List some good coco brands

Can anyone list some brands that are the same quality as Botanicare but cheaper?
I was thinking about trying either Hypergrow Coco or Empire Organics Coco.

Reason is cus I decided to get a bag of Nutrifield Coco and I feel like I've been ripped off. This shit turns into mud when watered, compacts very easily, and does not smell, look, or have the texture of coco. Feels like there's 50% soil mixed in or somethin. It definitely has a soil smell and color to it.
oh yea, and there's also white specks in it that look like salt grains.
I compared it to images of the same brand and it looks nothing like it.

seriously, wtf is this shit?
My guess is either there really is soil mixed in or it's too finely ground up. did someone replace it all with soil? Who would do that? I realy don't get it...

I know people use this brand with good results but I really prefer the texture of the Botanicare coco, because with the botanicare coco, when you squeeze a handful to compact it and release your grip, it immediately expands like a sponge.

i like Just Coir brand. check it out, affordable and effective

oh yea what is the diff between coco coir and coco peat? Some brands claim that their coco is not "coco peat" like other "inferior brands". wtf? I've searched and searched but these two seem to be the same?

Well to my understanding, peat is made from coir. I've done a couple crops now in 100% coco peat and I've tried Just Coir and biobizz. Both seemed to do bout the same. Guy at grow shop says the most popular are Canna and Royal Gold (I think it was). I've never seen Nutrifield or Hypergrow brands before.

The Royal Gold coco is is about $15 where I go. I got a bag of B'Cuzz coco substrate. It's obscenely expense, but they gave me a deal to try it out. I compared it to some left over Just Coir and the B'Cuzz is so much darker than the Just Coir, that it makes it look orange. I know that the darker the better, so if you were planning to reuse the coco, it maybe be worth while to get the good shit.

i dont know the darker it is just makes me feel like there's soil mixed in. I don't know why coco would be naturally dark anyway, since if you've ever had a coconut the fiber is white and ranges to orange - light brown.

oh yea, I did try bcuzz cooc, but the first bag I ever got... had bugs in it.. harmless ones (blind springtails), but still.. there was like 100+ in every handful. So I was like fuck this. Probably bad batch but I only knew one shop that carried that brand so didn't want to risk it on a second bag.

Genreal hydro has a decent one. pressed brick for 10 buck equal to just over half a bail of soiless. want to watch the salt content in coco. thats what the cheeper ones are full of.

The Zapper said:

Well to my understanding, peat is made from coir.

Click to expand...

Peat generally refers to Sphagnum Peat Moss. Sphagnum, a type of moss usually harvested from Canadian Peat Bogs.

GH's compressed Blocks are larger than other brands and contain no fibers just pith. For 10 bucks, it's my favorite buy.
Botanicare has more fibers in their block, but it's $17 and smaller than GH. If I want fibers, I would rather just spend $2.50 on a red/purple GH Brick.
Hypergrow is loaded with a mix of fibers and chips and for $7 and free shipping from homedepot it beats the shit out of botanicare.

JustRightXtra/B'cuzz/Sunshine/Readygrow, all those loosefill bags are expensive and have already absorbed moisture. I'm kinda against them.
Rather just buy a couple compressed blocks of coco,a single compressed bale of peat moss and a couple bags of worm castings and call it a ton of soil for cheap. Add dry fertilizers as desired.