Power is a major cost component in cannabis cultivation. Indoor grow houses require a lot of power for lighting, heating, air conditioning, and cross ventilation. In fact, marijuana cultivation costs $6 billion per year, and the figure is set to rise and more states line up to legalize weed cultivation for medical purposes. The greenhouse gases emitted from pot cultivation release the same amount of carbon dioxide as three million vehicles.
Cannabis farmers are slow in adopting energy efficient techniques because of a potential effect on the quality of the crop. They cannot risk poor quality weed after all the money and effort they put in growing it.
In order to reduce the cost of energy, grow houses should –
1. Consider the area that they wish to cultivate. This will depend on the strains being cultivated because yield varies with strain. If they farmers have a target volume of production in mind, they will require an indoor growing facility having the right area. All other energy saving features that include layout, labor, automation, air conditioning, lighting, etc will stem from this basic consideration.
2. Choose bulbs that give you the best ratio for the yield per unit of energy consumed. Strains with longer flowering periods will require more light, and this leads to a cost rise. Growers may have to contend with power costs that are as much as 20% of the total operation costs. Sodium lamps that also produce heat are a good option for colder regions but not really in other places. As of now, LED bulbs are the best alternative in the market because of their efficiency and the fact that you can buy bulbs emitting light frequencies best suited for stimulating growth in the buds.
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