diy carbon filter vs store bought

[señorsloth]

I know this is a very subjective question, because everybody's diy carbon filter design is a little different and everybody's grow space, strain, ventilation, lighting...they are all different as well and effect the usefulness of the persons diy carbon filter. that said...

is there anybody that has switched from a pretty well made diy carbon filter to a similar size store bought one? i'm pretty sure i'm not the only person that has considered upgrading...and i am hoping for input from others who have done this already.

i have a very very well made diy carbon filter, i looked at every single tutorial on the net, searched 3-4 pet shops for the best carbon, and 3-4 hardware stores for supplies, as of yet i haven't seen a better design but it cost me almost as much to make as a new filter, maybe even more. (considering i can buy a similar sized filter at the store for 60 bucks) with all that said i cannot get it to last more than 3 months without smell starting to leak, i tried new carbon this time and it was quite expensive.

my filter takes about 5 liters of carbon and i'm already getting smell leaking at week 6 of flowering, but i refilled with new carbon a month before my last crop was done, so i'm getting about 2.5 months of smell free living per 50+ bucks worth of carbon. i have read that store bought filters will last up to a year...to me it seems to me that store bought filters are probably cheeper than diy ones unless you buy carbon in bulk and refill it several times, considering it would cost me over 200 dollars a year to keep carbon refreshed in my diy when i could buy an oversized store bought filter for $120 and have it last me a year, in theory...

so what about you guys, have you noticed that store bought filters last longer than diy filters with fish tank carbon in it? i'm heading to the hydro shop tomorow for one regardless but is that correct? will i really save as much as i think i will? or will a long term, refillable diy model be cheeper? i realize that pot is worth a lot of money and 200 bucks a year is a small cost for the amount of weed i grow but my diy filter stops working several times a year and without much warning, and i don't always have money ready for new carbon when it happens. for me longer lasting filters would be better for security...but do they last longer?

 

[100% Dundee]

I know companies like Mountain Air and Phresh, which produce some of the best/longest lasting carbon filters you can buy, use special/more pure carbon in their filters. You might be able to get your DIY filter to last a little bit longer if you buy their replacement carbon and try using that.

Other than that, do you have the appropriately sized fan for your scrubber? How about the humidity, is it too high? Both of those things can really shorten the lifespan of a carbon filter, especially a DIY one. Another thing you can do is make the layer of carbon thicker on your filter if your fan can still pull through it, that should also make the filter last longer/scrub the air better.

Edit: This video explains a bit about the process they use on the carbon in the Phresh filters specifically.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yVNhOuTG0Y

 

[señorsloth]

Other than that, do you have the appropriately sized fan for your scrubber? How about the humidity, is it too high? Both of those things can really shorten the lifespan of a carbon filter, especially a DIY one. Another thing you can do is make the layer of carbon thicker on your filter if your fan can still pull through it, that should also make the filter last longer/scrub the air better.

i have a big enough fan, 190 cfm for a 40 cubic foot cab, and my filter is pretty thick, almost 2 inches, and as i said well over a gallon of carbon total. i think the main issue is just low grade pet store carbon. the main reason i am upgrading i guess is because if i can buy a carbon filter for 120 bucks that has double the carbon and surface area as the one i have and could last up to a year(is that even realistic?) or spend a lot of money, at 12 bucks a liter it ends up over 60 bucks to refill and lasts 1/4th the time(apparently)...

so do they really last a year when set up correctly in a pot garden? i just figure they may advertize 1 year because it's meant for legal crops, and was tested on tomatoes and basil or something? it almost seems unbelievable because i have been using diy carbon filters for years and have never gotten more than 4 months out of one, regardless of the design. ive also never bought a store bought one because i always just assumed my diy was much cheeper and just as effective...

also, is there anybody that has switched from a decent home made filter to a store bought one? id like to here about what you thought, mine seems to make a decent amount of hissing noise, i'm curious as to whether the store bought ones might be quieter...

 

[marrdogg]

ebay!

ebay!

i have a big enough fan, 190 cfm for a 40 cubic foot cab, and my filter is pretty thick, almost 2 inches, and as i said well over a gallon of carbon total. i think the main issue is just low grade pet store carbon. the main reason i am upgrading i guess is because if i can buy a carbon filter for 120 bucks that has double the carbon and surface area as the one i have and could last up to a year(is that even realistic?) or spend a lot of money, at 12 bucks a liter it ends up over 60 bucks to refill and lasts 1/4th the time(apparently)...

so do they really last a year when set up correctly in a pot garden? i just figure they may advertize 1 year because it's meant for legal crops, and was tested on tomatoes and basil or something? it almost seems unbelievable because i have been using diy carbon filters for years and have never gotten more than 4 months out of one, regardless of the design. ive also never bought a store bought one because i always just assumed my diy was much cheeper and just as effective...

also, is there anybody that has switched from a decent home made filter to a store bought one? id like to here about what you thought, mine seems to make a decent amount of hissing noise, i'm curious as to whether the store bought ones might be quieter...

I'm assuming you have a 4in by the cfm? If so you could go on the bay and get one for around $45 free shipping. I got two for my dry box and they work like a charm, I have one mounted inside box with inline fan sucking out air and pushing it through the second, controls odor of at least 30oz's at a time! Been using for about 4 months and their still going strong! PEACE!

 

[señorsloth]

no 6 inch, and i don't buy things online much, i don't really have a decent place to have stuff mailed anymore, or i would be all over it, besides the ones at my shop are fairly affordable, don't know the brands offhand though

 

[señorsloth]

hey here is a little update, since nobody chimed in, i guess i'll report my own experience going from years of diy filters or no filters at all to a store bought one...

the filter i ended up getting was a Can Filter 33, it's about the same height as my diy one, but it's about double the diameter and 3-4 times heavier than my diy one. there is easily 3 times as much carbon if not more(and a better grade carbon at that!), i was worried because the carbon layer appears to be almost twice as thick as my diy one and i thought air flow might be greatly reduced.

for whatever reason, this thing rocks! airflow is actually better than my diy one, despite all the extra carbon, and the fact that the screen in the can fan has a tighter mesh. my diy one used 1/4 inch hardware fencing. the holes in the can fan are tiny compared but it does work better! and thanks to the weight of the filter i don't need a flange or anything, i just have a 6 inch hole on the top of my cab and set the filter over it, within 10 minutes my whole apartment was smelling better!(a good thing because i just bought a ton of happy frog, and it was reaking up my house like some kinda loamy rainforest floor!)

 

[Hammerhead]

Carbon filters bought from the store use different carbon the used for water. After I used up the first batch of carbon that came with my scrubber I used Black Diamond carbon. It works but wont last as long as Coconut fiber carbon.

granular activated carbons are ideal for most air purification purposes. Made from selected grades of coconut shell, their superior level of hardness makes them cleaner than most other carbons and gives them longer life expectancy. This, combined with their high activity level, makes them well suited for use in any kind of carbon filter or system. Aside from general air purification and deodorization, our coconut shell carbons are also very effective in solvent recovery applications



[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Coconut fiber Carbon Iodine No., mg/g:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]1100[/FONT]​

[/FONT]
Coal Carbon has a 1050 Iodine No. Used for water

 

[señorsloth]

ya i mostly used the cheep granular carbon from walmart, i'm assuming that's why my filters are burning out so early, because my design is really sound, looking at my diy filter, it's actually very similar to the can fan, the can fan just has way better carbon i'm thinking and probably packed better...Maybe it's also partly because i have some really stinky strains pulling into their third trimester...flush starts next week and they are starting to plump, taking them well into half amber this time, they stink already and it's gonna be a pretty feisty reek when they are ready! if this filter lasts me 6 months i'll be happy as a peach.

i figure if i had as much carbon as the can fan in my diy filter it would cost a lot more, because those little 5 dollar bottles are really expensive, and i don't want to ship anything to my apartment, so i can't buy in bulk, but i'm sure the can filter guys can, lol which is why they were able to offer me such a nice filter at such a decent price, my shop actually sold it for 117, like 9 bucks under msrp...i'm surprised cause there are only a few grow shops in my state, i think they could get away with charging more, especially considering the disposable income of many growers lol

 

[termite20]

We made a DIY carbon filter following online directions, spent a lot of time and money on it. It ended up being a total failure at about week 5. Who needs that stress? Odor control is not one of the items I want to skimp on. I get Phresh filters. They last me about one and a half years. They are much lighter than regular Can filters. Someone told me that another reason they DIY filters don't work like the good store bought ones are because the store bought ones use machines to compress the carbon so they can put a lot more carbon in them than you can manually yourself.

 

[Hydrolized]

I will vouch for Phresh also...never let me down and never let out any smell..even when using them at their max rated (or close to) CFM

 

[420ish]

i have used a very well built homemade filter.it worked fine as long as humidity wasnt over 50%.it would last 6 months before refilling.after a few years it wouldnt last as long.i had bought a 5 gallon pail of good carbon and when it was done i bought a htg supply fan filter combo.that filter didnt last 6 months.i then bought an active air 12x24 filter and it has worked great for 6 months.i would get the flange and make sure you seal the connection to your cab.if you did want to use your diy filter again look into pet stores for the activated carbon.you can buy in bulk at most of them

 

[FreezerBoy]

DIYs are best left to those with limited space or other special needs. If you have the space for a premade, it's probably the cheaper way to go.

For those who do DIY, brick and mortar stores (wallmart, petco etc) will charge you $10/lb. Ebay charges $2 after shipping.

 

[Duplicate]

hahah I saw your thread when you first posted it but I had literally just bought my second filter and I've never seen a DIY one. I wanted to say "Go for it and don't look back." but I couldn't be sure. Now I think that's what I'll say. I went from a Can 33 that lasted me about a year to a huge phresh filter which I hope will last me a while. They seem to be worth it indeed.

 

[Stromisle]

I have a quick question about store bought carbon filters that I'd rather not start a new thread to ask.. Would a fan like an EcoPlus Axial 4.5 inch fan push air through a 4 inch filter such as ProfilterPro? Store bought filters are advertised to work with inline fans but would a less powerful fan such as a computer fan or low powered bathroom ceiling fan at say 80 cfm move air through the filter fine? I don't want to get an inline fan beause of noise but I want a store bought filter. (for micro grow, very small space)

 

[moresntoil]

i built my own with coconut fiber carbon. more work than the small savings is worth. will always just buy them from here on out. much easier....but to each their own, building stuff is fun anyways IF you have the time

 

[Stond_Face]

Mr Sloth

I did a really nice DIY filter for my first one. Same story as you. Crapped out in several weeks. I bought a Can33. I didn't really know if it would work base on my experience with the DIY. It worked great. I also get about 18 months from the CAN FILTERS. That's running between 600 to 1000 watts
I think you will be golden with your new Can33

 

[señorsloth]

Mr Sloth

I did a really nice DIY filter for my first one. Same story as you. Crapped out in several weeks. I bought a Can33. I didn't really know if it would work base on my experience with the DIY. It worked great. I also get about 18 months from the CAN FILTERS. That's running between 600 to 1000 watts
I think you will be golden with your new Can33

thanks guys! it's great to hear! i too, am really happy with mine, it's cleaning up my whole apartment pretty well and it's quieter too! i don't know how they do it but they do it well whatever they did, i'm totally hooked.

 

[FRIENDinDEED]

i have a DIY carbon filter and ive thought about it for a good while. . .

what ive come up with is the reasono why i spent so much on making my own is that i wanted mine to look like the more professional types of scrubbers that ive seen in the stores thinking that the look had something to do with the function and that was/is farthest from the truth.

i have/want to reconstruct my scrubber and i knwo this time around im going with a 4" pvc tubing all the way. cap on one end with holes for air inlet and a connector for to my outake fan.

i realize now that i looked to deeply into the "look" of it and didnt direct my focus on the function. an effective scrubber needs to have all of the air flow from one end, over a surface area of carbon and out of the grow area.

it would be very very minimal work to setup and would be just as effective as the ones sold by larger companies. sometimes when you do something DIY you can get lost in the mentality of "looks like".

yeah mine has the perforated wire mesh, fiber on the outside and carbon on the inside and hasnt let me down yet but what im learning is that you really have to think waaaay outside the box sometimes for any DIY to be a good one.

 

[Hammerhead]

I use a 33 and a 99.. The 99 has been drilled out so I can refill it with carbon.. Just find some coconut shell based activated carbon thats 1100 Iodine# you will be fine. When Refilling use a palm sander to vibrate. The carbon needs to be packed very well.


http://www.carbochem.com/activatedcarbon101.html


This is really good carbon
http://www.buyactivatedcharcoal.com/product/activated_charcoal_powder/coconut/1250/bulk

 

[Slim Pickens]

Sorry to dig up an old thread,but...have any of you had success refilling the Phresh and/or Can33 filters?