CO2 setup vs Fan Exhaust

Hello,

I am trying currently to decide between running a CO2 setup vs intake/exhaust setup.

My room is completely sealed and I do in the future want to use CO2 but for my first two harvests I am transplanting plants from veg (never used additional CO2 just normal air) into the flower room.

My concern is if I invest into the CO2 right now will it even make a difference during flower when they haven't even had CO2 supplementation prior?

Aka CO2 generator, dehu, mini split, fans, etc vs inline fans and filter taking in and pushing air out.

Thank you!

xIPhobiaIx said:

My concern is if I invest into the CO2 right now will it even make a difference during flower when they haven't even had CO2 supplementation prior?

Click to expand...

Not completely sure what you are worried about. Most people only supplement co2 in the bloom room. And you could go from ventilated to sealed w/co2 middle of flower if you wanted.
I build sealed bloom rooms with the ability to also be ventilated. For many reasons.

you could totally start out with a regularly vented room right now and switch to sealed when the summer months are here. This way you got your dick wet with a regular setup first and then dive into co2. Sounds like a perfect plan

Make sure and put a damper on the intake and exhaust ducting. Probably would be best to rough in for the AC but you could do it later too.

I went hybrid on a previous grow. If outside temps/rh were right I opened the passive intakes and turned on the exhaust fan. If the outside conditions were too far off I sealed it up and ran the A/C, dehumidifier and turned on the co2.

If you are on the fence about supplementing co2, I cant stress this enough and its proven to work. Sterilized wood chips(oak is best). A 1in depth in a 5gallon pot provides ~1500ppm co2. You can usually get these very cheap if not free.

friedguy said:

I went hybrid on a previous grow. If outside temps/rh were right I opened the passive intakes and turned on the exhaust fan. If the outside conditions were too far off I sealed it up and ran the A/C, dehumidifier and turned on the co2.

Click to expand...

I grew for years in different towns around the bay area that you did not have to worry about it being too hot during the summer for a ventilated room. Moved to the north state and holy fuck! It gets hot as snot here. You either adapt or grow boo-boo during the summer.
So coming from growing in a ventilated setup/s for years, to a sealed growroom, i wasn’t afraid to also let some air in when I want.
When the internet just happened was about the time I made the switch. All the talk online was
“ you don’t need to ventilate a sealed setup” overgrow.
I quickly learned that dumping your sealed room a few times during lights on makes for a way better room/yield. And every single indoor grower i know does the same thing.

Like i had said. I build bloom rooms with the ability to be sealed and be ventilated. Options are unlimited. Just put dampers on the intake and exhaust ducting

Highlife42 said:

If you are on the fence about supplementing co2, I cant stress this enough and its proven to work. Sterilized wood chips(oak is best). A 1in depth in a 5gallon pot provides ~1500ppm co2. You can usually get these very cheap if not free.

Click to expand...

1500ppm in a room of what size? and also is it hard to control what ppm you want at the moment? as I will start scaling up during the stretch up to about 1500 than come down before harvest.

A smaller room. Hard to control with wood chips, sure. Well, thats a difficult answer bc. the wood chips provide "localized" slow release C02 because they are decomposing (at soil level on top of substrate). How nature is. But when gassing C02, fills the room in large quantities that could hinder oxygen/nitrogen..etc.. Doing so, your other parameters have to add up for your plants to be able to use the energy from the soil to the air. Plants brains are the roots.

Highlife42 said:

If you are on the fence about supplementing co2, I cant stress this enough and its proven to work. Sterilized wood chips(oak is best). A 1in depth in a 5gallon pot provides ~1500ppm co2. You can usually get these very cheap if not free.

Click to expand...

Don't wood chips absorb nitrogen?

BurnzAU said:

Don't wood chips absorb nitrogen?

Click to expand...

Yes. In a minute manner they do and it probably would never be enough for anyone to know. It usually happens within the first few millimeters of topsoil. Besides, The nutes that ppl pump through their plants, I doubt they are lacking nitrogen.

Highlife42 said:

A smaller room. Hard to control with wood chips, sure. Well, thats a difficult answer bc. the wood chips provide "localized" slow release C02 because they are decomposing (at soil level on top of substrate). How nature is. But when gassing C02, fills the room in large quantities that could hinder oxygen/nitrogen..etc.. Doing so, your other parameters have to add up for your plants to be able to use the energy from the soil to the air. Plants brains are the roots.

Click to expand...

If the woodchips are releasing CO2 because they are decomposing, then wouldn't Coco do the same thing? Coconut husks are pretty much a form of wood chips aren't they?

Sure. Usually Coco is processed in a way that uses steam or other processing methods to sterilize it and make it into bricks before selling. How wood pellets are formed kind of. So, when it comes out and ready for use, its inert. Wood chips aren't processed. Least mine aren't. I just sterilize them at a low temp but high enough for no bugs to live.