Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

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Astrophyto
Posts: 59
Joined: Sun Oct 30, 2022 6:00 pm
Location: Sevilla, Spain. Zone 10b

Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

Post by Astrophyto »

Hello, recently i bought zeolite and pumice for first time, and i´ve noticed it is very "dusty", with a lot of dirt. So I tried to clean the rocks with water, and for a small amount of the bags i spent a lot of water. I am not used to waste things, specially water because where a live it is a valuable resource (600 mm of rain a year more or less)

My question is, it is necesary the cleaning or i could use the rocks as they come out from the bag?

Thank you for your opinions and effort to understand my english :)

Regards,

Jorge.
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anttisepp
Posts: 1359
Joined: Sat Jul 10, 2010 12:00 pm
Location: Suomi - Finland

Re: Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

Post by anttisepp »

Hola! I never do it, because substrate always contents some amount of debris that's why no sence.
It is not aquarium. 😉
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zpeckler
Posts: 201
Joined: Fri Jul 28, 2017 12:46 pm
Location: Butte County, California, Zone 9b

Re: Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

Post by zpeckler »

If it's not caked with fines I just shake them off over a fine screen to just get the dust off. If it is really dirty I wash them and let them dry before using, but that's way too much work to do with ALL your substrate every time.
--------------------
Zac

Butte County, CA, USA
USDA Zone 9b
Mediterranean climate; hot, dry, sunny summers with rainy, moist, mild winters.
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Nino_G
Posts: 169
Joined: Sun Oct 22, 2023 4:43 pm
Location: Zagreb, Croatia

Re: Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

Post by Nino_G »

I only wash small grade pumice (0-3mm) which may contain too much fine particles. For larger grades (e.g. 3-5mm) usually it is not necessary.
Astrophyto
Posts: 59
Joined: Sun Oct 30, 2022 6:00 pm
Location: Sevilla, Spain. Zone 10b

Re: Cleaning substrate? (pumice and zeolite)

Post by Astrophyto »

Thank you for your answers!
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