hotbox

[digdugdank]

Its been really hot the last few days and this box gets really hot without insulation. I grabbed my plasma cutter, cut a hole and installed the temporary a/c unit(1 ton window banger). I have framed up the walls and ceilings and washed all the bird shit and gunk off with a pressure washer. I bought some cans of rust primer. The kind that changes the rust to a paintable surface. I've decided to buy oil based house primer and paint to paint the outside. White of course, the blue gotta go!! Im framing with 2x6 and r-19 fiberglass insulation. My flower room will be 7' wide x 8'4" tall x 15' long. Next to this room will be the lung/veg room with the same dimentions. The last 10' or so will be used as storage and small tool shed area. After insulation is in Im covering the walls with tile backerboard(maybe?) sounds good now but ill probably go with something different. There is so much work to do. Im very thankful that i have a wonderful woman that believes in what Im doing. Without her id still be in the closet. Lol hope u like the pictures thanks digdug!!

 

[Born Loser]

great project!!
I'll be following this one.
Whats it sitting on? Plans for a floor drain?
Could you doze/berm dirt around it?
Best of luck!!!!

 

[Twist1]

This looks freakin awesome!

 

[digdugdank]

its sitting on gravel, lots of gravel. i was moving rocks to level out a 40' section for this to sit on. thats when i relized just how big this thing is.no dirt berm around it. its got to pass as a large storage shed with family heirlooms and shit in it. lol we like to entertain in our backyard. there will be 30-40 family members here for thanksgiving. its my extended garage/storage shed. no drainage im a hand water kind of guy with catch pans that get emptied every watering. it will all be sitting on vinal flooring so no leaks onto wood. i will be putting a 30" tall shelf, 18" wide the whole perimeter, minus the door. two rows of 7 gallon smart pots filled with organic/veganic goodness. the walls will have some kind of screen to tie the plants to. SO MUCH WORK!! im doing all this pretty much by my self. i have trade friends that i can ask questions so i can stay safe. im thinking on running a 60amp sub panel nice and tight. 30 amps for the a/c and 30 amps for the lights and fans. all lights and the a/c will be on 220. the rest will be for a couple of regular 110 recepticals to run fans and a couple of air/water pumps. thanks for checking it out digdug!!

 

[5th]

I wish you nothing but the best.

 

[digdugdank]

I got an a/c condenser for $100 i looked it up and it is 24000 btu. Now i just need the evap condenser and a copper line kit. This set up will be installed in the spring. Im changing from r-19 to r-13 +1 1/2" think foam board insulation. Thanks digdug!!

 

[Granger2]

Dug,
Is it the orientation of the pic, or is your ac turned on its side? I'm no expert, but I don't believe it will work for long on its side. Seek more info. Good luck. -granger

 

[Desert Hydro]

ive always wanted to bury one of those! that would be some proper insulation haha

 

[digdugdank]

sry for the sideways pictures. granger the condenser is sitting flat on its feet. i got this unit from a used lobster tank. they were using it as a water chiller. my a/c guy thinks he has the other half at work sitting in the back. i am going to frankenstien a system together. i dont know much about a/c units but my buddy is awesome at what he does. i have enough room on my service box to run a 60amp sub panel. that should get me a pretty good start. thanks for all the positive energy it really helps.more to come for sure. thanks digdug!!

 

[digdugdank]

if we were to end up buying this house the first thing i would do is bury this thing. i need to hurry up and get this thing insulated it gets a little hot outside and this thing turns into an oven. its been too hot to work on the box the last couple of days. so i made a bubble cloner with neoprene collars and an air pump with airstones. we shall see what happens!! im pulling down my small 250w box of green today but i want to take pictures first. im finishing up the framing for my false wall for the entrance into the grow area. im building a 3 teir shelf that will swing open on a couple of heavy duty hinges to expose the sealed doorway. ill take some pictures when im done. this is a lot of work for one person but once its done it should be just the right amount of garden for one person. thats what im shooting for. im also trying to stay under $500 per month on running operations. im gonna be real close to those figures. well back to construction thanks for checking in, digdug!!

 

[5th]

Glad to see your still at it digdug.

If you bury that thing the sides will collapse. If that is the plan though...start reinforcing your inside wall frames now. Buy the time you pour walls or brick up a wall inground for this thing...you'd find your better off just building an underground concrete room on its own without the container. (been researching this shit for years lol)

A quick and simple partial remedy is a burm.

Now I'm just gonna go off of your first pic posted in this thread...things might be different now.

1) Waterproof the bottom 3ft-4ft of your container. (paint roller stylz)
2) Put landscape fabric on the gravel
3) Pressure treated lumber to build some ends
4) fill it with topsoil/dirt/something that holds water
5) Flower/plants/rocks

Alternatively....a canopy (think camper trailer awning) covering the roof and sun facing wall with a gap for airflow underneath it. Would be a far more effective (but practical?) way to cool the inside of a storage container.

Good luck

 

[digdugdank]

if or when i bury this thing i will modify it then. i have a full metal fabrication shop in my garage as desert trucks and buggies are another passion of mine. i have plywood sheets covering the outside for now and that drops the temps drastically. building garden boxes for the outside of the container to cover the sun side is another good idea. a wall of green so to speak but with ground cover, ivys or something fast growing. ill make the whole box one big chia pet LMAO!! wow thats funny but i bet it would work great. a row of medium sized bush/trees in containers is another. come on guys i know we are just scratching the surface with this. what else do you guys got thats creative and smart? cant wait to hear from you all, thanks digdug!!

 

[digdugdank]

ok so ive done a little more work to my box ive got a flower room that is 7' x 14' x 8',4". ive got a lung/veg room that is 7' x 11' x 8',4" and the rest is garden storage and repotting area. i got the second part of my hybrid a/c mini split. ive painted the interior steel and the studs with an exterior primer then put fiberglass insulation then put 1 1/2" foamboard then wrapped that with panda plastic and duct taped it all nice and tight and sealed off. i can yell and sneeze inside and you cant hear a thing right outside. but you can hear the air pump that i have going for my cloner it is a faint vibration that you really have to listen for.( ive fixed the air pump noise thing by putting the pump on a towel). my dogs have claimed the planters as theirs so i have to redesign some new ones before these dogs kill my hibisucis. hibisucis should grow fast and be hardy all summer more pictures soon, thanks digdug!!