S/H Pots

[scy]

Thanks for the tips everyone! I really appreciate it. I tried the burning method but it took forever to heat up the screw and it turned my pair of pliers black.

I will look into the unibit and drill idea. However, I've never used a drill before. I'm thinking of getting the Black and Decker drill that can be used as a screwdriver and drill. The bonus is that it's 3 lbs, which is perfect as I'm a lightweight! I would like to know if all drill bits will fit into any drill?

Thanks Ray! That's great that proceeds go to help BARC. Shipping and fees are always the killer for me. I usually don't know what size I need until I've unpotted it and just plop it into different containers I have lying around to see what will fit best. When you've used paint buckets in the past for s/h, how can you tell where the water level is since the bucket's not see through? The next orchid I have left to repot is a cymbidium, and I'm not sure the 8" is big enough. I do have one I purchased from you sitting here, but I need to find a way to fashion a larger one should it not fit in the one I have.

If you want to talk cheap, I went on a cruise recently and my husband whispers to me while playing miniature golf, "Look! Aren't those the same rocks you use for your orchids? Why don't you just scoop some up and take it home? They're just lying around here. No one even bothered to water it." My jaw dropped and I said, "No! That's just wrong!"

[Call_Me_Bob]

thats so funny!

thats why i used a wood burner, screw didnt heat well. but i suppose that doesnt really matter, as we now know its not a good idea to melt..

[scy]

ok. i just ordered a drill and unibit. now i have to figure out how to use a drill and i'll be set!

[isurus79]

I just use a $5 pencil soldering iron from Radio Shack. It plugs in, heats itself up and looks like this: http://www.google.com/products/catal...d=0CIABEPMCMAI

Like the name says, its about the size of a pencil.

[Ray]

Dave - they make all of the S/H pots and repackage all of the PrimeAgra. I also use them on occasion to repackage other stuff - bark, spike clips, water pics, etc.

The PrimeAgra has a neat story to go with it:

There is one guy at one of their facilities that is so profoundly affected he has never been able to do any "job" they had available. The "rocks" were a whole different story.

Being a typical flat concrete floor, they build a small plywood "box" with hinges at the corners. He sits at a small table, they assemble the enclosure around him, and start dumping the 45L bags on the floor. He as either a 5L or 20L box on the desk, so scoops the material off the floor, aiming to get it in the box. If he misses, who cares? He'll get it next time. When full, he hands the box out and someone else dumps it into a bag for sealing.

Scy - I charge no packing or handling fees, and the shipping cost from me to NJ is small, especially for stuff as light as pots. Have it shipped to a business address, rather than a home, and it's even less.

[Call_Me_Bob]

i never thought about lower shipping prices for pots... the only time i ever estimated costs was for prime agra...

[scy]

Ray: Yeah but you don't have any pots larger than 8 inches. The plastic pot hasn't cracked but it is looking a bit deformed now. At what point would I need to repot it?

I do need to get some more PrimeAgra (especially to repot that cym to s/h when it's time), but when I went through the process, it cost almost $12 for shipping, $5 service fee for not meeting minimum for $6 PrimeAgra. I love your product, but just not FedEx's rates.

[greenpassion]

This maybe a bit off topic, but I have my Oncs and phals in S/H in clear glass vases and they are beautiful. I bought a bunch of different ones from a thrift store, because I figured I'd wreck a few learning how to drill the holes. I bought the diamond drill bits and learned from Ray to fill a large container with water, and drill the holes with the glass vase submerged in the water. As it turned out, I didn't wreck any of them, and it was pretty easy. Any how, they are really nice to look at, and you can see the roots developing through the glass as well. The roots also get the light they like.

[isurus79]

How much are the drill bits?

[greenpassion]

They are really inexpensive. I got a new pkg of 3 differing sizes from 1/8" to 1/4",from ebay for $10.00 free shipping. I went with the 1/4" bit as that size hole seemed like it would drain well. I found many super cheap glass vases and bowls from a thrift shop, one of which was a hand blown bowl with a turquiose embedded design of a sort of leaf in the glass. The glass was thick and the bowl a bit heavy, but still it was easy to drill. I submerged them in water in a large cooking pot at my kitchen sink, making sure the bowl or vase I was drilling were filled and under the water, and the hole and drill bit tip also just under the surface as well. If your going to do this, just go slowly, don't apply pressure, (just enough to keep that drill bit against the glass surface) This can be tricky, as the surfaces are curved and slick, and the only part that one might call difficult is the very beginning, when you have to get enough of a scratch or little roughed up indent to keep the drill bit in it's place on the glass. Once that's there, hold steady, all the time under water, and your on your way! People comment on my orchids and the look of glass and hydroton. I'll post a photo when I can take one.