When designing a commercial cannabis cultivation facility, many people think in terms of square footage in order to determine how many plants they are able to grow. But, if your rooms are tall enough, why limit yourself to one level? Instead of thinking in terms of square feet, it is time to start thinking in terms of cubic feet.

Most growers already use a version of this in their nursery where it is common to stack many small plants on a tray so that more plants can be fit into a smaller space, leaving the bulk of the grow’s real estate for larger plants.

However, what few people think of when designing their grow space is that commercial cannabis cultivation does not need a lot of overhead space. If your plants are five feet tall, valuable energy is being spent to increase plant height rather than bud size. This is especially important to remember when building a cannabis grow in a warehouse. Warehouses often have high ceilings that make them ideal for building a second story of growing space.

Mezzanines can be added to an existing space for a relatively inexpensive cost and are a great way to quickly double your potential grow space. The concept is so lucrative, that Cubic Designs, a subsidy of Warren Buffet’s company Berkshire Hathaway, even sent out promotional fliers encouraging cannabis growers to “Double your Growing Space,” through the use of their mezzanine products.

With a little construction knowledge, it is possible to create your own mezzanine with materials commonly found at home improvement stores. For rooms that don’t have enough space for a full second floor, it is still possible to double your growing space by stacking plants on top of one another. This method should be reserved for vegetative rooms though because it limits your ability to trellis and illuminate the sides of a plant in flower.

One important consideration when looking to build a second story of growing space is the cooling capacity of the room under consideration. With extra growing capacity comes extra light, which means extra heat. As such, it is important to note the size of the room in terms of cubic feet instead of square feet when talking to potential cooling providers.