Living soil and supplemental CO2

[GreenwayTrey]

Hello all. First time cannabis grower but experienced in other types of horticulture. I’m setting up an 8’x20’ veg/clone/mother room and a 12’x20’ flower room in a garage for a small medical grow and I will be using living organic soil for substrate. The rooms will be completely sealed as the garage is next to the pool and the wife would strongly prefer no detectable odors outside for the kids and/or their friends to smell while they’re swimming.

Since the room will be sealed, I’m assuming I’ll need supplemental CO2. My question is how high of a concentration can I run before causing negative impact on the soil micro biome? I have searched but wasn’t able to find any solid answers. Thank you all in advance.

 

[Aqua Man]

Co2 and o2 are independent... meaning just because co2 is high does not mean that o2 is low. The aerobic bacteria are typically what we deal with... AFAIK elevated co2 does not have a negative impact on aerobic organisms but lack of o2 absolutely does.

Thankfully plants fix more carbon and I believe its about 10 times the o2 produced for each ppm of co2 consumed. This is why we only need to supplement co2 as the plants are the ones that produce high amounts of o2 during photosynthesis while consuming co2.

You see the ppm of co2 increase over lights out because of plant and microbe respiration and this happens 24/7 but when the lights are on you see it drop quickly as like I say the plants consume the co2 and produce o2

 

[GreenwayTrey]

Co2 and o2 are independent... meaning just because co2 is high does not mean that o2 is low. The aerobic bacteria are typically what we deal with... AFAIK elevated co2 does not have a negative impact on aerobic organisms but lack of o2 absolutely does.

Thank you for the reply, Aqua Man. I know that above 2,000 ppm CO2 can become harmful to humans, but I wasn’t sure if the levels used in indoor cultivation (800-2,000 ppm) would be harmful to invertebrates or microbiota.

 

[Aqua Man]

Thank you for the reply, Aqua Man. I know that above 2,000 ppm CO2 can become harmful to humans, but I wasn’t sure if the levels used in indoor cultivation (800-2,000 ppm) would be harmful to invertebrates or microbiota.

No I think you thinking about CO carbon monoxide.

 

[GreenwayTrey]

No I think you thinking about CO carbon monoxide.

OSHA and NIOSH consider carbon dioxide levels above 5,000 ppm to be imminently dangerous to life and health, and several studies have shown lower levels to have adverse acute and chronic effects at lower levels.

 

[Aqua Man]

OSHA and NIOSH consider carbon dioxide levels above 5,000 ppm to be imminently dangerous to life and health, and several studies have shown lower levels to have adverse acute and chronic effects at lower levels.

Nope.

 

[Aqua Man]

Notice the line above it? Oxygen depleted air. Like I say they are independent but when you are talking about confined spaces with ppl then there is a direct correlation to increasing co2 ppm and decreasing o2... its not the same as when you have plants producing lots of o2.

 

[GreenwayTrey]

Nope.

The information I found gave different information, but regardless, I appreciate your comments.

 

[Aqua Man]

The information I found gave different information, but regardless, I appreciate your comments.

Yeah lots bad info out there. I can assure it what I said is accurate and can be found from osha and others... I think many are confusing it with CO... carbon monoxide.

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) | IVHHN

www.ivhhn.org

Pretty much 1% co2 is 10,000ppm

Like I say in confined or enclosed spaces ppl can have serious issues in low co2 but thats not caused from low co2 thats from lack of o2.

<1% (10,000ppm) no issues really... and I have sat in my room countless times for hours in up to 3000ppm

 

[JimmyCreedog]

Hello all. First time cannabis grower but experienced in other types of horticulture. I’m setting up an 8’x20’ veg/clone/mother room and a 12’x20’ flower room in a garage for a small medical grow and I will be using living organic soil for substrate. The rooms will be completely sealed as the garage is next to the pool and the wife would strongly prefer no detectable odors outside for the kids and/or their friends to smell while they’re swimming.

Since the room will be sealed, I’m assuming I’ll need supplemental CO2. My question is how high of a concentration can I run before causing negative impact on the soil micro biome? I have searched but wasn’t able to find any solid answers. Thank you all in advance.

You will need to get some sort of exhaust fan(carbon filtered to keep the wife happy), enough to put the flower room under slightly negative pressure. Air pulled into the room from your house has enough CO2 for the plants until they get really big. You could alternate exhaust and CO2 enrichment, but you'll be battling high temps if you don't exhaust all that hot air outside eventually.

 

[GreenwayTrey]

You will need to get some sort of exhaust fan(carbon filtered to keep the wife happy), enough to put the flower room under slightly negative pressure. Air pulled into the room from your house has enough CO2 for the plants until they get really big. You could alternate exhaust and CO2 enrichment, but you'll be battling high temps if you don't exhaust all that hot air outside eventually.

Thanks. Unfortunately, it’s a detached garage and in winter the incoming air could be -40. I’ve spoken with growers up here that have completely sealed rooms and keep them cool with mini splits. Would that not work? I had planned on using recirculating air purifiers to help with the smell, btw.