Maximum Yield Australia/New Zealand March/April 2019 | Page 52

“It’s a good idea for cultivators to regularly
check their growrooms to make sure they are
100 PER CENT
DARK DURING THE NIGHTTIME PERIOD.”
upon CO 2 injection technology, the regular loss of CO 2
to leaks is financially burdensome and operationally
threatening. If light leaks can penetrate the confines of
a sealed garden, so can airborne pathogens. As such, it
is virtually impossible to fully sterilise an indoor grow
if bugs and spores (of powdery mildew and botrytis) can
continuously access the grow space via leaks.
Hermaphrodites
One of the most widely known negative side effects of
growroom light seepage has to do with the transformation
of female plants into hermaphrodites. For those looking to
grow seed-free flowering plant varietals, hermaphrodites
can prove devastating for a crop. This is because male
flowers on a single plant can pollinate an entire growroom
and greatly devalue a harvest.
Expert horticulturists agree that certain plant species turn
hermaphrodite as a result of environmental stressors, and
light leaks are notorious for being associated with this
phenomenon. However, it should be noted that the occasional
beam of light on a garden from a headlamp won’t cause
plants to “herm.” While indoor growers should strive to
avoid any disruptions in regular light cycles, it takes rather
consistent light exposure to force a plant into hermaphrodite
growth. These sorts of leaks come from constant sources, such
as under doorways and walls, that occur on a daily basis.
Light Leaks Mean Other Leaks
Indoor growers can be assured that if their sealed growroom
is leaking light, it has issues with other leaks. Seasoned
cultivators go to great lengths to ensure that their sealed
gardens are functioning at their best when it comes to
atmosphere, temperature, and sterility. All these contingencies
are compromised with an improperly sealed growroom.
If leakage issues arise, growers sacrifice the total
environmental control that is so essential in sealed room
growing. With this issue comes potential problems with
maintaining ideal, static levels of temperature, humidity,
and CO 2 . Moreover, as sealed rooms are wholly dependent
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Maximum Yield
Locating Light Leaks
Many indoor growers don’t know that their rooms have light
leaks until it is too late, and the problem expresses itself
by way of hermaphrodites and seeded flowers. As a result,
it’s a good idea for cultivators to regularly check their
growrooms to make sure they are 100 per cent dark during
the nighttime period.
To inspect an indoor garden for light leaks, it’s best to
enter the grow with a green light when the primary lights
are off. Once situated in the garden, turn off the green
light and sit still for a while to let your eyes adjust to the
blackness. At this point, it should be easy to canvass the
walls and ceilings of the room and discern any potential
points of light leak trouble. Also, this inspection process
should be done during various parts of the day, as different
angles of sunlight outside can cause light leaks during
isolated time frames.
Gardeners should also be advised that control panels
on grow equipment, such as atmospheric controllers and
AC units, often give off light. This light is usually red or
green and is residual from the digital readout. As such, it is
recommended that growers cover up these light sources with
electrical tape or some sort of removable opaque material.
Compared to any other form of controlled environment
agriculture, sealed-room growing provides the most mastery
over environmental factors. However, these growrooms
present novel challenges of their own, as seen with the issues
surrounding light leaks. For the conscientious gardener,
regular inspections of one’s garden should alleviate any light
leak problems. All things considered, this knowledge will
provide a better platform for troubleshooting on the macro-
level moving forward.