Small grow room setup help/heat advice

M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
Ive just purchased a small grow tent...

60 x 60 x1.40 (cm)

outside.jpg

I bought a 4"fan/ carbon filter

fan2.jpg






which i have installed like this,...

Carbon filter at top INSIDE tent...then the ducting going to to fan which i have secured to one of the rear top outlet,,so it just pokes out from rear of tent like so.......

fan outlet.jpg

and just a quick last pic of inside tent....

inside.jpg

i did try a small space grow in a closet but there was NO ventilation at all apart from an extractor/fan sucking alll the time...never got any fresh air in there so never grew...

I was doing this closet grow with a 150w hps buld/ballast...

So my queries are...

is the fan/filter sufficent enough for cleaning the air from tent...and will the position of the fan outlet cause any smells outside of tent?

And should i stick with the 150hps bulb?

or put in a 250w hps (already have this too with a ballast)...

i have a large desk fan and also an old shower fan/extractor which i was thinking of using as a cool air intake maybe?

just worried about heat issues....i have a plant to go under that has been growing about 6 weeks (flowering)...so want to finish it off in new tent....

i did try my 250 bulb in closet grow but it just burnt everything due to the lack of ventilation!!...

I have searched the forums before i posted my questions.... couldnt find anything specific to my setup..

Many thanks in advance all.

Mitzson.
 
fir3dragon

fir3dragon

Well-Known Member
mitzson said:
Ive just purchased a small grow tent...

60 x 60 x1.40 (cm)

View attachment 2894129

I bought a 4"fan/ carbon filter

View attachment 2894132






which i have installed like this,...

Carbon filter at top INSIDE tent...then the ducting going to to fan which i have secured to one of the rear top outlet,,so it just pokes out from rear of tent like so.......

View attachment 2894133

and just a quick last pic of inside tent....

View attachment 2894136

i did try a small space grow in a closet but there was NO ventilation at all apart from an extractor/fan sucking alll the time...never got any fresh air in there so never grew...

I was doing this closet grow with a 150w hps buld/ballast...

So my queries are...

is the fan/filter sufficent enough for cleaning the air from tent...and will the position of the fan outlet cause any smells outside of tent?

And should i stick with the 150hps bulb?

or put in a 250w hps (already have this too with a ballast)...

i have a large desk fan and also an old shower fan/extractor which i was thinking of using as a cool air intake maybe?

just worried about heat issues....i have a plant to go under that has been growing about 6 weeks (flowering)...so want to finish it off in new tent....

i did try my 250 bulb in closet grow but it just burnt everything due to the lack of ventilation!!...

I have searched the forums before i posted my questions.... couldnt find anything specific to my setup..

Many thanks in advance all.

Mitzson.
Click to expand...
Everything looks good i think but i see a couple issues

-Your tent, looks like a 3x3.. cant really tell 60x60 dont tell me anything lol.
-for a 3x3 tent, 150 and 250 is too small. I would get a minimum 400w in there. when i used a 3x3 i had a 600w
-another issue, with HID lights in a enclosed space, you need a cooltube or things heat up quite fast without proper ventilation
-your 4 inch fan and filter is enough to filter the tent i would say, but if you get a cooltube and connect your light to vent it i would get a 6 inch just to be safe.
-you shouldnt smell anything outside the tent, unless its opened. if its all closed you shouldnt smell anything
-it appears your venting in the same room, that means you need to be able to cool that room as well as the heat being pumped in it from your tent
-if you cool the room properly.. passive intake would work just keep the side flap open , and air goes in

if i missed anything or you got anymore questions feel free to ask man.
 
RetiredMatthebrute

RetiredMatthebrute

Well-Known Member
test run it.

heat rises so if you have good ventialtion going out the top of the tent and nice cool air coming in the bottom you should be alright.

above post is pretty spot on except the cooling of the room....i dont think a 250w is going to produce enough heat this time of year (winter time and cooler in most parts) to heat up that room to the point of affecting the temps in the tent. if it does then you will have to find another means to cool the room but for right now i wouldnt concern yourself with that.

again i would test run it....let it run constant for a full day and see where your at
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
will do a trial run tommoro... will try the 150 i guess..just for peace of mind...then see how the 250 is...

Withthe flaps open will this be enuff air flowing into tent without fitting an intake fan?...or is the fan advisable for more air.

Will post a pic of my plant too once its in there...think its on its last legs but we willl see!..

oh i also threw 4 seeds in the garden which all came up!!... so was considering putting one of them into tent when up and running....if i take a pic of the grown seeds too would it be possible for anyone to tell me if they are m/f


Thanks again all for the advice.


lol..last one....what is the most plants i could get into this room...just the 1 so it has a nice grow space to fatten up?
 
fir3dragon

fir3dragon

Well-Known Member
mitzson said:
will do a trial run tommoro... will try the 150 i guess..just for peace of mind...then see how the 250 is...

Withthe flaps open will this be enuff air flowing into tent without fitting an intake fan?...or is the fan advisable for more air.

Will post a pic of my plant too once its in there...think its on its last legs but we willl see!..

oh i also threw 4 seeds in the garden which all came up!!... so was considering putting one of them into tent when up and running....if i take a pic of the grown seeds too would it be possible for anyone to tell me if they are m/f


Thanks again all for the advice.


lol..last one....what is the most plants i could get into this room...just the 1 so it has a nice grow space to fatten up?
Click to expand...
With proper exhaust a intake fan shouldn't be needed.

When you exhaust out the tent with it zipped it should create what's called a passive intake.

what happens is your tent only has so much air in it zipped up.. Your fan is exhausting the air out of the tent. The only way for more air to come in is through the vent flaps.

When i use my tent, I had a passive intake and it worked well. The key to getting cooler tent temps is to get cooler intake temps. You can't cool your tent with air that's already heated and expect it to go lower. I also had 6 plants in 2 gallon pots in there. I would go bigger to like 3-4 gallon. I had 3 plants in the middle, 2 on each side.

You can't tell the sex of plants without them showing. I usually flip to 12/12 for them to show then revert back to veg. But that takes forever to get them to grow again, so I started taking clones. Can't say anything on yield of tent because I got it and quickly moved to a bedroom bare bulb vertical with coco hempy buckets little off topic but oh we'll lol.
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
Thanks again for the sound advice guys...

Put light in tent this morning....(150w hps).. going to try it on this light for a day or two..check the temperature etc.

and a desk fan...(yes i know the fan is a little big!!...planning to get a smaller one today..)

And ive put in the plant that i had in closet/cupboard...

oh and in regards to airing room/cooling...the room were tent is in has a window in there which i plan to leave open slightly when room is on/during day...that way fresh/cool air will be allowed to enter tent.

I put this in from a seed..on 12/12.. but as i said the space had no ventilation whatsoever...just a full door...and i had a carbon extractor/fan sucking the air out all the time!!...(im surprised its still alive!!)

Here is a pic of room (yes i know a bit pushed for space due to fan size!)..or is a big fan ok to have?

Have a look at plant and tell me what u think...will it survive...will it grow etc?....

plant.jpgplant and fan.jpgplant fan inside.jpg

Will post a pick late of the seeds growing in garden i mentioned...

thanks again all...has been a great help with setting up.
 
Gquebed

Gquebed

Well-Known Member
I think your problem with browning is not necessarily heat. If you are not bringing in fresh air for the co2 then your plants will brown up to the point of being crusty, looking like they were burned...i have some awesome pics of this from my first grow...juat not on my phone so cant upload right now. Anyway, trust me...you NEED to get fresh air to the plants especially if ypu are not exhausting outside...
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
so the carbon filter sucking out...fan on... vents in tent sucking in slightly,,,and window open in room were tent is... is this enuff?

and what about plant pick...how do they look?..

is it worth keeping it in there..or should i just start a new one.
 
ii dP ii

ii dP ii

Member
I'd try to use both of those lights in there if it were me. 400w total between the two. just keep it cool.


plant looks good to me bud. keep doing what you're doing.
how far into flower is she? looking like it's getting close to that time...
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
dont have another hood/socket for another bulb im afraid...ballast for the 250 bulb is pretty big..so bit reluctant to use..as want to keep everything inside tent...ballast for 150 bulb is tiny!

and plant has been going about10/12 weeks now i think...seems to have been in forever!...... had a few snips and took off most big leaves recently due to desperat times..lol
 
ii dP ii

ii dP ii

Member
maybe you could put the ballast outside the tent? or maybe zip tie it up near the top by the exhaust. that way any heat gets removed instantly.

10/12 weeks flower time?? or total?
 
Scotty Pot Seed

Scotty Pot Seed

Active Member
Yea, if possible, ballast outside of tent. And I may have missed it. I only sped read the post but I don't think I seen a CFM fan rating. Not all fans are created equal.
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
Fan is a 4" fan duct and carbon filter kit I bought from a proper grow shop online.

Is the ballast safe to hang from roof of grow tent?...
It's an old metal ballast..quite heavy so bit worried about using it!!?

But if ok? I think I will Try the hanging idea suggested.
 
ii dP ii

ii dP ii

Member
that's going to depend on how strong of a tent you bought... a gorilla tent will most definitely hold your ballast... if you have a cheap-o tent you might need to work something else out, I'm not sure... I know the older mag ballasts are heavier than the new digis, but I've never had a tent or mag ballast so I can't say for sure.
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
its a monsterbuds grow tent...


i think it says roof supports will hold 30kg...

but the weight of the carbon filter light/hood and ballast together i think mite be close to this!!....

seems to be ok so far with the 150w hps... maybe not as hot as id hoped...so thinking the 250 will be too much...as it does kick out a lot of heat...and ive done this in the past changed a bulb close to when plant was ready...too much heat...and it just burnt it...litterally to a crisp within 4 hours!!!

Will try for another couple of days i think....maybe weigh the bits i have to hang from roof...and see what happens...
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
Ah...have just checked balast and it's a 400w!. And my other bulb is a 250.
Have just been reading countless things about them not been compatible!.

So have no choice to stick with the 150 for now till pennies are available.

The 400w ballast and 250 bulb combination I mentioned is what I used when I mentioned I had a grow that burnt..

Would using this bulb in that ballast have generated more heat than if using a correct 250 ballast?.
If so I'm guessing thats why it got so hot and burnt them to a frazzle!!!.
 
paul1978

paul1978

Well-Known Member
mitzson said:
Ah...have just checked balast and it's a 400w!. And my other bulb is a 250.
Have just been reading countless things about them not been compatible!.

So have no choice to stick with the 150 for now till pennies are available.

The 400w ballast and 250 bulb combination I mentioned is what I used when I mentioned I had a grow that burnt..

Would using this bulb in that ballast have generated more heat than if using a correct 250 ballast?.
If so I'm guessing thats why it got so hot and burnt them to a frazzle!!!.
Click to expand...
i am suprised your bulb lasted because basically you were driving it at 400w certainly generating a lot more heat in the process...
ballast is the only protection the bulb have from destroying itself. it puts a limit to a current that the bulb can draw. both hps and mh when working without ballast will keep drawing more and more current until destruction (by design) - when you hooked up your 250w bulb your ballast has done its job and limited the power to rated 400w - way too much for the bulb unfortunately...
you certainly shortenedthe life of your bulb
other way round (400w bulb driven from 250w ballast) is less dramatic as the only downside will be reduced light output and possibly incorrect PAR
i am stoned writing this so apologies for long rant :)
 
M

mitzson

Well-Known Member
thank mate,,,

so basically i need a 250w ballast... or one with a dial to change to 250?

if i was to put the 250 bulb in my 150 ballast for now what would happen?..more heat/light... blown bulb..lol..was just a thought while saving for new ballast.
 
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