Attaching filter to inline fan.....

[horton711]

I recently purchased a 6" inline fan and filter combo (Hydro Planet). Upon receiving and checking out the goodies, I realized there is no instruction about how to reliably attach the rather bulky and heavy filter to the fan. There is not much of a flange on the filter nor the fan and of course I could not tell this from the advertisement pics.
And once I figure out how to attach the two, is it best to have only the filter in my tent or is it OK to have both the fan and filter in the tent?
I feel like a real idiot for not being more thorough in my purchasing but what's done is done. Now I need to get this stuff up and running before my plants become overheated.
I have a 4' x 4' x 80" Apollo tent, 6 DWC buckets, and two 6" clip on fans for circulation. The air pumps are outside of the tent. Two MarsHydro 300W LED's and one GalaxyHydro 300W LED.
Thanks very much for helping me.......

 

[justanotherbozo]

I recently purchased a 6" inline fan and filter combo (Hydro Planet). Upon receiving and checking out the goodies, I realized there is no instruction about how to reliably attach the rather bulky and heavy filter to the fan. There is not much of a flange on the filter nor the fan and of course I could not tell this from the advertisement pics.
And once I figure out how to attach the two, is it best to have only the filter in my tent or is it OK to have both the fan and filter in the tent?
I feel like a real idiot for not being more thorough in my purchasing but what's done is done. Now I need to get this stuff up and running before my plants become overheated.
I have a 4' x 4' x 80" Apollo tent, 6 DWC buckets, and two 6" clip on fans for circulation. The air pumps are outside of the tent. Two MarsHydro 300W LED's and one GalaxyHydro 300W LED.
Thanks very much for helping me.......

here is a shot of my 4 x 4 tent where i run a 600watt HPS in a barebulb vertical setup and the exhaust consists of an 8" Vortex S-Line fan on a speed controller and a scrubber with a 6" flange, ...note that the fan and scrubber are both securely mounted to a piece of plywood sitting atop the tent framework, note also that the fan and scrubber are connected by first an 8" to 6" reducer coming off the fan and then a compression type ducting clamp with a rubber lining to buffer vibration.

...take special note that the scrubber is NOT structurally held in place by that clamp, the clamp connects the 2 pieces but the weight of the scrubber is held by straps hung from S-hooks that are then hung from the tents framework (your tent should have come with some straps meant for this purpose). ...the fan is securely bolted to that plywood with 2x 2x4 blocks as spacers.

...as you look at the picture note that the fan is ducted directly out the side of the tent and pulls air into the tent from the passive intakes below and not pictured, ...don't be confused by the scrubber end's proximity to the other side of the tent as it is NOT connected, that side vent is closed, it's just that the fan/scrubber combo fits all the way across the tent.

...the straighter the air path the more efficient the fan will run and using an oversized fan with a speed controller gives you the flexibility to turn the fan down most times while having additional power that can be applied during those times when heat becomes an issue.

hope this helps, bozo

 

[horton711]

Thank you so much, justanotherbozo..... your picture is worth a thousand words!! I hadn't considered using a piece of wood for mounting the fan -- I kept trying to figure a way using large cable ties.... duh....lol.
Do you use any kind of dampening on the fan mount? I think I see two small 2 x 4's or perhaps hard rubber between the fan mount and plywood.
My tent did come with the two straps and I will make use of them. I also can see that this will be a 2 person project....lol. I don't think I have enough arms and hands to hold everything in place for final mounting. I also now see I should have had all my tent "infrastructure" in place before putting the plants in. I now have to do some major shuffling around to get this job done.
Unfortunately, I will need to have a few tight turns in the ducting (at least for the time being) but the fan is rated at >400 CFM so hopefully I'll have enough air movement. I suppose I could always put another inline fan down low if I do need more air movement?
Is there a brand name for the for the compression ducting clamp? I stopped by a Home Depot yesterday and described a clamp like that and I got only blank stares......
Again, my sincere thanks for your detailed explanation...... I want to do this right but there sure aren't any manuals to consult when it comes time for assembly. I think the forum is much better than a manual though!!

 

[DoubleTripleOG]

You do not need to have the fan inside the tent to answer your question. If your having trouble hooking the filter to the fan, you can use a small length of ductwork, with 6" clamps/duct tape to connect the two together.

Are you venting the air from the tent into the same room that it sits in? You might have problems with the temp rising too high. But maybe not since your using LED's. I would still try to get the exhaust air as far away form the tent as you can. Into another room would be ideal. And obviously bring fresh air into the tent from the opening closest to the floor, where your coolest air will be.

 

[horton711]

DoubleTripleOG.... thanks for your reply...... Because of cramped quarters in the tent room, I may have to mount it inside, but I'd prefer outside so as to lessen heat issues.
I am having quite a time getting the 6" flex duct over the filter flange. Either the ducting is cheap, the filter flange is oversized, or both.....lol. The compression clamp looks better and better the longer I fight with this ducting.....
The air will be vented out a window. I'm rigging up a "plate" with a hole in it for the ducting so the window will remain fairly well sealed.
Thanks again for the help...... I am feeling much more confident now!!

 

[justanotherbozo]

Thank you so much, justanotherbozo..... your picture is worth a thousand words!! I hadn't considered using a piece of wood for mounting the fan -- I kept trying to figure a way using large cable ties.... duh....lol.
Do you use any kind of dampening on the fan mount? I think I see two small 2 x 4's or perhaps hard rubber between the fan mount and plywood.
My tent did come with the two straps and I will make use of them. I also can see that this will be a 2 person project....lol. I don't think I have enough arms and hands to hold everything in place for final mounting. I also now see I should have had all my tent "infrastructure" in place before putting the plants in. I now have to do some major shuffling around to get this job done.
Unfortunately, I will need to have a few tight turns in the ducting (at least for the time being) but the fan is rated at >400 CFM so hopefully I'll have enough air movement. I suppose I could always put another inline fan down low if I do need more air movement?
Is there a brand name for the for the compression ducting clamp? I stopped by a Home Depot yesterday and described a clamp like that and I got only blank stares......
Again, my sincere thanks for your detailed explanation...... I want to do this right but there sure aren't any manuals to consult when it comes time for assembly. I think the forum is much better than a manual though!!

...here is a link to a pair of 6" clamps on ebay, if you need other sizes they are easily found on ebay.

Neoprene Duct Clamp

...i wanted to mention too that you are right that there are no manuals so often it is the interweb where you find the most help although there are downsides to this as well, ...it can become quite contentious so maybe a better approach in your search for knowledge is to spend more time researching through the Sticky's and the older threads, sadly, way too much excellant information becomes lost in the fullness of time.

...on that note here is a link to a thread posted by member @pontiac back in 2006 that is still active today although i've not been around these parts enough lately to know if pontiac himself is still active in the thread, i know he maintained the thread for years.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=40637ICMAG'S OFFICIAL ~DIY~ LINK-O-RAMA

...what this is is a list of some of the best DIY projects on the net on almost any aspect of growing you can think of and what pontiac did was he compiled a list of the best of the best and created links to each thread so folks could easily find a project similar to their particular need, ...so if you have a project in mind scanning this list and then studying a few of these older threads will almost certainly give you several ideas on how to approach your project.

oh yeah, you're welcome for the help, believe me i got plenty of help back in the day and i'm sure when the time comes you will take your turn and help out your own bad self as and where you can.

good luck, bozo

btw, you need to post up some pictures of the setup so maybe folks can give you more specific suggestions.

 

[horton711]

Thanks for the links, Bozo...... I must be honest and admit that I haven't yet looked over all the Stickys -- I only recently came to the forum. I got behind the eight ball due to poor planning and do feel badly for not taking more time to read.
I'm a strong believer in passing on gained knowledge -- we all had to start at the beginning.
In terms of pics -- do you recommend using a site like Photobucket or just uploading from your computer?
I just wrestled that flex duct over the filter flange (what a pain) but it is only going to stay that way until I get one of the duct clamps ordered. The clamps will make moving stuff around or modifying much easier.......

 

[Chunkypigs]

I tried hanging a 6" fan + Filter 1 time in a 5x5. it was a cluster fuck and took up too much plant space.
now I just set the filter on the floor outside the tent, tape the fan on top of the filter and run a sheet duct to one of the top side ports of the tent.

for hanging I drill and screw the fan and filter together with #10 sheet metal screws in 3 or more places flange to flange.

one large fan/filter can cool several tents.

 

[Vanilla Phoenix]

I tried hanging a 6" fan + Filter 1 time in a 5x5. it was a cluster fuck and took up too much plant space.
now I just set the filter on the floor outside the tent, tape the fan on top of the filter and run a sheet duct to one of the top side ports of the tent.

for hanging I drill and screw the fan and filter together with #10 sheet metal screws in 3 or more places flange to flange.

one large fan/filter can cool several tents.

View Image

I do the exact same thing. Only my fan, wye, and scrubber are in the attic.

I know the scrubber is being blown in to instead of sucked thru, but I've never had a problem with smell like this.

 

[horton711]

I agree that hanging the filter and fan in the 4x4 is going to take up precious space although I do have autos growing. Even so, by the time you take the height of the buckets, and lights hanging from the top space is limited to ~3 - 4 feet. (that's my eyeball estimate).
Right now I'm leaning toward a "hybrid" of what Bozo and Chunky suggest -- the filter suspended in the tent and the fan outside. Like most of my projects, planning is not the best so I always manage to paint myself into corners....lol. But I think I've figured a way to suspend the fan from the ceiling of the room using threaded rod, connecting the fan to the filter with the flex duct, and then running the exhaust to the window. It looks to be the best way to minimize airflow resistance due to lots of turns in the ducting. (I hope this is making sense). My other alternative is to vent into the "attic" in this house as Vanilla does. That would entail a fairly long run of ducting though.
I'm irked with myself for not checking out this fan/filter combo I purchased to make sure the fan and filter would fit without hassle. What I have is a filter flange and fan flange that simply butt together so I'm left with either purchasing a neoprene clamp or taping the bejebbers out of the butt joint and making sure everything is suspended safely. Next time I will use better due diligence in my purchasing.
This is off topic but I wanted to ask about giving thanks or likes to those who are helping me. Do I need a certain number of posts to do so? I also would like to be able to edit my posts.
I'm also still trying to figure out the best way for posting pics. Use a service or simply upload from my system. Is one way preferred over the other?
Thanks again to everyone who has helped me. Just being able to "talk this over" has greatly aided my thought process for figuring a suitable way of installing the fan and filter.