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3x3x6 tent need help deciding on filter and fans VERY quiet

slaine87

New member
Hi all! Super stoked to be part of this forum

This will be my first grow, 4 plants of Lithium OG Kush from Nirvanashop. Next run will be Durban Poison!

I have a 250w MH for veg and a 400w HPS. Soil will be pH adjusted shrimp compost (0,9-1,1-1,1) mixed with perlite and I will use some fertilizers I have ( 6-4-6 in veg and something along a ratio of 4-6-8 for flowering). Will be scrogging them. They'll end up in around 10 gallon pots so will be cautious not to overwater.

But my MAIN question/indecisiveness comes from the whole ventilation/odor management thing. I've read conflicting infos on what gear could do the trick for a 3x3x6, especially when it comes to keeping things very quiet. I have a very shallow sleep so I must find a way to have a powerful enough fan to get my air exchange correct while not overdoing it so much as to mess with my sleep (the tent is like 6 feet away from my bed). Also, odor is a big issue so will need recommendations as well if anyone has any.

I'm in Canada if that's any help

Thanks for your help!
 

starke

Well-known member
A six inch fan and appropriately sized carbon filter will take care of your tent. I use a Hyperfan. Good price, lightweight, good performance and comes with a speed control standard. My tent is 5x5x8. Regarding noise, you can buy noise reduced fans but you will pay a premium. There are several threads on here regarding DIY solutions for fan silencing (both for silencing the noise of the fan itself as well as for silencing the exhaust noise). Do some searches and you will find them.
 
G

Guest

S&P Silent series. I have one in my tent and my oscillating fan in the tent makes more noise.

http://www.solerpalau-usa.com/products.html

Not cheap but if you want quiet worth it.

I have read some suggestions of a couple other brands but they have the same look of design. The squirrel cage type fans all make a lot more noise. Also using a speed control on a fan that isnt a true multi speed fan will increase the noise. YouTube S&P.

Phresh filters seem to have a good rep and following. I have one and keep it about a year and replace. Im sure there are others.
 
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slaine87

New member
thanks for the replies guys!

I now have to shop around for a decent 36x36x79 grow tent because the one I got ended up having a major defect and I would bet a 100$ that the company likely won't correct the issue...

I think I'll go along with the Vortex S-Line 347 cfm after looking around, seems to be worth the money and I'll slow it down if need be with a speed controller.
 

Boyd Crowder

Teem MiCr0B35
go with a 4" fan and a appropriate filter - get one of those insulating hoses, they reduce noise alot ans well as a blanket wrap for the fanitself will make it neqrly silent

i would not grow in straight ewc/perlite under any circumstances tho
thats me, lets see how you make out with it
 
6 inch vortex is quiet enough and quite strong , with a variable transformer you can dial the speed and strength to keep adecuate negative pressure in your tent and use it later for a bigger tent , also very important is air movement , I recommend 2 fans , one blowing right across the bottom of your light and another one right under the top of your canopy , having air movement will stop stagnant air and humidity from pooling in the corners of the tent .preventing mold , you can have relatively high heat and humidity in your tent and as long as air exchange and movement exist , the plants will thrive, good luck and keep us posted , FSG.
 

slaine87

New member
I'm back! Haven't been here for a while, but everything is running and setup. I have vegged for 10 weeks (from germination) then gave a good 36h of blackout then 12/12 on February 13th, so I'm 1 week into flowering now.

Got the Vortex S-Line 347 cfm, but when I purchased a Vivosun 6 inch carbon filter I learned that it is recommended to use at least a 400cfm fan or higher, so the S-line fell a bit short of that. I wonder what you guys think about that.

I ended up buying and hooking up a 4 inch carbon filter, still from Vivosun. Now everything is running but now my issue is that when I get back home, I notice a definite smell right upon entering my apartment. Humidity has been fluctuating from 40% to 74% RH, so I'm waiting for a dehumidifier (30 pint capacity) to address that, since Vivosun recommends that RH should not exceed about 40-45% for proper odor removal.

The fan also runs at half speed with an Active Air speed controller. If I run it at full speed, should it treat the odors more effectively? I would prefer to keep it at lower speed to keep things quiet...

So what do you guys think/recommend? bear in mind the air does not vent outside; I live in a pretty cold place and the ''breath'' of hot humid air outside that smells faintly of herb would draw immediate suspicion. So the air recirculates in my bedroom all the time.

One thing I'm on the point of considering is to buy another fan, a 400+ cfm one to connect on my other carbon filter, the 6 inch one. I will first try with to lower the humidity with the dehumidifier to see if that does the trick. I would prefer not to spend any more money for this frst grow, but since it's only the first week after flowering I'm a bit anxious as to wait will come next in terms of smell...

Thanks for any help really!
 

Guy Brush

Well-known member
ICMag Donor
Veteran
The filter's cfm numbers must always be higher than the fan's cfm to work properly. You better not match diameters to cfm values. Always look for cfm values for both, the fan AND the filter! For a 400 cfm fan you should at least use a 450 cfm filter. Can't tell if thats enough for your space, we have different measuring units.
 
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slaine87

New member
Thanks for clarifying that. Vivosun did not mention the cfm number for their filters, which is a bit odd. I didn't know the filter had to be of a higher cfm than the fan though.

One friend told me I could also connect the 6 inch filter to the exhaust duct which would then filter the air a second time and push it back into the room. I don't know if the fan would be strong enough to push through it or if it would strain the fan's motor considerably...

By the way, my room is 11 foot x 11 x 8, so that's about 3.5m x 3.5m x 2.5m or 30.6 cubic meters.
 
Hey bud I’d like to chime in on your ordeal , how about making an air scrubber with the 6 inch filter ? That should take car of any runaway stink , good luck , FSG
 
hyperfan and phresh filter - i sized up to run at lower power = quieter. Like someone above said, oscillating fan is louder than the exhaust fan
 

Easy7

Active member
Veteran
4" filter > 4" phat mini muffler > 4" vortex hooked to speed controller > 4" phat mini muffler > 4" duct exhaust.

Muffler will cost about $100 for two, cuts sound in half.
 

Easy7

Active member
Veteran
To go further, the fan can be wrapped in sound absorbing material. Amazon has lot's of options for those.

Mufflers on both ends of the fan, sound absorbing material wrapped fan and a speed controller would be super duper quiet.

It's one thing for someone to see grow tents. Totally different to hear the fans. Tents can look like storage closets for clothes or something if quiet.
 

Sarcclash

Member
Odor IS a major consideration. Carbon filter(oversized)> Vaportek > and a roomsize capable solid state ionizer down stream of that.
 

Spaventa

...
Veteran
First throw away the HPS and MH and get a 315 CMH - you will only need 200 CFM air exchange so a 4" exhaust fan and passive intake will do, rather than a 5 or 6" exhaust fan and 4" intake fan. The savings on fans, filters, ducting and controller will almost pay for the CMH which is waaaaaaay better in every way than a 400 HPS - yield and quality go up, temps come down. Don't buy an expensive ventilation system just to run inefficient, outdated lighting that requires it because modern efficient lighting does not need half the cooling.

Your exact requirement depends on your climate where you are so google "grow room ventilation calculator" will allow you confirm the exact CFM you need.

Fan noise - there are two sources. The motor and fan bearings or the roar/woosh of air moving. An enclosed fan and acoustic ducting will make a 4" 200CFM setup virtually silent running.

Brushless fans like hyperfan etc need digital fan controllers for automation. A 6" digital, silenced fan with controller is more than twice the price of a conventional fan and analog controller. all you get is some energy saving. The fan would need to be used for a few years for the savings to justify the extra cost of digital and most likely it would be superseded before then anyway. Unless you have money to burn, conventional fans and controllers are still more cost effective overall.
 

slaine87

New member
Hey bud I’d like to chime in on your ordeal , how about making an air scrubber with the 6 inch filter ? That should take car of any runaway stink , good luck , FSG

That's exactly what I ended up doing; no smell whatsoever now, at least as long as I do not open the tent! Quite happy about this... So it goes 4 inch CF --> S-Line 6'' fan ---> 6'' CF. I can't post pictures but damnnn I'm pretty sure my v-scrog is doing great for a first timer!

As for the other suggestions, thanks all I will look into that, especially soundproofing the ducts and the fan itself. I probably won't use my grow tent this summer, temps would just skyrocket in my bedroom. However I'll use this spare time to insulate the ducting and the fan itself, like Easy7 suggests.

@Spaventa

My supplies are already bought, but I'll look into that. Never heard of CMH man, def curious about that *opens new tab*

peace
 
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

I've got a serious noise issue right now that was going to be an issue, I can cut that down now.

Much appreciated.

S&P Silent series. I have one in my tent and my oscillating fan in the tent makes more noise.

https://www.solerpalau-usa.com/products.html

Not cheap but if you want quiet worth it.

I have read some suggestions of a couple other brands but they have the same look of design. The squirrel cage type fans all make a lot more noise. Also using a speed control on a fan that isnt a true multi speed fan will increase the noise. YouTube S&P.

Phresh filters seem to have a good rep and following. I have one and keep it about a year and replace. Im sure there are others.
 

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