Too much Fuller's Earth?

kompik

While I haven't been able to find DriZit in my area, HiDri is a similar product that uses Fuller's Earth. Aside from sifting out the fines, I've read that Fuller's Earth shouldn't be more than 20% of your soil mix because of how much water it absorbs or because of how fast it can break down. Is that true?

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nip

My bag of Schultz Profile Aquatic plant soil says 100% Fullers Earth on the front. It holds up very well. You should be fine with more than 20% of it in your soil mix. Test it out by putting in a cup of warm water for a few days. If its still hard and doesnt break down...its on!

cray13

Schultz Profile Aquatic plant soil is fired to a high temperature making it much more resistant to breaking down. There's a lot of products that are derived from Fullers earth. Products like DriZit and OilDri are fired at a lower temperature than Aquatic soil which I believe makes them more absorbent than aquatic soil but also making them break down more quickly.

I have compared OilDri and Schultz Profile Aquatic soil and the Aquatic soil is much harder and is less absorbent. So, adjust your ratios accordingly to obtain the right balance of moisture etc...


Take my comments as mere opinion... just sharing what I've learned from personal research.