Containing Odor

[Ganoderma]

what is the best material to contain those intense smells?

I mean besides using carbon filters and ozone generators, what about

plastics like poly-films, metal cabnets, styrafoam(sp?), glass, plexi-glass(sp?)

what works best to help keep most of the smell inside a grow location?

 

[Guest]

I'm not sure why you say "besides carbon filters", because that's really all you need.

However, most people don't understand that negative pressure is the key to successfully using carbon.

Perhaps you can clarify why not carbon and why a structural containment system.

 

[Wrecked]

vaportek 4000 deffinitly beat the carbon scrubber in my grow area for dealing with smells. PeAcE

 

[Ganoderma]

If you ask most people about containing smell they will say, use a carbon filter, and toss in an ozone genorator for good messure.

So if you would like to go one step up to try to further improve the smell containment.

I'm looking to find something to use a "back-up" or a "back-up for back-up". Like if you take a plastic baggie filled with the strongest smelling herb, you can still smell the herb.

does that help? I'm looking for ways to improve odor reduction while using other methods?

 

[Guest]

I see.

I went the way of the ozone gen myself at first, not knowing any better and found it to be for all practical purposes, useless. Of course at the time I was growing 80 plants. That's probably a bit much for ozone, not to mention the health risks associated with its use.

I've since progressed to growing a lot more than 80 plants at a time and still use carbon almost exclusively. However, a small ozone gen rigged into the venting after the scrubber has helped when the carbon was getting tired and needed to be replaced or when there was a leak in the venting that I could not locate in time.

Remember though that ozone has a distinct odour that most cops find to be indicative of a grow as it is very rarely used for anything else in the situations they are likely to encounter it. (ie, your house).

Other than that, mothballs can do an interesting job of stinking up a place that might be experiencing leaks or a poorly functioning scrubber. As for any of the ionizers and that kind of thing, that might work for a closet or something, but not any kind of serious op.

 

[gaiusmarius]

if you want peace of mind as far as the smell goes you will need a very good exhaust system hooked to a scrubber. as Lothar said the secret is the negative pressure. your intake needs to be weaker then your exhaust after the filter is hooked up.then as long as its runing no smell can escape unless through the filter, which if the right size will do a perfect job. just don't keep it longer then 1 year. better switch to a new filter every 3 or 4 times.

if your ventilation and scrubber is too weak then you can add a bathroom smelly thing inside the vent hose after the filter.

peace
gm

 

[Ganoderma]

Okay I guess that I still havent been clear enough,

I know how to set up a system with a carbon filter,

what I'm now driving for is something(info) that I can use to build a grow(or re-inforce) chamber, or line it with that will prevent odors from leeching out of the "box, chamber, closet".

I know if I could make a chamber/box that had a small space to create a vacume(no air at all like in outerspace), since smells cant travel through a vacume(as far as I know)

so what is the worst substance to let odors pass through it, what works better than the worst substance, ect..... and then what is the substance that is the best at keeping odors from passing through it (not including carbon that is used in filters, and ozone)

 

[Ganoderma]

I should also state that I'm not growing anything at the moment and will not be for a while.

 

[gaiusmarius]

if your not growing why don't you listen?

makeing your structure smell proof is a huge undertakeing compared to hanging up an over capacity ventilation with a overcapacity scrubber. the secret is not to let any air escape the grow area unless its through your scrubber.you just make sure that you always have negative pressure in the grow space (ie a vacume). this saves you the hassle of insulating every wall, corner and noock and crany and still haveing smell escape because you don't have negative pressure in your grow.

however if you want to do both, then the best way is to have an air chamber between the grow and the outside walls. use silicon on any cracks. a grow box contained in another box will insure an extra amount of smell saftey.

but again with corect ventilation you don't need to worry about the smell. just goto keep the scrubbers replaced every year. they have great ventilation controlers that will keep the ventilation runing 24/7 but always at the speed needed to keep the temps good. as long as it never turns completly off the smell will not escape.

but basicly you phisical insulation of the grow can be improved with all sorts of material. rock wool, cococoir, foam rubber and sealing every single crack.

 

[Ganoderma]

I'm just trying to thing out side of the box, and come up with other ways of helping with peace of mind.

 

[Guest]

really cant contain odor if you want a good grow.. just odor control...

 

[Guest]

Well, you're asking a really simple question then, but it's very much circumstance dependent. Think like a serial killer. "What could you contain a dead body in that won't let the stink out?"

Certainly nothing that you could go in and out of. No matter what you make your room out of, the weakest link is the door and the in and out. It could be 10 feet of lead, and just going in to water the damn things will be the biggest breach, so in that sense the question is moot.

Pardon me if I'm not getting it, but I personally have a lot of security to worry about and I've learned how to deal with these things. The negative pressure renders irrellevant the wall or container material.

 

[Ganoderma]

Lothar,
so what side of the Neg pressure do you actually place your Filter?

If I could make a grow chamber out of all glass, I know that it would hold back a lot of the smell

If I made a box out of cloth (like a tent) I know that it would not hold the smell as well as the glass chamber.

I'm just trying to look at other ways that one can use besides(along with the use of) carbon filters. I know that I might sound a little excentric, yet i like to try finding other ways of working with things,,,, kind of like trying to build a better mouse trap or improving on that mouse trap,,,,,, some might say if its not broken, why try to fix it? I'm just curious thats all, just like they said that man can't fly, two brothers proved them wrong.

 

[Guest]

Ok, you'll have to excuse me for being dense. (here's a tip: any time you see a time stamp where I'm posting after about 8 at night......I'm probabaly baked )

Anyhow, my point is that I could build a grow room out of canvas or cloth and with more air coming out of it than going in - negative pressure - (and the air coming out going through a carbon scrubber) - you wouldn't smell shit. Simple flow dynamic principles.

My room currently houses 250 plants, and there's a tenant upstairs and open windows usually, so........it works. You can forget about your wall material issues by solving another issue. One method excludes the other as being an issue. Most of us work with walls - drywall and plywood and whatnot. If that don't do it, along with scrubbers and ozone....you're beat. The guy with the glass growroom (like the cage for that dude in X-men at the end) without a scrubber is as useless as the guy with the tent.

My filter is on the inside, to prevent leaks.

I'm pretty sure I'm not making sense anymore, lol, so someone else take over.

 

[Ganoderma]

I guess that I'm looking to create a rating system for differnt kind of materials that we canna farmers have maked grow boxes/chambers out of,,,,, a rating system for how well odors pass throught a substance that houses a grow. where as a carbon filter is an odor removal tool, as is a ozone generator is also a odor removal tool

does that help to "clear things up"?

 

[Guest]

The material used, as far as odor control, is irrelevant. That is not a practical way to control odor.

 

[Guest]

Yeah, I get ya....but even if I shut off the "cleaners" and just seal the room, I can't smell it through drywall or plywood really. I however seal up the room joints with silicone and that crazy aluminum tape.

 

[Guest]

I could build a car with that tape (if you know the shit I mean, you find it in the ducting section)

 

[Ganoderma]

that silver stuff?

 

[Guest]

Yeah, it's not "Duct Tape" brand, it's actually a sort of metal, like the stuff you can use to patch up mufflers and whatnot. Sticks like shit to a blanket and is tough as nails.