disinfecting used unglazed clay pots

[Roberta]

Overnight should be fine. If you wanted to be really cautious, you could do another soak in fresh water (since I'd expect that with the original soak, an equilibrium would be reached, more time would not lead to more leaching)

[neophyte]

Thanks for the input. I had already soaked it for a day and a half but it was still smelling like chlorine, so I changed the water. I think I'll wait until tomorrow morning and change the water again (because I'm paranoid). Then I'll probably do the repotting in the afternoon.

[Roberta]

Overnight should be fine... I don't think any longer will yield any better result. Again, once an equilibrium is reached more time won't give a better result.

[Fairorchids]

To avoid the questions of:

• how long should I soak in bleach
• at what concentration
• how do I get rid of bleach residue

I scrub the used pots to get rid of old roots and potting mix, and then I bake them in the oven at 400F for a couple of hours.

[Bayard]

Physan or RD-20 is less caustic than bleach. Soak overnight in a solution strong enough for surface disinfection, scrub, rinse and you’re done.