Just like any other room in your home or greenhouse, grow rooms need regular cleaning and maintenance – but how do you know what you need to clean?

With all the moving parts and various grow room storage options you’ll need to keep clean, it can be tough to know where to start and even tougher to know what all you should clean along the way.

As with many chores, it tends to be easier if you make yourself a schedule. Due to the nature of both a plant’s life cycle and the various upkeep and maintenance required by the supplies needed in a grow room, setting yourself various monthly maintenance checklists can go a long way towards keeping your plants healthy, your grow room equipment functioning, and your life a little less stressful. (After all, isn’t the point of most gardening to help you relax?)

While not every grow room will have the exact same requirements as others, here’s a few things we think every grow room could stand to check on every month:

• Check your lightbulbs: At regular monthly intervals, check the bulbs in your grow lights and LED lighting to make sure everything is shining like you need it to be. Malfunctioning bulbs are a common cause of plants not growing to their full potential, and regular inspection and replacement can help save you – and your plants – a lot of hassle in the long run.
• Inspect for mold: Take a look at your plants to make sure they’re not growing any mold, fungi, or other unwelcome visitors to ensure long-term health of your crops.
• Ensure airflow: Especially for indoor grow rooms that might not have the benefit of huge industrial fans, safe airflow is crucial for plant growth. Make sure your grow shelves aren’t in the way of any fans or vents, and keep your vents clean of dust and debris to help air flow through safely.
• Flush your plants: Nutrients and salts can build up in your soil or your hydroponic grow medium, and these can cause harm to your plants if left to grow in excess of safe levels. Set up a backsplash work table or a perforated grow tray and rinse out your plants on a regular monthly basis to keep excess salt out of the soil.
• Change your pots and trays: Similarly, this could be a good time to make sure your grow room trays, lug tubs, and plant pots are clean and usable. Rotate plants onto new trays and off of their current homes to make sure the soil is fresh and everything is clean and usable.
• Clean your tables: Tables such as hydro tables and trim tables get exposed to the elements quite a bit, thanks to all the dirt, stems, and moisture they’ll encounter. Wipe them down with a soft, chemical-free cleaning agent that won’t impact your plants but will prevent rust and corrosion on the tables themselves.
• Vacuum: Finally, any grow room can use a good, regular vacuuming to pick up the stems, seeds, and soil that might have escaped – get in the habit of doing it on a regular schedule to make sure everything stays clean and usable.