One of the toughest parts of growing indoors is grow room odor control. If you are in a situation where the smell of your flower doesn’t concern you, you are in the minority, and should consider yourself lucky!
For the rest of us, controlling odor is an ongoing battle.
There are a few ways you can combat the smell of your plants, with each having its place. But, at the end of the day, there is only so much that can be done to eliminate grow room odor.
Before we give you some tips on how to minimize the smell of your plants, let's explain why grow room odor control is essential regardless of where you grow.
Why grow room odor control is so important
For the vast majority of indoor growers, excessive odor can be problematic. There are a few reasons you might not want the smell of your garden getting out of control, including:
- Security - The smell of your plants could compromise your security in a few ways. The last thing you want is to make it painfully obvious you have an indoor grow, regardless of whether your state allows it or not. The hassle of dealing with legalities is just not worth it. Also, alerting your neighbors of your grow could lead to a spike in their curiosity, another no-no.
- Respecting your neighbors - Even if you aren't worried about neighbors finding out about your grow, they still shouldn't have to. Us growers generally don't mind the smell of a female plant in the midst of flower, but that's not the case for everyone. Especially if you live in a complex and have other buildings in close proximity to yours, you will want to keep your grow on the down low.
- Excess odor can be indicative of poor ventilation - Generally, excess odor can be a clue that something is off with your environment. This could be poor air circulation, improper ventilation setup, or excess heat. If you can smell your plants more than normal, you should probably investigate the issue and fix it.
The best ways to control odors in your grow room
There are plenty of ways growers can combat a smelly grow room, ranging from quick fixes to complete overhauls of your ventilation system.
There are even machines designed to eradicate pesky odors these days, such as ozone generators and air purifiers. Grow room odor control can be broken down into two categories:
- Eliminating the odors altogether
- Masking/covering up the odors
The amount of time and effort you put into grow room odor control will depend on the size of your growing space and how many plants you have.
Obviously, the fewer plants you have the less of a problem odors will be. Here are the best ways to combat the smell of your plants:
Start by dialing in your environment
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
As we mentioned earlier, excess odors can be caused by a poor environment, heat, and with no circulation or exhausting. On top of causing your odors to run rampant, these issues can also harm your plants.
So before you take a deep dive into odor control methods, make sure your environment is top-notch first. Check your temperature and humidity first, and make sure heat and moisture aren't making your odors worse.
Then, look to see how much air you are circulating. Stagnant air can be much stinkier than moving air.
If you have a 10 x 10 grow room with just one or two clip on fans, you should look into increasing air movement with more powerful fans.
If you determine your environment is out of whack, you may need to look into:
- Air conditioning
- Dehumidifiers
- Lower heat producing lights, like LED's
- Fans and blowers
You can learn everything there is to know about grow room environment here.
Carbon filter and inline fan for grow room odor control (preferred)
The best way to fight odors in your grow room is with a carbon filter and inline fan. These two components make up the foundation of your ventilation system, and along with ducting, work to expel heat and odors out of your grow room or tent.
The inline fan pulls air through the carbon filter, and the carbon filter goes to work. It scrubs the air of odors, and then the air gets ducted out of your grow tent or grow room. This removes old, stagnant, smelly air, and allows fresh air to be introduced either passively or actively.
If you want to learn more about carbon filters and ventilation systems in general, check out our post on how to setup your ventilation system.
Ona gels and air fresheners
If you are looking for a quick, cheap way to battle odors you may want to consider products like Ona gels.
These are odor absorbing gels that won't fix the problem, but they do a great job of masking it. You can simply place these on the floor of your grow room, on a shelf, or even in your ducting!
Products like the Ona Storm and Ona Cyclone Fan are another option. These work by periodically misting out air freshening scents, and will cover up some of the stenches from your grow.
Surface and air purifiers
Surface and air purifiers are a less commonly used odor control method for home growers, but can be seen in commercial grows. They go above and beyond removing odors, and work to make your air better.
They remove most airborne particles including mold, dust, smoke, pollen, viruses and bacteria, and most importantly: odors.
These are more expensive, and best suited for large grow rooms. If you are growing in a smaller area or a grow tent, they will likely not fit anyways.
Grow room ozone generators
An even less commonly known method of grow room odor control is using a grow room ozone generator.
Ozone generators use three atoms of oxygen (O3) as a molecule to remove odors from your grow space. This is a powerful method of purification and combats contaminants such as mold bacteria, odors, and pests.
One reason these are used in commercial grows is they can be programmed to work with the size of your grow space. They are the most technologically advanced method of eliminating grow room odor, and as such, are very expensive.
Final thoughts on grow room odor control
While there are plenty of fancy options for eliminating smells from your room, the best way is to keep your atmosphere top-notch and use a carbon filter and inline fan. This will get you the best results with the least amount of investment and work.
If you want help combatting the odors in your growing space, check out our complete ventilation and odor control kits. Or, read up on our year-end review of the best inline fans for grow tents & rooms. We have options for every type of grow.
These will give you the most bang for your buck, and help you keep your growing space healthy and discreet.
