How to keep CO2 in an air conditioned grow room?

freshed05

freshed05

Member
Hi guys, newbie here. First crop was a success, and I am now adding Co2 to the grow room. Temps got pretty high during the end of flower when I had my 8x 450w LED's going in the 10x20 room. I added a standup AC unit 1TON. Keeps the room cool.

so.. I wanted to add CO2. Problem is, I bought a 20LB tank on Saturday, today is tuesday and its empty. My controller was setup for 1200pm maintain, and through the AC running, and exhaust fans going it ran out in 3 days..... Makes sense obviously, I wasnt sure how long to expect, but damn. 3 days.

How can I improve this? Should I turn all the exhaust fans off, and leave just the AC on low? How can I seal a room for CO2 , while keeping it cool?

Thanks all!
 
Rdubz

Rdubz

Well-Known Member
You have to have a sealed room no exhaust ... I run a sealed room with co2 and controller I have air cooled lights that pull air from outside and go in the lights and vented out of the room so no air is being changed inside my room plus I have a mini split AC
 
freshed05

freshed05

Member
GeneBanker said:
Mini split or dual hose portable
Click to expand...
Isnt a dual hose portable still sucking in air from outside and spitting hot air from inside - to outside? I feel like the CO2 would get sucked out still? Just trying to make sense of it all in theory I guess.
 
ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
freshed05 said:
Isnt a dual hose portable still sucking in air from outside and spitting hot air from inside - to outside? I feel like the CO2 would get sucked out still? Just trying to make sense of it all in theory I guess.
Click to expand...
No. Thats a single Hose.
Dual hose doesn't transfer air.
A lot of window AC units work too
Screenshot_20210228-224232_Google.jpgScreenshot_20210228-224347_Google.jpg
 
Rdubz

Rdubz

Well-Known Member
freshed05 said:
So. If I ran a dual hose AC in the room, with no exhaust and a CO2 20lb tank. Thats ok? No fresh air or air transfer isnt going cause harm?
Click to expand...
No harm, the only reason you exchange air is because the plants consume all the ambient co2... So if u don't have co2 they will suffer unless u exchange the air
 
cannabineer

cannabineer

Ursus marijanus
freshed05 said:
I have a small controller, Inkbird - works pretty well. I was setting it at 1200 ppm and it would adjust whenever it went down by 200 below that. But obviously with the single hose AC and my exhausts going it just sucked it right out in 3 days. Rookie moves :D
Click to expand...
Bueno you’re on this
 
ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

ҖҗlegilizeitҗҖ

Well-Known Member
freshed05 said:
I have a small controller, Inkbird - works pretty well. I was setting it at 1200 ppm and it would adjust whenever it went down by 200 below that. But obviously with the single hose AC and my exhausts going it just sucked it right out in 3 days. Rookie moves :D
Click to expand...
I like 1500 with a deadband down to 1200 myself. I figure if I am using CO2, might as well be maximizing its use
 
freshed05

freshed05

Member
TCL TDW40E20 Dehumidifier for Large Bedrooms and Living Rooms, 3,500 Sq. Ft, White

200$ on Amazon

works great
 
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lusidghost

lusidghost

Well-Known Member
What size dual hose ACs are you all using? I have a Tripp Lite 12K that I exhaust out of the house, along with two 6"duct fans. That's only trying to cool 4 600 / 650w LEDs in joined tents. I'm planning on upgrading to a mini split this spring because I want to start using CO2, but I don't have enough space for a bigger dual hose unit.
 
lusidghost

lusidghost

Well-Known Member
Hmm. This has made me reconsider my entire setup. I've always had my AC outside of the tents with one tube going in and the other venting out of the house. The intake was pulling air from the room, and since the sensor was outside of the tents, I had to use a thermometer controller switch to turn the AC on and off. A hard shutoff is horrible for the AC, but I couldn't come up with a better way.

The reason I didn't have the AC in the tent was space. But I ended up with a dead corner of a 6x6 tent so that I could access the plants, which eventually housed a 30 gallon res. I knew that wasn't a great idea because of heating the water, but I didn't have any room outside of the tent.

So all I really need to do it swap out the AC with the res, and boom. Since I could raise the temperature while using CO2, I might be able to cut out the two other vent fans and actually do it. Even if I can't us Co2 without upgrading the AC, at least my water will stay cooler and my AC won't have to crash on and off constantly. I'm an idiot for never realizing this.
 
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