Are all wetting agents the same?

Wetting agents are definitely not the same. Turftech International Ltd has specialised in growing media wetting agents for over 20 years, and growing media and modern chemical engineering has resulted in the development of FIBA-ZORB PLUS.
 

FIBA-ZORB PLUS is a very unique wetting agent that is manufactured by Turftech International Ltd on a special chemical reactor in the UK. It is a blend of non-ionic and anionic molecules
with slow bio-degradability (but still conforms to EC regulations), and also has the capacity to absorb to the solid phase through hydrophobic interaction on cationic bridges, and it is this physical-chemical mechanism that increases the degree of water retention in porous soil and growing media.
 

​

Most of the common wetting agents work only once and thereafter quickly lose their efficacy.
 

Some wetting agents are unstable and start to biodegrade after 6 only months, meaning the shelf life of sealed bags from the producer gives the grower only a very short period of effective use. Many wetting agents are water soluble and easily leached out with normal irrigation.
 

Several substrate wetting agents were compared for their ability to withstand high irrigation by

Fachhochschule Weihenstephan in Germany and the differences can be seen in the graphs below.

 

 

Already after the first rinsing, the efficacy of three of the wetting agents was significantly reduced:

 

After the second rinsing, the efficacy of FIBA-ZORB® PLUS was still good:

After the third rinsing three of the wetting agents has been completely leached out and were not absorbing any water: