A question from a fellow grower:
CO2–there are products you can buy that make the gas. They come in a bucket, continuous release; should I buy a small canister of CO2; would a couple of candles burning for several hours a day do the trick?
I would not recommend candles in the grow room. Flame devours Oxygen, and plants do not like carbon gas. (Probably not a perfect explanation, but that is the gest of it. Peace
Candles will produce CO2, carbon dioxide gas, and it will devour oxygen, and that is not really any different than how a propane gas CO2 generator creates its co2, however natural gas burns very clean. A candle produces lots of soot. Soot will not be good for anything in your grow-space. Soot will likely plug up the stoma, preventing the plants from transpiring efficiently and actually end up slowing CO2 intake and growth. Also the soot could gum up other things like fans or even create a film on the lights that blocks some of the light reducing lumen output slightly. And not to mention the increase in fire hazard. Sorry, it’s probably not a good idea.
I would not use candles but I was going to purchase a CO2 production bag that I saw advertised. It produces CO2 for approx. 6-8 months and uses a non-fruiting mycelial mass (fungus) and enough organic matter to sustain it for approximately 6-8 months to produce the CO2. The fungus works opposite a normal plant: it breathes in oxygen and breathes out carbon dioxide. I have been told that it is safe to use and will not overproduce for a 4X4X7 foot grow tent. I do have good ventilation (4" fan and charcoal filter) and fans inside the tent circulating the air.
Does anyone have experience using this or any thoughts on it?