Dopest's "Cooler" DIY Chiller

[SuperSizeMe]

I would think it would work great! Give it a try. You will need a pump of the proper size though to push the water through the chiller. Check other 1/4 HP chillers and see what size GPH pump they recommend.

I've been growing in soil, and I can't help but feel the allure of hydro, so I'm in the preliminary stages of my education on the subject matter and came across this unit.

Well what you have there is a chiller... so I guess it would work as a chiller.... question is where did you get it, and how much did you pay?

OK, as I suspected...lol.

Haven't purchased it yet, I have found out that they retail for about 700, the gentleman is asking 499 for this unit.I'm sure that's negotiable.I guess the 100,000 dollar question is, if I'm going to spend that kind of doe, is this unit worth it? Is there a similarly priced unit that would be more effective/efficient?

This thread is filled with some great info

 

[badbert]

http://www.growlightexpress.com/water-chillers-60/ecoplus-1-4-hp-water-chiller-487.html

http://thegiantfish.com/index.php/c...chiller.html?gclid=CNi-kOz47qQCFQy8KgodPR6p1g

http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=HWHWC2

Here are some prices for 1/4 hp chillers

 

[SuperSizeMe]

http://www.growlightexpress.com/water-chillers-60/ecoplus-1-4-hp-water-chiller-487.html

http://thegiantfish.com/index.php/c...chiller.html?gclid=CNi-kOz47qQCFQy8KgodPR6p1g

http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=HWHWC2

Here are some prices for 1/4 hp chillers

Very cool, bert

Better pricing for sure AND for a new unit.I'm diggin' on the undercurrent systems, not married to it yet, but whichever way I decide to go I'm going to start small (4 bucket) with the option to expand.

I was thinking that if I ran my lines thru my grow room wall, I would be able to take advantage of nature (winter months anyway) to keep my rez cool.

But knowing how I've done things in the past, I need to go big or go home right from the start, equipment-wise anyway.

Thanks again for the links


EDIT:

My apologies for taking this thread off the DIY beaten path, I'm still keeping my options open for the DIY route


Peace,

SSM

 

[brightskies]

I've had good luck on craigslist. Had to wait for a few weeks, but got a 1/2 hp for $240. There is a 1/4 hp for $200 in my town right now that I'm tempted to buy. Even though I already have 1 extra chiller.

 

[itzgrowtime]

yeah this is a pretty sweet setup !

 

[haktup]

Alrighty then, that looked so nice, easy and cheap that I went out to the flea market this morning and picked one of these water coolers up for $25. But it turns out that the one I got must be alot older than yours....I don't have that white cup looking piece. Mine just has some copper tubing wrapped around some sort of metal bowl that the water sits in till the nozzel is pressed releasing the chilled water.


































Anyone have any ideas as to how I can go about turning this into something I can use? Can it be used??

Will a five gallon bucket fit inside it snugly if so you could build a small stand and set you bucket inside it. through heat transfer or cold transfer in this case if it is snug it should cool the bucket and the contents in side. If I am seeing how that works correctly that is looks like the drum it self cools down correct?

 

[BattleAxe]

Sorry for bringing up an old thread but I am unable to find the answer anywhere else and this seems to be the right place for this particular question.

Was there any ever conclusive answer to whether or not submerging the copper coils into the res without plastidip or a plastic bag would adversely affect your plants?

It seems to me that the plastidip would insulate the cold and decrease efficiency making the unit work harder.

Aren't all new homes plumbed with copper pipes? Some people, drink their tap water from the copper pipes. Last time I checked, copper pipes werent being spotlighted for adverse health effects. Is there a certain chemical in plant nutes that will react with copper? Is it

I just surgically removed my compressor and all the goodies outta an old water cooler laying around. It's a 1/10 HP compressor so should work for my 4 bucket tree growing system that is currently being worked out. Just wanted to see if the reason to not dip the copper into the res is more conclusive than it was when this thread died.

 

[budleydoright]

Here's my understanding. Water and copper are fine together. Water, Salt and Copper, not so good. your nutrients are mineral salts which will react with the copper and basically start to dissolve it.
I've read this a dozen times in a dozen places. first hand experience, No.

I do know copper in salt water aquariums will absolutely kill all of the fish.

 

[BattleAxe]

Here's my understanding. Water and copper are fine together. Water, Salt and Copper, not so good. your nutrients are mineral salts which will react with the copper and basically start to dissolve it.
I've read this a dozen times in a dozen places. first hand experience, No.

I do know copper in salt water aquariums will absolutely kill all of the fish.

That makes sense now. I didn't factor in the mineral salts.

Thanks for clearing that up. I think I am going to just use a turkey bag for the time being.

 

[budleydoright]

You could also use a container of chilled fluid and pump that through a coil of stainless steel in your rez.

 

[shrpshooter]

the dopest ..ur the man ..thank u

the dopest ..ur the man ..thank u

Awesome thread u have here ...such a wealth of knowledge...I am about to start an aeroponic grow.and wanted to make on of these b4 starting the system up ,as last run in this system deff suffered from high rez temps ..thanks for posting ...dhrpshooter.

 

[Gruetoo]

Great thread. Love all DIY. Hope you don't mind me giving my 2c about why you should not put copper pipeing in your res. Here is an article about copper and its effects on an aquarium. The whole article can be found at:

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/snail/coppersnail.php

Here is the tasty bits to answer the repeated queries tho I think it has been answered.
Many of us know the story first hand. You get the new, exotic plant that you were looking for to embellish your freshwater aquarium and bring it home. After a good rinse, you chose the best spot for it and plant it. A few days later you find a snail… and a few weeks later there are many, many more…

There are many ways to treat a snail infestation which are very well described elsewhere on the internet. However, here I would like to discuss the use of the chemical known as copper sulfate pentahydrate (CuSO4•5H2O). Copper sulfate is a compound that has been used for a number of plague treatments. It is an algaecide, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, works on external protozoa such as ich and serves many other purposes too. However, it is also toxic to many other living beings and that includes other invertebrates, plants and fish.

Yes, copper sulfate is very highly toxic to invertebrates such as crab, shrimp and oysters. If you have any of these in your freshwater aquarium, you should not use copper sulfate to treat a snail infestation because they will die too.

Yes, copper sulfate is toxic to plants. It disturbs photosynthesis and can kill some varieties. Nonetheless, some species are more resistant towards copper than others. Both Vallisneria sp. and Sagitaria sp. are known to be very sensitive to copper, but Anubias sp. and most mosses will survive a treatment with copper at the recommended doses.

Yes, copper sulfate is toxic to fish. That being said, however, at the correct concentrations, CuSO4 is safe to use in a community freshwater aquarium provided it is used correctly. I, myself have used in my tank without any losses of fish and, though I agree that it is risky, I also believe that a treatment with copper sulfate, if done properly, can be used to greatly reduce a snail infestation.

Vertebrates, like fish, are much more resistant to moderate concentrations of copper ions than invertebrates like snails. Snails are extremely sensitive to copper sulfate. In fact, concentrations as low as 0.01 % kill all the snails present in any body of water in less than two hours. Moreover, recent research carried out by the National Warm water Aquaculture Center in Stoneville, MS, showed that concentrations of up to five parts per million (5 ppm) of copper sulfate would not kill catfish in outdoor ponds while killing more than 90% of the snail Bolbophorus sp. These concentrations, however, are much too high for a typical freshwater aquarium and should not be used.

Gruetoo

 

[k-grower]

how much this home water chiller costs? i got mine aquarium chiller for 240€.

 

[The Dopest]

Bump, anyone still using this method? I'm getting ready to pull mine back out and fire it up soon!