Cooling

Heat can often be an issue for grow environments, particularly where artificial lighting is employed. This factor is reduced in systems where LED lights are used in favour of HPS, but nevertheless, heat is likely to remain an issue. Excessive heat can reduce the potential for plant growth, and can increase the likelihood of pest and disease outbreak, particularly where the warmth supports a higher level of humidity.

Heat regulation can be achieved in grow environments through direct cooling/air conditioning or effective air handling. For air conditioners this is principally achieved through evaporative cooling, where the transformation of sensible heat into latent heat via the process of evaporation, which absorbs heat energy, and for air handling by actively venting hot air, and introducing cool air from the external environment.

Optimum strategy for heat management will depend on individual system characteristics, and external factors such as seasonal variance, but a combination of approaches is advised.