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  • Results 1 to 15 of 15

    Thread: Feather Rock

    1. #1
      johnhubbs is offline Senior Member
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      Feather Rock

      Greetings All,
      I am in the process of procuring items for spring pond build. Found the only supplier within driving distance of me for feather rock and they are quoting $0.80/lb. Does this seem high compared to your local pricing? This supplier stocks feather rock in boulder sizes, so I have asked for smaller broken pieces at a discount. Supplier stated they will see what is broken on site and email me with pricing and quantity. Considering the amount of money I will be spending on this build, looking to save where I can without jeopardizing quality of build.
      Thank you for your input and comments, John...

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    2. #2
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      It is high. I ran a quick search and found it in your state as low as .44/lb

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    3. #3
      BWG is offline Senior Member
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      Small pieces of lava rock are also widely used with success. Very low cost, already in small pieces no breaking needed and easy to find packaged in bags. If money is tight start with low cost lava rock and move to something else if needed at a later date.

    4. #4
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      Hey John. I see between $.60 and $.80/lb locally. What I find is that the individual pieces vary in weight. Some aremuch heavier than others, even on the same skid. So rather than ask for the smaller pieces at a reduced rate, possibly hand select the pieces based on actual density. My supplier allows me to dig through the couple or few skids they have and cherry pick the lighter pieces. They get a kick out of the fact that I'm breaking it up in small pieces and used for a koi pond filter.

      Wear gloves. Wear longsleeves. Wear eye protection.

      Use a large blade chisel and chip with the grain You;ll find the pieces come off in large slivers that can be reduced down to useable size. Place a mat or cardboard under the rock as your breaking it up. This will help cleanup- not fun to walk barefooted over shards of feather rock.

      Rinse the rock thoroughly before using. You'll find there is a lot of sand/debris inside the pores that will come out if flushed vigorously. Even after months of use in the shower, I still had grit still collecting in the filters. After a year or so the rock was washed clean.

      True story... A buddy and I were going to the Purdin Koi Farm harvest back in 2011. We were meeting some koi folks there and I was delivering about 400lbs of feather rock to them. About five or six large pieces were in the truck bed. Stopped at McDonald's, we were approached by some curious folks who saw the rocks. Keep in mind this is in either Mississippi or Louisianna.... and with his best southern draw he says- "Them meteors?"
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    5. #5
      Traitimkh8 is offline Senior Member
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      Does anyone know if there is a place that sells feather rock in Oklahoma or Dallas or Houston area?

    6. #6
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      A bit high, I usually see it sell for 50 cents a lb.

    7. #7
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      It is high. I ran a quick search and found it in your state as low as .44/lb

      http://www.ftwaynelandscape.com/gallery
      just check out the site ,look like the pot rock is = to lava up here in Ma. that I use Only pot rock is larger in size , just did search up here seems no one sells Feather Rock
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    8. #8
      pond happy is offline Senior Member
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      I have to buy some feather rock (.99 cents a pound here in Ontario, Canada) for my Bakki Shower. About what size is correct for a Bakki Shower tray?

    9. #9
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      The closer you are to volcanic lava fields, the cheaper the price would be. As suggested, select the lightest pieces of what's available. It's usually the lighter colored gray rather than the darker blackish-gray. I used some stuff I got from Birdman several years ago, that he already had broken down and in gunny sacks. The pieces ranged in size from 2"x4"x2" to some softball size. It doesn't really matter that much, just mix the sizes together. What's most important is the flow rate over the rock and how clean the delivered water is to the shower unit. I found that using three layers of green Matala mat in the top tray has eliminated a lot of particulates from getting to the rock trays.
      Mike

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    10. #10
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      Thanks for all the replies. Appreciate the help. jimfish98 unforunately, Ft. Wayne is on the other side of the state. Appliance Guy, I plan to cut the stone with my wet-saw, so no worries there.

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    11. #11
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      I believe I got mine for .26 a pound

    12. #12
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      Hydroponics shops also have excellent shower media available such as Grow Stones and expanded shale. I have tried saw cutting feather rock and it is easier and faster to just use a mason hammer and chisel.
      Last edited by BWG; 01-22-2015 at 11:27 PM.

    13. #13
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      Quote Originally Posted by Otrex View Post
      I have to buy some feather rock (.99 cents a pound here in Ontario, Canada) for my Bakki Shower. About what size is correct for a Bakki Shower tray?
      I like baseball size pieces. Large rocks are easy to break up with a hammer and 3" chissel.

    14. #14
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      After hundreds of calls just trying to find the stuff I got it for .26/lb at a landscaping supply yard
      - Sherry & Greg

      21' x 11' x 5.5'
      9000 gal


      Our pond build HERE


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    15. #15
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      Quote Originally Posted by koiman1950 View Post
      The closer you are to volcanic lava fields, the cheaper the price would be. As suggested, select the lightest pieces of what's available. It's usually the lighter colored gray rather than the darker blackish-gray. I used some stuff I got from Birdman several years ago, that he already had broken down and in gunny sacks. The pieces ranged in size from 2"x4"x2" to some softball size. It doesn't really matter that much, just mix the sizes together. What's most important is the flow rate over the rock and how clean the delivered water is to the shower unit. I found that using three layers of green Matala mat in the top tray has eliminated a lot of particulates from getting to the rock trays.
      I wish I knew about the trick of picking the lighter and gray color rocks. Once I started to break up the batch I bought, it was obvious to me that the gray ones were more porous (better media) and much easier to break up than the black ones.

      Do wear gloves if you don't want to get bloody hands. Soke the rocks in water before working with them so the glass particles don't get into your lungs.

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