Grow tents allow for year-round growing, in ideal conditions, for growers who have space limitations. These fabric, closet-like boxes are lined with reflective material to make sure that light and heat can continually circulate, without creating “hot spots”. When set up with grow lighting, proper ventilation, and climate controls, growers are no longer subject to the whims of nature, because they can “make their own weather”.
Available in a multitude of sizes, these durable, and reusable systems allow for both the hobbyist, home-grower, and even small-scale professional to cultivate, nurture, grow, and harvest any number of plants, especially cannabis. Other growers opt for more specialty crops like figs, or more common ones like leafy greens or tomatoes. The flexibility in their design allows for growers to be creative with what they want to cultivate.
Depending on size or type of plants, some grow tents can accommodate one plant, with others allowing for dozens. With the grower in total control of the climate, so long as they select plants with similar needs, more than one variety or species of a plant can be grown in a grow tent at one time.
Benefits of Grow Tents
Grow tents provide enormous amounts of benefits to the grower. With every aspect of the growing environment manageable on a microscale, it is easy to dial in just the perfect levels of everything your plants need to thrive. Grow tents allow individuals in cold climates the opportunity to grow in a warm environment, and those in hot climates to grow in an environment protected from too high temperatures and sun scorch. They also allow for year-round production and harvest. With multiple grow tents, one can have plants in the vegetative phase, with the other in the flowering phases to encourage year-round harvests.
Because grow tents just need to be near an electric and water source, they can be set up almost anywhere, even in spaces that would not normally be conducive for plant growth. They are easy to set up as well, and completely portable in case they need to get set up elsewhere. No special skills or tools are needed. It is just necessary to understand what your plants will need and be able to provide that for them within the tent. Grow tents save money. Due to the small space being used, energy costs are greatly reduced as compared to an open space, even of comparable size since the grow tent uses all inputs far more efficiently.
The interior climate of the tent can be enhanced any number of ways. Air conditioners, humidifiers, heaters, grow lights, and fans are commonly used to create an ideal environment. This is in addition to the boost in photosynthesis your plants will receive from the tent’s interior mylar, or reflective walls. Every surface of the plant will be exposed to enough light to avoid yellowing leaves, and weak branches. Because grow tents prevent “light leaks”, every bit of the output from grow lights is fully utilized. It is important to ensure the fixture selected is sized appropriately for the space in the grow tent so that your plants do not get over-exposed to light or burn from too much intensity.
Grow tents are a great solution for pest control. Flying and crawling insects that are commonly found in greenhouses, grow rooms, and in the field are easier to control in grow tents. There is no such thing as 100 percent pest control, 100 percent of the time, but the closed design of grow tents exclude the typical pest insects most of the time.
Intake holes in the grow tent will need to be sealed for ultimate exclusion of pests. It is also important to not accidentally introduce pest species due to carelessness. Anytime you enter your grow tent, make sure that you are not wearing clothes or shoes that you just wore in the field or greenhouse. Those same sealable intake holes also exclude dust and dirt which could stick to your plant’s trichomes.
Grow tents are also quiet. Not only operationally, which helps them to avoid detection, but also, any noise from outside the tent is muffled so much that very little sound goes through it, which is great since that means it is well-insulated. Smells too, are stifled. Whether it is the smell of some foul-smelling fertilizer, or just the aroma emanating from the plants, grow tents will help to keep smells right in place and not draw attention to what’s inside.
Considerations
Once you make the decision to set up a grow tent, it is important to make sure that everything is sized correctly. This not only includes the physical space of the tent itself, but extends to ensuring that the lighting, ventilation, and climate systems and setup are large enough to be efficient, yet not so large as to burn plants or needlessly run up the utility bill. The larger the tent, the larger the supporting systems, and the greater both the upfront costs, as well as the recurring ones.
Physical space
Where you put your grow tent will help lead to its success, or contribute to difficulties. It should be placed in an area that is convenient for you to get to. If there are many obstacles required to gain access to it, it is less likely that it will be checked as often as it needs to be. It will require at least the amount of clearance required by its dimensions. If it is to be sited outside, it needs to have sufficient support from the wind and elements. If it is inside, it should be placed on a surface that is not prone to flooding.
Make sure that the door to the grow tent can open freely in the selected location. It should be sited close enough to a power source as well as a port where exhaust can be directed as needed.
Sizing for Crops
The grow tent needs to be sized based on the presumed volume to be taken up by the size of mature plants. Determine if you will need to get into the space to work or if you will just need to reach in. The grow tent will need to be tall enough for the grow light to be about a foot above the canopy of your plants, so knowing the mature height of the plants you will be growing is important in choosing a grow tent size. Some grow tents have adjustable poles so that it can expand as plants grow. Also, having space all around the plants will help light to bounce off the reflective material and be better diffused within the space.
The smallest grow tent is typically a 2’x 2’. This size is good for amateur growers. A 2’ x 4’ grow tent is small enough to fit in a standard clothes closet. A 3’ x 3’ tent can hold as many as 4 fully-grown cannabis plants. For individuals who can devote more space to growing, there are 4’ x 4’ and 5’x 5’ tents which can each accommodate up to 1000 watt grow lights and as many as 12 full size plants. If you have up to a full room to dedicate, the largest tent size, a 10’ x 10’ grow tent, you can easily accommodate up to 30 full-grown plants.
Lighting
Lighting options for grow tents are predominantly one of two types: fluorescent or LED. Other types. Like HIDs tend to burn too hot and could easily scorch the plants within the tents. Most growers opt for some type of LED in the grow tent. Fluorescent bulbs are usually sufficient for seed starting and for young plants. Once plants have entered vegetative stage though, LED lights provide more of the type of light that plants need to be successful and to thrive. LEDs also allow for plants to remain stationary through their development, meaning that they do not have to move to another space between growth phases.
Many grow tent systems are equipped with an air filtration system that pulls air from the tent and discharges it outside. If your grow tent does not come with this set up, it is important to set one up to create a negative pressure system. It is crucial in maintaining fresh air inside grow tents. Fans are also often used in tandem with these carbon-activated air filtration systems. They can be used to pull outside air in, circulate interior air, and to aid in the removal of interior air to the outside.
Give too little, and the plants will be stunted; give too much light and the plants will burn. Follow guidelines as closely as possible for your crops until you are comfortable enough to do some experimenting in your grow tent.
HVAC
Many grow tent systems are equipped with an air filtration system that pulls air from the tent and discharges it outside. If your grow tent does not come with this set up, it is important to set one up to create a negative pressure system. It is crucial in maintaining fresh air inside grow tents. Fans are also often used in tandem with these carbon-activated air filtration systems. They can be used to pull outside air in, circulate interior air, and to aid in the removal of interior air to the outside.
Oscillating fans can be running all the time. Other fans can be times to run when the lights are on. The carbon air filtration should be run all the time as well once plants have entered their blooming phase.
Other Considerations
Once the basics of proper sizing, lighting, ventilation, air movement, and climate control have been met, it is time to consider some other add-ons to both customize your grow tent as well as make it more efficient. In general, the more expensive the tent, the more “extras” they will have. Strong support bars to both hold up plants and lighting are extremely useful. They can also be used to hang fans or to secure ducting.
If stealth is important, you may want to consider carbon filters. These can be installed in the grow tent, and the ventilation port, to limit the amount of smell coming out of the grow tent. Once your plants start flowering, this should be done around the clock to keep cannabis odors inside the tent.
Supplemental CO2 can be added to the grow tent. Your plants need this for the photosynthesis process. This can be achieved with the installation of a canister of CO2, complete with controls and regulators. Other disposable and cheaper options exist. Another source for your plants’ CO2 are mushroom spores. This is becoming a more-oft selected method as growers lean into a more organic approach to production.
Timers and automation can also help to customize your grow tent setup and to make it easier and more efficient. It will help to keep a more consistent growing environment and to reduce the possibility of hermaphroditism in your plants. Almost any system within your grow tent can be put onto a timer.
How to Set up a Grow Tent
Fortunately, setting up a grow tent is a fairly easy endeavor, but there are a few things that need to be done to get going.
- Select Your Location - Ideally you won’t have to move it after it has been set up. Find an area that is level, easy to get to, and has a water and electric source near it.
- Prepare the Area - Even though your plants will be inside the tent, it is important to make sure the area around it is clean to prevent unwanted particles from inadvertently entering your grow tent. Sanitize the floor, walls, ceiling, and windows around where your grow tent will be set up. Once the area has dried, it is safe to start assembling the tent.
- Assemble the Grow Tent - Utilize the manual that came with the tent, or defer to the manufacturer’s website to see how the tent should be properly assembled.
- Install HVAC Equipment - This entails putting in a fan to blow over tops of the plants, and a second one to blow in the opposite direction, under the canopy. Hang a carbon filter at this stage in order to prevent scents from escaping. The exhaust fan can be inside or outside the tent. Keep piping as straight as possible. The less air has to bend, the longer you can expect long-term success and longer before anything breaks.
- Install Gauges and Grow Lights - Install your grow lighting. Make sure it is not too heavy for the tent you have selected and is not too bright for the amount of space in the tent. At this stage, any monitoring equipment such as temperature and humidity gauges should be hung too.
- Set Timers and Limits - The last thing to add before your plants is any timers or limit switches you care to install to make your life easier.
- Add Plants - Finally, after everything is set up and you have created a perfect home for your plants, it is time to settle them in. Make sure they all have adequate room to grow, and that they are positioned to receive optimal light and air circulation.
Are Grow Tents Worth The Investment?
Ultimately every grower has to decide for themselves what is or is not worth their time and resources. It also depends on what the purpose for using grow tents is. If the goal is to produce a crop that could not be grown in an area due to climatic limitations, then the ROI may not be there, but the motivation there is not financial.
For example, growing limes in a cold climate on a single citrus tree for your mojitos may be incentive enough to invest in a grow tent and related systems, and the cost to do so may not be a factor. If however, grow tents are used to produce a crop for financial gain, such as with cannabis, grow tents can quickly pay for themselves and indeed show a positive ROI, making their upfront costs worth it.
Between more efficient use of inputs, and savings, a grow tent is a good investment. It costs less to provide energy, light, water, and nutrients in a grow tent versus other methods of indoor growing. The reflective interior coating multiples that amount of light emitted, giving plants a solid supply of light wherever they need it. Because there are no “cloudy days” in a grow tent, plants can reach maturity faster, increasing turnaround time. The total control of the environment by the grower is what makes grow tents such a great investment.
