Guttering as a planter - pvc issues?

aliasojo

Another poster linked to a site which suggests using guttering as a planter for small plants, salad veg and the like, but it advises against using pvc guttering as nasties can leech out of the pvc and into the soil. Not good if you're growing food rather than flowers.

I've just been looking online and most (all?) of the plastic guttering is pvc.

I take it simply lining the guttering with a thick weed control membrane first wouldn't do much?

Sally_A

Aren't most tubs and planters made of PVC?

aliasojo

I thought they were plastic as opposed to pvc ( but I admit to not knowing a great deal about plastic v's pvc).

Sally_A

Nor me!

mrbadexample

PVC's pretty stable. You might get a little bit of leaching over many, many years, but I wouldn't hesitate to use it.

lostinrates

what are water butts? In any case. the water many f us water with is collected in pvc gutering, stored in some sort of plastic and then poured over plants in whatever sort of plastic it turns out to be.

Sally_A

Go careful if you google PVC :o:o :rotfl:

adouglasmhor

Sally_A wrote: »

Go careful if you google PVC :o:o :rotfl:

I was young and I needed the money

adouglasmhor

aliasojo wrote: »

I thought they were plastic as opposed to pvc ( but I admit to not knowing a great deal about plastic v's pvc).

Poly Vinyl Chloride is a plastic.

Lotus-eater

Wow, just had a look and there is a whole following regarding PVC's destructive nature. The poison plastic they call it.
I need expert info.

adouglasmhor

Wiki has a quite a good article on it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_chloride, outside in stiff kinds like used in guttering and plant pots the risks are negligible.