When managing your indoor grow room it is important to understand the benefits of CO2 enrichment and how to maximize the CO2’s effectiveness on your plants. CO2 enrichment will promote optimal photosynthesis generally resulting in higher yields. The most common and effective type of CO2 enrichment is through bottled CO2 and combustion generators. The placement of your CO2 enrichment device is very important. Studies have been done that conclude that the enrichment should take place in the upper third part of the canopy because this is where photosynthetic activity is at its highest.
There are two properties of CO2 that you need to consider when enriching your grow room with CO2. The first property is the weight of CO2. CO2 will drop to the ground because it is heavier than air. For example, at 77 F, CO2 weighs 66 ounces per three cubic feet compared to air, which weighs 42 ounces per three cubic feet. The next principle that needs to be taken into consideration is the fact that cold CO2 will descend to the floor and hot CO2 will rise to the ceiling of your grow room. Diffusion is also responsible for the movement of CO2, although it will not travel very far with just simple diffusion. Diffusion, in this instance, is where the gas will move from places of higher concentration to places that have a lower concentration.
To ensure that you have a homogeneous CO2 concentration, especially in larger grow rooms; it may be necessary to have multiple CO2 enrichment devices. Location is also very important; you want to make sure that you place your CO2 source as far away from the exhaust system as possible. Plants will use up the available CO2 very quickly and because this gas diffuse slowly it is important to have multiple oscillating fans to make certain that there is a homogeneous mixture of CO2 in your grow room.
Article by, Brett McCormick, co-founder of Good Green Builders. Good Green Builders is a hydroponic grow room/greenhouse contractor in the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information or a free consultation, call today, (415) 246-8055.