Manfred Orozco
Manfred and Son’s Greenhouse, Annapolis, MD
Improving Health and Yields
The Challenge
Looking over his mounting fuel bills, Manfred Orozco was frustrated year after year by all the heat trapped above his greenhouse while his plants were in raised beds. He had problems with stunted roots, uneven growth, and cold spots.
The BioTherm Solution
Manfred called 1-800-GET-HEAT and his BioTherm consultant recommended a bed heating system. The BioTherm rep explained how MegaTube buried in the soil below the root line could bring the media temperature up in his raised beds.
How It Works
By placing heat exactly where it is needed, at the root zone, Manfred’s greenhouse uses a fifth of the fuel, saving them over 80% on their bill. They can now use this money on other projects in the green- house. Because he was able to set an opti- mum root zone temperature, his plants are robust and healthy, have less disease, all with quicker turns and better profits. The greenhouse no longer has cold spots, and Manfred has a healthier and more consis- tent cannabis crop.
The MegaTube Bed Heating System is a network of high performance and durable tubing, evenly spaced, and buried in the
growing medium. This system is designed to be tough and proven to last years with minimal maintenance.
The tubes are connected to special mani folds that balance the flow of warm water produced by a Raypak highly efficient con densing boiler system.
BioTherm shipped all technical compo nents pre-assembled for easy installation. Because BioTherm supplied clear instruc tions and technical drawings, Manfred’s crew had no problems installing the bed heating system. He also felt comfortable because an experienced technician was just a phone call away.
“With my BioTherm Bed Heating System, I have grown my most consistent and highest quality crop.”
—Manfred Orozco, Manfred and Son’s Greenhouse
Raised Bed MegaTube Heat System
5 Major Benefits for Cannabis
1. When plants have properly heated root systems, they can maximize nutrient absorption. Plant root temperature acts like the throttle, and so long as the heat is a constant presence, it can double growth rates. In fact, root zone heat is the key determinant of the speed of the growth cycle, so long as the other needs of the plants are at least basically taken care of.
2. Plants with nice warm roots reach the biggest possible size. In fact, research shows that the biochemical processes that sustain a healthy cannabis harvest are based almost entirely on the root zone environment. So long as the leaf tissue does not freeze, photosynthesis cycles complete more quickly when root temperature is constant, giving the plant a much bigger size potential.
3. When a plant cannot easily maintain a warm root temperature, it experiences a high level of stress. This stress weakens the plant’s immune system and makes it vulnerable to diseases and parasites. Properly warmed roots, on the other hand, have a high resistance to potentially harmful microbes. In fact, at 72oF, the ideal root temperature for cannabis plants, the temperature actually cultivates helpful microbes in the soil known to form symbiotic relationships with the plant for additional resistance.
4. The cost of heating a greenhouse to a consistent temperature using traditional forced air heating methods can be exorbitant, especially at night. The irregular airflow of these systems create pockets of cool air which require higher energy expenditures to reach and warm. BioTherm systems use hydronic heating, which heats uniformly, saving energy by avoiding pockets of cold air, and allowing the ambient air temperature to be cooler.
5. When you use BioTherm’s root zone hydronic heating systems, you can experi- ence a huge drop in energy costs--in some cases by as much as 50%. This saves you additional money beyond that saved by using sunlight in a green- house setting. When you combine these savings with the additional revenue gained from more frequent, greater harvests, the additional profits can be staggering.
