We all know how much our plants like CO2 (carbon dioxide), and if we're knowledgable we also know they can use a LOT more than is naturally present in the air. Increased growth rates,increased nutrient uptake and metabolosis,bigger flowers/bigger yield.......ALL from increased CO2. So what's a couple of EASY ways to do this,you ask ?? My personal favorite is to grow a tub or two of your favorite psilocybe mushrooms in your grow chamber !! Mushrooms, unlike other plants,take in oxygen and let out CO2 ! A nice symbiotic relationship between plants and mushrooms,each helping the other.And a definite added bonus come harvest......either one....LOL Another way is with warm water,yeast and sugar.Higher in your chamber/room,along a well lit wall,attach a quart-sized container.Fill this 1/2 full of lukewarm water,with as much sugar dissolved in it as possible....then add a package of yeast from your local grocery store. Cover with a piece of window screen to keep any foam generated from spilling over the edge.You'll have to keep an eye on this,and change it out once a week or so,as the yeast dies off and stops producing CO2. A third way,if you can get an IV-Drip bag,(or make one) is to have a regular drip of vinegar dropping into a container of baking soda.We all remember the experiment where we made 'volcanoes' in grade-school,using baking soda and vinegar,right ? Well, do the same thing for your plants,but only ONE drop at a time.A couyple drops a minute is all you need to SUBSTANTIALLY increase your CO2 percentage in a large closet-sized grow area. If you've never done any CO2 benefication for your plants before,you'll be in for a HUGE suprise the first time you do !! Hope this can help someone. Back later with more tips from 25+ yrs of cultivation. mid
The most I could get from a home brew system was 100ppm increase over normal air. I used two one gallon yeast set-ups in my sealed system. After three days it drops off and makes very little CO2. You have to change out your mix alot to sustain any gain. I could have lived with that smell if it boosted the levels to 1500 or even a 1000. I never tried the mushrooms. Peace, R.
i use the yeast/sugar/water method, but have usually two and sometimes three containers going at once. the difference in rate of growth is noticable.
thanks for all the home ways to do co2 i was told you can also do dry ice in hot water a cople times a week but i use CO2 boost goto www.co2boost.com to find out were you can get some or order it from them on ther web site all i can say is for $140.00 fisrt time and $100.00 refill every 60 days the results are unbelevable for the device that you are useing check it out you cant go wrong i swear
Or you can pay $12 to fill a 20 pound bottle of pure CO2. I can fill my tanks 10 times for the price of one of them things. What a rip off.
Set up a mini BB gun target range in your grow room. Kill two birds with one stone give your plants more co2 and become a really good shot.
i was thinking along those lines once, and the only things i came up with were: a home whipped cream maker, these use NO2 cartridges (which are very fun!) that are the same size and it would be easy to dispense: also i thought of using a NO2 "cracker" (available at head shops) to get the co2 out of the cardtidge: and lastly (and i think this to be the easyest/most practical) is a bicycle air pump. they make them that take co2 cartridges that bike racers use for a quick fill up after a tire change. you can get these at any bike/sporting goods shop for less than $15. i dont' know how much the cartridges hold though. dry ice would be a great way, because a little goes a long way but how many people have access to that stuff?
ok ive thought about the bb gun but remeber when your cartridge gets weak so you go to change it out but releasing the remaning gas. Just put a new cartridge in break the seal, then slowly back it off till you here the slightest leak and leave it or back it off as much as you want. just my .02
that would work, but i think with a full one in the gun it'd be likely once you start to back it off, it would sorta pop off, freezing the shit out of your hand in the process. so if you have a gun, and are careful (or wear gloves) that should work. i know you can get shit loads of refills on ebay for really cheap.
I have a grow book that suggests a kerosene lantern for small spaces. I also read that the yeast in the sugar water technique will really stink up the place.
Glad to report i tried backing off the vave as described above and it worked like a charm!!! I dont have the proper testing to know how much is being released. but hey thats got to better than just giving up on it. I think i just solved my own dirt cheap Co2 system for now. I already have the gun but if you dont have one they are dirt cheap anymore. On the other hand there are proably a dozen devices that use co2 this would work with if you dont have a gun laying around.
I love the kerosene lantern idea from a book written by Fire Marshal Bill. And the home brew CO2 does contribute ordor more then any thing else.
I set up 3 of the sugar water bottles in my closet and I don't notice any smell from them, I only see results in my plants.
well, you can def notice that the bottles are in there, but it's not overpowering or gagging. just a slight scent. and yes, a "hurricane" type kero lantern would work fucking great! i didn't even think of that. also alot of the lanterns out there self-extinguish if they are tipped over so that takes care of the fire hazard.
as long as you can control the heat out of by the lantern it would work as well. But if you gyuys have ever used one of those i have heated my ice fishing shantee with those and they do great. so for a small cab the heat may be alittle too much.
For me i think i ll stick with the bb gun, have you ever noticed even a slight smell of the yeast formula in the buds after curing?
My one friend has been growing for years and he swears by dry ice. Have any of you guys tried that technique? -JACK-