Is Car Shade material fire/flame retardant?

I'm doing the PC stealth box and my lights are very close and actually touching the Car Shade material (reflective stuff) when I put the side panel back on after first test. And I only tested with 2 of the 4 x 26W CFLs I plan to use.

The material was hot to the touch and I'm wondering if it's safe? Should I cut out a spot of the Car Shade on the side panel and over the lights? Or should I use aluminum foil instead?

My Car Shade did not come with any packaging/directions because I swiped it from my father's house. lol (he said he didn't want it actually).

Is this reflective material safe for lots of heat and lights touching it?

I'm sort surprised how hot the CFLs are, even with intake and exhaust fans and other open holes for airflow.

Any idea how safe the Car Shades are? Anyone's pc stealth case or automobile burst into flames lately?

i had some ontop of my cfls you could tell it was stressed but no fire. try lighting a piece on fire see how easy it is to catch fire

dank smoker420 said:

i had some ontop of my cfls you could tell it was stressed but no fire. try lighting a piece on fire see how easy it is to catch fire

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That sounds funny but is actually a great idea. thanks.

...unless it explodes lol

i'll try it tho

Ok, I tried to light it with a Bic lighter.

It did light on fire. No explosions tho, just flamed, threw it in sink and it went out right away.

I will try to leave a piece on top of a CFL and also an incandescent and see what happens.

Meh, I just cut out a spot near the lights.

I never tested whether a cfl or incandescent would burn the Car Shade if placed directly on it for a long time.

But my main problem is temperature. With 3 26W CFLs and with 2 pc fans for intake (front-bottom) and exhaust (rear-top), the temp is ~98 degrees about 4" below lights. I put a cup of water with ice cubes in front of intake fan, but the ice just melted and no change in temp.

Meh, my case is sort of small @ 17" X 7". I think I need a bigger case b/c my 32W CFLs won't fit but the 3 26W just fit. The 32W are about an inch longer. Plus, I think the larger case will vent the heat better maybe.

Meh, I think I'll scrap this case and start over with a bigger case when I find one.

Maybe I just need stronger fans tho. Forgot that people have recommended stronger ones.

Lol^. Why dont u just paint the whole inside white and ditch the reflector? Ive read it can cause hot spots.

I was lol'ing at the fire btw. U posted fast.

Yeah, paint is prolly better. The shade also acts like insulation making the inside hotter than paint would prolly.

What are hot spots btw?

I'm guessing hot spots are...spots that are hot?? lol

Im assuming the top of your case is metal. If its plastic you probably want some kind of heat shield. Hardware stores have little pieces of sheet metal

Yeah man, def good that you cut it out. Better safe than sorry.
As umbrella mentioned you can get small pieces of sheet metal at the hardware store in the roofinf department. Usually you get then in packs of 10 or so. They're just small postcard sized pieces. If you really wanted to, you could polish it for a higher reflective material, although it would probably burn.

Mark Marley said:

Meh, I just cut out a spot near the lights.

I never tested whether a cfl or incandescent would burn the Car Shade if placed directly on it for a long time.

But my main problem is temperature. With 3 26W CFLs and with 2 pc fans for intake (front-bottom) and exhaust (rear-top), the temp is ~98 degrees about 4" below lights. I put a cup of water with ice cubes in front of intake fan, but the ice just melted and no change in temp.

Meh, my case is sort of small @ 17" X 7". I think I need a bigger case b/c my 32W CFLs won't fit but the 3 26W just fit. The 32W are about an inch longer. Plus, I think the larger case will vent the heat better maybe.

Meh, I think I'll scrap this case and start over with a bigger case when I find one.

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Ok...I don't get this...why go through all the trouble and risk for such small plants at all? It isn't like you can get enough to last before more is ready if you grow everything in a pc case? So why do it at all...I don't think I would be able to go on---So maybe kudos, but for real what causes the decision to go to try growing in a pc...
Ok, ok, ok, that sounded really bitchy, but is it just a stealth and fun kind of thing? I feel like chained to my plants now...

Mark Marley said:

I'm guessing hot spots are...spots that are hot?? lol

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Haha. Ish, any reflector that isnt smooth can focus light. And im sure your plant would prefer an even spread of light.

May I also make another suggestion. Place a smoke alarm on a desk or something near the PC case

missnu said:

Ok...I don't get this...why go through all the trouble and risk for such small plants at all? It isn't like you can get enough to last before more is ready if you grow everything in a pc case? So why do it at all...I don't think I would be able to go on---So maybe kudos, but for real what causes the decision to go to try growing in a pc...
Ok, ok, ok, that sounded really bitchy, but is it just a stealth and fun kind of thing? I feel like chained to my plants now...

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Your right it did sound bitchy. I liked the idea at first, but then just built a big box and put it in my closet lol. No one goes in there. But some people arent going for huge yields so why have a big operation.

missnu said:

Ok...I don't get this...why go through all the trouble and risk for such small plants at all? It isn't like you can get enough to last before more is ready if you grow everything in a pc case? So why do it at all...I don't think I would be able to go on---So maybe kudos, but for real what causes the decision to go to try growing in a pc...
Ok, ok, ok, that sounded really bitchy, but is it just a stealth and fun kind of thing? I feel like chained to my plants now...

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I plan to use 2 or more pc cases, one for veg and one for flower. But yeah, a larger grow would be nice, but more work, and this is just for my personal use which is rather small compared to when I was young and lived in Amsterdam lol.

How much do you smoke in a month

umbrellacorp said:

Im assuming the top of your case is metal. If its plastic you probably want some kind of heat shield. Hardware stores have little pieces of sheet metal

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Yeah, the top is metal on the inside with a plastic casing on top of that.

I put the car shade on the top and all sides, but not the bottom b/c I'm worried about light reflective on bottom of leaves which I'm not sure is bad or not.

I will check the top of case above lights to make sure it doesn't overheat/burn.

KidneyStoner420 said:

May I also make another suggestion. Place a smoke alarm on a desk or something near the PC case

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yeah, this is a smart suggestion.

there is a smoke detector in the room near the door, but one right next to or in the case would be the safest way to go.

I'm monitoring it all the time right now anyway to see what the temp is doing...and to see how soon til I can harvest..lol.

Actually, the temp at the bottom of the case, 5" off the bottom is about 84 degrees. It's only above 90 degrees 4" below the lights.

I'm thinking that might be ok. When people recommend 76-86 degrees or w/e it is for growing are they talking about in general, in the middle, near leaf, or directly below lights? because it varies everywhere in case.

KidneyStoner420 said:

How much do you smoke in a month

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Right now? Practically nothing, b/c I'm sort of new here and don't have good connects. But I'd be happy with a joint every other day. Depends on how good it is. Back in the day, I smoked all the time.

I did meet a new connect recently which is where I got the one seed to start this. So it's just bagseed, but the smoke was ok.