furnace or hot water tank exhaust for co2

jayjay777

Well-Known Member
I need to buy a controller and burner, plain and simple. Running 6-8kw. But at the moment I'm sick of filling my 50 lb tank every 2-3 weeks, but i was thinking for the moment... So the question is would my furnace exhaust be dangerous, or is the danger of high levels only due to gas leaks as apposed to exhaust leak..?
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
I need to buy a controller and burner, plain and simple. Running 6-8kw. But at the moment I'm sick of filling my 50 lb tank every 2-3 weeks, but i was thinking for the moment... So the question is would my furnace exhaust be dangerous, or is the danger of high levels only due to gas leaks as apposed to exhaust leak..?
BOTH. Having just looked into it, I can suggest a possible solution- but it will not be cheap.

First, your hot water tank isn't designed to produce a clean exhaust. This means soot, byproducts of incomplete combustion and carbon monoxide are all possibilities. While we're on the subject, this also goes for your gas dryer. Then there is the inconsistent running and large quantity. Unless the tank is in a big greenhouse, it's really not recommended.

So what's the alternative? How about a tankless water heater in your growroom ($200), connected to a hot water storage tank, say, with a natural gas backup? Such storage tanks are readily available on the market and people use them for heating domestic hot water with solar hot water systems or heat pumps. I was quoted $1200 new, so they aren't cheap.

The more you know...
 

jayjay777

Well-Known Member
Well ive been putting the burner off, been doing alot of upgrades, and it was mostly because a controllers itselfs $400. But im now running all 8 lights, time to cough up the cash I guess.
 

Velvet Elvis

Well-Known Member
do not do it! natural gas byproducts contain carbon monoxide!!!

go propane burner, by products co2 and h20

here is a clever one.... 55 gallon tank for water(coolant) on demand pump and camp on demand shower heater, SAME AS WATER COOLED PROPANE BURNERS FOR FRACTION OF PRICE. add co2 controller and...

co2 signals pump to go on, water flow triggers propane burner to come on. water removes the heat. just co2 and humidity....



http://www.amazon.com/Camp-Chef-HWD5-Triton-Heater/dp/B001J4AU2E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449291443&sr=8-1&keywords=camp+hot+water+shower

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_7?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=shurflo&sprefix=shurflo,aps,222
 

jayjay777

Well-Known Member
I was worried about that, but nobody sleeps there.

I'm going to get a ng burner, easier hookup, never have to fill tank. Also read the temp difference is a lot lower with natural gas. Any experience?

Also, will it matter if I get a 4 or 8 stem burner? I run 8 lights for now.
 

Zig-Zag Blue

Well-Known Member
I would say gather a bunch of people to hang out in your room but i think it would get rather crowded to come even close to the co2 needed :eyesmoke:
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
I would say gather a bunch of people to hang out in your room but i think it would get rather crowded to come even close to the co2 needed :eyesmoke:
Actually, we humans breathe a lot of CO² out. In a sealed room, you can easily spot the spike of someone's presence on the CO² monitor, and watch it climb if they're working hard.
 

Moldy

Well-Known Member
NOOOOOO JOINTS IN THE GROWROOM. Smoke fucks plants all up.
True? or just an urban legend? I've heard that but can't believe a small amount of smoke could cause an issue... especially when there is a good exchange of air.
 

ttystikk

Well-Known Member
True? or just an urban legend? I've heard that but can't believe a small amount of smoke could cause an issue... especially when there is a good exchange of air.
Plants will recover, but smoke is particulates, which enter and clog up the stomata under the leaves. This is where air exchange and CO² uptake happens, so it's not trivial.
 
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