My opinion is that even peaty soil should be watered. If not, it will totally dry up and became as hard as rock - when time comes to repot, it will be almost impossible to get it off the roots. Sure, you can get rid of all roots and re-root plant, but it seems to be simpler to me to water it regularly and not to let peat become hydrophobic. After all, that's what they do in nurseries: they grow plants in peat, and water bit more often - keeping peat just moist. It may not be best approach - well draining mix would be, but if needed and only few plants, I think it could work. It seems to me that it would be less work than trying to keep air roots moist. I believe what you are doing works, just seems to be too much work. And not all plants grow air roots - so what to do with ones that do not have them?

What I've read is that peat becomes hydrophobic when it has been wet, is that wrong? I try to repot plants that do not grow air roots before plants that do. But I also take how long they have been in what they came in into consideration.

No, it becomes hydrophobic - it actually repels water - when dry. It turns really hard and very difficult to re-wet. It could be done with hot water - obviously, not when the plants roots are 'encased' in it.

I think you're overthinking this & making things too difficult.

I hear you about limited funds, but pls. just change the mix for this plant. Kals are strong, sturdy plants, they can handle it fine.

Aerial roots aren't necessarily the signs of thirst you think they are, many of us simply ignore them. I do not take their presence as indicator to water the plants, sometimes I think them plants use it to anchor themselves.

Perhaps you might buy fewer plants so you can afford to buy enough mix.

In your first pic -- why do you think the plant is thirsty? The leaves are plump w/ water, & not at all wrinkled, therefore those aerial roots are not about thirst.

You need to pls. learn to water moderately while still in the peat as Rina suggests.

Sorry, I don't wish to be a downer but I believe what you're doing is ineffective, just water the poor thing, even if in peat, as Rina said, just not a lot of water.

Peat mixes don't immediately harden when you water & they don't turn rock hard automatically, it's over time, so you can check it periodically. Sometimes it's helpful not to take everything one reads quite so literally.

In my opinion, watering the peat plant moderately is preferable to what you're doing.

It takes time - but not very long - for peat to become hydrophobic. It happens if it is not watered and left to dry up.

I agree that air roots are not necessarily sign of thirst: they grow on many plants for many reasons. Some grow to anchor plants; some grow to breathe (plants that grow in wetlands); some grow to absorb moisture from humid air and/or fog, some are propagative (like strawberry plants) and probably many other reasons. I read that study of orchids showed that air roots have a protective covering that allows water out but not in. I wonder if in some cases they grow to protect plants from some predators?

I usually just leave them alone, they quite often dry up and could be rubbed off. Some succulents grow many 'hair' - like Adromischus cristatus (photo from net-Kara Nursery):