killing bugs with co2 questions

[joe fresh]

i got a small case of thrips going right now, i have a fairly large room, the way i see it is i have 2 options, doctor doom bug bomb(got 2 cans) or 10000ppm co2 for an hour or 2. i dont want to use sprays thats out of the question, too much plants.

so with the bug bomb it says on the label to turn off all open flames and/or pilot lights(dont know if my hid lights counts) so i dont want to risk any fire hasard, so im unsure of this method.

the co2 method, the onlyu thing that scares me is i dont know what the co2 gas is like, at 10000ppm are there any risks? as in fire hasard or something else along the lines? or is the only risk a health risk if you are breathing it?

 

[GimmeShelter]

killing bugs with co2 questions

I don't think there is a fire hazard as fire needs lots of oxygen and the purpose of the co2 is to eliminate most oxygen. I'd say leave the lights on but you may see some wilting after two hours but they will perk up once returned to correct atmospheric levels.
Ps.
Don't breathe that stuff in, it's gonna kill all those pests.

 

[Greenmopho]

CO2 is not flammable at all. It is actually used in metal shops and closed welding chambers to create a CO2 rich atmosphere that will inhibit anything that wants to burn.

I do CO2 bombs almost every week! They are very effective. It is wise to do it during the dark period, when the plants' stomates are closed, as anything over 2,000 ppm CO2 is toxic to the plants, and anything over 4,000 ppm CO2 is toxic to humans. It is almost impossible to reach these levels of CO2 in a large room with a CO2 burner, you must use a 50 lb. tank. Turn off all your ventilation and circulation, fans, AC, etc. I would just stand the tank in the middle of the room, crack open the valve 1/4 turn, and come back in 1+ hour(s), air the room out before the lights come back on.

As far as the Doctor Doom, I don't find them effective, but the best way to kill pests is with a 1-2 punch, so if you want to follow up your CO2 bomb with Doctor Doom bomb, you are only helping your odds at knocking 'em out! Once again, do the Doctor Doom bomb during the dark period, turn off all ventilation/circulation, fans, A/C, etc. And come back before your lights come back on to air everything out!

I think you will find that the CO2 method is more effective, if done properly, where pests can build a tolerance to the Pyrethrum. Not to mention, the CO2 method is much more healthy, as it leaves zero residue on the final product, and can be done right up until the last day of flower!

 

[Greenmopho]

How long into bloom are you?

 

[joe fresh]

thanks for the speedy and informative posts


im on week 3-4 of 12/12, but got 2 plants that are on week 13(ssh)

heres my problem, im running a cge(sealed room), no exchange of air. i also have 2 rooms, with a work room separating the 2 grow rooms. they are on flip flop relay switches, meaning when one rooms on the other rooms off.

so using either method i would only be doing one room(the one in the dark) at a time, but my problem would lay in the fact that i have no exhacust fan, and my only way to exhaust the co2 from the room would be to open the window in the work room and put a fan there and open the door to the grow room and let it slowly air out.

 

[joe fresh]

and i dont have a 50 lb tank but i do have 4 20 lb tanks, they should do , 2 tanks per room

 

[joe fresh]

question---- i have 2 cats that live upstairs, if i lock them in a room with the window open would it be dangerous for them? or would the ventilation from the window be enough

my room is a sealed room, but i suspect not 100%, so im thinking that if i raise to 10000ppm there might be leakages and i cant predict how that will go

so are my cats safe in a room upstairs with the window open and a fan going ...is it enough for them to be safe and healthy?

 

[Greenmopho]

question---- i have 2 cats that live upstairs, if i lock them in a room with the window open would it be dangerous for them? or would the ventilation from the window be enough

my room is a sealed room, but i suspect not 100%, so im thinking that if i raise to 10000ppm there might be leakages and i cant predict how that will go

so are my cats safe in a room upstairs with the window open and a fan going ...is it enough for them to be safe and healthy?

CO2 gas is heavier than normal air, the gas will sink and escape through cracks. If your cats are ABOVE the room, with a window open, as long as you are not exhausting or ducting anything to or from that room to your grow room, they should be just fine...

 

[grapeman]

We use CO2 to kill insects and eggs in fumigation chambers in central california. But what we put into those chambers is already harvested fruit.

I don't know what extremely high levels of co2 will do to live plants.

 

[Greenmopho]

We use CO2 to kill insects and eggs in fumigation chambers in central california. But what we put into those chambers is already harvested fruit.

I don't know what extremely high levels of co2 will do to live plants.

Nothing if the plant isn't breathing, i.e. the stomates are closed....during the dark cycle.

Is that CO2 gas you guys are using or ethylene gas?

 

[joe fresh]

i think ethelyne is for ripening and co2 for killing bugs


hjow long would you guys say i could be in the room at 10000ppm? i will need to go open the widow when its time to ventilate/exhaust

 

[Tr33]

CO2 is will not harm plants if over 4000ppm. THATS WRONG.
I have my botany degree from ASU andmis information like that is bad.

I DO KNOW

HIGH LEVELS OF CO2 WILL NOT HURT YOUR PLANTS

You need to run your system at 10000ppm 3x a day 3 hrs each time day and night for 3-5 days, it does not matter when you run CO2, day or night it will not hurt your plants. We have been doing it this way for over 15yrs.
Kids and their mis info lol

I've been posting this method since 1998, first time at Nan's Nook and Mycotopia, and then the Shroomery - pre 2002.

It's a proven method and works. Many peeps have done it.

fruit emits ethelyne during the ripening process, so if you have unripened apples, peaches, etc, you place them in a paper sack and close it, and the gas make them ripen faster, produce packers use ethelyne gas chambers to help ripen fruit faster for the market. not CO2

I really wouldn't worry about venting to much, too much fear of the unknown, just open the door and vent.
So many mis truths about CO2. you would need to be locked into a fully gassed room for any CO2 effects to affect you in any form or fashion.
LMAO
There is no way you will harm your self unless you shut yourself in and lock the door and fall asleep. people just have no clue.
wives tales, and urban myths for sure.

 

[joe fresh]

this is all very good info, thanks +rep


so just to be sure if im upstairs and i gas downstairs ill be ok ?

and i can gas the rooms day or night, makes no difference, right?

i have 2 rooms, one 22x11 and the other 11x11, i have 4 20 lb tanks but my co2 controllers only go up to 5000 ppm, so if i open 2 tanks per room, and leave them open will it be enough?

 

[joe fresh]

at what rate should i set my regulators for to obtain 10000 ppm in a 22x11 room, and a 11x11 room ?

im not good at calculating co2 ppm, thats why i baught a controller but it only goes upto 5000 ppm

 

[joe fresh]

one last question how long can someone stay in an envronment with 10000ppm co2?



i was down there for a few minutes and i felt dissy


i cant test co2 ppm, all i know is that it exceeds 5000 ppm

 

[Greenmopho]

killing bugs with co2 questions

I do believe you Tr33, but I have read somethings otherwise...give me time to find the articles to back up my cause. My girl is on your side, she tells me that I'm an idiot and walks into the grow room when its at 4000+ ppm and it doesn't bother her. I personally have felt light headed and I know some growers up in the mountains that have passed out and had to go to the ER because of being in a room with too much CO2.

I will say that 10000 ppm of CO2 is only 1% of the air by volume, so it really isn't that much relatively speaking. However, most guys that do these CO2 bombs are just crackin a big tank, not bothering with ppms, so their level may be way higher for it to cause problems. The issue isn't that CO2 is toxic to humans, its actually quite inert, but it will displace some O2, especially in a short period from a high pressure source.

I can't say that I've ever seen CO2 "burn" on any plants personally, but I have heard of the existance, or at least light burn in CO2 rich environments. I will do some more research and try to post what I can find and remember (sorry on my iphone at the moment). Maybe Tr33 can furthur clarify...

Tr33, I actually wanted to ask you how you achieve the timing that you do with your CO2 treatments? Do you have tanks and a regulator on a timer? A CO2 controller and a large CO2 generator for a smaller room? I know most burners aren't able to get at those high ppm numbers in larger rooms, at least not without giving off tons of heat. Also, the CAP controllers only read up to 5025 ppm, what are you reading your CO2 with? I am burning through tanks doing these bombs and see it as the only downside. I don't have the time to get 3 refills per day, I need to buy another tank. If you could just explain your equipment and procedure it would be great!

 

[Natagonnaworrie]

i use other methods to control Spidermites but i have a friend that will fill a 20# tank and turn it on a slow emit with no regulator or controller attached. The room (tent) is fully sealed at that point. But he is sure the have a fan ready to be plugged in in the room that the tent is in for use when done.

He turns on the tank in the tent... and leaves the room. In about an hour the tank is empty. The then goes in the room without taking a breath of that air and turns on the fan to expel the air from the lung room, opens the tent to get the CO2 out and he leaves the room again. Only breathing when he leaves the room. There isnt much oxygen in there anyway... hence the lightheadedness stories from above.

Now this will get his CO2 PPMs way high for about an hour which is plenty of time for the bugs to suffocate on the lack of oxygen in the tent (b/c it is displaced by the CO2). Bugs dead.

back to growing.

If i ever had bugs late in flower this would be my preferred method.