Screw-in LED Stacking Totes

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Hey Friends, frequent lurker, not usually a poster but I'm hoping this will help me stay motivated as well as recieve useful input. I found these modular Stacking sterilite totes at wally world and the 10gal box seemed perfect for a recessed lighting box deal for screw in LED's.

I'm almost done with the build of one unit but two Arctic 80mm F8 silent type fans 15cfm each at .08 sone (zero noise) just wasn't enough to pull enough air through the home made carbon filters so now I'm trying out some other brand 80mm's that are double the cfm, as well as making a new carbon filter with much more surface area and I'm going to have to re do my intake light trap and probably make a scrub ninja stacked angles type one.

I'm gonna try to get some pictures up very soon so y'all wonderful micro makers can see what I got going and hopefully lend me a couple pennies worth off advice.

If the picture below works out, it's an old modular scrog plant from probably 7 years ago lol, that I'm proud of.

Jellyfish · Oct 9, 2016

Nice buds, you must be doin' something right!

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Thanks Jellyfish!! I had 32 of those crammed in a 4 x 8 tent (1per/sqft) several years back.

Due to muffed up circumstances life dealt I've been out of the game completely for a year or so and now I'm just trying to get some stealth totes going to slowly make a come back and live the dream once again.

So here's a top down view of the light box it's pretty self explanatory.

Those are 9 or 8.5w eco smart 5000k bulbs cause first box will be too pop seeds and make mums and then subsequent totes will be sog cabs, the bottom grow chamber tote will be smaller for the boom boxes,

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

So here's some more pictures of what's going on.

Pic of opening tote

Lid of grow chamber tote, flush with LED's

Makin a filter... makin a filter... -biodome

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Here's the mum tote stack from the outside... it's a 10gal on top of a 27gal. These modular stackers from sterilite have so many possibilities. :woohoo:

See what I mean, look at that stack in the sticker picture, I see pants in the bottom one, lights in the one above it, a filter in the next, a top off res in another, etc.

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Light trap fail :/

Light trap fail :/

I found this ventilation flashing at home depot and thought it might work just as well as scrub ninjas stacked angles light trap but be much quicker and easier to put together... me thinks I was wrong now.

See it kinda looks good like it might work but.. it lets too much through still probably because half the flaps point in the opposite direction... I think I'm just gonna try replace these with the actual SNSA(scrub ninja stacked angle) type. I might try and use wood molding or something for the angles.

Whatchyall' think?! Is there a way to make this flashing work? Probably not one that will keep it simple and easy..I think I'd have to cut them in half vertically where the direction changes and then stack them with the flaps both facing down and then there'd have to be a lot of them to allow enough air flow... some one please chime in this!!

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Shoot, I'm a posting newbie I meant to post this in micro grows... :/ could a mod please move it there? If I can do that maybe some one can tell me how?

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

Would any one like to weigh in on the holes around my lights? Do you think they're big enough? It'll be a pain in my arse to widen them but i will if I have to... I'm thinking that point in the air flow chain could be a bit ofa coke and adding to why I couldn't get the temps low enough. Every time I did a dry run so far it was high 80's! No me gusta. I want 80 max pref as low as 75. We'll see with stronger fans and a filter with much more surface area and a better intake light trap design if the temps will be in check. I hate having to re do things

ScrogMonster · Oct 9, 2016

I got a little more done.

I hope this new fangled filter works out. The activated charcoal prefilter might work on its own for a couple weeks as this is a veg tote... But it's purpose is actually to hold a thin layer of this fine granular activated carbon....

ScrogMonster · Oct 10, 2016

It's all a tight fit in there. I'd think that as long as I have enough air flow the air being sucked around the bulbs through the lid would keep almost all the heat out of grow chamber and I'd see a 5 degree raise above ambient at most... each of those 80mm fans are only 32 cfm I'm not sure that's enough.. 1.5mmh20 each I'm not sure. I'm going the good bit of surface area the carbon filter has will make up for. The filter is two 10x20 seedling trays with the tops cut off. Then one has the middle cut out and 1/4" wire mesh screen attached then placed upside down in the other and taped all together with an activated charcoal filter pad taped on place in such a way that the aluminum tape creates a small divit/tray to hold a thin layer of fine activated carbon and of coarse that's 3" ducting coming from the bottom leading to the 80mm fans.

ScrogMonster · Oct 10, 2016

I guess I can't edit my posts but meant to say horizontally not vertically when I was talking about cutting the ventilation flashing.

Jellyfish · Oct 10, 2016

Instead of increasing the size of the holes around the lights, why not just drill some smaller holes in the light box ceiling?

ScrogMonster · Oct 10, 2016

Jellyfish said:
Instead of increasing the size of the holes around the lights, why not just drill some smaller holes in the light box ceiling?

thanks for stopping by again Jelly, I suppose I could do that, It'd certainly be much easier and faster. Do you think I need more space for air to flow through the lid? That's more the question. Also the only reason I might widen the holes around the lights instead would be so that all the air flow is going right around the LED's to keep them cooler possibly keep the grow chamber cooler as well, going for kind of an air cooled lights sort of deal and I think holes elsewhere might lessen that effect a bit.

Jellyfish · Oct 10, 2016

ScrogMonster said:
thanks for stopping by again Jelly, I suppose I could do that, It'd certainly be much easier and faster. Do you think I need more space for air to flow through the lid?

I couldn't answer that question unless I saw your set up in person. ANY holes you put in the light-box ceiling will increase airflow. I guess if it was the big holes that the lights are in, that would be a wee bit better, but how much I don't know.

ScrogMonster · Oct 11, 2016

Thanks for the idea I will definitely keep it my bank pocket, I hadn't considered that. We'll see if the stronger fans, new air filter, and better intake light trap will hopefully increase the air flow enough to keep the temps at a more ideal range. I'll post updates after i fix these things and we'll see. Once I get airflow/temps dialed in then it's time to pop beans and make more totes for flowering. ^ ^

ScrogMonster · Oct 13, 2016

How can I get this thread moved to micro grows?

Payaso · Oct 14, 2016

This thread has been moved... thanks for showing us how this is done. Seems like a great solution for the home grower that hasn't got thousands to sink into a growroom.

Glad to have you aboard ScrogMonster!

Aggilator · Oct 14, 2016

Welcome home.

I agree not being able to edit your posts before you have 50 of them is silly and redundant lol,especially on a forum for marijuana connoisseurs.

ScrogMonster · Oct 14, 2016

Payaso said:
This thread has been moved... thanks for showing us how this is done. Seems like a great solution for the home grower that hasn't got thousands to sink into a growroom.

Glad to have you aboard ScrogMonster!

Thanks Payaso! I can't wait to get it up and running and share the solutions to the problems I'm coming across with the build. I'd love to hear ideas for improvements from some of the experienced micro growers out there too!

ScrogMonster · Oct 14, 2016

Thanks Alligator, same to you! Looks like your gonna make one of these as well? Please feel free to post pics here of your progress I'd love to see how yours comes together!

Screw-in LED Stacking Totes

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