Trouble reading today's article? Click
here: Issue #252 - Sunday, February 12, 2017
Dear Fellow Grower,
In today's issue... - Grow lights are the most expensive part of growing indoors...make sure you capitalize on their power by utilizing
reflection!
- If you want to get the most bang for your buck reflection-wise, there's one option that stands above the rest...
- Watch a plant go from seedling to harvest in this weeks group of trophy
pics!
Nebula Haze & Sirius Fourside (founders of GrowWeedEasy.com) "By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest. Confucius"
~Confucius
Increase Yields Indoors with Reflective Walls by Nebula Haze |
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Introduction to Reflectivity
It's important for any grower who is cultivating cannabis indoors to maximize on the power of their grow lights. Indoor cannabis grow lights have gotten insanely bright over the years and this has enabled growers to provide their
plants with an abundance of light. However, you can make your grow lights seem even brighter and more powerful without actually increasing the amount of electricity you use. Proper reflection of the walls near your cannabis plants, and a great hood/reflector will bounce the light from your indoor grow lights back at your plants instead of letting all the light that hits the sides be absorbed.
In fact, proper reflection can get up to
30% more light to your cannabis plants! This is all without changing anything else about your setup. No extra electricity, just 30% more light!
As you probably know, light is what cannabis (and most plants) use to make energy and light is what powers the growth of your
buds.
It's important to understand that indoor cannabis grow lights are most effective when you get as much of the light they produce to your plants as possible. The further light has to travel to your cannabis plants, the more light that gets “lost” on the way. By making sure light is reflected back at your plants, your plants get to use even more of the light that gets produced which would normally be "lost". Reflective walls will also help
prevent parts of your plants from sitting in a dark or shadowy spots.
Outdoors, growers get to use the sun! The sun is almost 93 million miles away, but it produces so much light that very little light is lost over small distances. That means reflectivity isn't important when growing outdoors in direct sunlight; the sun already gives your plants all the light they need!
Unlike growing outside, reflectivity is important to get the biggest yields indoors! More light = faster growth & bigger yields!
...but only up to a
certain point! Today I will guide you through the most effective ways to get more light to your cannabis via reflection!
The walls of your grow area: Your plants will get more light if they are in a contained space with reflective walls compared to plants sitting in the middle of an open room, even if the walls of the room are reflective. This is because the amount of usable light a wall can reflect to a plant diminishes as the wall gets further away.
This is partly why grow tents and grow boxes are so effective - in addition to helping you provide the perfect environment to your plants, they help contain the light so your plants get more of it!
Make sure reflective walls are set up to achieve the greatest reflectivity! This
means: - Avoid creases/wrinkles in materials that should lay flat
- Walls should be flat with as few bends or turns as
possible
- Smooth curves are better than 90° bends in the shape of the reflective coating
- Hammered style texture provides some of the best reflection because of the angles at which it reflects light and it cuts down on hot spots. Most
professionally made grow tents have a hammered style reflective material on the wall. This hammered finish is also what you find in high-quality light reflectors.
- Reflective material is not dirty or discolored - keep your walls clean!
Note: When covering the walls with something that comes in a flat roll like mylar or foylon, make sure the material is placed flat against the wall to avoid air bubbles which can create hot
spots and reduce reflectivity. Velcro is a great way to place up reflective materials with minimal creasing or tearing.
The BEST reflection comes from "hammer style" texture, like the walls of professional grow tents and light reflectors. We'll go into detail about other options, but if you're looking for the straight up answer, there it
is!
Reflectivity Options for Your Cannabis Grow Room
Different
reflectivity options vary in their efficiency. It's also important to find a solution that fits your personal setup and budget. I will cover some of the most popular options - along with the pros and cons of each one - to help you pick the right option for your cannabis grow room.
Highly Recommended Reflectivity Options for Your Grow
Area
Grow tent walls (best reflectivity)
Getting a grow tent will give hobbyist cannabis growers probably the best light reflectivity of any option. Grow tent walls are easy to clean, light proof, water resistant, won't melt (like some plastics) and most grow tents are created with built-in cooling options. When it comes to growing personal amounts of cannabis indoors, grow tents are one of the best options for your
grow area “walls” as they have been designed over several decades to create the best indoor grow environment for your plants. Grow tents can be found in many sizes, and generally will give you the best results for your money. After I got my first grow tent, I realized I could never go back to growing in anything else!
Flat white latex paint (85-95% light reflectivity)
This is a highly recommended option for
those who can't invest in a grow tent or for the crafty DIY grower who opts to build a grow cabinet (or a whole room). Excluding the hammered style texture you see in grow tents, this paint will give you some of the best "bang for your buck" of any reflection option. Flat white paint is inexpensive, effective, and there's no way to create air pockets or hot spots behind the reflective material. Just paint the walls, let them dry, and you're
done!
White paint absorbs a lot of heat without reflecting it back into the room (which would require more venting to keep heat down) and painted walls are easy to clean. Do not get glossy paint even though it seems like it would be more reflective - you
want flat (called 'matte') white paint for the greatest reflectivity. If you have the option, you can paint the ceiling and/or floor for even greater reflectivity. Sometimes paint containers will list the reflectivity, and the more reflectivity, the better. Panda Plastic (85-95% light reflectivity)
Panda plastic (also known as "Black and White
Polymer") gets its name from being white on one side and black on the other. Although it can be a bit expensive, panda plastic provides great light reflectivity. You point the white side towards the lights, and the black side will help trap light from getting in or out. Panda plastic can be nailed or otherwise attached (velcro works great) to your walls and is easily taken down. The thicker the panda plastic, the more durable it is. Remember, this is made of plastic, so it can melt if it gets
too hot - be careful to never let Panda Plastic sit too close to your lights!
Orca Grow Film - (90-94% light reflectivity)
Orca grow film is made of white plastic microfiber
and uses a unique structure that is similar to snowflakes or the skin of orcas (killer whales) to scatter light. Although expensive (even more so than panda film), Orca grow film is mold-resistant, easy to clean and thick - these features make it more durable and less likely to tear compared to some other reflectivity options. Using a highly reflective crystalline structure, Orca grow film evenly distributes reflected light so it doesn’t tend to create hot spots even when it has some creases.
Orca film is used like panda film in that you point the white side at your plants with the black side facing outwards. Orca grow film tends to reflect back infrared light as well, which means it will tend to keep heat inside the grow room. Good for areas where the temperature gets low.
Good Reflectivity Options
Kool Seal White Elastomeric Roof Coating (90% reflectivity)
This is another option than can be quite expensive though it gets the job done. White elastomeric roof coating is a great option for some growers; it's made of 100% acrylic elastomeric resin and sticks to
almost any surface.
Once dried, it forms a thick blanket of mold-resistant protection that expands and contracts like rubber and will tend to keep heat inside the grow area (good for cold regions) and it even helps absorb sound.
The biggest drawback to this method is the cost. It's recommended that you use a
primer like Kool Seal Kool Lastik Primer in order to make sure the coating sticks properly to your walls, however, this only makes the price that much more unappealing.
Mylar (90-95% light reflectivity)
Mylar is an inexpensive reflective material that looks shiny and usually comes in sheets or rolls. "Foylon" is a more durable version of mylar and "C3 anti-detection film" is an infrared-proof version of mylar (which means it contains
more heat). Mylar generally is offered in 1mm or 2mm thickness - the thicker the mylar, the more durable it tends to be (resistant to tearing or creasing).
Mylar can be difficult to clean and may need to be replaced after a few grows. It is not light-proof, but does help contain heat in the grow room, so it’s important you create a good ventilation
system to get rid of all the extra heat that’s being contained in the grow area. If there are creases, tears, or the film gets dirty, the light reflectivity is dramatically reduced, so make sure it's placed flat on the walls and kept clean.
Keep that money in your pocket! |
Good tents use hammered style textures - which are great at reflecting light - on the walls, floor AND ceiling.
That plus convenient intake/exhaust ports, openings for power cords and a place to hang your lights make tents a must have for indoor growers!
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Once again, Thank You.
David"
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Who Runs This
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Nebula Haze:
I'll be honest with you, when I first started growing, I struggled. Now, it is my mission to make it easier for new growers to
get started as well as help advanced growers get bigger, better yields with less time and money. We are updating and adding articles every single week and our goal is to eventually build a comprehensive growing resource so anyone and everyone can grow if they want to! If we all share the knowledge there's more buds in the world for everyone :) |
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Learn which seed sources are personally recommended by Nebula Haze |
Sirius Fourside:
Sirius Fourside is a hobbyist grower who has gained the bulk of his experience growing in water as a medium (deep water culture,
bubbleponics).
"Growing cannabis is a relaxing hobby in and of itself, but it also saves you money and keeps you from having to deal with shady characters. Cannabis is much
easier to grow than people give it credit for, and growing in water doesn't increase the difficulty much, if any. But whether you want to grow in water, coco, or a different medium, we'll show you how easy it can be!"
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