With Colorado’s new laws regarding recreational marijuana, people are scrambling to set up growing areas for both personal and commercial production. While we reserve our opinions on the subject for private discussion, there are a couple of related issues on which we have very strong and very public opinions – safety and cost consciousness.
Safety Issues in Grow Room Operation
Growing any crop indoors requires a tremendous amount of electricity. You are, after all, replacing the sun’s energy and the earth’s climate with electrical power. The power needed to supply sufficient light and climate control may be considerably more than the building you’re growing in is capable of handling, especially if that building is your home.
Before setting up grow lights and climate-control equipment, even a shop light and a fan, you should determine if the circuit(s) they will operate on can handle the load. Responsible commercial growers will consult with a licensed electrical contractor like Allstar Electrical to be sure they have the right amount of service and the wiring to support it. Home growers should do the same.
Christmas lights and the addition of a microwave and coffee pot can put unsafe loads on your existing home wiring, especially if your home is not newer construction. Grow lights, heaters, humidifiers, and fans can overload circuits designed for normal household or light commercial use. Circuit breakers on otherwise working systems can trip. In other cases, the result could be catastrophic, especially in older buildings.
Trying to solve the overload problem by using extension cords on multiple circuits presents problems of its own. Besides being a trip hazard, extension cords, just like electrical service, must be properly rated for the loads they will carry. Overloaded cords can overheat and become serious fire hazards themselves.
Cost Issues in Grow Room Setups
Personal grow rooms and commercial shared spaces use a lot of energy, so choosing efficient accessories can save a bundle on your electric bill. Fans, heaters and humidifiers should be selected based on their product ratings found right on the box. Isolating the grow area is a good way to keep your climate-control costs down. Enclose the space with safe materials that won’t catch fire, melt or encourage growth of harmful mold, mildew and bacteria. Good air circulation and outside ventilation are important.
Proper lighting is key to good grow areas, and old technology using fluorescent grow lights won’t get the job done. Some people choose High-Intensity Discharge (HID) lamps like those used for street and security lighting, but those lamps use excessive electricity and don’t provide the best light spectrum for indoor growing. Growers are finding that Light-Emitting Diode (LED) grow lighting is superior. It gives the right growing spectrum, runs much cooler, and uses a lot less energy. An internet search of LED Grow Lights will turn up both information about using them and a list of suppliers. Note, though, that LED grow lights are not the same as household lighting.
Be Safe – Be Smart. Call Allstar First
If you’re thinking about installing an indoor grow room for personal use, contact Allstar Electrical Service for an assessment of your specific needs. If you’re opening a commercial grow room, you will also need proper business licensing and building inspections by the entity in which your facility is located. Call Allstar Electrical Service for design-build and installation services for your business operations.
The pros at Allstar Electrical are ready to discuss your needs and help you determine the best solution for your project. Visit our website for complete details about our services as well as timely articles about the latest developments in the ever-changing world of electronics. Then give us a call at (303) 399-7420 or use our handy on-line forms to request an estimate or set up an appointment.