Intake filter covered in white flaky dust after 5 days. What is this stuff????

[RobMarley420]

I bought some cheap 30 day furnace filters to filter my intake fan on my grow tent and after only 5 days the filter is COVERED in this white flaky dust. When I set the filter down on my couch it left a pile of dust behind. Is it normal for these filters to get dirty that fast?

I'm wondering what exactly all that white shit is? I have 2 humidifiers running in the room the tent is in so I'm wondering if maybe its water deposits???

I also keep a window open in that room so maybe it could be all the normal dust and pollen that floats around in the air???

Probably a stupid question but I was just really surprised at how much dust got caught up in the filter in only 5 days.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Dayum! I mean.... dayum! That's a whole lotta dust. Don't know where it's coming from but, it certainly proves the wisdom of filtering intakes. Considering how open the weave is, I'd think about an extra layer. I mean.... dayum, that's a lotta dust. EEK!

I use aquarium filter pads...

 

[jm420]

dandruff

 

[Pompey_Monkey]

I bought some cheap 30 day furnace filters to filter my intake fan on my grow tent and after only 5 days the filter is COVERED in this white flaky dust....

....I'm wondering what exactly all that white shit is?

It's flaky white dust.

 

[jm420]

good call on the aquirium bags.Do you think if using the activated charcoal ones coul help with odor

 

[cirog]

looks to me like gypsum dust from drywall. Is someone in the near vacinity doing sheet rock work, or sanding down fresh plaster, just a thought but that is what it looks like to me.

 

[FreezerBoy]

good call on the aquirium bags.Do you think if using the activated charcoal ones coul help with odor

I doubt it. Too many clear paths through the material would allow air to escape untouched by carbon. It's why we prefer granules to pellets in filters. Hundreds of times more surface area in the same space, they prevent clear, open channels making air fight it's way out.

 

[wco68]

i would say it looks a lot like drywall dust like cirog said. you doing any remodeling? that dust goes everywhere.

 

[messn'n'gommin']

looks to me like gypsum dust from drywall. Is someone in the near vacinity doing sheet rock work, or sanding down fresh plaster, just a thought but that is what it looks like to me.

Yeah, it came first to my mind, too.

Whatever it is, I couldn't say if it came from outside or not, but I would keep my window closed.

 

[Chunkypigs]

I got that when running cool mist type humidifier, I figured it was deposits from my hard water.

 

[RobMarley420]

I got that when running cool mist type humidifier, I figured it was deposits from my hard water.

Yeah, it has to be hard water deposits. When I put on a new air filter it had a visible white residue with-in 24 hours.

Right now I'm running my intake fan with no filter because with the filter it was just blowing those white deposits all over my tent and plants.

I figure that the higher humidity from the humidifier is more beneficial to the plants than filtering the intake air would be.