C02 generator vs tanks

Do Co2 generators put out bad by-product thats harmful and may cause the bud to fail testing,,vs tanks which are cleaner,,,but more of a pain in the ass. Has anyone heard of this? Love the info you all share on the various forms..very helpful.

Mr_Manny_D said:

Do Co2 generators put out bad by-product thats harmful and may cause the bud to fail testing,,vs tanks which are cleaner

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This is the first I have heard of any such thing causing the buds to fail testing. What "bad by-product" specifically? If someone doesn't even have a name of this compound or what the bud tested positive for then I would discount their information as anecdotal.

I have been told that the burners produce ethylene gas but I see no reason that would cause a failed test.

Renfro said:

This is the first I have heard of any such thing causing the buds to fail testing. What "bad by-product" specifically? If someone doesn't even have a name of this compound or what the bud tested positive for then I would discount their information as anecdotal.

I have been told that the burners produce ethylene gas but I see no reason that would cause a failed test.

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Budley Doright said:

Preventing ethylene damage in the production greenhouse: sources of ethylene

What is ethylene? Ethylene (C2H4) is an odorless, colorless gas that can have both positive and negative impacts on greenhouse crops. It is a plant hormone, which means that it is produced b…

u.osu.edu

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Thanks

If worried about ethylene gas, just vent the room once a day, say at lights out. Thats all it would take. Easy to do with a day/night temp controller with a intake / exhaust blower setup. Set the night temp lower than the day temp, that way the room vents down from a day setting of say 82F to a night setting of 72F. If the AC system is setup to keep the room at 79F, the day temp setting on the blowers acts as an emergency cooling system in the event the AC fails and the temp hits 82F, then you get some cooling from the vent system provided the ambient temps outside are acceptable (run at night).

Most grows leak enough that I doubt it even becomes an issue but I have seen some super sealed up CO2 generator grows with shitty yields and early ripening times...

Renfro said:

If worried about ethylene gas, just vent the room once a day, say at lights out. Thats all it would take. Easy to do with a day/night temp controller with a intake / exhaust blower setup. Set the night temp lower than the day temp, that way the room vents down from a day setting of say 82F to a night setting of 72F. If the AC system is setup to keep the room at 79F, the day temp setting on the blowers acts as an emergency cooling system in the event the AC fails and the temp hits 82F, then you get some cooling provided the ambient temps outside are acceptable (run at night). Most grows leak enough that I doubt it even becomes an issue but I have seen some super sealed up CO2 generator grows with shitty yields and early ripening times...

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Yea,,and like you said earlier,,keep good maintenance and cleaning should be good.

I have a tankless water heater and they are great. I just use it to heat water. No water running no gas usage. However, I have question . Since Co2 burners use natural gas why not use a ventless heater in the room. you can control the heat and it still puts co2 in the air. the co2 burner burns until the co2 level is met. which could create a heat issue. However, a ventless heater will shut off when the room is at that temp or higher and come on again when needed to heat the room again. So why not a ventless heater. Just wondering or am i missing something

dwood8165 said:

I have a tankless water heater and they are great. I just use it to heat water. No water running no gas usage. However, I have question . Since Co2 burners use natural gas why not use a ventless heater in the room. you can control the heat and it still puts co2 in the air. the co2 burner burns until the co2 level is met. which could create a heat issue. However, a ventless heater will shut off when the room is at that temp or higher and come on again when needed to heat the room again. So why not a ventless heater. Just wondering or am i missing something

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You are trying to maintain a proper amount of CO2 not temp but yes they are basically the same thing and you could control the room heater by CO2 levels as well in place of a room thermostat. All of the tankless I work on typically throw out a fair amount of CO in exhaust when running on low fire but never tested one that was in a grow with no vent (the ones I see have modulating gas valves) and are 95%+ efficiency.

I know we are maintaining the co2 level. I am a tank hauler, with a environmental controller and i have a co2 controller in my veg room. I also know here, we get 400 to 500 ppm of co2 naturally in the air.
In a earlier post someone was concerned about heat. Which is one of the reason I do not have one (co2 generator). So i was wondering why not a ventless heater. which would probably give a nice amount of co2 and not over heat the room. Which would not have the ac running, exhaust running to cool the room. probably less expensive. you could pump in some fresh air, being careful not to create to much humidity in the winter. or bugs (fine screens over the intake) in the summer.
With fans running, one on the floor. The heat and co2 would be circulating constantly
My grow space does not have gas. nor do I want a gas bill. So i am unable to try this for myself. last but not least and this is a slide bar. In the winter I run the heat from my lamps into the drying room and close the door. It allows for a slow drying process at know other cost. I like using things that exist that will do what i need at know additional cost

dwood8165 said:

ventless heater. which would probably give a nice amount of co2 and not over heat the room.

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Regardless of how you burn the fuel, a given amount of gas has to be combusted to create a given amount of CO2, the heat is therefore a consistent byproduct weather you use a space heater or a CO2 generator. CO2 generators have ratings in BTU/hr. Of course they shouldn't have to run constantly but when they are running they are putting out heat and water vapor as unwanted byproducts.

They make some water cooled and some air cooled propane generators that help remove some of the added heat but I consider it a hassle and just oversize the AC accordingly.