Cheap Carbon Filter Setup - All from Petstore!!

Unfortunately I don't have step by step pics for this, but I'll try to describe it as detailed as possible. It's really very simple and works like a charm!

Assuming you have ducting running out of your grow space, lamp/reflector, etc, this will work well for you. Here is what you'll need:

1) Marineland Bonded Filter Pad (this shit is overpriced at Petco and Petsmart - about $5 for 312 sq. inches but it holds the carbon perfectly)

2) Filter Floss / Filter Fiber (about $2)

3) Activated Carbon - I got the 14 oz. and it will last for a very long time ($7.97)

That's all you'll need!!

1st Step - Grind up a nice sized pile of the activated carbon. They are usually in pellet or pebble form, but in order to expose as much of it to the air as possible, you'll want to grind it into a granular, even powder, consistency. I used a spare coffee grinder I had laying around and it was perfect. If you don't have a coffee grinder, you could do this by grinding it between 2 bricks or stones (mortar and pestel style like the native Americans used for corn)

2nd Step - Cut a circular piece of the bonded filter pad to be about 1" in diameter LARGER than your duct line. The bonded filter is actually 2 types of material bonded together, one blue and one white. Take several healthy pinches of the ground carbon and generously sprinkle into the BLUE side of the pad. Work it into the pad by tapping, shaking, twisting etc. Keep adding carbon until you feel it's loaded up. Gently tap excess out, but make sure it retains the majority of it. It holds it well.

3rd Step - Take a good sized gob of white filter floss (which is just spun, white nylon) out of its bag. You'll want enough to fill about 6 - 10 inches of your duct line. Take that gob and roll it in the remaining pile of your ground carbon. Make sure you get it nice and "dirty" with carbon dust and particles. The floss doesn't hold as well as the blue pad, but if you work it in, it gets nice and dirty with carbon.

4th Step - Take the circular piece of loaded up Blue filter pad and carefully plave it in your duct line, with the blue side facing "in" and white facing "outgoing". If you cut the extra inch like I mentioned, you will kind of have to scrunch it into place. Place it far enough in that you'll be able to put the filter floss in after the blue piece is secured.

5th Step - Take the dirty filter floss gob and stuff it into the duct line so it just leaves you enough room to re-secure your line to wherever you're exhausting from (reflector, grow box, etc.)

That's it, you're good to go!!

ONE IMPORTANT NOTE: Depending on the power and suction of your exhaust fan, you'll want to make sure the pad/floss don't get sucked into your fan. This can easily be achieved by running several pieces of fishing line through the blue filter pad with a needle and thread, then the tag ends can be run up and out and secured by your hose clamp.

If done correctly, this will greatly reduce odor being emitted from your grow area. I have yet to verify the life of the carbon, but I'm guessing a monthly change will keep it working like a champ.

CHEERS!!

Sorry this got posted twice y'all.....hit refresh button cause it wasn't loading.

Well, I can now say that this method has been field tested for one month, without changing the carbon, and it's still working like a champ. Plants have flowering sites all over, scent inside grow space has increased greatly, and there is no sign of odor around the exhaust!

Tested the products for this filter, works like a champ! Grow system is in a closet, so I used a collapsible ventilation duct with an 8-inch industrial fan as the exhaust. With 12 pre-mature plants, I expect full odor and dust control of up to four superior flowering females. Kinda have to go heavy on the activated carbon and filter fiber, but with the ventilation duct it all only cost me $20. On the subject, though, what's the difference between activated carbon and zeolite crystal?

Can't tell you about the zeolyte crystal, but glad to hear you got outta the store for $20. I've got 3 females, 3 weeks into flower and scent is not detectable outside the grow box. Let me know how it works for ya.

This should seriously be in the 101 questions, right next to DIY's. imo

oh, and pictures would be epic...

sounds like a super cheap and effective way to clear out the smell. gonna try it this weekend.

Sorry there aren't any pics. I really should have added some as I was doing it, but my hands were black with carbon dust, and I didn't have anyone to take the shots. However, the links I put up on my post are all you'll really need. Should be pretty straight forward from my description, there's really no secret.....feel free to hit my with a PM for questions.

I will be changing out the carbon and pads in the next 1 - 2 weeks and will try to take pics this time around.

all you need to do is get a tube or box that will fit snuggly over your exhaust intake, fill it with floss stuff like wool or whatever some shit that wont burn probably teh best.. so this is like a filter compartment so obviously need to have netting or grill of some sort to keep the floss part inside the box/tube but still allow air to move through.. DER... before putting in the flossy stuff get it nice and powdered with the activated carbon and shake off all the excess.. dont want too much of that shit going through your room.. will post picks tomorrow..

Kief Reefer said:

On the subject, though, what's the difference between activated carbon and zeolite crystal?

Click to expand...

Okay, here's an exerpt of the differences:

".....
Molecular Traps

Zeolites and Activated Carbon

Molecular trap is a general descriptive term for specific chemical entities such as zeolites or activated carbon. Both of these have been used to provide functions based on filtration, refining, and/or separation of chemical mixtures. The use of activated carbon, for example, to filter contaminants from gases and liquids is well established. Museums such as the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum in Los Angeles5, for example, use activated carbon in the mechanical air handling systems to remove atmospheric pollutants in make-up air and to remove pollutants in the recirculation air potion of the museum's general environment.
This ability of both activated carbon and zeolites to trap chemical species provides the basis for an application of molecular traps in preventative conservation. Activated carbon is an inert, porous graphite described as "graphite plates". The presence of imperfections on the plates' structure leads to the formation of a rigid skeletal structure which can comprise 75% or more of the total volume of the voids in the activated carbon. The voids are adsorption centers using primarily London dispersionforces (a Van de Waal's force) to hold the trapped entities in place (Hollinger, 1994). Zeolite molecular traps are microporous crystalline aluminosilicate structures and provide selective molecular trapping based on size and polar properties (Dyer, 198. They generally act as adsorbents for molecules small enough to pass into their internal cavities. The trapped molecules are held in the cavities by physical (physisorption) and chemical (chemisorption) bonding (Hollinger, 1994). The most significant point is that the zeolites' interior cavity can be modified during fabrication to target molecules of a particular size and polarity.
The crystalline nature of zeolite traps provides the inert, non-reactive character required for use in close proximity to artifacts, while providing a functional role in trapping various molecular species, in particular, undesirable gaseous chemical species, present in the collection environment.
The advantages of zeolites over activated carbon include the fact that they can be engineered to target specific sized chemical species and that they can be used in situations where the activated carbon cannot because of its color or handling problems............"

The full article is located HERE:
Zeolite Molecular Traps And Their Use In Preventative Conservation

Scroll down to the heading "Molecular Traps" and beyond..
sherry