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Best Reflective Material For Grow Room To Increase Cannabis Yields 2020

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It's important for any grower who is cultivating cannabis indoors to maximize on the power of their grow lights. Indoor cannabis grow lights have gotten insanely bright over the years and this has enabled growers to provide their plants with an abundance of light. However, you can make your grow lights seem even brighter and more powerful without actually increasing the amount of electricity you use. Proper reflection of the walls near your cannabis plants, and a great hood/reflector will bounce the light from your indoor grow lights back at your plants instead of letting all the light that hits the sides be absorbed.

In fact, proper reflection can get up to 30% more light to your cannabis plants! This is all without changing anything else about your setup. No extra electricity, just 30% more light!

As you probably know, light is what cannabis (and most plants) use to make energy and light is what powers the growth of your buds.

It's important to understand that indoor cannabis grow lights are most effective when you get as much of the light they produce to your plants as possible. The further light has to travel to your cannabis plants, the more light that gets “lost” on the way. By making sure light is reflected back at your plants, your plants get to use even more of the light that gets produced which would normally be "lost". Reflective walls will also help prevent parts of your plants from sitting in a dark or shadowy spots.

Outdoors, growers get to use the sun! The sun is almost 93 million miles away, but it produces so much light that very little light is lost over small distances. That means reflectivity isn't important when growing outdoors in direct sunlight; the sun already gives your plants all the light they need!

WHY PREPARING YOUR GROW AREA IS IMPORTANT?

Knowing where you will be growing and how that translates to an adequate setup is vital before embarking on your cultivation journey. It will save precious man-hours, not to mention a lot of money by making adequate preparations.

When it comes to considering the reflective nature of your growing area, a grow tent offers a viable solution to any difficulties you may come across. A good quality grow tent has already the right correct reflective material on the inside.

However, if you are looking to grow in any other room, preparing the walls are vitally important. Here below we discuss the three best options you have when it comes to using reflective material in your grow room.

The Importance of a Reflective Material for a Grow Room

If you are still wondering why a reflective material is a great investment to have in a grow room, this section will answer that question. Before anything else, allow us to point out that light is the driving force in the growth of plants in a grow tent, not just for cannabis. The light emits energy that allows photosynthesis to take place even without being reached by the sun.

To use the light in its full capacity, one of the most important is the reflection. This is where the importance of a reflective material enters the picture. As it has been mentioned in the introduction, this increases the intensity of the light. You do not need to use multiple lights at a time. This also means that it is going to be an energy-saver. This makes the grow lights brighter and more powerful without the need to use more electricity.

According to some growers, the use of a reflective material will help to increase the light that reaches the cannabis by as much as 30%.

What Reflects Light the Best: A Look at the Options?

When looking for the best reflective material for light, you might end up being overwhelmed with the choices that are available. In this section, we will briefly look at some of the popular options and their effectiveness.

Mylar

This is one of the most popular from the reflective materials and this is basically because of the fact that it has the ability to reflect up to 97% of light. This is basically a polyester film with varying thickness, which is usually from 1mm to 2mm. It produces radiant heat, so there is a need to have the right ventilation to avoid the grow room from being too hot.

Aside from the radiant heat, another problem with Mylar is that cleaning can be quite difficult. Also, there might be a need for frequent replacements, although this is not much of an issue for most people since it is pretty much affordable.

Foylon

This is a material that a lot of people confuse with Mylar. The two have their similarities, but one of the key advantages of Foylon is that it is more durable. For this reason, it is also understandable that it is a more expensive material.

Spun polyester fiber is the main material that is used in Foylon. A foil laminate is used as a reinforcement. Because of the latter, it is not easily prone to fading. In terms of reflectivity, it allows up to 95% of light to bounce back to the plant.

Flat White Paint

If you are using a cabinet as a grow room for your weed, you can use flat white paint as a reflector. It is also an ideal choice if you are transforming a large room into a grow room. On average, the light reflectivity is at 85% to 95%. It is known for being a budget-friendly alternative, although this will not have the hammer-like texture that you will find in other materials.

One of the benefits of using paint is that it is easy to clean and maintain. Also, it does not produce too much heat, making the interior cool. There will be no hotspots or air pockets, as long as you apply the paint the right way.

Panda Plastic

It may not be as popular as the other materials that we have listed, but this is another option that is worth considering. Also known as a black and white polymer, the approximate light reflectivity is from 85% to 95%. It is white on one side and black on the other, which is why it is also called panda plastic.

If you will use this as a reflector, you should look for one that is thick, which also means that it is going to be more durable. Because it is plastic, it can produce extreme heat that can cause too much stress to the plant. The best way to avoid it is to not keep it too close to your grow light.

Orca Grow Film

It has an average reflectivity of 90% to 94%, which makes this another choice that is hard to match. The surface looks much like the skin of an orca whale, which is from where it got its name. This is one of the most expensive materials you will find on the market, but the steep price is sure to be worth it. It is one of the most durable options.

Grow Tents

At the end of the day, this is what most marijuana cultivators will recommend. Invest in a grow tent that already comes with an interior wall that has a reflective material. The material can be anything from those that have been mentioned above. Since they are already built-in, there is no need to exert effort in its installation. By the way, eco farm grow tent can be your great choice.

When choosing the reflective material to use in the grow room, one of the first things that you have to take into consideration is the temperature. If it is cold in the grow room, it will be best to choose orca, mylar, and foylon, among others. Meanwhile, when it is hot, the grow room will do good with a flat white paint.

Best Reflective Material Recommended for you

USED IN RETROFIT & NEW CONSTRUCTION: Reduces residential attic temperatures up to 40 degrees; lowers utility bills year round. Thermal insulation used in attic space, garage, garage doors, housewrap, workshop, shed, storage unit, commercial metal building, pole barn, as pallet wrap, and more.
INDUSTRIALIZED GRADE: Is TEAR & PUNCTURE PROOF yet cuts easily with utility scissors or hack saw. Reflects 97% of the radiant heat.
EASY TO MAINTAIN: Non-toxic; non-carcinogenic; fiber free; easy to install; not affected by humidity; maintenance free; does not promote the growth of fungi or bacteria; does not support nesting by rodents or insects.

This highly reflective film will reflect approx. 92-97% of bulbs' light.
It is durable, puncture and tear resistant.
It increases the intensity of your grow lights without changing the amount of electricity you use and also helps retain heat to keep you room at the right temperature for your plants to thrive.
The 2 mil grade is the most durable available and this unique design boasts a poly backing which acts as a vapor barrier.
Heat Resistance Temperature: 190℃ / 374℉.

Final thoughts

Growing marijuana has changed over the years with more people doing it today than they did a couple of years back. One of the main reasons for the growth is because today, there are easier and faster growing methods. Many people are moving away from tradition and embracing grow room, grow tent, hydroponics, and led grow lights marijuana growing among others. This kind of farming is both discreet and it means you no longer have to buy marijuana from anyone again because you can finally have your own right at your doorstep. Besides being discreet, the method is also easy, the crop grows fast and you do not need excellent weather and temperature conditions to grow your cannabis. The harvest turnaround time is anything between 4 to 5 months.

The success of growing healthy marijuana crops lies on the essentials and detail. Light is one of the most important essentials and therefore you should pay enough attention to the details of the reflective materials you choose. Whatever type of material you choose, the most important fact to take into detail is that whatever you choose increases the intensity of the light in the grow room efficiently. This means that light covers every crop in the room to ensure the environment is suitable for your crops. We hope with the above best reflective material for grow room, you will know what to expect when you need light for your crops.

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