D
dongle69
I just saw that the water needs to be 10 degrees cooler than what you want your room to be, so the outside res with no chiller seems possible, especially with the higher room temps used when running co2.
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Ice Boxes...?
- Thread starter PoopyTeaBags
- Start date
Ya I remember Humboldt weather, should be no problem. Maybe insulate the thing (I use water heater blankets wrapped around 55 gallon drums) but sure worth a try. If you need more cooling I would think an outdoor heat exchanger and a small fan would help keep the res plenty cool, just keep it all in the shade and save yourself a bunch of $$
You could sure give that a shot on the cheap. I think it would work w/ the temps you listed. Old metal stock tank, couple of junker radiators, circulating pump and throw in a couple fans ........ sounds like a cooler to me.
CB
JustanotherDave
Member
Last I heard, those mini-splits are supposed to be 100% plug&play with about 50' of line. No tech's needed. But they do use some power.
I've only used the water cooled air-cooler units with drain-to-waste cold tap water. How efficient they are depends on the temp of the tap water. In summer, it may just keep you in the range...in winter, you could run a sealed room with it.
Using a water chiller in a recirculating water system to cool a water cooled air-cooler doesn't sound efficient to me...but I haven't done the math. On speculation...I'd look into a tap water cooled AC unit before that.
I've only used the water cooled air-cooler units with drain-to-waste cold tap water. How efficient they are depends on the temp of the tap water. In summer, it may just keep you in the range...in winter, you could run a sealed room with it.
Using a water chiller in a recirculating water system to cool a water cooled air-cooler doesn't sound efficient to me...but I haven't done the math. On speculation...I'd look into a tap water cooled AC unit before that.
FutureGrower
Member
late to the thread new to the site
late to the thread new to the site
Hey all, was just looking at the ice box- they say 10* cooler hmm? So I was thinking, 1) I can build that with a 6" duct and some tubing for about 10 bucks, then add a pump and a garbage can I mean a res.! See, I have a room right next to my soon to be grow closet. Closet is 3 X 7, soon to be 3 X 3 foot with the addition of panda film for a door. Now I was thinking, the room next to the grow stays no more than 75*F tops, usually the tile floor is about 65*F.
So what about a res. in the next room, keeping cool by ambient temperature, and piping cold water trough the wall (tiny little hole, 1/2 inch maybe) and cooling my 1K HPS? if it is not cold enough can always vent it out anyways, but I'd have to vent it into my apartment, due to the set-up. no outside wall closer than 15 feet that I can use.
So I'm thinking this- 1K light. Chillie-Willie attached (when I buy 1 of theirs I will call it an icebox. When I build it I name it!! Chilly-Willy. Remember, you heard it from me first.). Chilly-willy piping comes from res just on other side of wall. goes back to 55 gallon garbage can. If I need more chilling than I can get thru ambient airtemps, I can always blow a fan across the surface of the water!
Pump for chilly-willy, Ballast (digital), air pump for DWC Bubbler are all outside grow.
Room with Reservoir is 75* MAX, usually 70*. So, my grow stays at 80? And I can put light closer to plants?
Hmmmm.........
Betcha it'll work.
late to the thread new to the site
Hey all, was just looking at the ice box- they say 10* cooler hmm? So I was thinking, 1) I can build that with a 6" duct and some tubing for about 10 bucks, then add a pump and a garbage can I mean a res.! See, I have a room right next to my soon to be grow closet. Closet is 3 X 7, soon to be 3 X 3 foot with the addition of panda film for a door. Now I was thinking, the room next to the grow stays no more than 75*F tops, usually the tile floor is about 65*F.
So what about a res. in the next room, keeping cool by ambient temperature, and piping cold water trough the wall (tiny little hole, 1/2 inch maybe) and cooling my 1K HPS? if it is not cold enough can always vent it out anyways, but I'd have to vent it into my apartment, due to the set-up. no outside wall closer than 15 feet that I can use.
So I'm thinking this- 1K light. Chillie-Willie attached (when I buy 1 of theirs I will call it an icebox. When I build it I name it!! Chilly-Willy. Remember, you heard it from me first.). Chilly-willy piping comes from res just on other side of wall. goes back to 55 gallon garbage can. If I need more chilling than I can get thru ambient airtemps, I can always blow a fan across the surface of the water!
Pump for chilly-willy, Ballast (digital), air pump for DWC Bubbler are all outside grow.
Room with Reservoir is 75* MAX, usually 70*. So, my grow stays at 80? And I can put light closer to plants?
Hmmmm.........
Betcha it'll work.
D
dongle69
Once the ice box starts heating up the water, how are you going to keep the res cool?
Blowing room temperature air across the top of the res won't do it.
FutureGrower
Member
Because according to the icebox people, 10*F cooler air in the res = good cooling. So my res. room stays 65-70 all the time, fairly stable .
Evaporation cooling can be big, ever seen a pot-in-a-pot cooler? Works by evaporation only, even in Africa they get tomatoes lasting 3 weeks not 3 days.
Link: http://other90.cooperhewitt.org/Design/pot-in-pot-cooler
So I'd imagine it will work- don't people also put a fan blowing grow room air blowing on the surface of their DWC Reservoir to cool it to 70*F?
Evaporation cooling can be big, ever seen a pot-in-a-pot cooler? Works by evaporation only, even in Africa they get tomatoes lasting 3 weeks not 3 days.
Link: http://other90.cooperhewitt.org/Design/pot-in-pot-cooler
So I'd imagine it will work- don't people also put a fan blowing grow room air blowing on the surface of their DWC Reservoir to cool it to 70*F?
Shit! I was wondering where all that water from Lake Mead was draining to! Wow!
I can't believe we still use tech that treats water that way. Hmmmm.
FutureGrower
Member
in my part of the country, we refuse to grow cotton in the desert and have huge fountains evaporating water by the thousands of gallons. A trickle of water going to waste works out to a few gallons a day( in my case. those heat exchangers use more). If you wanted to get really fancy you could recycle that water to a holding tank and use that water for you DWC system or for watering the soil. Heat from HID would get water warm enough to use, i bet.Or, pump the waste to an indoor or outdoor holding tank, then raise catfish or prawns or something and eat/sell them, then use nutrient-rich water on the plants or for food plots for deer/animals or sell it as a tasty beverage.
Of course, I can't believe we still use tech that uses 6K of lighting (I'm assuming HID) and not LED spread throughout the grow.
;P 
D
dongle69
Your res room temperature would have to continue dropping as the res water heats up.
Maybe if you had a huge res?
DWC is easier to cool because heated water from a radiator isn't being pumped through.
That is why 1/3 hp of chilling power is suggested by the manufacturer for each 1000 watt light.
I talked to them last week about having a res outside (not just outside the room but really outside) and they didn't think that it could keep up unless it was pretty cold and/or the res was huuuuuuuuge.
That would be sweet if chilly-willy works out for you.
Keep us posted...
FutureGrower
Member
ok, thanks dongle, hadnt been able to get ahold of the icebox people.
When I make my chilly-willy I'll let you know. I may try several differnt things before a chiller at $300 bucks.
I figure I'll still need the pump and hoses anyway so its not a waste to buy 'em.
I'm thinking the best/easiest/cheapest would be a split on my cold water line from under my kitchen sink, trickle thru a tube, then to waste. I don't pay for water and that would only use a few gallons a day.
I notice we have the same posts, almost. wasnt payin enough attention to all the replies!
Let me know if you come up with anything.
When I make my chilly-willy I'll let you know. I may try several differnt things before a chiller at $300 bucks.
I figure I'll still need the pump and hoses anyway so its not a waste to buy 'em.
I'm thinking the best/easiest/cheapest would be a split on my cold water line from under my kitchen sink, trickle thru a tube, then to waste. I don't pay for water and that would only use a few gallons a day.
I notice we have the same posts, almost. wasnt payin enough attention to all the replies!
Let me know if you come up with anything.
D
dongle69
Free water with drain to waste sounds pretty nice.
http://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/14-hp-ecoplus-water-chiller-p-1894.html
Cheapest chillers i have found....
Cheapest chillers i have found....
I have done some experimenting with the ICE BOX.
I do live in an area that is 90-105F 3-4 months out of the year. I also run my lights at night(60-70F) at night. Which currently run my lights air cooled. I have been trying to lower my energy cost and wanted to try these ICE boxes to see if it might work.
Here is what I have to work with at this time:
1/4hp JBJ chiller
MAG 18 water pump (1050gph at 7' head height)
20 gals in a 55 gal drum
1K light
6" 465cfm fan pushing air from a Can 66 carbon filter through light then ICE BOX
The rez is outside of the flower room along with the chiller. The way I have plumbed it is, Pump in Rez-Chiller-ICE box-REZ. Problem I saw with this is that the outlet on the water pump is 1" O.D. to the chiller. The output on the chiler is 1" O.D. but the ice box has a 1/2" O.D. fitting. So you are reducing the flow of water. I let the rez get to 60F first before turning the light on. Room temp was 71F in flower before the light was turn on with water temp at 63F. Turned the light on, ran for 4 hrs...chiller couldn't hold the temp down. The room went to 86F, with water at 72F. The chiller was running the whole time, and didnt shut off. I do have CO2 in my room so this isn't that bad, but I want the room cooler then this.
The BTU rating with this chiller is 3000 BTU...if you were to buy an a/c rule of thumb is 4000BTU per 1K of light. So I would think a 1/3HP(4000BTU rating) would help out. Another note is that the 1/4hp chiller is 6amps running max.
When you compare the energy used to keep our grow rooms cool, water cooled looks to be the same. In my room I will run 2k HPS, and I was going to use a 1hp chiller(should do the trick). The thing is that it is 240v at 5amps. So what would be the difference in running my 15M BTU a/c at 12amps(110V) then a 1hp chiller(5amps 240V)?
There are a few more things I would like to try.
1. More water in rez maybe 50 gals
2. run a pump to chiller ony and a pump only to ice box
I do live in an area that is 90-105F 3-4 months out of the year. I also run my lights at night(60-70F) at night. Which currently run my lights air cooled. I have been trying to lower my energy cost and wanted to try these ICE boxes to see if it might work.
Here is what I have to work with at this time:
1/4hp JBJ chiller
MAG 18 water pump (1050gph at 7' head height)
20 gals in a 55 gal drum
1K light
6" 465cfm fan pushing air from a Can 66 carbon filter through light then ICE BOX
The rez is outside of the flower room along with the chiller. The way I have plumbed it is, Pump in Rez-Chiller-ICE box-REZ. Problem I saw with this is that the outlet on the water pump is 1" O.D. to the chiller. The output on the chiler is 1" O.D. but the ice box has a 1/2" O.D. fitting. So you are reducing the flow of water. I let the rez get to 60F first before turning the light on. Room temp was 71F in flower before the light was turn on with water temp at 63F. Turned the light on, ran for 4 hrs...chiller couldn't hold the temp down. The room went to 86F, with water at 72F. The chiller was running the whole time, and didnt shut off. I do have CO2 in my room so this isn't that bad, but I want the room cooler then this.
The BTU rating with this chiller is 3000 BTU...if you were to buy an a/c rule of thumb is 4000BTU per 1K of light. So I would think a 1/3HP(4000BTU rating) would help out. Another note is that the 1/4hp chiller is 6amps running max.
When you compare the energy used to keep our grow rooms cool, water cooled looks to be the same. In my room I will run 2k HPS, and I was going to use a 1hp chiller(should do the trick). The thing is that it is 240v at 5amps. So what would be the difference in running my 15M BTU a/c at 12amps(110V) then a 1hp chiller(5amps 240V)?
There are a few more things I would like to try.
1. More water in rez maybe 50 gals
2. run a pump to chiller ony and a pump only to ice box
My well water is 2 degrees above freezing. I have to insulate my cold water pipes to keep them from building up too much condensation. I have a feeling one of these hooked to a moderate 6" fan would cool the whole room at a fraction of the cost of my AC.
FutureGrower
Member
thanks for the replies! I would like to try this: 2 chilly-willies (not paying $150 for something I can make from ducting and copper tube, i don't have the money. icebox= store bought, chilly-willie = made it myself .), 1 on intake for light 1 on exit, and also, a homemade reflector, that has the chillie-willie on the exhaust, tubing s\naked around the outside of the inner reflector, then thru a chilly on the intake, then snaked around the other , inner part of the reflector, with another layer of sheet aluminum on top. Basically what I mean is a double- walled reflector, but with the cooling cooper/alum. tubing in between layers, with a chilly on each end too, all inter-connected.
I think a larger res. would help as well as a bigger chiller. I wonder if drain-to-a-fish-tank would work? I'm talking a big stock tank with fish, 1,000 gallons. Waste water/overflow from tank could go into an outdoor pond.
Or just drain to waste, but this country has enough water issues as it is.
I think a larger res. would help as well as a bigger chiller. I wonder if drain-to-a-fish-tank would work? I'm talking a big stock tank with fish, 1,000 gallons. Waste water/overflow from tank could go into an outdoor pond.
Or just drain to waste, but this country has enough water issues as it is.
