Heating suggestions for small cab???

[Irie Kaya Lover]

Hoping some of you guys can throw out some suggestions for heating a small cab located in the garage. Weather here is not severe and we do not get snow, but do get SOME frost. Having to relocate my indoor closet setup to the garage because I need the closet to be a closet for a while.

Won't be flowering in the garage until maybe the end of January, but hoping to keep a veg cab going so I can keep my mothers alive.

Veg cab consists of an old dresser converted to a solid chamber with faux drawers as the door. Inside is mylared and lit by about a dozen CFLs on an 18/6 schedule. Intake is on the bottom of the cab with abs plastic tubes to keep it light tight. Vent is at the top in the corner with a light trap that shoots the air downward. Typically I would have a fan drawing air from the inside pushing out the back creating negative pressure - i'm thinking this will make it too cold inside the cab if the fan is running all the time or at full strength.

The garage is currently around the same temp as it is outside, so between 30-50*F. I'm thinking that during lights on I should be able to get up to a decent temp maybe 65* if I'm lucky. Keeping the fan circulating inside the cab instead of pulling out of the cab might help keep the heat inside, but it's lights off that i'm worried about.

Current ideas for heat:
- insulate the outside of the cab by whatever means possible.
- run lights during the night and have lights off in the afternoon when heat accumulated during the day will be present.
- install standard light bulbs underneath the floor of the cab in the intake area to preheat the air coming in. they would be on 24/7
- seedling mat inside the cab on 24/7
- reptile cage heater on 24/7
- run the cab with lights on 24/7
- clone everything and just set up a clone box on top of water heater.
- don't want to run heater on timer in the garage as it may draw more power than i would like and the risk of fire.

i'm open to all suggestions, thanks.

 

[WeldFlash420]

Get a kerosene heater and run it only as you need to. I'm in the exact same situation right now.

 

[FreezerBoy]

I'm doing the same. Temps can drop enough for frost on occasion but, 40's-50s are more typical. Our lights are similar with mine using a 250 CMH.

I run the lamp at night. My DWC tub has an aquarium heater to prevent temps lower than 68º. I don't know that the rez will "heat" the cab at night but, it certainly keeps it from cooling as fast or as much as it would without a 70º heat source inside. In the worst of the Winter, I'll wrap blankets around the res sides to prevent intake ports from blasting the res with 40º air. Because I'm in a freezer, there's no heat sync provided by the cab's surface. A wood cab would radiate heat so, insulation would be wise.

Last winters Thunk and this winters Destroyer below.

 

[Irie Kaya Lover]

yeah, if i was doing the hydro route i'm sure the water would be a great heat source and i'm sure you will have no problems keeping your plants happy. as i'm going to be away for 2 weeks i don't think a big heater will be a good idea. i'm looking for isolated heat in that area of the cab. i don't think i need to get things THAT warm in there. i've always kept my moms at around 60* with no problems sometimes down to 50*. i think i'm going to look into these infrared heaters that use a lightbulb socket...something like this:
http://www.infraredheaters.com/eselong.htm

 

[Azeotrope]

I feel ya!!! 14F tonight, 26F tomorrow day!! I keep the garage closed, run the lights at night and run a 1500w space heater set at 50F. good luck

 

[hoosierdaddy]

My cab is in a non temp controlled garage. I run the lights of the cab during the night.
I have an additional box with a 150hps on top of my cab, that I run during the cabs lights out. I run the exhaust from the small box into the garage. This helps keep the temps up during the day, as it is always circulating garage air in and out.
I do have an oil filled radiant heater ($70 Walmart) that I will put outside of the cabs when the temp is way low, but it only helps out a couple of degrees in total.
The exhaust from my main cab goes into the attic above, which also helps to insulate the garage.

It is 22DegF outside right now, the temp in the garage is 59degF and the cab lights on temp is at 61degF inside at the res level, 72 degF at the canopy top.
I could be growing in a cave with these temps.

 

[kaljukajakas]

An cheap source of thermostats is electric fan heaters like this:

http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi-DFH1...NN6/ref=tag_tdp_sv_edpp_i/183-6361629-5831951

Rip out the thermostat and put it in front of your oscillating fan, then connect it to a small infrared bulb (also with a fan blowing on it). Combine that with an aquarium heater in the reservoir and you're doubly safe from freezing while using minimal power.