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Puscifer
What size grow are we talking here?
Well I'll add something here. You don't need to spend a fortune to have co2.
You do not need a fancy meter/monitor, I've done without for many a year just fine. All I use is a #20 tank(15 bucks a fill) and a regulator with a recycle timer($150?).
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A lot of people think if you are going to get involved with co2 you need a meter to keep it at 1500 ppm which will of course go through tanks very fast.
But if you just want to insure "fresh air" then all you need is 400 ppm. Is it ideal? Maybe not but your ladies will not mind one bit.
I keep my 12x13 room at 500-1000 and have been on this tank since 4/20, so at least a month a tank.
Now I will be upgrading to a fancy meter/monitor after a crop or two but this setup has been with me for 13 years now keeping ladies happy, or at least not starving.
IF IT AINT BROKE...
And when I do upgade, this setup will go in my veg room which has no "fresh air" but has been growing plants just fine without.
but are your temps in the 80S/90s? i thought that what what allowed the higher temps was the presents of more (1000-1200ppms) CO2. sumpin about boosting the plants metabolism and i'm not implying that what youre doing isnt working, 3rdC. KISS is the best way to go.. if ya can. and more light.
Well I'll add something here. You don't need to spend a fortune to have co2.
You do not need a fancy meter/monitor, I've done without for many a year just fine. All I use is a #20 tank(15 bucks a fill) and a regulator with a recycle timer($150?).
A lot of people think if you are going to get involved with co2 you need a meter to keep it at 1500 ppm which will of course go through tanks very fast.
But if you just want to insure "fresh air" then all you need is 400 ppm. Is it ideal? Maybe not but your ladies will not mind one bit.
I keep my 12x13 room at 500-1000 and have been on this tank since 4/20, so at least a month a tank.
That's a 20 pounder,
I run a filter box that holds my carbon filter, ballasts, and the exhaust for my portable air conditioner. Using the room as a lung room, I have an intake coming in and feeding cool air. Air then runs through my tent, to the filter box, and out through the exhaust. No doubt I'm exhausting air that has been cooled by the portable, but I run it over my bulbs first, extracting heat from the tent, then through my filter box cooling the ballasts while getting scrubbed, then out through exhaust... Gotta figure it's been warmed to a point where it's worth exhausting by then...
Running a 800 watts vertical in a 4x4 plus 250+watts for veg and extras in a 10x10. Temps in the tent stay within 5-6 degrees ambient and I can run the lung room at 70-72 all day long with the portable running occasionally (90-92 outside)... 12000 btu portable. Intake comes from a cold basement though so that helps a lot. Veg area also isn't closed off so it's shooting out hot air into the lung room constantly...
So the airflow would go something like this, if it was me...
Intake (House) --> Lung room --> Tent -- > Filter Box --> Carbon Filter --> Exhaust
And the dual hose portable air conditioner goes something like this
Intake (Outside) --> Portable Air Conditioner --> Filter Box --> Carbon Filter --> Exhaust
That way all air exhausted is getting scrubbed, only requires a single exhaust, fresh air comes in cool from the house, and the air conditioned air is utilized to its fullest given the scenario...
Good luck!
What size grow are we talking here?
But what makes you think you'd have to make multiple trips for CO2 with a 10#? What size room do you have? Properly dispensed, with 1 Kw, I think you could easily go 1 month.
http://www.hydrofarm.com/resources/co2calc.php
There are 8.7 cu ft in a pound of CO2. Good luck. -granger
With above calculator-8x8x8 room, 1000 ppm running for 30 min at lites on, at hour 4, hour 7, hour 10- 10 lb would last 60 days., and keep lites on levels between 400 and 1000 ppm during 12/12.
That's right, I actually didn't even think about that... I don't have to overdrive my plants... I can just provide them with the equivalent of atmospheric ppm of CO2. You are smart, my friend!
So, I'm a big dumbass but it turns out that is actually the size of the tank I have! I thought it was a 10 lb tank, but I forgot I sold that along with a small aquarium a few years ago. So yeah, the one I have now is a 20 lb tank, and knowing how long it lasts you in your sized garden, makes me feel a whole lot better about running gas in my small room. Also, let me ask you this, I don't see any CO2 line running from the regulator and going towards a fan or anything for dispersal. Am I correct about this? So, do you just let the circulation in the room take care of this?
Also, about the permanest trays, I'm glad to have helped out there. I sure was glad to have found them. I now have a flood tray setup out of one of them, and the others are just being used as normal 1020 trays out on my front porch. They really are the shit!
What I think I'm going to do now (and please, if anyone sees anything wrong with this plan, please, speak up!) is use a 5000 btu window banger in the window, and a 4x4 tent in the room, lit by a 1000w (or should I use a 600w?). The tent will have negative pressure and all air will be scrubbed on its way out of the tent, where it will be dumped right out into the room where the A/C is circulating. Am I correct in understanding that this room will actually now be a lung room for the tent? So I will inject CO2 into this room as well, knowing that all the air that exists in this room eventually gets cycled through the tent.
I will still have my small gardens inside the house, to keep genetics, and do my "just for fun" bonsai gardening, but this room would be my main grow. I would veg and bloom in this one tent.
How does that sound?
Well, I've been monitoring the temperature and humidity in the room for over 48 hours now, and I can safely say that the temperature in there, with windows and door completely closed off from the outside world, never got above 89 degrees! That's not bad at all, considering the temperature outside easily registers in the upper 90s. It's all because of the concrete block, and the complete tree coverage overhead, I'm sure.
I should also state, here, for the record, that the water heater is located in this room, so I think that's promising! Now, my question is, knowing that it doesn't get all that hot in there, is it safe to go with a 5000 btu window banger? Along with a 1000w HPS?
As I said, my setup is not ideal. I will be getting a co2 LP burner and monitor to keep levels at 1200 lights on.
Just pointing out that co2 doesn't have to be all or nothing. Lots of middle ground to work.
As for the temps, idk, Adrift seems to prefer high 70's after trying both 80's and 70's and no one is questioning his grow skills or knowledge.