600watt compared to 400watt hps

[pseudostelariae]

alright guys, for the past two weeks i've been fighting an uphill battle against the temperature inside my cabinet...i have been determined to put a 600watter inside a 2'deep 3'wide and 4'tall box, but despite an obscene amount of computer fans, a 6inch vortex and a cooltube, i cannot get the temperature under 95 degrees..

my question is, how much cooler would a 400watt be? i knew cooling a 600watter would be no easy accomplishment, and i might have to admit defeat..

 

[GreenScreen]

did you try a cooltube ?? with it blowing into the attic or something...

 

[pseudostelariae]

yep...right now i have the cooltube all sealed up with a 6"vortex fan pushing air over it full power, 2x 12volt computer fans pulling air out of the top of the cabinet, passive intakes drilled in the bottom of the cabinet, and a coolmist humidifier running and the temperature is just under 100degrees.

 

[PurplePotion]

Something isn't right. A 6" Vortex should be able to cool a 600W easy.

I have a hypothesis. Is the hot air that you're exhausting going into the same room as where you're in-taking 'cool' air from?

If not.. where are you exhausting to, and where are you in-taking fresh air from? What is the ambient temp of the room that you are in-taking air from?

Sounds like you're recycling warm air.

 

[pseudostelariae]

yea it feels like something is wrong..that fan hauls. my fan is pulling air from behind the cabinet, pushing it over the light, and out the other side of the box into the general area the fan is sucking in, so i guess i am recycling warm air.

would it help at all to run a longer piece of ducting up to the top of the room away from the vortex intake? my cabinet is in the basement and i can't think of anywhere i could exhaust the air that is also stealthy.

 

[tjc1088]

That just happend to me, I was blowing hot air into the room I was taking it from. temps rose to around 95 degrees in about 4 hours. I have area fans to circulate cool air now.

400w cooltube in 21x36x60 tent with passive intake

 

[sandbar]

Q: Is the vortex inside of the cab?

 

[pseudostelariae]

no, its mounted on the outside of the cabinet

 

[sandbar]

no, its mounted on the outside of the cabinet

it seems that the size of your grow area is much to small for the 600w. Even with a cooltube and fans, a % of the heat produced will dissipate through the glass and into the room. (light hitting the glass = heat, both on inside and outside). If you are dead set on keeping so many watts of light in the room, perhaps you should consider hooking up a second exhaust fan directly to the room to remove hot air around the glass.

IMO a lot of problems could be solved by expanding the grow space or getting less watts.


Edit: I read in one of your posts that the vortex is pushing the air over the light. Here is what I am thinking:

The air in your tube is under high pressure because it is being pushed by the vortex. Because of the high pressure it will be more prone to leaks.

My hypothesis is that if you rearrange your setup so that the vortex is pulling air through the tube and exhausting afterwards, the negative pressure inside the tube will not only reduce heat leaks, but it will promote even more hot air around the tube to be pulled in and removed from the room.

A rough e-sketch:

|duct (optional)| cool tube | duct |vortex ->->-> outside

 

[GreenScreen]

it seems that the size of your grow area is much to small for the 600w. Even with a cooltube and fans, a % of the heat produced will dissipate through the glass and into the room. (light hitting the glass = heat, both on inside and outside). If you are dead set on keeping so many watts of light in the room, perhaps you should consider hooking up a second exhaust fan directly to the room to remove hot air around the glass.

IMO a lot of problems could be solved by expanding the grow space or getting less watts.


Edit: I read in one of your posts that the vortex is pushing the air over the light. Here is what I am thinking:

The air in your tube is under high pressure because it is being pushed by the vortex. Because of the high pressure it will be more prone to leaks.

My hypothesis is that if you rearrange your setup so that the vortex is pulling air through the tube and exhausting afterwards, the negative pressure inside the tube will not only reduce heat leaks, but it will promote even more hot air around the tube to be pulled in and removed from the room.

A rough e-sketch:

|duct (optional)| cool tube | duct |vortex ->->-> outside

i dont think anyone could of said it better

 

[PurplePotion]

Wrong. While I agree that the configuration could be better, it's obvious that a 6" Vortex is more than enough to cool a 600W in a cool-tube, regardless of push or pull configuration. The problem lies in the fact that the OP is merely in-taking the warm air that the Vortex is exhausting.

I can't give a solution, because there isn't one to give. Only you know your setup and arrangement.. Just have to figure out how to get the hot air away from the cab.

 

[GreenScreen]

well i never said it was the fix.. but to me it sounds like passive intakes with the vortex sucking out will be more efficient... but don't take my word for it.. i have never used a light that big so I have no idea how hard it is to cool.. and like purple pointed out i don't know your setup like you do so..


p.s. stoned


Good Day
-GreenScreen

 

[sunnydog]

cool

cool

Try this............
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=87744

 

[pseudostelariae]

alright i am going to give a better description of my setup.
cabinet, 2 sections
top(mother/veg area) 2'd x 3'w x 2.5'h
top has 250w cfl's exhausted with 12v muffin fan and cool mist humidifier

the bottom(unfinished problem area) 2'd x 3'w x 4'h
at my disposal are 2x 12v fans, 6"vortex, 6"duct fan, 600w cooltube

i used to grow in a 10'squared room, so the heat from a 600w only brought the room temperature up a few degrees.
now i am trying to be more stealthy so i have moved into a cabinet inside the same room.

i have tried everything that has been suggested except for the DIY chiller, though that may become an option.

does anyone think that a 400w would be significantly less heat? it is 1/3 less power..i need to drop 20 degrees

 

[SomeGuy]

RV Swamp Coolers
120V Swamp Coolers and portable AC


Heres a link to some 12V Rv Swamp coolers. Notice that they are REAL evaporative coolers and not ice and fan boxes which they claim do not work and seriously increase humidity. They even offer a link and testimonials to a $40 ice box blower that they compare their product to.

Notice too the cost of these boxes and that you can get a portable Ac for about the same money. Portable AC still needs an exhaust for the hot air it produces though.


I didn't search but I think there are some threads here on building your own swamp cooler. Good luck! I hope you get it sorted out.

 

[sandbar]

alright i am going to give a better description of my setup.
cabinet, 2 sections
top(mother/veg area) 2'd x 3'w x 2.5'h
top has 250w cfl's exhausted with 12v muffin fan and cool mist humidifier

the bottom(unfinished problem area) 2'd x 3'w x 4'h
at my disposal are 2x 12v fans, 6"vortex, 6"duct fan, 600w cooltube

i used to grow in a 10'squared room, so the heat from a 600w only brought the room temperature up a few degrees.
now i am trying to be more stealthy so i have moved into a cabinet inside the same room.

i have tried everything that has been suggested except for the DIY chiller, though that may become an option.

does anyone think that a 400w would be significantly less heat? it is 1/3 less power..i need to drop 20 degrees

Try:

The room should stay around the same temp as the cab. If you do not have room to run the ducting & vortex through the upper chamber of the cab you can cut a hole in the back or something.

 

[pseudostelariae]

thanks for the help everyone...i tried all the suggestions but the only thing i accomplished was cutting a few more holes lol

i must admit defeat the 600 is just too hot for this small a space

now i just need opinions...would a 400 be a safe bet to order? i planned to buy another 400w or 600w to grow my vegetables anyway and this way i can just hook all my cooltubes together and suck all the heat right out the window with another inline fan.

so inline fan>400wcooltube>ducting>600wcooltube>ducting>inline fan>outside

ok...my options...400w(definitely preferred) or a downgrade to a 250w
what do you think?

 

[ithruxix]

have the vortex pulling, not pushing, the hot air FROM your cab OUT of the room your cab is in.

Hope that helps.

 

[GirthDogg]

Go with a 430w. It will still create monster buds.

 

[samba]

exhaust the hot air out of the room..?!