I don't want to smell that anymore

[bass ackwards]

I need some advise from some of you guys that have experience with large grows. How do you control odor? Would you recommend ozone generators or activated carbon filters? Or a combination of the two? I am not currently growing because I had a odor problem which caused me to shut down. I want to start up again but not until I take measures to stop the odor.

Let me explain what I was doing. I had two flower rooms each room was lit with six 600w HPS, each had twelve plants that were 36/42 inches tall. Each room was on a seven week flowering cycle,with an additional week for harvesting. after harvest I added clones and started the cycle over again. With two rooms I was harvesting a crop every four weeks. Plants were Serious Seeds Chronic,and yielded around five pounds per harvest.

Because I always had one room in full flower and was trimming and drying every four weeks I constantly had the smell of fresh cannabis within the house. Living with this smell everyday I became acclimated to it and didn't notice it anymore. I can't have that happen again. I need advise on how to eliminate the odor before I start up again.

I am not sure whether to use activated charcoal or ozone generators or both to do the job. I can tell you that I will not try any DIY filters or generators simply because the risk is too great. I will purchase what I need I just don't know what will handle the task. These rooms generate a lot of odor I am told. So please offer your suggestions for all here to see and discuss I really need your advise.

 

[FreezerBoy]

I'd go carbon. There are concerns with ozone damaging metals/plastics/people in the surrounding area.

 

[moses224]

I personally used carbon for many years with no problem. I had no issues until this week. I updated my qty of plants and with that the smell intensified. I bout an ionizer rated for 5000cf for one hundred seventy five it works so well I have to have it on timer one hour on two hours off. Keep in mind I grow in an open room (not sealed) prior I had a carbon with eighteen pounds changed carbon annualy and no problem. Like I said it came to be to much smell this week and so I bought an Ionizer. I wish I hadnt put money in first carbon cause ionizer is amazing. Zero odor....period....
Like I said you cant run full time or else it will be to strong. I read many mixed reviews but as long as its not venting into flowering room you will be happy

 

[PonicalChillin]

I own 2 vaportek 4000, 1 OZN-1, and I had a Can 100 w/ 8" fan on the ceiling of my sealed flower room. I swear at times I could still catch wiffs of dank, but perhaps that was just coming off of me after bumping into plants and leaving the room.

My chick has been accused of reaking like weed simply from entering and leaving the trim room for a few seconds and then leaving the house and getting into a friends car.

Few tips - odor control devices like the vaportek and ozone generators MUST have time to be mixed around in the air with odors to be effective. Vaportek goes in the hallway - Ozone generator goes inside the exhaust during or stanky air dump zone.

Watch your humidity levels. When the room was 1st setup I did not have a dehumidifier for the 1st week. Humidity 90% created water droplets all over my poly walls and ceiling. Because my Can 100 was cranked right up against the ceiling I believe some water absorbed into the filter most likely killing it. I quickly fixed the humidity, but never really knew if my filter was 100% again.

Negative pressure is absolute must if pulling through filter an in active exhaust system.
After seeing the way RR rolls over at the Cabana I will now always have a can fan/filter in every zone. One in the trim zone, veg zone, and flower zone... on top of that I like having the Vaporteks around to place in the hallway, etc.

Anyone know how weather effects the smell - if at all? I recenctly had to transport around 15 harvested ladies. Threw them in bags and moved them in a van during a windy rainy day hoping that it would keep the smell down... it didn't really work. Luckily I wasnt going far and had a friend behind. (he said it reeked). Never again. If need be I'll have to run the OZN-1 on an inverter or something in the vehicle.

Any tips for large op smells?

Swishy wind breaker outfit at the grow spot/room left there really helps in leaving the dankness behind when your out and about.

 

[PonicalChillin]

Another tip - or should I say what NOT to DO.

After trimming for a few hours in non-swishy clothing I brushed off as best as possible and threw my clothes in the wash. The next morning I tossed them in the dryer.. Almost immediately the house stank ...and I'm sure it did outside. Bad move.


stay safe all
peace
pc

 

[NiteTiger]

Carbon filter

 

[bass ackwards]

Thanks for the input guys,please keep it up.

When I start again I anticipate each room will be around 1000sq.ft. with ten or twelve plants each. How big of a Can Filter would I need for this area? I don;t suppose there would be any decline in efficency of the unit if I stood it up in a corner of the room instead of hanging it from the ceiling,or am I wrong? The rooms have plenty of air circulation with as many oscillating fans as necessary,along with at least one air conditioning unit,two if necessary.

On the other hand if I chose to use ozone generators what size units would i need for the same space? Also, I have heard conflicting views on ozone generators in confined areas some say they cause damage to the plants while others saythe ozone inhibits pests such as mites,etc because it attacks the cellular tissue thus killing them. Does anybody have any opinions here? Also I could easily set them on a timer and schedule my time in the rooms when they are not operating. If an emergency occured and I had to enter the room when they were operating I could shut them down and flush out the air in a matter of minutes. Exposure would be minimal,and even long term exposure (an hour or so) is not that critical.

I have many more questions which I will get to later,if you can guide me from here I'll tackle the others later. I'd like to thank everyone for your responses so far and am looking forward to your help in the future.

Happy New Year to all.

 

[NiteTiger]

Ozone in room = bad. Yes, it does kill plants and bugs - that should be your warning sign

Stick with the carbon filter. I've run mine standing on end for years and never had a problem.

 

[bass ackwards]

So for a 1000cu.ft. room with twelve plants around 42" tall how big of a carbon filter would I need? would I have to set it o a timer or just run it constantly?
I am thinking of using a filter in each grow room and possibly using a ozone generator in a separate drying area. Probably will have to use another filter when I trim. This is beginning to sound like overkill. One's good more's better!

 

[NiteTiger]

Run the carbon filter constantly. I'm of the opinion that odor control is the highest priority in regards to security. The one thing I had plugged in to a UPS was the scrubber, I never, ever turned it off unless I was working on it.

 

[bass ackwards]

Still need to know what size I would need for the grow rooms.

Nite, How big of a unit do you use? How many lbs. are you harvesting? Before I shut down my last harvest was slightly over five lbs.
How long can I run the unit before I have to replace the carbon?

I still feel there is a place for ozone generators especially in the exhaust, when I discharge air out of the house as P C has suggested. I just don't believe there is anything better than ozone if used properly.

 

[NiteTiger]

Now, building like an ozone plenum somewhere in the exhaust outside the room is something I've thought about. That I think would be interesting to explore. As far as size of filter, I've got to admit, I'm not entirely sure. I built my own, and I'd say I used ~20 lbs of carbon.

I'm sure it was overkill at that size, but I certainly have no issues with that, considering the security implications. My last grow was a perpetual, with half a room being harvested at once, running 6-8 bushes under a 1kw. Each harvest was ~2.5 lbs, so I was about the same as you, 5 lbs total for the room.

To give an idea about how it worked, when my accident happened, I had 6 girls in flower, and police officer standing on, literally on, the roof of the grow. About 6 inches from the ducting. I like to say, they were just inches from a promotion

 

[bass ackwards]

NITE, So you say ~20lbs? At least now I have a frame of refrence, I haven't even begun to look at these units yet but soon will. Just to be on the safe side I will probably look at units slightly larger. Next question. How long can these uits go before you need to replace the charcoal? Does humidity effect their efficiency? I use a dehumidifer in each room along with my A/C units and try to hold humidity to 40%,although I may go higher I don't believe I would go past 55%, don't want to risk moldy bud. I was holding temps in the low 80's and I was pulling a lot of water out of y rooms, around five gallons every 24hrs.

Still looking for info on ozone generators, Isn't there anybody reading this that has any experience with ozone?