Advice on how to set up the tents. Going to vent out the window but may have to change these around. If i change them opposite what is my best way to run ventilation? Only have 3 iches now between the plug in. If i move them then maybe 10. Thank you kindly.
I can’t really tell about the placement of vent holes on your tent, but here’s what I did.
I have a large box filter hanging in my tent, I put the ductwork right out of the top of the tent and ran it to my window. (I had inserted a plate in there meant to run dryer venting out of.)
I recently changed that to a smaller fan/filter combo that vents into the lung room - and turned off the outside one. It’s been pretty chilly here and that helps keep the room at a reasonable temperature. My lights are out at the moment and it’s 71 degrees in there.
General rule of thumb - the less bends in your ducts, the better.
@Ynotfish, If that is a 3x3 tent you will need to ventilate approximately 56 square foot, and the air in that area would need to be change at least once every 2 minutes. This will require that you move at least 25 cfm.
The previous posted pictured set up would give you about that amount. It all gets rather technical. But given the pressure drops caused by intake screens or filters. the pressure differential between outdoor and indoor, and air flow killing flex duct a 170 cfm fan will be delivering about only 25 cfm in the pictured example.
If you are concerned about smell this would be great way to start. But since you are at minimum air flow you may run into over temperature problems at times.
If you start to vent as much as 50-100 cfm to the outside. You really need add some make up air from the outside. And this can present a ton of problems when you need to condition this outside air.
On your outlet, I would try to find an outlet strip with a 90 degree plug on the cord.
Consider mounting that outlet strip to small sheet of plywood,(or something else), fasten to a wall outside of the tent. This will allow you to build a control panel for all of the devices. I have a clone tent in an old metal cabinet next to a 2x3 tent, and use the outside of this cabinet to mount all of this on. Also the lack of cable management was was driving me nuts.
Nice set up.
That’s a work of art. I need to take lessons from you, seriously.
Thanks, but it went through quite a few evolutions before this.
Also i like getting the drivers and their heat out of the tents, and it makes getting to the screwdriver type dimmer on the small one so much easier.
My drivers are sitting on top of my tent on a hunk of 2x4. I’m lucky that my lights have potentiometers on long enough cables I can put them outside my tent too.
My electrical stuff is such a mess I am ashamed to show it.
I agree with you on all points about exhaust amounts, outside air, and using your house as the lung room.
Maybe I am misunderstanding you on this point. When my small 2x3 tents are full of plants wall to wall. I need to really move air around inside the tent to the degree that I am shaking the all of the leaves around. If I don’t the plants seem to suffer.
OK, I have to ask what in the world are the vice grips for?
I am betting that you spend more time trimming and training than I do.
that’s just a piece of ducting, and they just keep it level. Using them for weight. I need to work on it a little.
Agreed. This seems like something that has stuck around from days of running separate air circuits for air cooled hid hoods. As general rule of thumb we should try everything in our power to not run exhaust outside of home. It puts your home under negative pressure.
So exhaust into the room is better then? Would i still use a portable ac to cool it down in the summer?
How concerned are you about smell?
If you are not worried about smell there is no good reason to vent outside.
I agree with what @Blastfact & @dbrn32 just posted.
But on the other hand if I remember correctly @Dexterado was concerned with smell and noise, (see his previous posted picture). So his set up venting outside may work the best for him and his location.
If your choice is vent outside keep this in mind. A typical bathroom exhaust fan pulling 25 cfm out of a house, doesn’t have much of a negative effect on the rest of the home. But four of these fans running at the same would be pulling outside air into through the small cracks and opening in the house. This bad because the non condensed air that invades into the house has to be pulled through the house, and into the AC unit before it can be conditioned.
I wasn’t concerned about smell, I was concerned about heat, and exhausting heated air back into the same room. I wanted to exhaust heat outside. I’m doing a winter grow now, and letting the heat exhaust back into the room instead of outside.
About additional cooling needs?
Your home’s AC is designed to meet heat loads by each room. These loads are estimated by human body heat, outside walls, lighting, and latitude location. So the cooling capacity for each room is limited too this design.
Luckily LED don’t produce much heat. So it will depend on how much light, (watts) you will be putting into that room. Just a wild guess here, a regular bedroom or living room could handle the heat of a 3x3 tent without the need for additional cooling.
The upstairs rooms get hot in summer and cold in the winter. Central air does not do much for it. I grow year round. Upstairs can get to mid 90s. More worried about humidity being an issue for the house. I do run a dehumidifier and that cranks heat up even more.