Activated Carbon Qestions???

Does anyone know if its ok to use activated carbon for an aquarium filter in an exhaust system with a carbon scrubber?

I was at petsmart today and i looked on the carbon pellet box and it said "removes dissolved odors" So I took that to mean it wouldn't do shit for odors in the air... Ive heard of people using it though.

Does this kind of carbon work well? Or should I go with the really expensive kind found in actual carbon air scrubbers?

Also I heard kitty litter works is this true? what are the pros and cons of each?

Feedback is appreciated.

I have seen diy feeds on here that you can use the carbon for a fish tank. I am wondering myself the same thing right now because I am about to build one. I think that charcol would also work. Might be able to get a jug of activated charcoal if you look hard enough on ebay.
Hopefully someone else will chime in and let you know also.
Ill be looking for responses to this.

Fish tank carbon works just fine, it's pretty much all the same stuff. Try to find granules instead of pellets, they have more surface area. Certain kinds of cat litter work, the synthetic stuff. It's expensive and doesn't work as well as carbon though. Bulk up on carbon at Petsmart, you'll be just fine.

I set up a new 45lb carbon scrubber in my flower room along with a 6" inline fan 1 month ago. I works sooooooo good. It's suppose to be good for up to 1 year. I asked the dude about refilling the unit with activated carbon when the year is up. He said that the problem with that is that I will NEVER be able to fill in all the voids that will occur in between the carbon particles because I don't have a compactor. Space between the particles means air that was not properly scrubbed. I cut corners when I can but never on light bulbs, nutrients or scrubbers.

I was fuckin blasez and saw that By "actual" carbon air scrubbers up there on my first post i really meant "The kind you would buy from a store that would cost alot of money but you could just as easily make yourself that works that as just as well if not better" carbon scrubbers.

So does that mean if the carbon was powdered, and put between some type of porous plastic barrier, such as tyvec... which allows for CO2/O2 exchange, would scrub more of the air than simply putting a bunch of carbon at the end of a screen?

I've seen how carbon filters are made and they do not use a compactor they simply use a vibrating table and the shaking forces it all to settle evenly. It's really a simple process you could stick your home made scrubber on a decent sized woofer with a bass track going and get the same exact effect.

Also skip petsmart etc and save nearly 80% or so:
http://www.oceanproaquatics.com/shop/super-activated-pelletized-carbon-pound-p-324.html

Fuck yeah sweet

instead of using activated carbon pellets, its much more effective and easy to use carbon prefilter.

It can be found next to he HEPA air purifiers in any hardware store. This one was 17 bucks, but well worth i because I could have m





Heres a really good thread.

https://www.rollitup.org/indoor-growing/7074-easy-build-diy-carbon-filter.html

I made mine with chicken wire, and wrapped the chicken wire on the inside and outside.

Heres a couple pictures...





The outside is made from a gator aide bottle, which serves as a chamber that will be attached to the exhaust port from the inside.

If you want, check out my thread on the grow box im building.

https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/253193-rubbermaid-stealth-grow-design-exaust.html

Great post people!!!! I as an mechanical engineer would like to add a little engineering insite..... This comming off of what other people have listed.

First... Griffin... dude the activated carbon filter is awesome!!!! One problem.. its not thick enough to remove all of the smell. (unless you have a very small grow room... then it might work)

Second... Oregon Meds... AWESOME also. Only thing to consider is shipping....

What I would do as a grower and engineer is this.... go to lowes... they have 2gallon plastic buckets for like 2-3 bucks. Make sure you buy the lid too... its another dollar or so....

Take that bucket and on the lower sides of it (as in not the bottom but the lowest part of the sides towards the bottom of the bucket) Swiss cheese that sob all the way around the bucket. The larger the holes the better...(wouldnt go larger than 1.5 inches though) Buy the carbon filters that Griffin mentioned. (again Griffin... brilliant - props to you!!) Hot glue them to the inside of the bucket on the sides covering the holes. All the holes.... leave no hole uncovered. (even if this means that you need to drill less holes) Then, fill the bucket with the carbon that Oregon mentioned.

One thing that I would do however, is when getting those pellets that they sell... I would put them in a big ziplock bag and smash them with a hammer to get them almost pulverized. The smaller you get them... the more surface area = the better the scrubbing action = less smell.

Take the lid and cut a hole in it and attach your duct work to that. Once you put the lid on the bucket with the ductwork... it becomes air tight and all of the air gets sucked in through the holes in the bottom of the bucket. If you like, you can always screw the bucket to a wall or whatever before filling it with carbon if your setup needs it to be off of the floor.

I will be building one of these very soon. You can also use a mesh pencil cup and a mesh trash can (both from staples maybe walmart if you are lucky.) the the smaller one and wrap a nylon around it... then fill the larger trashcan with the carbon and put the smaller cup into it. Attach the ducting to the smaller cup. Only problem with this is the carbon if you get small carbon can fall out of the mesh holes on the trash can.
Hence the reason I will be using a bucket.

Hope this helps. Bucket etc is only a few dollars at any lowes. Carbon is your choice on where you get it from.... remember to watch shipping charges on it... and other than that.. you should be ok. If you lack a way to attach the ducting to the bucket lid.... check in the HVAC section at lowes. You might be able to get a ducting attachment to a box. It will have a flange on it that you can use. If you find it.. you will know what I am talking about. If you cant find that... get a 6in to 4 in reducer... only 7 something each (I just had to buy two) cut the hole in the lid at 4 inches and push the adapter through it from the inside out. The larger piece will keep it from slipping out. You can either use caulking to seal it up or actually... duct tape.

Once mine is built (end of the week or so..) I will post pics.
I really need to post pics of my growing rooms (hence plural) and my aero set ups. Perhaps next week I can do that. 800 plant capability in flowering alone and 400 plus mothers in the veg. All home built systems... and do not need to do everything at once. Its all add on systems as I grow.

All that college education is being put to good use




On an added note... I just found that a pet place called "that fish place" in PA has carbon filters for cheapier than what lowes does. They have a 3pack of carbon filters for 6.99 They are not as wide as what the lowes ones are however, if you drill the holes in the proper place that is ok. website is: http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/prod/206370/product.web

Feel free to look around for other carbon items there.

hope this helps...

Alright so that filter didn't fit in my grow box so i had to re design it. I found out that you need to suck the air through the filter, not blow it out. Heres a picture of the final product

did you know that you can reactivate carbon by spreading it thinly in the sun for a few days

Good Point I am stoned!!!!

I wanted to post pics of my carbon scrubber build so people could see them however, The carbon that I ordered did not show up yet. Perhaps next week if I can get to it in the middle of the week.

Griffen, looks better. FYI I got a carbon furance filter at Lowes for 9 something. Its really large but I am going to cut it down to size. Its also mounted on a plastic grid but itll rip off of that easily.

Just now seeing your post. For anyone interested, this may be a solution regarding carbon filtration. http://www.5starfilter.com/Activated-Virgin-Carbon-Liquid-Phase-12X40-Mesh-s/2394.htm