First indoor microgrow- 2nd grow total. check my plan

[jbleez]

Hi guys. I'm deciding to do 2 plants indoor this go around. I would like to keep it simple as possible. Growing in soil btw. Here's my plan...

I'm going to build a box-3 ft wide, maybe 18 inches deep and about 4 feet high. I have a 150HPS light to hang from the top. I'm going to try 2 of these

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Suncourt-Inductor-4-in-In-Line-Duct-Fan-DB204/100073963#.UbdzDpz4KfE

Im going to try a DIY carbon filter on the exhaust.

A few questions...
1) fan position -incoming air on the bottom, exhaust on the top? or does this really matter
2)are these fans adequate? they have 4 inch, 6 inch, 8 inch etc. can someone recommend another cheap fan?
3) is my lighting adequate? I can add some CFLs

THanks guys! This is my first indoor grow so I'm just learning... not worried about making it perfect. Did an outdoor grow last year that went fairly well so we'll see.

Jbleez

 

[Ogonzo]

Hey hey ..
Here's the first review on the Home Depot Site:
This 4" in-line booster works just as it should for my 80 cf garden veg box, it keeps a nice amount of air moving out, more than enough to create strong a passive intake and keep the plants blowing. However this is not an in-line vent it's a booster, it's meant to supplement a regular inline fan such as a unit by fantech,sun leaves, vortex, etc. The only reason it works on its own for me is that I have a small enough space, as long as you remember that this unit is meant to be supplemental or can do the math for ventilation CFM requirements you'll be fine and pleased. The same goes for the 6 & 8 inch version as well, use as intended and don't expect a $30 booster van to vent a
I don't think you should be using this on it's own.

You should have your exhaust at the top, pulling air across the light to keep it cool. Your intake should be at the bottom and can either be passive (a hole or many holes at the bottom) to allow the air to be drawn in.
If you're not sure about this fan, you can you some pc fans, you just have to make sure that there the CFM (Cubic Feet Per Minute) is high enough to pull/push the air through.
Here are the fans I'm using in my pc case:



http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6721529&CatId=494. This is a 37CFM fan. I have one for the intake and I double stacked two for the outake.

I'll let someone else else talk about the lighting, I'm using CFL right now and they are working great!

Good luck, I'm subbin' to this one.

 

[jbleez]

Thanks for the great advice Ogonzo. I never considered computer fans, will explore this further. I live close to home depot and the fan I linked is the only one they carry in store. I'm not sure if this matters as far as fan strength goes but I dont plan on having the air go through ducts, just blowing it out into the room. Maybe it doesnt need to be as strong?? I know nothing about CFM requirements but I do want to keep my grow small, so maybe that fan will work.

So you're saying I can just have passive air holes for intake without a fan? Then just do one fan for exhaust? That would be alot simpler

Thanks!

 

[Ogonzo]

So you're saying I can just have passive air holes for intake without a fan? Then just do one fan for exhaust? That would be alot simpler

That's right, you'll just have to remember light traps to avoid light leaks.

 

[jbleez]

I'm having trouble deciding on the fan situation. I got another fairly powerful fan I was going to use for intake at the bottom. Except I think it might be stronger than my exhaust fan, is that a problem? I dont wanna push more air than i can take out I guess haha.

 

[Tillinah]

You could try out a few different methods at first. Computer fans are cheap and easy to setup so it's always a good option.

Here is a good guide to pc fans

Also are you going to be doing a vertical HPS?

 

[jbleez]

I was planning on hanging it horizontally. I think I will just try to have one PC fan exhaust and just some intake holes, and a circulating fan sitting in the box.

 

[jbleez]

Ok no pics yet Ill have some soon but I do have some questions.

This fan

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Suncourt-Inductor-4-in-In-Line-Duct-Fan-DB204/100073963#.UcR-jdjNnsJ

is rated 65-80 cfm but it doesnt seem to be strong enough. My box is only about 20 cf. I did the DIY carbon filter with the pencil cases, it can hardly pull the air through. I'm thinking about switching this fan to my intake and buying a better fan and building a better filter. My question is, are PC fans more powerful than this fan? WHen I put my hand on the filter I can feel some air getting sucked through but it doesnt seem like enough. I dont really have a heat issue but I want to make sure the air is being recycled fast enough.

 

[jbleez]

I take that back. I do have a heat issue. My temp close to the light was 98 degrees!! I will try to take the temp closer to where the plant is. So now I have a 4 inch fan with a carbon filter and I think it might not be strong enough, and a 2 inch intake. Could the problem maybe that my intake is too small? Or better fan?

 

[kook420]

get your box from mrgrowpro pre made easy peasy thats what i did and youll be growing in no timeeeee!!!
use that hps for a rubbermaid box thats tons of plans online on how to build those since they output so much heat.
or go led thats always my preference ahha

 

[Ogonzo]

I take that back. I do have a heat issue. My temp close to the light was 98 degrees!! I will try to take the temp closer to where the plant is. So now I have a 4 inch fan with a carbon filter and I think it might not be strong enough, and a 2 inch intake. Could the problem maybe that my intake is too small? Or better fan?

Both, I'm running into the same problem right now, my passive intake is too small, should be larger than your outtake, and if you have a carbon filter on your fan, that restricts air flow. I'm going to get a stronger fan and throw a couple of pc fans by my intake to blow air in and around.

Do you have a fan inside to circulate the air, that might make a difference.

 

[jbleez]

I do have a small circulating fan. I was able to reduce the temperature a little bit by taking off my filter and turning up my circulating fan a little. I may use my exhaust fan, which I believe is too weak, for my intake instead and buy some better fans for exhaust. Where I'm confused is, I believe in Jorge Cervantes' Bible he says you want more exhaust than intake, to create a negative pressure environment. How big is your box and what fan do you plan on using for exhaust? Thanks!

 

[Ogonzo]

Ha .. I just got a new fan for mine!
My box is 3ft W by 4 ft high by 2 ft deep. I as using a pc fan @ something like 37 cfm and was getting temps in the 90's with the door shut. I'm hoping with that and a pc fan to blow across the plants will bring it back down to mid 70's or low 80's.