It doesn’t matter if you are setting up a commercial grow room or one big enough for a single plant, no one wants to overpay for their growth. You need to be thinking about costs as you set up your operation. Planning for optimal efficiency is the best plan of action. Even if you already have your grow room setup, you can use these three tactics to cut your grow room costs.
Use LEDs to Cut Electricity Costs HPS grow lights have long been the gold standard for growing cannabis. But, thanks to the advances in full-spectrum LEDs, they are quickly being replaced. It’s not just because of the wavelength that they provide either. LED lights will save you money big time.
They do this in a number of ways. First, they pull less electricity than any other light. They also are cooler. This means your fans won’t have to work as hard to keep the grow room at optimal temperatures. Also, they have about twice the lifespan as HPS bulbs (50,000 hours compared to 24,000 hours on average).
Invest in Good Equipment From the Beginning When you start, you are going to be tempted to cut costs by buying cheaper equipment. The problem with this method is you are thinking short term, and you want to be able to invest once and ride it out as long as possible. If you have to replace your lights because half the diodes die after a harvest or two, did you really save any money?
You also want to invest in top of the line nutrients and genetics. One of the quickest ways to make your grow more profitable is by getting more out of your plants. While your growing technique has a lot to do with this, picking a strain of cannabis with a naturally high yield will help lower your average cost per gram.
Automate Everything! The larger your garden, the more vital it is that you switch from manual tasks to automated ones. We’ve all heard that you should put your lights on a timer, but don’t stop there! Keep automating!
After your lights, you want to get your CO2 and ventilation systems set up on automatic meters. Not only will having these set up help create an ideal environment for your cannabis, but it also prevents you from running either any longer than you need to.
Conclusion Don’t be lazy. Be sure you’re doing the math to make sure that you’re not using a single watt more than you need to. Your fans, water use, and everything should be monitored, or the costs can get out of control fast! If you’re only growing a few plants, leaving the lights on a little too long won’t hurt too much, but if you’re running a commercial grow op, it could end up costing you thousands of dollars!
Written by: Tony Hand Jr. Founder & Editor-in-Chief of THCoverdose.com
