first time box builder

[kmk_goldenlung]

i am planing on building my own grow box but have no experience with them. i am wanting it to be stealthy but big enought to support 4-6 plants. the measurements i'm thinkig about is 3ft wide 2ft deep and 4 or 5 ft tall. the light i want to use is 400 watt two way mini or a 400 watt elect. switchable balast. sunleaves artic sun refelctor. the exhaust is probably the trickest part for me. i cant quite under stand how i should run it. would a 6'' can fan with carbon filter be good enough. can any one help me fugure this out before i start building this and mess it all up.

 

[TrichomusCaesar]

To eliminate the most heat efficiently you're going to need to get a good fan to blow that heat away from the 400watter. Of course you'll have to separate this ventilation from the rest of the box. I perfer the cool tube.

You want holes as low as possible top bring in cooler air, and as high as possible to get rid of the warmer air. But in order to have an effective scrubber you're going to need negative pressure.....which means your box is going to have to act like a vacuum. In order to achieve this the doors and panels to the cab/room have to be nicely sealed and air-tight. For vent holes,
start by making one small hole at the bottom and add more as needed. You want the intake to be able to keep a piece of paper stuck to it without falling.
Remember you'll still want to get that extra heat out, so place your scrubber as high up as possible.

You're going to want the box's air to be cleared 3-4 times per minute so you'll have to calculate the proper cubic feet in relation to the fan, keeping in mind you have a scrubber on it and thus efficiency will be reduced. Example, your box is 50 cubic feet....you want to clear it 3 times, so you'll want a 150cfm, but you dont want to have to run it at max all the time.....so get one with a little more power...like a 250 and turn the speed down....much better for the motor.

All I can think of at the moment...oh yeah, You'll also have to have to box be completely light proof as well....you dont want hermies all the time....so add pvc piping to the vent holes with 4 90 degree angles to keep it light-tight.

Hope this helps

 

[kmk_goldenlung]

thanks for the reply. it is very helpfull. so were does the carbon filter go on my ventalation system. how shoould i run all the venting.

 

[darrinjefferson]

kmk hows it goin? i too have wanted to build a box thats pretty much exactly what youve stated. i did it and boy has it turned out great. off of my first yield i got 10oz...with only a 400watt.

heres a link to my construction thread...its shows my box and some other good ideas for other boxes.
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=31212

go there and take a look...it will help you out a ton. also you can look at my grow diary..through the link in my sig. it will show you just what you can do w/ a 400watter.
good luck and feel free to ask me anything.


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[kmk_goldenlung]

thanks for the information. this is relly helping me out alot. i am now thinking of doing a 60'' tall 36'' wide and somewhere between 20'' to 24'' deep depending on what size will fit throught my doorway. the top would have two 12''x18'' chambers. One for storage the other for inline fan, balasts, controls, and wireing. In my grow chamber i want to do a sunleaves articsun reflector that is lens sealed and has a hole on the side to vent out hot air. is this a good reflector or should i find something else. i want to vent the light with a CPU fan mounted on the wall of the room, blowing the hot air out side the box. could i run a vent from the sealed light to the CPU fan and have it sucking hot air from the light out of the box. would the CPU fan be able to remove enough of the heat coming off the light or is it not powefull e-nuff to do so. what brand of inline fan is good to use? Can Fan is what i was thinking, 6''. i was also thinking of getting a future bright digital balast. is this a good brand? what brand do you think is best. i would like to show you my design but dont know how to post it. thanks for all your help and will probably have many more questions to ask.

 

[kmk_goldenlung]

darrienjefferson been looking around on the micro grow section and getting some ideas. would a 400 watt put out to much heat in a 4ft tall, 2 ft wide and 20'' deep box. also i was thinking of venting the sealed light to reduce heat,but i heard the glass lenses reduce the UV light and causes the plants to grow less. is this true? would a 4'' exhaust be enough or would 6'' be better. your input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[darrinjefferson]

kmk-whats up? im glad my thread helped you out. i think that a 400 is going to be too much for your space. even in my size of cab it is alot of heat and light. with the size your thinking of using i would use probably a 250. it will still give you plenty of light but wont put out nearly as much heat.
as for your fan a cpu fan wont cool a 400 and i have only seen 1 person able to cool down a 250 with them. i would probably try to get a good 4" fan. either elicent or vortex, they are both quality fans. and from what i have read the glass used in hoods doesnt change anything.
if your looking for a good cheap and easy hood, look at the cooltube i have in my cab. i made it myself for under $20. its really nice...and saved a ton.

well hope that helps.

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[kmk_goldenlung]

if i buy a sealed vented hood how would i vent that with a carbon scruber. would i run it from my light then to my scruber to my fan than out my box. whats the best way of doing it.

 

[darrinjefferson]

i would suck the air through the filter then light then fan and out...but thats me. i dont have alot of experience with using filters. so i that might be the most efficient way.

 

[Guest]

It is definitely better to pull through the filter than push; you won't lose a lot of the air flow to backpressure.

If you want a container that's easy to disassemble if needed, consider making a framework out of PVC pipe and covering it with heavy plastic and/or reflectix insulation. Here's a link to my thread on building two different garden containers using PVC pipe; the bigger garden is now lined inside with white plastic for better reflectivity than the reflectix alone gives:

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=14682

I like using Reflectix on the containers since it insulates well, blocks light, and is easy to cut to shape. Seal all seams well inside and out so you can control air flow with vents.

"Under eave" vents as shown in the thread can easily be taped into a hole for intakes; the brand I buy has windowscreen built in so it filters out pet fur. You can put a furnace filter over the intakes to help catch dust and small particles as well as reduce air flow (dark color filter material blocks more light than the white color filter material). A sheet of mylar loose over the inside of the intake (seal top & sides, leave bottom open) will also act as a light baffle.

Good growing!

 

[kmk_goldenlung]

i think i'm going to try 5'Tx2'Wx20''D box with only 4'x2'x20'' for growing and the other 1''x2''x20'' for my electrical and fan. 250 watt light with a vented hood. what size fan would be needed to properly ventilate my light and room. does this idea sound good?

 

[kmk_goldenlung]

darrinjefferson- i just ran across TheGhost's 250 watt medical cabinet and is about what i was thinking of doing. it is a very nice cabinet. what kind of fan whas he useing to cool his light with?

 

[darrinjefferson]

its funny you should mention ghost. he is the person who i got my original plans from...and yes youre right he does have a superb setup. he uses multiple PC fans to cool his light. i believe he uses 2 to cool his sealed light and then he has a couple in the cab itself to keep temps down.

heres is the link to his original thread...you probably saw his new grow diary
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=31172

this has a ton of great stuff that will help you out a ton.

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[kmk_goldenlung]

you think a 4'' squirrle cage fan that pulls 80cfm would be enough to cool my hood. could i use another 4'' fan that pulls 80cfm to suck air through my carbon filter.

 

[darrinjefferson]

altho the cage fans youre talking about arent very good...yes they should be enough to cool your light. altho you will want something stronger for your carbon filter. this is why most would buy 1 big fan and use it for both purposes.

 

[kmk_goldenlung]

found a 4'' and 6'' fan that's called a whisper fan, looks like a big cpu fan. the 4'' does 105cfm and the 6'' does 235cfm. if found them at hidhutt.com.do you think these would be good enough. they are cheaper and i would think, quieter.

 

[darrinjefferson]

hidhut.com??? there isnt a site under that name. are you sure you spelled it right? maybe i am just to high to understand what it is...anyways 235 should be enough to use a filter and cool your 250 for sure

whats the price on em?
could be a real good deal
as long as it really pulls around 200+

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[kmk_goldenlung]

sorry, it is hidhutt.com. i ran across when i was it looking up lumatek ballast on google. heard some other people on this site talk about it also. the 4'' cost $32.99 and the 6'' is $54.99. they are allot cheaper then buying a big bulky fan, and would probably be a little quieter. you think would be better to have 6'' only for the scubber and one 4'' one for the light, or would the 6'' be more then enough for the two. whant to be able to keep temps low for when it gets to be summer.

 

[darrinjefferson]

ok so i dont know what my computers problem is but i cant go to that site.....maybe paste a link in here so i can go to it.....this is weird. but yes i think 6" fan should be plenty as long as it can move at least 200cfm(cubicfeetpermin). you would be suprised how quite big fans are...they arent silent, but then again no fan is silent. i cant really comment on the whisper fan unless i see it.....from the description i would say that its not the right fan for the job.....but i need to see it. hard to imagine a 6" fan for 54.99 that moves 200cfm+ and isnt a piece of crap.

get me a link!!!

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[kmk_goldenlung]

http://www.hidhut.com/catalog/ sorry, last time i told you it was hidhutt.com