Guestpost by: Ganjababy420
Growing marijuana is not a child’s play, you need some serious equipment to ensure you have a good yield in the long run. These are the eight essential equipment you need for your grow room.
Ventilation equipment
This is the most important aspect in a plant’s life. Ventilation is needed by plants to exchange gases; carbon dioxide is needed by the plant’s stems and leaves for proper photosynthesis, the roots of a plant need oxygen.
If you are running a small grow room with a few plants, simply opening the windows when needed would suffice. It is best to be careful as the smell of marijuana is very easy to perceive. You don’t need any trouble with the law.
For a farmer cultivating in a larger grow room, the window technique would not be adequate. You will need to employ a more advanced technique.
The best technique for this purpose is using an air extractor fan system. This equipment is for large grow rooms that needs fast evacuation of depleted air.
For a grow room that is 1.2m x 1.2m x 1.2m, the total volume of air is 2.88m3. This volume of air needs to be evacuated every two minutes. Therefore, the extractor hourly capacity should be:
2.88 x 30 = 86.4m3/hr
However, this only applies to extracted air. If you need to remove heat as well, the capacity needs to be doubled for effective evacuation of air.
You also need to plan extraction routes as well. This is done when building the grow room. You should also put into consideration that hot air floats, therefore you need to place the extractor on top of the room.
Considering the fact that marijuana needs more carbon dioxide than air can provide is crucial. You might need to purchase a CO2 kit.
Lighting equipment (grow lights and wall reflectors)
Just like all plants, without light, decelerated growth is certain. It is a fact that marijuana grows best under sunlight. In the grow room getting adequate sunlight in, is a herculean task, therefore, trying to get artificial light that could have the same effect like sunlight is ideal.
The first choice for amateur marijuana farmers is the common incandescent light whose light frequencies can be used by the marijuana plants. The disadvantage of this source of light is its far red and infra-red lights which make the plant concentrate its growth around the stem. The end results are tall, lanky plants which end up toppling over.
Fluorescent light tubes can be used only to supplement the main grow light as they do not produce adequate light needed by the plants.
Cool whites are a type of fluorescent light that produces blue light. They emit as much as the standard grow light needed for foliage growth.
Wide spectrum lights which are the standard grow light come in three intensities; the regular output, the high output and the very high output, increased intensity means faster growth of the marijuana plants. Therefore the very high output light is ideal for optimum growth.
Metal halide lights are also very good light sources; in fact they are one of the best, because they radiate more light in the white and blue spectrum. The only disadvantage of these lights is that they consume electricity.
Grow lights are pretty bright, but to make it brighter without increasing the amount of electricity consumed, wall reflectors are needed to bounce lights falling on the walls back to the plants. Wall reflectors also help in preventing any part of your plants from being in the shadows.
Watering equipment
Water is as important as light and ventilation for a growing plant as it is the medium in which most nutrients flow through the plant. Marijuana plant is very resilient, so constant watering can prove to be a problem, causing deep root issues and fatalities in your grow room.
Moderation is key, marijuana needs water, especially during the flowering stage, but do not over water. The typical marijuana plants need to be watered every 2-3 days. If your grow room is small you can do that manually using a watering can or a hose connected to a flowing water source.
To ensure you give adequate water, you need a pH meter. The pH of the water should be around 6.0 to 6.5 if growing marijuana in soil. However, if growing hydroponically, the acidity of the water should be lower.
You can also install an automatic watering system that uses a timer to water your plants. You need to set the right amount of water you need to get to each plant. These can be bought as an already-made system and installed by a professional.
Heater
The right temperature in a marijuana grow room is very important as it aids photosynthesis. Low temperature reduces evaporation from the leaves resulting in to downward suction (pulling nutrients down as well) through the roots, which leads to stunted growth in marijuana plants.
In freezing temperature, a radiator with thermostat or a space heater should be purchased. The down side of the space heater is the high electricity consumption rate. The maximum temperature for adequate growth of marijuana is about 82˚F.
Air conditioners
Just as marijuana plants don’t like cold conditions, the also do not need an overly hot grow room. Heat and water can make the grow room very humid and this could lead to increased exposure of the plants to pest and diseases.
When an extractor cannot be purchased, an air conditioner can be used instead. It also helps cool temperatures as well. The odor removing device can be fitted as well, so as to remove odor from the marijuana plants while circulating air.
Grow box or grow tent
These are used to create and control the environmental conditions of your marijuana plants especially when space is limited. It is used in place of a grow room. They can be used for normal and hydroponic cultivation. It is easy to build and you can also buy a ready-made one with a working system.
Hygrometers and dehumidifiers
Most diseases capable of destroying marijuana plants are as a result of high humidity in the grow room. If your grow room is too humid (this can be measured using a hygrometer) you need to purchase a dehumidifier.
Although, this is for the protection of your plants from diseases, it also helps the marijuana plants produce resins (produced only when the environment is dry); it acts as a plant moisturizer.
The ideal relative humidity levels are:
- Cloning stage: about 80% – 90%
- Vegetative growth stage: about 60% – 70%
- Flowering stage: 40% – 60%
Timers
Timers are needed for almost everything in the grow room. From running the automated water sprinkling system, to the grow lights, the heating and cooling systems, they ensure everything runs right in the marijuana grow room at the right time.
These are the most essential equipment you need for your marijuana cultivation indoors. Using them the right way will ensure you have strong and healthy marijuana plants.
