Compare
By hand vs GrowRoom.
The daily jobs of a recirculating room, and what changes when the room does them itself. Each row carries its test status, because "designed to" and "shown to" are not the same thing.
| The job | By hand | With GrowRoom | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Checking pH and EC | A pen in the reservoir once or twice a day, when you remember | Probes stay in the reservoir and report continuously, with history | In development |
| Adding nutrients | A measuring cylinder or syringe; the amount written down, if at all | A pump dispenses a set volume in 0.1 mL steps and counts what it delivered with its encoder | In development |
| Climate and VPD | A thermometer, a hygrometer and a chart on the wall | Temperature, humidity and VPD calculated live, with graphs | Working |
| Knowing the room is fine while you are away | You find out when you next look | Warning and critical limits per sensor, and an alarm if the room stops reporting | Working |
| Light and equipment routines | A plug-in timer per device, each set by hand | Light cycles, equipment windows and recurring doses per room, in the room's time zone | Working |
| A record of what went in | A notebook, if it is kept up | Every command stored with who sent it, when, and what happened | In development |
| Sharing the room with someone else | A shared notebook or a group chat | Roles: owner, admin, operator and viewer, with viewers read-only | Working |
"Working" rows were shown with sample data or on a bench controller; see the features page for the detail behind each status.
What stays the same
- You still choose and buy the nutrients, and decide the recipe
- Probes still need calibrating with standard solutions
- Pumps, tubing and equipment still need looking after
- Mains wiring is still a job for an electrician
When by hand is fine
One small tent that you visit every day, with a reservoir you change weekly, may not need any of this. GrowRoom earns its place when a missed check costs more than the system: bigger reservoirs, several rooms, days away, or staff who need to see what happened.
Start with the arithmetic.
The free calculators do the same sums GrowRoom does: VPD, daily light and nutrient mixing.