Indoor growers can enjoy an endless growing season, complete control over growing conditions, and the convenience of growing indoors. This all sounds great, but too often the issue of grow room ventilation is underestimated. The first attempts at growing indoors can be problematic.
Plants grown outdoors absorb sunlight, evaporation and precipitation. Indoors, gardeners are replacing solar lighting with phytolamps, and rainfall with irrigation systems. But they forget about the most important thing - about air circulation.
Why ventilation is needed in a grow box
- Remove excess heat
Growing lamps radiate heat. To the inexperienced grower this may not seem like much, but a few degrees in temperature can make a big difference in harvesting.
- Humidity control
Humidity is another factor that can contribute to problems with indoor growing systems. The plant itself releases water vapor during the day, which increases the humidity in the grow box. Uncontrolled humidity leads to poor growing conditions. A good ventilation system can eliminate some of the water released during transpiration, allowing more fluid to be absorbed and nutrients drawn through the root system.
- Pest and disease prevention
Air circulation helps prevent pests and diseases. Molds, powdery mildew, spider mites and fungus gnats prefer stagnant, damp conditions. Pests lay their eggs in moist topsoil. Therefore, having a ventilation system in the grow box keeps the surface layer of soil dry, can slow down their reproductive cycle, and constant wind makes it difficult for pests to take root.
- CO2 control
Plants absorb CO2 throughout the day. If the grow facility is airtight, it means that the CO2 level in the grow facility is gradually decreasing, limiting the growth of cannabis. Ventilation is needed to bring in fresh air and CO2, removing stagnant air from the grow box. Cannabis that grows in a grow box without ventilation is doomed to a poor harvest.
Increasing Stress Resilience with Ventilation
All plants that grow outdoors are exposed to the wind. This makes their stems stronger. Such bushes bear fruit strongly and grow better. While indoor crops can break under the weight of their own crop.
Installing a growing box is a reliable assistant to achieve the desired yield.
How to install a ventilation system
The correct calculation of ventilation in a grow box is that two types of equipment are needed:
- Air extraction system;
- Oscillating fans.
They are necessary to keep cool, improve air circulation, adjust humidity.
The oscillating fans are also easy to install and move.
It is important to ensure that the fans do not point directly at the bush. This can result in "wind burns" or serious injury.
Installing spinning fans will help keep the temperature and humidity down in the grow box, but one fan is not enough. A complete air extraction system is required to keep the air in the grow box fresh and free of characteristic odors.
Flexible aluminum ducts work well with most growing systems. Also, charcoal filter growboxes purify the air much better and prevent even small spores from getting on the plant.
But to correctly calculate which system is right for you, use this formula:
Room volume x efficiency drop = CFM.
For example, if the volume of the grow box is 9 m2: 320 x 2 = 640
Now that you have a CFM, you can buy a grow box fan with a higher value than this number.
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