Any Sealed Junkies ???

[cjk]

i currently run a vented setup and i'll be sticking with it for the mean time as it works great! i have been really interested in sealed grows though lately as being in total control of everything including c02 is appetizing. my question is regarding methods of air cooling your hoods. i've noticed a lot of people cool their lights with air from outside and then vent them back outside or to another room in the house to provide warmth during cold months. my problem is that i live in a very warm / humid climate. how cold does the air need to be for bringing in outside air to cool the lights? even at night the lows aren't very low. i know i could draw air from an air conditioned space and vent that outside or into the attic but wouldn't this be a big waste of a/c especially if i'm using huge fans for a lot of cooling? would it be better to route the exhaust back into a room in the house to be reairconditioned?? any thoughts would be appreciated...

 

[Phillthy]

i will only build sealed rooms. nothing to see, hear, smell.. you have total control over temp, humidity, co2 levels, etc. i cool the room with ac and no other cooling of the lights is necessary.

 

[Richard Head]

edited by the editor

 

[Richard Head]

edited by the editor

 

[Aerohead]

I used to run nothing but sealed rooms for years because I really liked the control it offered especially regarding odors...

These days, I am more into yield v.s. the cost of the grow and I am happy to ditch the A/C and co2 in favor of a lean, less complex grow room. I am finding out that the extra expense of running a sealed room doesn't always pay off in the end regarding cash up front v.s. return.... I don't know if I will ever go back to a sealed grow... These days a good carbon scrubber and a huge exhaust fan is alot easier to maintain than a sealed room.

 

[cjk]

i will only build sealed rooms. nothing to see, hear, smell.. you have total control over temp, humidity, co2 levels, etc. i cool the room with ac and no other cooling of the lights is necessary.

i've noticed a lot of people aren't air cooling the sealed rooms. i guess you just need a lot of cooling power. thx for the tip...

 

[cjk]

whats up cjk?

generally speaking, when people run a sealed room, their lights are on a separate path 'so to speak'.......As in - usually their lights are of the "air cooled" type....therefore they are separate from the room..........You can pull air from just about anywhere 'outside' to cool your lights - even if the air coming in to cool your lights is 100 degrees Fahrenheit, it will cool your lights just fine........
Think of it as 2 separate zones.... One zone is the air used to cool your lights - which is entirely separate from your grow room....The other zone is your 'sealed' grow room.....In that room there are no vents or ducts taking in air or expelling air.....

hope my explaining isn't complicating things....

peace ~

i understand the different zones but the other part of your answer hit my question right on the head. i was confused on if it was okay to cool the lights with "hot" outside air as i'm in a very hot / humid area. i guess running insulated ducting would help keep this radiant hot outside air less influencing on room temps. thx!!

 

[cjk]

I used to run nothing but sealed rooms for years because I really liked the control it offered especially regarding odors...

These days, I am more into yield v.s. the cost of the grow and I am happy to ditch the A/C and co2 in favor of a lean, less complex grow room. I am finding out that the extra expense of running a sealed room doesn't always pay off in the end regarding cash up front v.s. return.... I don't know if I will ever go back to a sealed grow... These days a good carbon scrubber and a huge exhaust fan is alot easier to maintain than a sealed room.

i'm kind of in agreement hear as i get great gpw results with my vented set up. i know in the future though i will want to try something new...

 

[Aerohead]

Nothing wrong with trying something new, that's what it's all about. I'm not knocking sealed rooms, maybe I'm just getting lazy these days. For me, a vented room is trying something new...

 

[dragunn]

if its hot outside,i would not pull the air through my hoods.id use air cooled hoods using a/c cooled air from a near by room.cant cool you hoods with hot air.

i have two rooms.the air cooled hoods can get a foot closer to the tops.no burn or bleaching.super frosty.aaa bud.

the secound room had open hoods,two feet from the tops.still would get a little burn and bleaching if i didnt move the plants around.awsome bud.but the difference is night and day.

its trade off.extra ducting,vortex fans,heavy hoods with glass,cleaning the glass,ect....

 

[MileHighGuy]

@ Aerohead, seems like it would be more difficult to seal off a Vert Grow... No Cooled hoods... Did that play a factor in your decision?

 

[cjk]

if its hot outside,i would not pull the air through my hoods.id use air cooled hoods using a/c cooled air from a near by room.cant cool you hoods with hot air.

i have two rooms.the air cooled hoods can get a foot closer to the tops.no burn or bleaching.super frosty.aaa bud.

the secound room had open hoods,two feet from the tops.still would get a little burn and bleaching if i didnt move the plants around.awsome bud.but the difference is night and day.

its trade off.extra ducting,vortex fans,heavy hoods with glass,cleaning the glass,ect....

i understand that air conditioned air would be ideal but i don't want to be pushing 500 cfm's of my central a/c's air outside. it just seems like a giant waste. therefore, i would either have to vent back into the house somewhere or just pull the hot air from outside. even if it's 90 degrees it seems like it would still be beneficial as the temp of the bulbs is way hotter...

 

[Guest 150314]

I used to run nothing but sealed rooms for years because I really liked the control it offered especially regarding odors...

These days, I am more into yield v.s. the cost of the grow and I am happy to ditch the A/C and co2 in favor of a lean, less complex grow room. I am finding out that the extra expense of running a sealed room doesn't always pay off in the end regarding cash up front v.s. return.... I don't know if I will ever go back to a sealed grow... These days a good carbon scrubber and a huge exhaust fan is alot easier to maintain than a sealed room.

This is the truth, I wouldn't run a sealed room unless I was in the dessert or rainforest. You can control a room very well with in/out fans and a cycle stat, just make sure you have a heater and dehumidifier to run when needed.

Smell shouldn't be an issue if you create negative pressure running the outtake at night to prevent odor leaking.

 

[bluekush]

if your worried just run the lights at night its way better anyways

 

[organicsquirrel]

if your worried just run the lights at night its way better anyways

Work on your garden in the evenings and night times for stealth/convenience and a bonus is easier temp control.


+1

 

[Tuhder]

if its hot outside,i would not pull the air through my hoods.id use air cooled hoods using a/c cooled air from a near by room.cant cool you hoods with hot air.

That statement is incorrect. First of all, I would never pull air from "Outside" to cool your lights if you live in a humid climate. Thats common sense.

The surface temp of a 400w HPS bulb will reach almost 750 degrees fahrenheit. Your telling us that 100 degree air rushing past the bulb wont cool it down? You sir, are misinformed.

CJK, Look at the basics of air "cooled" hoods. The objective is really not to "cool" at all. While some cooling of the hood itself does take place, Your not going to stop that bulb from producing the heat it produces. The objective is to trap the heat generated by the lamps so it doesn't escape into the room and remove that heat, with air. It doesn't matter if that air is 300F, Because its about air movement not air temps, That 300F air is still pushing the heat generated by the lamp out of the hood. Why does your grow room stay cooler? Because the heat from the lamps is not escaping into the room, Not because the air passing through them is magically making the bulbs "cooler" or not produce as much heat.

Im not saying you cant make your hoods "cooler" by using colder air, Thats common sense also. You will see a drop in the surface temp of the glass if you use colder air to vent the hoods, Which in turn means you can place the lights closer to the plants. How much closer with 65F air compared to 100F air? Who knows?. But the same principles apply to all air "cooled" hoods, Your pushing out hot air with a steady air stream through the hoods. Thats their purpose, Regardless of that air's temp.

 

[cjk]

That statement is incorrect. First of all, I would never pull air from "Outside" to cool your lights if you live in a humid climate. Thats common sense.

The surface temp of a 400w HPS bulb will reach almost 750 degrees fahrenheit. Your telling us that 100 degree air rushing past the bulb wont cool it down? You sir, are misinformed.

CJK, Look at the basics of air "cooled" hoods. The objective is really not to "cool" at all. While some cooling of the hood itself does take place, Your not going to stop that bulb from producing the heat it produces. The objective is to trap the heat generated by the lamps so it doesn't escape into the room and remove that heat, with air. It doesn't matter if that air is 300F, Because its about air movement not air temps, That 300F air is still pushing the heat generated by the lamp out of the hood. Why does your grow room stay cooler? Because the heat from the lamps is not escaping into the room, Not because the air passing through them is magically making the bulbs "cooler" or not produce as much heat.

Im not saying you cant make your hoods "cooler" by using colder air, Thats common sense also. You will see a drop in the surface temp of the glass if you use colder air to vent the hoods, Which in turn means you can place the lights closer to the plants. How much closer with 65F air compared to 100F air? Who knows?. But the same principles apply to all air "cooled" hoods, Your pushing out hot air with a steady air stream through the hoods. Thats their purpose, Regardless of that air's temp.

this is along the lines of my thought process. how do you think this should be done in humid climates??

 

[Richard Head]

edited by the editor

 

[Tuhder]

this is along the lines of my thought process. how do you think this should be done in humid climates??

Thats a tough call. I dont know enough information about where your growing to give you a definitive answer to that question. Not so much as in location, But is it a house with an attic or a basement?, Is it a commercial building? Is it a apartment or a duplex? I have no idea what your options are as far as "Where can I pull my air from?"

Some options.

You can pull your air from outside, but there will definitely have to be precautions taken to ensure your not sucking moisture into your hoods and ruining bulbs. I have never personally done it and I dont know anything about doing it except it can go bad quick. I dont recommend this option, But it is an option I guess.

Any unused space. A garage, an attic, a spare bedroom, a basement, a crawl space, a closet, Etc....

The grow room, Exhaust the grow room through your hoods. I have seen a lot of people in real life effectively use this method so I know it works. You kill two birds with one stone, You exhaust your room and vent the lights with the same fan. The only thing is, For this to work you need to have that exhaust running the entire time you have your lights on. Its up to your environment and your air displacement wether or not leaving your exhaust on for that long is ok.

Theres two potential problems with this method. If your using Co2, Then this is not an option at all because you need your exhaust to shut down for the room to hold Co2 and your lights need to be continually vented to remove heat. The other problem, If your using AC that nice cool air will constantly be sucked out. My experience with this method was in a cooler climate in the northern United States where AC is used much less than in the south.

I have never grown in any location that I couldn't find a place to pull air from and believe me, I have been in some shitty places where I should not have been growing. You might have to get a little creative to find the spot, but you'll find it. I personally have always used the " Unused Space" option and vent the hoods separate from exhausting the room.

I agree with bluekush also, Run those lights at night unless your worried about thermal imaging devices.

 

[cjk]

currently i exhuast through carbon filter and then thru the hoods but this is a vented room. none the less, thanks for thehelp