Indoor cultivation is fun, interesting, and rewarding. But finding the right indoor grow equipment can feel almost impossible if you’re a rookie grower. Sometimes it seems the more you look into it, the more overwhelming the information becomes.
Which nutrient formula should you get? Should you use HPS bulbs or LED grow lights? What’s an air carbon filter, and do you really need one?
Rest assured, your expertise as a grower develops over time. With each grow cycle, you learn more about your specific plants, the requirements of your grow room, and your personal preferences.
The trick is to not get bogged down by the bells and whistles on Day One. For now, focus on must-have indoor grow equipment. Tackle each of these items one-by-one, and you’ll have a fully functioning grow room in no time.
Growing marijuana indoors requires various types of equipment, depending on your space requirements, location, and desired harvest. And if you’re a first-time grower, it can seem intimidating trying to figure out everything that you’ll need while understanding all of the various types of equipment available for growers. So, we’ve put together a list of 30+ pieces of the most popular indoor grow equipment.
Here are the most common types of equipment and supplies used to grow weed, and what exactly they do.
Lighting is a huge part of growing weed. If you don’t have enough light, or if you’re using it inefficiently, you won’t maximize your harvest. Light fuels growth, and growth is what you want.
There are hundreds of lights out there that advertise themselves as grow lights. The most important part of choosing your light is making sure that it will shine enough light over the square footage over your grow space.
LED lights are usually the coolest and most energy-efficient lights when you compare brightness levels. These lights usually cost a little more upfront, but make up for it by running for upwards of 50,000 hours before needing to be replaced. They are also the simplest to run. All growers know that full spectrum LED grow light is best recommended for plant growth.
Compact Fluorescent Lights are the curly bulbs you see in many homes. These are great for growing seedlings and clones until they’re ready for bigger lights. The biggest problem with CFLs is that they aren’t very bright. They stay cool and are relatively energy-efficient, so they aren’t a bad choice if you’re growing one or two small plants.
High-Intensity Discharge lights are traditional grow lights. HPS and metal halide lamps are both considered HID lights. These lights are certainly very bright, with HPS lights being used to light stadiums. However, they also get very hot very quickly, and they are not particularly energy-efficient. Many HID lights have a lower initial price, but they need to get replaced more frequently than other lights.
PAR is a measurement of how much usable light your plants are receiving. It stands for Photosynthetically Active Radiation. In general, your seedlings need between 200-400 PAR, vegetative stage plants need 400-600 PAR, and flowering plants need 600-900 PAR. A PAR meter helps you figure out exactly how much light your plants are getting. A good PAR meter will help you get the most out of your plants without burning them.
Indoor cannabis grows often line the walls of the room or tent with some kind of material that reflects light well. This sends some light back at the plants that would otherwise get absorbed by the walls. “Reflective” does not mean you want mirrors on your walls. Mirrors are actually relatively inefficient at diffusing light effectively. Instead, use mylar, panda plastic, flat white latex paint, or purpose-built grow tents.
The lights in your grow room are going to be very bright. It’s easy to damage your vision by accidentally looking at a light that’s pretending to be the sun. Many people use light safety glasses to avoid eye damage.
Sometimes, people don’t want to entirely renovate a room or closet in order to grow weed inside. That’s where grow tents come in. A grow tent is a self-contained environment for you to keep your cannabis plants in. These tents are usually produced to be air-tight except for intake and exhaust vents, reflective interior walls, and supports for lights. A good grow tent can make your indoor cannabis grow much easier.
These tents come in a variety of sizes. You can get a small one the size of a table, or a big one the size of a room. No matter how much space you have, there’s a grow tent for you.
Very small marijuana grow tents are sometimes called micro grow boxes. These are very small grow boxes that usually come with lights and other equipment included. They’re designed for people who have very limited space.
Keeping your environment under control will keep your grow on the right track. Ideally, you’ll keep your grow within certain parameters. Plants prefer to stay within a certain temperature range and a certain humidity range. A solid environmental control system will allow you to control heat, humidity, air movement, and even CO2 levels in your grow room.
Cannabis plants prefer temperatures between 68 and 78 degrees, on average. However, many non-LED grow lights can significantly heat a room. If you are struggling to keep heat down, an air conditioner unit can keep your plants happy. Window air conditioner units will blow cool air into the room while venting hot air outside. They will also reduce humidity, so a good air conditioner might be a helpful addition to a struggling grow.
Marijuana has a strong smell. Many people don’t like that smell, including neighbors who can and will complain. If you’re trying to keep your cannabis grow under wraps, a carbon filter is invaluable. You place your carbon filter inline with your ventilation system, most importantly at the exhaust vent. You can also place a carbon filter at your intake vent, in order to prevent any scent escaping.
Once you have your lights figured out, your limiting factor is the ambient CO2 in your room. If you’re really trying to bump your growth, you can increase the amount of CO2 in your room. The easiest way to add CO2 to your grow room in a regulated fashion is a CO2 tank kit. This includes a CO2 meter, a valve, and a pressure regulator. Low tech options include adding dry ice to your room or using a propane-burning CO2 meter.
Your cannabis grow benefits from keeping temperatures under control. The simplest way to do that is by venting hot air out of the grow tent or room. Many people achieve this by connecting ductwork from the exhaust vent on their lights to the tent’s exhaust vent. Flexible tube ducting is the easiest to use in small spaces.
In general, it’s more likely for a grow to be to humid than not humid enough. Depending on your climate, both are possible, though. Low humidity leads to nutrient burn and plants drying out. You can use a standard humidifier that is rated for your room size. If your humidity is regularly below 40%, you may need to use a humidifier. If you want to try something low-tech, you can also try leaving trays of water under the grow lights.
If your humidity is above 55% regularly, then consider getting a dehumidifier. Too much water in the air leads to mold and mildew, which can quickly ruin a crop. Remove sources of standing water if any exist in your room, and add a standard dehumidifier rated for your square footage.
A hygrometer measures the ambient humidity. Many humidifiers and dehumidifiers have built-in hygrometers. You can also get them separately, with simple digital displays. Hygrometers are the easiest way to keep track of the humidity in your grow tent.
In order to get proper airflow through your grow, fans are invaluable. Many fans are designed to be placed in connection with your ventilation system. These fans help push hot air out to the exhaust vent and pull clean air in. You can also include oscillating fans on the edge of your grow to keep air moving through your plants to prevent pests. You should know that grow tent ventilation is important.
Bug problems plague plenty of harvests When you can’t get rid of pest bugs in other ways, insect foggers are useful. These machines blow insecticide through your grow room and kill the bugs. Just make sure your chosen insecticide won’t harm you or stick to your plants.
Ozone is a molecule made of three oxygen atoms. It kills mold, mildew, and bacteria. On the other hand, it’s also bad for cannabis and humans. Ozone generators are machines that work to create just enough ozone to sterilize your grow room without hurting you or your plants. The biggest risk of an ozone generator is a cough or aggravated asthma while the ozone is present. Many consider the cleanliness of their grow worth risking a coughing fit.
Timers have many uses in an indoor grow. Most growers plug their lights into timers to keep the light cycle regular. Others use timers to run fans, ventilation, and hydroponic pumps. If you have something you want to automate, a timer will help.
Just make sure that your timer is heavy-duty enough to handle the wattage you’re attaching to it. Many lights will use more than their designated wattage to turn on, so always make sure your timer can handle at least 20% more watts than you plug into it.
Tent size varies widely. You can find an enclosure as small as 2’ x 2’ and as large as 10’ x 20’. Don’t forget to factor in height as well.
And remember that your ideal tent height is determined by more than just the available vertical space in the room and your own height. Find out the ideal hanging height of your chosen grow lights as well as the height of your plants in your preferred containers.
Do you plant to cultivate in soil? Cocoa? Will you need a hydroponic system? Aeroponic? The method you select influences the grow equipment you require in a grow tent kit.
Grow tent kits can cost upwards of $4,000, so it’s a good idea to set your price limits upfront.
Remember to take operational costs into account. This is yet another area where your lighting choice deserves some extra thought.
High quality LED grow lights come with a higher price tag at the time of purchase. However, their operational costs are much lower. LEDs last up to twenty times longer than HID bulbs and consume half the energy. They also cut down on your cooling costs, as they don’t radiate nearly as much heat as CMH and HID lights.
So, what should you look for in a grow tent kit?
The answer depends on a number of considerations. Before you shop for a grow tent package, ask yourself these important questions.
As a grow light manufacturer, we feel very strongly about providing customer guidance, especially when it comes to something as complicated as home grows.
We’ve seen so many new growers buy the wrong lights based on bad advice. Or they were in a hurry to find something cheap and easy, then wound up with a grow light that broke after one grow cycle.
The same thing can happen if you pick any random indoor grow tent from a retailer you don’t know. Instead, work with a company who listens to your goals and needs. Ask for their insight, and let the professionals guide you toward some worthwhile options.
A grow tent is different from a grow tent kit. When you buy a grow tent, you only get the tent itself. A grow tent kit, on the other hand, includes the tent and all the components you need to grow in that specific tent.
The actual contents of a kit may vary, but most include grow equipment such as:
Air Filters
Timers
Ventilation
Thermometers
Plant containers
Hygrometers
Tent
You can also purchase a grow tent kit that includes grow lights. As lighting is a particularly intimidating area for many new growers, a kit that comes with a light can really feel like a load off your mind.
However, a grow light can make or break your chances at a successful first crop. So don’t just accept whatever light comes with the kit. Take the time to research different types of grow lights as well as individual manufacturers. Don’t buy an HID or LED grow tent kit that includes a sub-par grow light.
Also bear in mind that some retailers create a customized grow tent kit for you. All you have to do is let them know your priorities and preferred brands, and they’ll put together a kit that works. By the way, ECO Farm marijuana grow kit can be your great choice.
Indoor growing is a safer activity than, say, cliff diving. But there are still potential hazards you need to look out for. Stock up on latex-free, powder-less gloves to wear when handling your plants . . . especially during harvest. Gloves protect both your hands and your product from contamination. Make sure the gloves you use are food safe.
If your grow lights radiate UV light, prepare to protect yourself from those rays. While it’s great for promoting potency and product quality, UVB can be harmful to human skin and eyes. Invest in some protective eyewear and keep your skin covered when you enter the grow room.
Once you’re set up with these grow equipment must-haves, you’re ready to set up your indoor grow room.
And if there’s anything we can do to help you determine the right lighting for your grow room, please reach out. There’s no question too small or too complex, and we’re always happy to help new growers.