cosmik debris
Member
Melkor's PLL club contributors have grabbed my interest with the PLL CFL's so now I'm building anew. Actually I'm building two different styles at once, a stealth micro cab and a taller stealth cabinet version of Infectualize's "HighPod"- both using the 4 pin flat CFL's. This thread's about the former.
Along with the PLL, crew I owe much to Dr. Bud, Anti, Verdent Green, Thunderkel and many others here for their shared information and inspiration. Truly amazing and much appreciated.
..........
Anywho, the cabinet is a gussied up box with a hidden slide up front panel and a lift up top that's supposed to look like a small unassuming server (the furniture piece not the computer variety). The access design is meant to provide full and easy access to the user while denying access to any curious family members or house guests. There will be no exterior hardware, knobs, locks, visible hinges or holes. The box will be light tight in a pitch black room, silent and stank free. The idea is that short of busting it open, nobody should be able to guess that there's anything going on inside when inspected from all sides, the top and rear. Unwanted inspection will be impossible unless they literally tear the box apart. Sounds like a lot I know, but that's what intrigued my partner and I about the build.
We've got the basic framing and finsih down, and I'll post some pics as soon as we finalize the rest of the interior design details and know for sure that nothing else is going to be altered. Thus far it's been a lot of build it and change it even after making as many mistakes as possible on paper first (and we do this kind of shit for a living). Another idea was to keep the whole thing as light as possible, and use a knock down design that could be flat packed and shipped ala IKEA if the mood strikes, or somebody needs to relocate the nursery quickly and in public view.
For right now it's all about making sure that I've got something that'll work well enough to keep personal needs met though.
The method is pure Dr. Bud perpetual SOG, with the exception of substituting the PLL's for the curly fries. The idea that he hit on, and later Anti and others worked with, about using smaller diameter but deeper pots to manage size and vigor makes a lot of sense to me so I'm using 2 1/2" dia. x 8" Dee Pots from the nursery supply for flowering, filled with Dr. Bud's super simple soil mix (gotta love shit that you can pay cash for at WallyMart). Gonna stick with his cloning method, mum bonsai trimming and fast into flowering methods as well (why fuck with a good thing?). After seeing what Thunderkel did in short order with it I figure there's no reason to reinvent the wheel.
The cab is 12" front to back, 32" wide and 32" tall with a 3 1/2" tall base for a total overall height of just under three feet. It's probably gonna end up in a kitchen with a small T.V. sitting on it, so being just about counter height should help it blend in. The top will use hidden Euro hinges across the back and a steel rod that is pushed home from the back corner to lock the top down without being visible. To be able to move the front, slide up panel at all the top must first be unlocked and lifted. The locking rod(s) will be retracted by taking a heavy duty magnet and holding it up against the hole in the back corner of the top. More than likely this will have to be installed on both sides to keep the top from being lifted at all. When not in use the magnet just gets stuck back on the frig and none's the wiser.
The inside will be set up for a 4 plant harvest every ten days. Next to the flowering chamber will be a cell for the bonsai'ed Mums a small clone dome and enough space to re-veg at least 4.
If I can find a way to access a ventilation chase discretely I want to try and squeeze a little drying rack in there as well.
The ventilation inlets are on one side of the cabinet built into the recessed base. Cooling air for the tube or lens enclosed CFL's in the flowering cell will come from just under the cabinet's over hanging lid moldings. If that's not enough then I'll have to add another thin wide chase to steal some of the flowering chamber intake air to help. I haven't yet worked out how to damper the air ducts and chases to allow for some fine tuning yet, but the intention is to finish each duct/chase with at least one clear acrylic panel initially so that we can do a smoke test to actually see the airflow and turbulence. Since every inch of space is critical I want to make the airways as efficient as possible.
The real ventilation bitch is moving the air back down to the base again to be exhausted in a different direction from one of the intakes, so that a short circuit is avoided while still not creating a noticeable tornado. The base will house several of the main ventilation fans. So far it looks like they'll be at least a pair or three of the Feser Triewerk computer type (61.6 CFM @ 21 dBA). The lack of substantial pressure generated by the PC fans may be an issue, but that's part of the challenge that makes this so interesting to play with. Maybe booster fans will have to be added. Either way, there are a lot of 40 to 50 CFM offerings available now that are as quiet as a human's breathing so I hope it's just a matter of trying to find a good spot to mount them. The (4) 55w. CFL tubes are intended to get a bank of (4) 13 Cfm 60 mm fans @ 20 dBA, to pull air across the lamps and dump it out the opposite side of the cabinet top. Again, the CFL lamps will be isolated either by plastic tubes or an 1/8" thick glass lens.
There will be a carbon filter built into the bottom shelf that's basically a large tray that lifts out and is covered with a layer of reticulated polyurethane foam to protect the carbon. The same foam is used for the intake filters and a light kill between louvers where ventilation connects the different cells.
The carbon I'm using is a little pricey since it's coming from SeaChem and is intended for aquarium use, (whether it proves worthwhile or not we'll just have to wait and see). First, their carbon is spherical and contains much less fines than the burnt coconut husks that most of the generic is made from. Secondly, theirs is made from coal, and as such is actually harder and has a different pore structure. Again, as yet I've no idea if this will effect it's ability to absorb odors but I'm thinking it should be better for the same reasons that it works better in filtering water. Lastly, because of the way that the coconut husk carbon is processed in manufacturing, it is washed several times with a dilute acid and water rinse to "clean it up" a bit before packaging. Of course because the carbon does absorb impurities so well, this means that a large percentage of its carrying capacity has already been exhausted before you even get it out of the bag. The SeaChem product does not suffer this inequity. Another benefit of its spherical structure and lessened level of fines is that it does not allow water channeling as readily as the cheap stuff. I am hoping that this translates into a significantly less restrictive airway impediment as well, relative to the generic. We'll have to test that separately as this develops I suppose.
So far I'm not completely decided on the lighting for the Mums, clones and re-veg. Presently I'm leaning toward a mixture of the quad fingered CFL's and possibly a couple of the mini sized T-2 linears depending on the spectrums available. Also looking at the possibility of adding some of these 50 odd watt double circle T-5 CFL's as side lights in the flowering chamber (That HighPod side lighting is still stuck in my mind's eye and it worked like a charm in a T-5 build that I last did). Other than the added heat issue my other concern with that is in trying to make this something that will reliably run on a single twenty amp 120 VAC outlet. Using programmable electronic ballasts should help limit the initial surge somewhat, but I may have to add a few digital timers as well to spread the start up loads more significantly.
So that's the project thus far. Questions comments or concerns are welcome. I have plenty of experience building shit and next to none in growing. A friend bought my T-5 box before I had a chance to get it dialed in, and he's been real successful with it. In hindsight it would have been way too big for me to really keep long term anyway, so I'm in high anxiety mode to make this project work ASAP.
Along with the PLL, crew I owe much to Dr. Bud, Anti, Verdent Green, Thunderkel and many others here for their shared information and inspiration. Truly amazing and much appreciated.
..........Anywho, the cabinet is a gussied up box with a hidden slide up front panel and a lift up top that's supposed to look like a small unassuming server (the furniture piece not the computer variety). The access design is meant to provide full and easy access to the user while denying access to any curious family members or house guests. There will be no exterior hardware, knobs, locks, visible hinges or holes. The box will be light tight in a pitch black room, silent and stank free. The idea is that short of busting it open, nobody should be able to guess that there's anything going on inside when inspected from all sides, the top and rear. Unwanted inspection will be impossible unless they literally tear the box apart. Sounds like a lot I know, but that's what intrigued my partner and I about the build.
We've got the basic framing and finsih down, and I'll post some pics as soon as we finalize the rest of the interior design details and know for sure that nothing else is going to be altered. Thus far it's been a lot of build it and change it even after making as many mistakes as possible on paper first (and we do this kind of shit for a living). Another idea was to keep the whole thing as light as possible, and use a knock down design that could be flat packed and shipped ala IKEA if the mood strikes, or somebody needs to relocate the nursery quickly and in public view.
For right now it's all about making sure that I've got something that'll work well enough to keep personal needs met though.The method is pure Dr. Bud perpetual SOG, with the exception of substituting the PLL's for the curly fries. The idea that he hit on, and later Anti and others worked with, about using smaller diameter but deeper pots to manage size and vigor makes a lot of sense to me so I'm using 2 1/2" dia. x 8" Dee Pots from the nursery supply for flowering, filled with Dr. Bud's super simple soil mix (gotta love shit that you can pay cash for at WallyMart). Gonna stick with his cloning method, mum bonsai trimming and fast into flowering methods as well (why fuck with a good thing?). After seeing what Thunderkel did in short order with it I figure there's no reason to reinvent the wheel.
The cab is 12" front to back, 32" wide and 32" tall with a 3 1/2" tall base for a total overall height of just under three feet. It's probably gonna end up in a kitchen with a small T.V. sitting on it, so being just about counter height should help it blend in. The top will use hidden Euro hinges across the back and a steel rod that is pushed home from the back corner to lock the top down without being visible. To be able to move the front, slide up panel at all the top must first be unlocked and lifted. The locking rod(s) will be retracted by taking a heavy duty magnet and holding it up against the hole in the back corner of the top. More than likely this will have to be installed on both sides to keep the top from being lifted at all. When not in use the magnet just gets stuck back on the frig and none's the wiser.
The inside will be set up for a 4 plant harvest every ten days. Next to the flowering chamber will be a cell for the bonsai'ed Mums a small clone dome and enough space to re-veg at least 4.
If I can find a way to access a ventilation chase discretely I want to try and squeeze a little drying rack in there as well.
The ventilation inlets are on one side of the cabinet built into the recessed base. Cooling air for the tube or lens enclosed CFL's in the flowering cell will come from just under the cabinet's over hanging lid moldings. If that's not enough then I'll have to add another thin wide chase to steal some of the flowering chamber intake air to help. I haven't yet worked out how to damper the air ducts and chases to allow for some fine tuning yet, but the intention is to finish each duct/chase with at least one clear acrylic panel initially so that we can do a smoke test to actually see the airflow and turbulence. Since every inch of space is critical I want to make the airways as efficient as possible.
The real ventilation bitch is moving the air back down to the base again to be exhausted in a different direction from one of the intakes, so that a short circuit is avoided while still not creating a noticeable tornado. The base will house several of the main ventilation fans. So far it looks like they'll be at least a pair or three of the Feser Triewerk computer type (61.6 CFM @ 21 dBA). The lack of substantial pressure generated by the PC fans may be an issue, but that's part of the challenge that makes this so interesting to play with. Maybe booster fans will have to be added. Either way, there are a lot of 40 to 50 CFM offerings available now that are as quiet as a human's breathing so I hope it's just a matter of trying to find a good spot to mount them. The (4) 55w. CFL tubes are intended to get a bank of (4) 13 Cfm 60 mm fans @ 20 dBA, to pull air across the lamps and dump it out the opposite side of the cabinet top. Again, the CFL lamps will be isolated either by plastic tubes or an 1/8" thick glass lens.
There will be a carbon filter built into the bottom shelf that's basically a large tray that lifts out and is covered with a layer of reticulated polyurethane foam to protect the carbon. The same foam is used for the intake filters and a light kill between louvers where ventilation connects the different cells.
The carbon I'm using is a little pricey since it's coming from SeaChem and is intended for aquarium use, (whether it proves worthwhile or not we'll just have to wait and see). First, their carbon is spherical and contains much less fines than the burnt coconut husks that most of the generic is made from. Secondly, theirs is made from coal, and as such is actually harder and has a different pore structure. Again, as yet I've no idea if this will effect it's ability to absorb odors but I'm thinking it should be better for the same reasons that it works better in filtering water. Lastly, because of the way that the coconut husk carbon is processed in manufacturing, it is washed several times with a dilute acid and water rinse to "clean it up" a bit before packaging. Of course because the carbon does absorb impurities so well, this means that a large percentage of its carrying capacity has already been exhausted before you even get it out of the bag. The SeaChem product does not suffer this inequity. Another benefit of its spherical structure and lessened level of fines is that it does not allow water channeling as readily as the cheap stuff. I am hoping that this translates into a significantly less restrictive airway impediment as well, relative to the generic. We'll have to test that separately as this develops I suppose.
So far I'm not completely decided on the lighting for the Mums, clones and re-veg. Presently I'm leaning toward a mixture of the quad fingered CFL's and possibly a couple of the mini sized T-2 linears depending on the spectrums available. Also looking at the possibility of adding some of these 50 odd watt double circle T-5 CFL's as side lights in the flowering chamber (That HighPod side lighting is still stuck in my mind's eye and it worked like a charm in a T-5 build that I last did). Other than the added heat issue my other concern with that is in trying to make this something that will reliably run on a single twenty amp 120 VAC outlet. Using programmable electronic ballasts should help limit the initial surge somewhat, but I may have to add a few digital timers as well to spread the start up loads more significantly.
So that's the project thus far. Questions comments or concerns are welcome. I have plenty of experience building shit and next to none in growing. A friend bought my T-5 box before I had a chance to get it dialed in, and he's been real successful with it. In hindsight it would have been way too big for me to really keep long term anyway, so I'm in high anxiety mode to make this project work ASAP.
