Watercooling the lights.

So. I am having issues keeping 2kw cool.

Not large issues as i have multiple forms of a/c. but issues nonetheless.

What i have:
2 1Kw lights setup similar to Stinkbud in a 5.5'x6'x8' closet.
both Iceboxed (one 6" and one 8")
i have a 440cfm ecoplus inline fan pulling air from one light thru both the iceboxes.
air is kept in the room. except when the room goes over 84.
84+ a window unit A/C comes on and air is exausted thru a carbon filter into the attic and out of the growing area.
i have a 94 gallon res being chilled for the lights only.
1/2 hp chiller. being ducted outside so the heat produced by the chiller is not added to the room.
the chiller is set at 60 and has to run almost constantly to keep up, cant get below 59.

ambient temps will stay 77-80 ouside the flower area.

yes i know pics are worth a thousand words, so i may make a journal to help me keep track of shit, but no pics yet. as soon as i make the journal i shall link it here.

let me know any thoughts on keeping it cooler.

im thinking of ditching the basic trashcan res for a icechest/freezer.am i crazy? or is this a valid next step for cooling options for the res.

Damn, its just so crazy to me that people to through so much to keep there lights cool..The best advice I could give you is if you are having problems with your set up and temps, then what other problems are you going to run into with your babys? Are your lights in AIR TUBES?

i read about a texas company that do full waercooled systems forlighting there rather crzy wouldnt mind giving em a try

http://www.texashydroponics.com/shop/home.php?cat=396

I thought the IceBox folks called for a 1/3 HP for 1000 watts. If so, your chiller is undersized. Have you tried just running one of you 1000s and see what results you get?

Just curious, what make/model chiller are you using? How's the noise? How did you exhaust the heat?

its an active aqua 1/2 hp. specs per 1kw is supposed to be 1/4hp. so i am right on with a half hp.
i have learned that these chillers arent as efficient as their us or canadian made counterparts.
Im trying to make due with what i have and maximise the efficiency of my electricity usage.

G33kDro said:

its an active aqua 1/2 hp. specs per 1kw is supposed to be 1/4hp. so i am right on with a half hp.
i have learned that these chillers arent as efficient as their us or canadian made counterparts.

Click to expand...

That doesn't seem right to me. Most of the 1/2 HP chillers I've seen (EcoPlus is one) do between 5000 and 5500 BTU/h. 2 1000s put out over 6200 BTU/h.

Is it possible to use a fan to pull a bunch of the lights' heat outside of the area? I know that you can use the IceBoxes with just a fan to cool an area and good air cooled reflectors can get rid of alot of the heat of the bulbs. I've thought of doing this kind of thing.

outside air > fan > light > outside air

coupled with

fan > icebox

Have you tried with just one of your 1000s. I'm really interested to see if the 1/2 hp + 1000 watt combo works.

i have tried that and it works okay, but doesnt work ideal for my situation. 1kw is cooled just fine.

my real question is about the res. should i get a freezer and ditch the basic res? im sure with the simple insulation in the freezer it would help vs the garbage can i am using.

how much you recon it would cost me for a lill water setup to power 2 600w hps ? cheers

I love my fresca sol. Recommend them to anyone competent but then again if someone is not they probably shouldnt be growing! G33kdro your profile pic looks like the area I live near!