With inflation on the rise, the cost of fresh produce has been going up and up... There's never been a better time to save yourself some money and invest in an indoor garden. This guide will talk you through everything you need to create your very own indoor grow space.
Choosing the Right Grow Tent Size
Grow tents are the foundation of most successful grow rooms. Whether you’re using a spare bedroom, garage, or loft, it’s important to choose a tent size that fits the space and allows easy access for maintenance.
Rather than filling your space with the largest tent possible, leave at least a couple of feet around the edges. This will give you easy access and make life much easier when feeding and doing maintenance jobs.
When choosing a location, remember that you'll need access to adequate numbers of plug sockets. Extension cables can help if there are none close to hand. You'll also need a ventilation point to channel the air from your extraction system to, so that it doesn't re-enter the room.
Lighting — Why LED Grow Lights are the Best Choice
One of the most important decisions when setting up your grow room is choosing the right lighting system. LED grow lights have become the go-to option for indoor growers for several reasons:
- Full spectrum light: LEDs provide a full spectrum light output, promoting healthier plant growth and higher yields by mimicking natural sunlight.
- High intensity: LED grow lights produce much more light than HPS systems for the same energy spend.
- Low heat output: LEDs produce far less heat than HPS or CDM lights, putting less strain on your ventilation system and lowering the risk of causing heat damage to your plants.
- Longer lifespan: unlike other lighting systems, LED lights last for years without the need for regular lamp replacements.
A good rule of thumb is to use around 600 watts of LED lighting for each 1.2m square grow space, or 1000 watts per 1.5m square grow space. For example, if you're in a 2.4m x 2.4m grow tent, you can opt for 4 x 600 watt LED grow lights. For a 3m x 3m grow tent, go for 4 x 1000w LEDs.
Ventilation and Extraction: Essential for a Healthy Grow Room
A proper ventilation system is vital for regulating temperature, humidity, and airflow in your grow room. This ensures that your plants have the fresh air and CO2 they need to thrive, while also removing excess heat and humidity. But how do you choose the right fan and filter setup?
What Size Fan Do I Need for my Grow Space?
To calculate the fan size needed for your grow room, follow this formula:
- Grow room volume (in cubic metres) = Length x Width x Height
For example, if your grow tent is 1.2m x 1.2m x 2m:
1.2m x 1.2m x 2m = 2.88 cubic metres.
Next, multiply the volume by the number of air changes needed per minute, typically 60 air changes per hour (one per minute):
2.88 x 60 = 172.8 cubic metres per hour (m³/h).
To account for the carbon filter’s drag factor (usually 20%), increase the airflow requirement by multiplying by 1.2:
172.8 m³/h x 1.2 = 207.36 m³/h.
In this example, you would need a fan with at least 207 m³/h airflow.
Ideally, you should choose a fan with a greater airflow rating than required. You'll then have some extra power in reserve to tackle difficult conditions during the summer.
How to Match the Filter to the Fan
When choosing a carbon filter, it’s essential to match its spigot size (the diameter of the filter’s connection point) to the fan’s size to ensure a proper fit. Additionally, the airflow capacity of the filter (m³/h) should match or exceed that of the fan to prevent any bottlenecking in airflow.
Hydroponic Grow Systems: Simple Solutions for Beginners
If you’re new to indoor growing, start simple. Our beginner LED grow kits come with root-pruning cloth pots, which are ideal for hand watering. Hand watering is a simple and effective way of feeding plants that will produce great results, while easing you in to the process gradually.
This gives you complete control over how much water and nutrients your plants receive, without the need for complex systems.
As you gain confidence, you can upgrade to automated hydroponic grow systems like the Origin dripper system, which automates the feeding process, allowing you to focus on other aspects of plant care.
Why Our Complete Kits Make Life Easy
We’ve designed our complete LED grow tent kits to take the hassle out of setting up your grow room. Each kit includes everything you need to start growing successfully:
- High-quality grow tent: providing an area to fine-tune the growing environment
- Full spectrum LED grow lights: efficient and long-lasting, providing your plants with the best light for optimal growth.
- Ventilation and extraction system: matched to the size of your tent and lights for perfect airflow and temperature control.
By choosing one of our complete grow tent kits, you save time, effort, and money while ensuring your grow room is set up correctly from the start. Plus, our experts are always on hand to help you with any questions or issues along the way.
For most beginners, we recommend starting with a 1.2m x 1.2m LED grow tent kit, which offers a perfect balance between productivity and manageability.
