UV Ozone Generator - Is It Safe for an Indoor Hydroponic Grow Room?  (submitted 2009-12-29)

Many Hydroponics gardeners have experienced problems with plant odor, mold, mildew, and even mites that contaminate the air. One solution used to solve this problem is an ultra-violet UV ozone generator. Ozone, when properly used, is the most effective, dependable method of odor elimination.

An ozone generator releases ozone (O3) into the Hydroponic grow room eliminating plant odors. However, some people may have questions over the safety of ozone generators indoors.

One common misconception arises from the association of ozone with smog and pollution. Ozone is usually mentioned in pollution and climate change news stories, however, ozone is not a greenhouse gas. In fact, ozone plays an important part in protecting life on Earth by absorbing potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation.

Ozone is basically just oxygen (O2) with three rather than two molecules. A natural gas, ozone is created when air in the atmosphere is bombarded with ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Ozone can also be created artificially by devices using high voltage electrical currents. Ozone is able to kill odors because it releases its third molecule, which then acts as a sort of "predator" of other odors by binding to their sources and eliminating them.

For this reason, ozone has been popularly used by commercial establishments for years as a means of purifying and deodorizing the air.

If you have a Hydroponic grow room, a UV ozone generator may be the most cost effective solution as compared to other types of air purification systems. The generators are very energy efficient and economical to use. They are also small and easy to fit into practically any type of Hydroponic grow room configuration. Ozone generators are available in a wide range of sizes to handle both large and small indoor grow rooms.

Are there any dangers to worry about? Ozone air generators are safe so long as they are installed and operated properly. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have certain standards for save levels of ozone in occupied areas, which all manufacturers follow.

If your Hydroponic grow room is not occupied, then there is no danger using a UV ozone generator. The safe levels required only apply to rooms in which there are people or animals present. If there are people or pets in the areas of the generator, the room should be well-ventilated and the ozone air generator set at safe levels. The short bursts of ozone emitted by ozone generators turn back into oxygen generally within 30 minutes.

The Hydroponics ozone generator should be synchronized to run when exhaust fans are on. Using a timer to run this device when exhaust fans are activated will turn the generator on with proper ventilation. You can then arrange your Hydroponics plant maintenance time around the exhaust system cycles, and ozone will only be released when you are out of the Hydroponic grow room and absent from the area. This will solve any concerns about safety and ozone.

In order to keep ozone from penetrating into other rooms, you should keep doors and other openings shut, and preferably sealed if there are large gaps underneath the indoor grow room entrance. You can use plastic sheeting to seal off openings that cannot be closed.

Remember, ozone is only dangerous at high levels. You can work in your Hydroponic grow room so long as the room is well ventilated and the UV ozone generator is kept at a safe level setting or off. In fact, ozone exists naturally in the air we breathe regardless of whether there is a generator around or not. Dangers arise only when the ventilation is not sufficient to handle the amount of ozone produced by the generator.

If you are venting directly outdoors, ozone air generators do not produce enough ozone to endanger the areas outside of your indoor grow room. Vented ozone quickly dissipates in the surrounding air outdoors. The dangers only apply to confined areas in which the ozone can build up if the settings are too high or the ventilation is inadequate.

One point to repeat is that ozone is not a greenhouse gas! If you closely read those articles about the ozone layer, you will find that scientists are actually worried about the depletion of the ozone layer, i.e., too little rather than too much ozone.

So if you are considering using ozone for your Hydroponic grow room, it is safe so long as the equipment is installed properly, cycled with your exhaust system, and maintenance is scheduled during down times. The benefits of using an ozone generator to eliminate Hydroponics plant odor, mold and pests far out weight the small inconvenience of plant maintenance during times the generator and exhaust system are cycled off.

About the Author

Marcia Price is a specialist in Hydroponic Systems and Big Blue Ozone Generators. Hydroponics is an ecologically sound decision. Hydroponics is the future for gardening. Interested in your own eco-friendly Hydroponic system? Visit http://www.NaturesHydroponics.com.

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