I put them on the bottom and top with the coir... the coir has to expand with water so that is done before use.. for my cuttings I added in perlite (which I now ran out of).. and I always expand the gels in advance.. don't want them to push everything out if I used too much.. as I have done in the past
I don't mind the questions... I am not an expert... by no means... but always willing to share my experiences