Products
Coir Pith Coir Mix Coir Fiber Husk Chips
Applications
Coir substrate
Forestry seedlings Coffee Vegetable trays Tomato Flowers Orchids Nurseries Landscaping Blenders
Coir fiber
Mattress pads Molded pots Doormats Geotextile biomats Erosion control Horse bedding
Company
International Buyers Quality control About Carve Buyer guides Market Intelligence Data & glossary
Request a quoteWhatsApp
DATA · GLOSSARY · PROCESSING

What is buffering?

Coir glossary · Updated 2026-09-22 · Also in Português →

Chemical treatment of coir pith with a calcium solution — typically calcium nitrate (Ca(NO3)2) or calcium chloride (CaCl2) — that exchanges bound potassium (K+) and sodium (Na+) for calcium (Ca2+) at the coir’s cation exchange sites. After buffering, the substrate releases far less K and Na into the nutrient solution, preventing interference with fertigation programs. EC after buffering: typically <0.5 mS/cm (1:5 method). The Ca2+ that displaced Na/K becomes chemically bound and is not directly plant-available.

Buffering: equivalents.

PT: tamponamento · ES: tamponado / acondicionamiento con calcio

The EC limit is fixed in the customer’s contract (source: Carve Coir Pith specification).

Source: Romero · RHP · Cadena. Definition from the Carve coir glossary, where the full source list is given.

Related terms.

Washing: Passing fresh water through coir pith to remove soluble salts — primarily potassium (K+), sodium (Na+) and chloride…

Calcium buffering: See Buffering.

Cation exchange capacity (CEC): Measure of a substrate’s ability to hold and exchange positively charged nutrient ions such as Ca2+, Mg2+, K+ and Na+.

See also: Coir pith from Brazil: specification checklist · back to the coir glossary.

CARVE
About this page. Part of the coir glossary maintained by Carve Biorrefinaria Agroindustrial Ltda, a coir pith and fiber producer in Paraipaba, Ceará, Brazil. Corrections: comercial@carvebio.com.br.