Your Grow and Humidity Control
A Q&A with Randy Lenz, Senior Applications Engineer, Anden
What’s your role at Anden? What’s your history with the brand?
As the resident humidity expert, I have not only helped with the development of new products, but I have also trained thousands of customers on their proper use and installation, and provided technical support. My background in moisture control was a perfect fit for indoor agriculture.
I was on the team that brought Anden to the cannabis market. I started 18+ years ago with our parent company as a product specialist for humidification and dehumidification. I have been the liaison between our customer partners and our product development engineers to assure that we provide products that meet the needs of each application.
What is application engineering? How does it support Anden’s mission of being a leading humidity control solution for growers?
The Anden team is a tight-knit group of people who are very passionate about cannabis. Our individual backgrounds are diverse. The team includes personal growers with many years of experience as well as folks like me who have extensive experience in the HVAC industry.
As an applications engineer, I understand what it takes to get indoor climate where it needs to be. When we size a grow for dehumidification, we look at everything from the size of the room, the number of plants, water feed, lighting type, and HVAC type/tonnage to desired growing temperature and relative humidity to closely dial it in. We also work with you on the proper placement of the dehumidifiers in the room – with all the things in the room like the HVAC system, fans, and lights, it can be hard for you to know where the best placement is. Whenever possible I like to visit grows to discuss dehumidification needs such as where to install them, proper use, and maintenance.
Working hand-in-hand with cultivators is invaluable to continue expanding our knowledge base and to make sure we are designing and producing products that fit!
Why is humidity control important for indoor growers?
Cannabis can withstand a wide range of temperatures and humidity levels, but to grow the best high-quality cannabis you need a stable environment. That’s why we grow indoors, right? The tighter you can control your temperature and relative humidity (RH), the higher your cannabinoid levels will be. This will also increase terpenes, so the colors will pop!”
Tell us about Anden’s new Variable-speed, Low Grain Refrigerant (VLGR) technology. How can growers benefit from this emerging tech?
The patent-pending VLGR technology in the Anden A710 dehumidifier is the next progression in our grow-optimized products. Not only does the A710 have an ECM blower to maintain constant air flow across the coil, but we also control the speed of the compressor to deliver optimal performance. Controlled compressor speed allows a dehumidifier to run longer in low-load conditions (low temperature and low humidity). In low-load conditions, it’s common for a dehumidifier to go into a defrost cycle, but with VLGR technology, the defrost cycles are dramatically reduced. For example, at 60°F/50% RH, we defrost every two hours while competitive dehumidifiers defrost every 30 minutes. Less time defrosting results in longer run time and more pints of moisture removed.
