, they ran out of boxes?.....
Everyone will need to make their own decisions whether they wish to take precautions when handling rockwool or other inert fibers & particles, that may be released into the air and be inhaled into their lungs.
Since knowledge is power, everyone will be better informed to make a choice that may or may not affect their health.
rockwool, and perlite for that matter are both potentially dangerous to inhale.
easy solution is to pour it into a trash can, just make a 1inch hole and pour it into the can. Hose it down slightly before use.
easily done.
and my perlite comes straight from the manufacturer (since I use about 100cu ft a year) and it has very few labels regarding health.
Drew
Peatmoss is the same way.
Ditto Vermiculite
Thanks, MaVie. This is good info to know.
I just read more and I am happy to report that the rating of rockwool has changed.
"In October 2001 WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer removed stone wool from a classification as "Possibly carcinogenic to man."
From my reading I have learned that workers do not even have to wear masks when working with it unless the work area is particularly dusty with fibers. They can even inhale a certain amount. Most articles I found have to do with it as being used as insulation.
Please research yourself to decide what is best for your own health.
I found these links useful.
http://216.239.51.104/search?q=cache:psPqSHPFpPsJ:www.rockwooldenmark.dk/material_safetydatasheet_%25201_%25202003_01_01.pdf+rockwool+safety&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:eKCvNfwNFbkJ:www.whs.qld.gov.au/icp/icp010.pdf+material+safety+data+sheet+rockwool&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
I guess this is why there are no warnings about it attached to the product we have received.
the purpose in posting the links is not to cause alarm, only to further educate us in knowing what we deal with.
extra precaution is always a good extra steps in things we deal with in our daily life, albeit housework or gardening.
prior to using peatmoss, perlite or any products that will produce dust: i cut off a small portion along the edge of the bag. hole big enough to manage insert the hose into the bag. then fill the bag with water. this manner, prevents me from inhaling any dust. it also keep the products moist that made materials like peatmoss and perlite more manageable to use.
u're welcome Kell :).
Bob, i bought Rockwool from bghydro. when i rcvd the packaged sent to me, it was a brand new box with label and note to UPS to handle the product properly. the rockwool were carefully wrapped in thick huge plastic bag.
bghydro is practically down the hill from where i live. there is a young lady that works there and she is super friendly and helpful, her name is Michelle. btw, Michelle is aware that a great majority of the order they get these days are DG members.
When it comes to handling any planting material, we should just all use common sense. Also, remember that materials are not marked hazardous unless many years have proved it to be dangerous by using it, or by tests and studies. Usually many have been harmed or died by the time we are made aware of the hazards.
There is still so much asbestos around and we know that is deadly. I know a couple women that died from asbestos because their husbands brought asbestos fibers homes on their work clothes and after years of staigtening out their work clothes before washing, they obviously inhaled some of the fibers year after year. It has not been that many years ago that men cleaned their tools in benzene using their bare hands and since there were not any warnings, this was a normal thing to do. We all know what benzene can do to you. Chronic Myolegenous Leukenia (CML) is almost always caused by benzene and many have died because this was not considered a hazard at one time.
We all have to be careful rather it has a warning label or not. We are all very careful with the handling of our brugs, such as using clean hands, sterile equipment, clean soil etc. So please take care of yourself in the same manner. When you think about it, it only takes a insignificant amount of time to use a little extra caution.
I want all of you be be happy healthy gardeners and to be my friends for a long time.
Bravo, Bragnanny, I agreee.
Dee
Well said, BrugNanny!
I have become really curious about RW, after reading this and the other thread. Thank you everyone.
But, with vermiculite and perlite both providing transpiration and moisture retention, why is this stuff so much better?
Peter
Just to update this thread with the more recent warning:
Information from 2003-2004 seems to indicate the possibility of rockwool being carcinogeic:
[HYPERLINK@www.nationmaster.com]
Each person has to decide for him or herself the amount of risk he or she is willing to take!
Peter, I have been trying straight perlite with excellent results.
Thanks, John. Sure is cheaper. I asume that large seed would work best in perlite; small stuff might trickle through?
Peter
Peter, even the small Brug seeds worked well, but you're right as far as other plants with smaller seeds.
Thanks, John
I went to scooters site and found rockwool ,now how do you read this, is the price for each cube? they are shown in sheets.
1x1x1.5'' Rockwool Cubes
Code:GMRWAO25
Price: $0.10
+ postage
edited to add I just paid $11.00 for a sheet of 24 cubes on ebay.+ 5.50 postage
This message was edited Jan 29, 2005 2:13 PM
Doris, a sheet of 200 cubes is $9.95. Scroll the select quantity down and you'll see it.
Darn wish I had seen this earlier
Do not worry Doris, you will be buying more soon. LOL
your right kell, I went back and saw the one I bought are all individualy wrapped, and say they are superior, soooo, nothing like the best for my Brug seeds.
Oh they are the bigger ones I think. You can stick a few seed sin each cube. I just use a pen to poke in more holes.
You are a good brug mom, Doris! LOL
gee thanks kell, and my baby is doing great.
Just adding my 2 cents that I have had 22 PB seeds in cubes for about 2 weeks. Three are sprouting and several more are making a root. This is my first time growing from seeds.
Oh, and I added "SuperNova" that I got from WormsWay (where I got the RW also)
Supernova ? Not on your germinating seeds I hope ;'(
I do not have a water pump, etc..... and wondering about how to wet the rockwool. Should I soak it real good and then put the seeds in it, then maybe spray with a water bottle to keep it moist?
Soak it in water for an hour or so , let it drain , put it in a container
~~Carefully, it is heavy now and will fall apart ~~~~
( i use those plastic shoe box size storage containers cause they come with a lid )
poke your seeds in so you can still see them
Cover container with plastic or stick n seal or whatever to create a little green house effect.
Put in a bright area , no direct sun.
There should not be standing water in the container
Keep everything very clean to avoid introducing contaminates
that will grow and destroy the seedlings. Fresh RW is sterile
Karrie,
..............Do you already have your RW? .
I just seal mine in a clear plastic bag Karrie and never water it. I leave it in there till the seedlings are 2 inches or so. They do great. I seal them and put them under my lights on my seedling table and forget about them. I do not touch them till they are ready to come out of the bags and get potted up.
See how well they do.
I used the tin loaf pans, with clear tops, that Gretchen told me about, they're like little green houses. I use rockwool too, but I do not like the rockwool in sheets, I like the rockwool cut into individual sections for the seeds, and I like the rockwool, cut the smallest for the seeds. The reason being that the 'cut' rockwool, has breathing room on the bottom and sides and I can tell more about what my seeds are doing and where the roots are growing. When they get a couple of sets of leaves, I just pinch them apart and plant, nice and easy and much easier to see if the seed is sprouting in the rockwool. When I plant my next seeds, I will peel them, and soak 1/2 and let 1/2 dry out for as long as I soak the other half and see what happens, I really got fast germination by letting them dry, rather than soak, so I'm gonna test the same seeds, doing it both ways...
Nope - I haven't bought it yet. I just wanted some advice first so when I go get it, hopefully tomorrow, that I will have an idea of what to do.
I'm ordering some now, and I'm looking at grow lights and a timer - might turn the garage into a nursery in the fall/winter if I get seeds. Otherwise it means dragging them all inside every night. There's a kick from watching it sprout and slowly going through the different phases. I've always had pretty good luck with seed. I do a lot and then give some away as gifts to friends that don't have the patience to go that route.
Mary
Tom built me 2 of the seedling tables from ideas from here, Mary. They are out of PVC and I love them. I start all my cuttings on them also. They are not that expensive and so much fun. I just use 1 cool and 1 warm fluorescent light bulb and they work great. I think I have 4 work light fixtures per shelf so 8 bulbs per shelf. They are much cheaper than grow lights and work just great.