Supercharge your crop yield and potency when growing indoors or in a greenhouse by supplementing with CO2 tank and regulator kits! When growing outdoors, your plants have access to ample levels of carbon dioxide - but what about when they grow in a controlled environment indoors? Ambient CO2 levels will be too low, and your plants will be starving for additional CO2 - which is where these CO2 tank regulator kits come in.
Outdoors, typical CO2 levels are around 400 ppm, but plants can benefit from CO2 levels of up to 1,500 ppm! This is what can separate an average yield from the heavy, potent crops that you are truly hoping to cultivate.
How does a CO2 tank regulator kit affect plant growth?
Plants use sunlight (or in our case, grow lights) to convert CO2 into energy. This energy is used for a number of functions, such as plant growth.
When we supplement our grow room with additional CO2, our grow lights become more effective, as our plants can absorb more of their light. This leads to increased yields of up to 30%, some growers say!
If you are using MH and HPS grow lights or LED grow lights, using a CO2 burner or CO2 tank and regulator can have incredible effects on your plant! Less intense lights, such as fluorescent grow lights, will see less of an effect.
This means that prior to investing in a CO2 regulator kit, you should consider whether or not carbon dioxide is the limiting factor in your crop - or rather, is it your grow lights? By determining where you have the most room for improvement, you can make a more informed purchase.
CO2 Tank & Regulator Kits vs CO2 Burners - What Is The Difference?
CO2 Tank and regulator kits are a great way to add CO2 into the atmosphere in your grow room, to drastically increase yields while cutting down on vegetation time! These kits are perfect for larger-scale growers looking to increase CO2 without increasing the heat in the room.
These are perfect for grow tent growers, as you can house the CO2 tank outside of your tent and fit the tubing through a ducted port to raise ambient CO2 levels safely and efficiently. CO2 burners, on the other hand, are a bit too large for grow tent growing - and, may not be safe enough.
These CO2 regulator kits are cheaper than a typical CO2 burner, and maintenance is mostly limited to refilling the CO2 tank every so often. However, moving the tanks from the garden can be a hassle, especially if the grow room is in a remote location.
What is included in a CO2 tank & regulator kit?
When you shop at Hydrobuilder, our CO2 tank and regulator kits include everything you need to start optimizing your grow room atmosphere. This includes:
Let’s break down each of these components in depth below.
What is a CO2 canister?
The CO2 canister, more often referred to as an aluminum CO2 tank or CO2 cylinder, is what actually houses the carbon dioxide. These tend to sit outside of the growing environment, and will need to be refilled from time to time.
A CO2 canister is typically rated in pounds - which speaks to the volume of carbon dioxide your tank can hold. The larger your device, the more infrequently you'll have to refill - so keep this in mind when shopping for your grow.
What is a CO2 regulator?
The job of the CO2 regulator is to control the rate at which CO2 is released from the tank, to maintain the level mentioned earlier. The regulator will not allow the CO2 in the room to fall below or rise above a certain level - which is what the CO2 gas pressure gauge is for. Some regulators even have a dual gauge!
Different regulators are rated for different sized zones - so shop according to how much carbon dioxide you need to boost into your environment. For example, some of these release 0.2-2 cubic feet per hour and work great for small grows - whereas others release 1-20 cubic feet per hour and are better for large, 10' x 10'+ grows.
You never know when you'll need one - so we encourage those with larger crops to keep a secondary regulator on hand.
What is CO2 rain tubing?
The CO2 tubing is what actually gets the carbon dioxide into your growing atmosphere. This thin, black tubing is long enough to stretch around the whole growing space and features tiny holes along the length of it to release the CO2 into your atmosphere.
What is a CO2 controller?
The CO2 controller is the brain behind your CO2 tank regulator kit. It is responsible for reading ambient levels of carbon dioxide in your growing space, and releasing more into the atmosphere as needed - or, shutting your CO2 regulator down if all is fine.
Some of these are a bit more advanced than others. For example, some come with a photocell feature that shuts off devices in tandem with your grow lights - since your plants can't use CO2 during lights off, anyway. You can find dual-zone units, integrated or remote CO2 sensors, and other awesome features - so do your due diligence before picking a controller for your CO2 tank regulator kit!
With these four components, you have a complete CO2 solution for your grow room - each of which is important. Without one, you won’t have a functioning grow room CO2 solution!
Why Buy CO2 Tank Regulator Kits At Hydrobuilder?
Here at Hydrobuilder, we have all the CO2 canisters, CO2 regulators, tubing, and controllers needed to start optimizing your grow room climate safely and efficiently. You’ll find the best brands in the industry at the lowest prices online.
But, you also gain access to our expert growing staff who is here to help you get exactly what you need - and get it set up right from the start. We also have resources in our blog to help you set up and use your CO2 tank regulator kits correctly and reap all the benefits this advanced growing tactic has to offer. Not sure which tank and regulator kit is right for you? Reach out at 888-815-9763!
We also have all the other grow room essentials you need for your best indoor grow cycle yet. Whether it's other equipment to optimize your environment, new grow lights, better fertilizer, a hydroponics system - or even a more efficient harvest solution. We are your one-stop-shop for all things horticulture, indoors and outdoors.
For these detailed guides, check out our article on how to use CO2 in the grow room or grow tent. We also have a grow room CO2 calculator to help you determine the flow rate of your CO2 device, to give your plants exactly what they need.
To learn more about creating an environment that will substantially increase your yields, check out our learning center where we go in-depth on a number of topics!
