Hi, I've been looking around for a while and it seems like the serious growers or ones with a sealed grow especially all use co2. Most of them also have nice large tanks and regulation systems. I don't have nearly the money for that, I just got a deal on two high bay 400W lights and that nearly broke me. So my question is, besides leaving open soda bottles around in the grow room is there another way to get a lot of co2 in there for em? cheaply? I've heard of spraying them with seltzer water but how well does this work? I'm willing to try anything short of sitting in the room with them until I breathe up all of the oxygen haha. Thanks in advance for your help.
Without having the money to spend on proper co2 enrichment, my advice to you would be to provide lots of fresh air through a ventilation system. All the other co2 gimmicks such as dry ice and gerbils and mice and soda bottles and sugar/yeast generators will not have near the effects that just plain old fresh air will have. Proper ventilation is a must have anyway Save your money and buy the proper equipment to do the co2 enrichment thing right. With the proper equipment to add co2 the right way, you can spend $1000 or more. Co2 is something to consider when you've had several successful crops and you're ready to take it to another level. Just my $.02 cents worth..........good luck with your grow bro.....
If you want to go cheap (and this is only cheap in the short term) get yoruself one of those sweet styrofoam coolers from Safeway for $3 and throw a chunk of dry ice in there. Put it in the coolest spot of your room with the lid on and let it do its thing. You are going to go through a pound or two a day at a buck something a pound so its not a great long term solution. I did this for a week and was impressed enough with the results I bought a bigboy co2 system the next week
Someone suggested elsewhere on the forum to run your lights at night, and sleep in your grow room. If you have gone over the walls, ceiling, floor, whatever, with a film that will keep even the tiniest spot of light from leaking out or in, and your room is large enough to permit it, you can always make yourself a little crude canopy to keep the light out of your eyes, and sleep on a pallet on the floor. Your own exhalations will provide a fair amount of co2, depending on your room size and the number of plants you have, of course. This is what I would do if I were a grower. But I'm not, so I can't speak from experience.
unfortunately my grow has to be closed, I have no way of providing ventilation short of blowing a hole through the wall (not an option) so I guess I'll just be spraying seltzer water, thanks though man.
haha I dont think I'll be doing this method, I have a pretty small grow room and it's closed. thanks though.
Your problem wont be CO2, it will be cooling them High-bay lights you just got. You will be building a Betty Crocker EZ Bake Oven unless you provide a shit load of fresh air to cool the red hot bulbs. I started with a single 400w high-bay lamp. My grow room got to 120*F because I did not have anything but a few holes for ventilation. Was a long time ago. Carbonated water has very little CO2 in it (weird huh?). A 12oz can has the same as three human exhales. Saying a few choice words will do better then dumping a can of that crap in your room. Your problem with CO2 will be solved when you are able to properly cool your grow lights.
thanks a lot R. I just installed the light, and I can feel the heat already. I'm probably going to have to move out of the room that I'm in, I probably can't do a closed grow with that light in there, unless I got some A/C... ugh. I'll see what I can do.
Remember, also, that the co2 gas sinks, it doesn't float, so unless you have a fan blowing it up, putting your co2 source below the plants is a lot less efficient (if @ all) than putting it above the plants...also, co2 is only necessary during light hours. However, I agree that it's not somethin a beginner should be worrying about, epecially if heat is still an issue
if you really want you could allow vinegar to drip into baking soda at a controlled rate to produce some nice co2