Portable & Commercial Dehumidifiers

How to Size Your Dehumidifier for Your Indoor Garden

If you're venturing into the world of indoor gardening, it's essential to consider every aspect, including humidity control. Neglecting this crucial factor can lead to issues like mold, pests, and powdery mildew, all of which can harm your plants. In this guide, we'll walk you through the process of sizing your dehumidifier for your grow room, ensuring a successful indoor gardening experience.

Understanding the Importance of Sizing

One of the most commonly overlooked aspects of setting up your indoor garden is accounting for the moisture generated by your plants through transpiration. Plants transpire approximately 97% of the water they receive, meaning the amount of moisture you remove with a dehumidifier should roughly match what your plants absorb.

Sizing your dehumidifier correctly from the start is crucial for several reasons. Choosing an undersized unit can result in mold, pest infestations, and other serious problems that can damage your plants and your indoor garden's success.

Factors to Consider When Sizing Your Grow Room Dehumidifier

When determining the appropriate size for your grow room dehumidifier, consider the following factors:

1. Pints Per Day Removed

The primary factor in choosing a grow room dehumidifier is its capacity to remove moisture, often measured in pints per day (PPD). This metric tells you how much water the dehumidifier can extract from your grow room within a 24-hour period.

2. BTUs Produced

BTU stands for British Thermal Units, which measure the heat energy generated by a piece of equipment, including a dehumidifier. It's essential to assess whether the BTUs produced by the unit are suitable for your grow room's size and environmental conditions.

Calculating the Size of the Dehumidifier You Need

To determine the size of the dehumidifier your grow room requires, follow these basic calculations:

1. Calculate Daily Water Usage: Start by assessing how much water you're providing to your plants daily. For instance, if you have 20 plants, each receiving 1 gallon of water per day, you'll be adding 20 gallons of moisture to your room.

2. Convert Gallons to Pints: Dehumidifiers are typically rated in pints, so you'll need to convert the gallons into pints. One gallon equals 8 pints. In this example, you'll need to remove 160 pints of moisture daily.

3. Adjust for Watering Frequency: If you water your plants every other day, you'll need to adjust the total pints accordingly. For instance, if you water every other day, you'll need to remove 80 pints of moisture each day.

Sizing Your Dehumidifier for Hydro Systems

If you're using a hydroponic system, you can use the same calculations but with one modification. Since plants in hydro systems don't consume all the water in the reservoir, you'll need to divide your daily moisture removal requirement by the number of days in a week (7) instead of every other day.

Also, remember to cover all reservoirs to prevent contamination and additional humidity from entering the grow room.

Additional Considerations

1. Air Conditioning: If you're running an air conditioner in your sealed grow room, it will remove some moisture. Check how many pints per day your air conditioner can remove and subtract that from your daily dehumidification needs.

2. CO2 Use: The use of CO2 in your grow room can increase humidity levels, so consider this when sizing your dehumidifier.

3. Exhaust Systems: If you're exhausting air from your room, the dehumidifier's effectiveness may decrease. In such cases, consider getting a dehumidifier with higher capacity.

Sizing for a Drying Room

When sizing a dehumidifier for a drying room, keep in mind that standard units may not be suitable. Desiccant units are better equipped to handle the extreme moisture content in the atmosphere during the drying process.

To calculate the size needed for a drying room, consider the wet weight of your flower. For example, if you bring in 100 pounds of wet flower, expect it to lose around 80 pounds of water weight during drying.

Assuming that 60-70% of this weight will be absorbed into the atmosphere in the first few days of drying, you'll need a dehumidifier capable of removing this moisture. This typically amounts to about 56 pints of moisture per day.

Final Thoughts on Sizing Your Dehumidifier

Remember that the key to sizing your dehumidifier is ensuring it can effectively remove the daily moisture your room receives. Water in, water out – this simple principle will help you determine the right dehumidifier size.

If you're uncertain about the size you need or have other questions related to indoor gardening, don't hesitate to seek advice from experts. Selecting the appropriate dehumidifier is crucial for the health and success of your indoor garden.

For recommendations on specific dehumidifier units based on your grow room's size and type, check out our list of the top grow room dehumidifiers of the year. This guide can help you narrow down your options and make an informed choice.

Remember, it's better to have a slightly larger dehumidifier than you think you need to avoid potential issues caused by undersizing.

And if you haven't already, explore our complete guide to grow room atmosphere and ventilation for a more comprehensive understanding of indoor gardening essentials.

Please note: All recommendations are based on ideal drying conditions of 60 degrees Fahrenheit and 60 percent humidity.

If you need further assistance or guidance on choosing the right dehumidifier, feel free to reach out to our experts. We're here to help you ensure a successful indoor gardening experience.