Go-To Tech for Successful Cannabis Cultivation
While novel indoor growing technology is exciting, it isn’t necessarily the case that new is always better. As growers assess choices in technology, our definitions of “must-have” grow equipment remain somewhat subjective. Similarly, a piece of equipment a home grower can’t live without might not have much value to a commercial producer.
Looking today’s cannabis industry, it’s safe to say much of our go-to equipment is a blend of both old and new technology. While you can’t deny the importance of new equipment like LED lighting, other technologies like pH pens haven’t changed much.
Environmental Controllers
No matter if you have a massive commercial grow or a small tent garden, there is really no good reason not to have an environmental controller in your growroom today. Equipment manufacturers have designed both simple and complex controllers for growrooms of all shapes and sizes.
Atmospheric controllers and smart outlets can handle just about any job for home growers. In both designs, simple relay switches cut power to an outlet when temperature or humidity levels reach a certain threshold. Depending on their level of complexity, atmospheric controllers and smart outlets can be used to regulate grow lights, exhaust fans, intake fans, CO2 burners, and dehumidifiers.
On the commercial side of things, manufacturers have created atmospheric controllers with near endless features and integrations. Using mobile compatibility, digital readouts, and software integrations, commercial controllers easily manage important variables such as CO2 levels, HVAC exchange, fertigation calendars, and grow light intensity.
Mixed Flow Inline Fan
If you are a home grower, you are well-advised to integrate your environmental controller with a mixed flow inline fan.
While outlet dimmers will slow fan speeds, they don’t offer the accuracy of technology that is engineered for this specific job. Not only will running an inline fan at partial power likely damage the motor in time, but you will never have an accurate read on cubic feet per minute (CFM).
Mixed flow inline fans have built-in speed controls so they can be run at specific CFM settings of your choice. When paired with a smart controller, your mixed flow fan will automatically shift speeds when temperature and humidity reach specific thresholds. With such precise control, home growers can take advantage of more cultivation metrics such as vapor pressure deficit (VPD).
Moisture Meter
As seen with other technologies like atmospheric controllers, moisture meters come in a variety of shapes and sizes. While long overlooked by growers, both commercial producers and hobbyist cultivators use moisture meters in their gardens today. If you grow in soil or a substrate like coco coir, the ability to get a precise reading on interior moisture levels is invaluable.
Moisture meters can be extremely helpful in regions where fluctuating weather patterns impact humidity levels in the growroom. Instead of just blindly watering your plants and hoping for the best, you can an accurate reading of moisture directly in the root zones.
While a commercial producer will likely use a large, automated system with moisture sensors, a home grower can manually check pots in different parts of the growroom for an accurate assessment.
Quality pH Pen
Whether you grow cannabis hydroponically or in soil, a quality pH pen is critical for testing your irrigation water. From measuring the pH of your tap water to properly mixing liquid nutrients, you are operating in the dark without a good pH pen. Not only do pH pens tell you the acidity of your water, but more advanced models give readings on PPM and EC.
If you consistently irrigate your cannabis without testing pH, you could create a situation where your plants can no longer absorb nutrients. While cannabis needs both macronutrients and micronutrients to thrive, imbalanced pH will lead to nutrient deficiencies. This notion is particularly true for hydroponic growers, as pH levels in reservoirs can change quickly and cause big problems.
LED Lights
In recent years, LED grow lights have taken the cannabis industry by storm. Originally considered an expensive novelty used strictly for vegetative growing, LEDs are now being used across the industry. From high-powered, full-spectrum LEDs to models that have different setting for veg and bloom, LEDs are everywhere.
Since LEDs use more accurate spectrum wavelengths than metal halide (MH) and high-pressure sodium (HPS) lights, they use far less electricity. In addition, because LED lights run much cooler than MH and HPS lights, they save you additional electrical costs on cooling your growroom with AC units and exhaust systems.
Whether you are a commercial producer or hobbyist grower, there is really no reason not to look at adopting LED technology. While LED lights cost more upfront, their positive environmental and financial benefits simply cannot be ignored.
Smartphone Microscopes
Smartphone microscopes are fun new gadgets that can pay serious dividends for garden troubleshooting. The microscopes attach directly to the camera of both Androids and iPhones, giving you an intimate view of trichomes and pistils, as well as potential pathogens and bugs. Since they provide digital images, you can zoom in and out to get the very best reading on your cannabis crop.
One of the coolest features of smartphone microscopes is the ability to share images with others via text message and email. By sharing images with your network, you can get a wide variety of opinions on critical decisions related to integrated pest management (IPM) and the best time to harvest.
Summary
With the speed at which the modern cannabis industry is innovating, it can be tough to stay ahead of the curve on new technologies. Yet, as we learn more about new advancements, it can take a discerning eye to know what equipment is necessary and what is not. Certain technologies like mixed-flow inline fans are indispensable for home growers, but they aren’t very relevant for commercial producers.
When designing a cannabis growroom, the biggest things to consider are heat, humidity, light, and water. Once you have technologies in place that provide and regulate these critical elements, the next step is to adopt equipment that helps you to better monitor the garden environment. While things like smartphone microscopes and moisture meters might not seem necessary to everyone, they are if you want to get cannabis cultivation down to a science.
