Professor's Nutrients - Hydro Clay (10L) Carton of 5 - Bulk 50L Premium Expanded Clay Aggregate (LECA)

5 X Professor’s Nutrients - Hydro Clay (10L) – Bulk Carton of 5 (50L Total)

Engineered for hydroponic commercial growers, indoor plant enthusiasts, and boutique market nurseries, this bulk carton contains five individual 10-Litre bags (50 Litres total) of Professor’s Nutrients Hydro Clay. This premium Lightweight Expanded Clay Aggregate (LECA) is a high-performance substrate manufactured by firing premium natural clay in a rotary kiln at extreme temperatures. This process causes the clay to expand into highly porous, lightweight spheres with a varying diameter of 8–16mm. Featuring a rigid, sterile outer shell and a micro-porous internal core, Hydro Clay provides the ultimate structural foundation for rapid root zone aeration and instant drainage.

Purchasing this product in a commercial carton of 5 provides an incredibly cost-effective, easy-to-handle bulk media solution. It is ideal for scaling up multi-site hydroponic systems or repotting large indoor plant collections. Completely inert, chemically neutral, and structurally stable, Hydro Clay ensures it will not break down, compact, or alter your water reservoir’s nutrient balance over long, intensive crop cycles.

Best For: Large-scale semi-hydroponic indoor plant cultivation (passive hydroponics), commercial Deep Water Culture (DWC) arrays, top-feed drip irrigation tables, base drainage layers in commercial crop rows, and bulk premium aroid potting mix blending.

Key Features:

• Convenient Bulk Carton Packing: Supplied as a matching set of 5 individual 10L hobby bags, giving you a massive 50L total volume that is easy to carry, store, and distribute across the greenhouse without hauling unmanageable bulk sacks.
• Optimised 8–16mm Mixed Sizing: The varying diameter of the clay balls ensures they interlock cleanly within net baskets, pots, and drainage channels, providing superior structural support for heavy plants while leaving massive macro-porous air gaps.
• Maximum Root Zone Aeration: By maintaining an open, uncompactable physical matrix, Hydro Clay ensures that fresh oxygen is constantly available to the rhizosphere, driving explosive lateral root development and protecting against waterlogged root rot (Pythium).
• 100% Inert & pH Neutral: Unlike inferior clay resources that can cause aggressive pH spikes, Professor's Hydro Clay is pre-stabilised and completely neutral, giving you absolute control over your precision liquid nutrient regime.
• Infinite Reusability & Value: Highly durable and physically robust, these clay pebbles do not degrade, dissolve, or weather away. They can be thoroughly washed, sanitised, and reused season after season, making this bulk pack an exceptionally smart long-term investment.
• Sterile & Pathogen-Free Base: The high-heat kiln manufacturing process ensures the medium is completely sterile upon packaging, entirely free from weeds, pests, harmful bacteria, and soil-borne diseases.
• Excellent Capillary Action: The porous internal core absorbs moisture and dissolved nutrients, drawing them upward to feed young roots via capillary wicking action while allowing excess surface water to drain away instantly.

Product Technical Specifications Matrix:

Preparation & Management Tips:

• The Initial Rinse: Like all premium LECA products, Hydro Clay can develop a fine clay dust during transit. Before introducing it to your active system or indoor pots, pour the pebbles into a mesh colander or a perforated bucket and rinse them thoroughly with fresh water until it runs completely clear.
• Pre-Soaking for Stability: For best results in recirculating hydroponic setups or passive indoor plant wicking, soak your rinsed clay pebbles in a pH-adjusted water bath (5.5–5.8) for 24 hours prior to planting. This fully saturates the internal pores and locks in your target baseline.
• Passive Hydroponics (LECA Method): For indoor houseplants like Monsteras or Anthuriums, fill a non-perforated decorative pot with a 2–3cm layer of Hydro Clay, sit the plant's clean root system on top, and fill the rest of the container. Maintain a water level only within that bottom 2–3cm layer; the clay's capillary action will wick moisture upward without drowning the roots.
• Sterilising Between Cycles: To reuse your Hydro Clay, strip out the old root mass, rinse the pebbles to remove organic debris, and soak them in a diluted hydrogen peroxide or sanitising solution. Rinse once more with fresh water, and the media is ready for the next run.

Ideal For:

• Commercial Hydroponics: The absolute gold standard medium for commercial-scale flood-and-drain tables, top-feed drip rings, or large DWC buckets.
• Base Drainage Layer: Placing a uniform 2–3cm layer at the bottom of standard soil or coco coir pots to prevent pooling water and ensure flawless drainage.
• Aroid & Indoor Potting Mixes: Blending into dense potting soils to lighten the overall weight of the container and instantly introduce permanent aeration pockets for indoor plants.

Oversized Item Delivery Options

Since oversized items require special handling, we may need to provide a custom freight quote for your order and will contact you with an updated shipping rate.

Available options include:

✔ Delivery to your closest depot for pickup - default method
✔ Direct delivery - requires forklift on site
✔ Direct delivery with tailgate lift truck (extra fees apply)
✔ Forklift loading at our warehouse (no extra charge if you arrange your own freight)
✔ Direct truck delivery (available in Victoria)

Important Notes:

• Shipping costs vary by location and method
• Because of the forklift requirement, delivery to the nearest depot is the default option and will be the method used unless you contact us to request otherwise.

Business Delivery:

• Business delivery is available for commercial customers only
• If you select business delivery and your products are bulky, it is your responsibility to ensure you have appropriate equipment (including forklifts) to unload products from the delivery truck
• If you select business delivery and you are not a business, you risk your product not being delivered and may incur additional fees to retrieve your order
• Business delivery customers must provide a valid business address and contact information
• Additional fees may apply for failed delivery attempts due to lack of appropriate unloading equipment

Let us know your preference, and we'll arrange the best solution for you!

Important Note on Availability & Shipping

Our warehouse serves as our office and logistics centre rather than a retail showroom. Because we ship from multiple locations and manage high-turnover stock, not all items are available for immediate pickup.

Lead Times:

• In-Stock Items: Usually ready for dispatch the same day.
• Supplier-Dependent Items: Usually take 2–8 weeks to arrive, depending on supplier availability. Products from Adloheat may take 8–12 weeks to manufacture—they are made to order in Australia by a small business, and longer lead times reflect the care put into quality.

While we strive for fast delivery, some timelines are subject to supplier availability and are beyond our control. We appreciate your patience as we source the best quality gear for your project.

Biosecurity & Interstate Shipping Restrictions

Due to strict state biosecurity regulations, we are unable to ship some products to certain states and territories:

• Potting Mixes cannot be shipped to Western Australia (WA), the Northern Territory (NT), or Tasmania (TAS).
• Seeds cannot be shipped to Western Australia (WA).

Orders placed for these items to restricted states will be cancelled and refunded. It is the customer's responsibility to ensure that the items being ordered can lawfully be delivered to their state or territory.