mini fridge grow box

[rastagrass]

this is a mini fridge that i had lying around so i decided to turn it into a clone/mother box the box is 29 1/2 inches tall, 16 inches wide, and 14 inches deep. there is a shelf that is 6 1/4 inches tall and 4 1/2 inches wide. i was planning on growing about 2 mothers and starting my clones on that little shelf. does neone think im going to be able to pull it off with this amount of room?

 

[FreezerBoy]

Sure. People have done whole grows in less space than that.

 

[Krakatoa]

With that amount of room, hell yes!!

I tried a mini-fridge a couple of years back, and I had trouble because by it's very nature a refrigerator is going to be super-insulated, so I kept getting heat build-up that I couldn't fix.

With a fridge, it's really important to measure twice and cut once, if you know what I mean. It's easy to replace and repair parts of a wooden grow cabinet, but when you cut into a refrigerator, you're pretty much committed.

With a few more building skills under my belt now, I'd like to try it again. What's more stealthy than a fridge in your room that everyone knows is going to make some noise?

 

[Smoke68]

I was going to mention ventilation issues... You may need to add a class or clear plastic plate to put under the lights.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Ya know, I saw those two fans and just drilled out holes behind them in my mind ...

You DO have holes behind those fans, don't you? If you don't, you'll need them.

 

[Kizzattack]

That has serious potential as a stealth grow. Keep us posted!

 

[rastagrass]

yes there are definitly holes behind those fans today i let the lights run for a couple of hours and the temp maxed at 82.4f. is that going to be too hot? i was also wondering do you think im only going to need 1 mother?; as i am also in the process of setting up a stealth grow in a closet and it is going to be my flowering room. i think im going to be able to grow 6 flowering plants in the closet so that means that iim going to need about 1 clone a week. so i guess what im really trying to say is 1 mother will support 1 clone a week?

p.s do you think i need to add another fan to my fridge? if i do should i add it as intake or exhaust?

 

[FreezerBoy]

The idea is to keep them small. You should have room for two. You'll have a spare and can alternate between them so each has time to recover.

High temps will cause stretch, try to get temps down. Normally intake is 1 1/2 to 2 times larger than exhaust.

Perpetual has it's merits. It's fun knowing there's a new batch every two weeks. I found an even canopy was a better way for me. sog, lst, scrog.

 

[rastagrass]

i was definetly thinking of going sog seeing as my closet is only about 6 sq feet so the 6 plants i have are not going to be able to grow very big because they arent going to have much room. and also you said 1 1/2 - 2 times the intake? does me adding another intake fan count as doubling my exhaust?

 

[FreezerBoy]

Well, now you're getting into physics. I'm sure there's a formula somewhere and someone to explain it but, it's not me.

The reader's digest layman version is 1 1/2-2 times the exhaust allows the exhaust to work at peak efficiancy with less stress and noise while maintaining negative pressure. Negative pressure means no air escapes except through the exhaust (mandatory for effective carbon scrubbing) Too much intake means the exhaust can't handle all the air coming in so it leaks out the intake, doors, seams and leaks the smell with it.

Personally, I don't use fans on intake. One 4" fan powered exhaust and two 4" passive intakes.

 

[zappa66]

make shure you can cool it, REALLY cool it. A friend of mine set up a mini grow in one this lasst fall. However during the winter it melted down because of his home heating system+lights did it in.

 

[rastagrass]

well i started 10 seeds from some bagseed and 8 of them cracked open. so i put them in a mix of jungle growth from lowes and some vermiculite and put them in the fridge. it has ran all last night and today and the temps are staying at about 78f so i think im going to be ok for now but that is only with 2 of the 4 lights on until they break the surface of the soil. i am going to try to get some plexiglass tomorrow so that i will be able to turn all of the lights on. and i guess tomorrow i will also add a passive intake to the fridge. thank all of you guys for the help you have given me. i will keep all of you posted on what the babies are doing.

 

[Winston_Smith]

Last month I tried setting up a larger fridge as a veg box... I have tried all kinds of stuff to cool it but not cool it too much. It was either 100* with the fan off or 50* with the fan on... it was <40* outside at night. What a hassle. I have now given up on it. I couldnt find a way to set up a thermostat control on the temp. I had six 40w CFLs in it. Good luck with the build and I am going to check in to see how it goes.

 

[rastagrass]

here are some of the little seedlings that i started hope fully they dont die. i need to get the plexiglass still. ill probally get some tomorrow.

 

[DiscoDuck]

"does me adding another intake fan count as doubling my exhaust?"

I wouldn't install a fan for the intake, it'll fill your grow area up with dust. It'll also cause your box to stink if it leaks air that doesn't pass through your filter.

your temperatures sound fine. temps in the seventies are better than eighties but you're still ok.

You mentioned plexi...you could use one fan to exhaust the bulb heat. then you could use another exhaust fan to circulate/exhaust the air in the growing area. good luck.

 

[DiscoDuck]

do you have intake holes cut into the fridge? Exhaust fans work best when they suck the heat and stale air out of the top of the box. by the looks of those fans, you could benefit by cutting intake holes in or near the bottom of the box.

 

[Stone]

I would add the plexiglass as planned and then air-cool the lights by having an exhaust fan above the plexi (I think you already do), and cut intake hole(s) in the proper place(s) so the airflow passes across the lights usherring the hot air out.
I'd then have another exhaust just under the plexi, with the intake hole on the opposite side of the bottom.
Props on the work already done, though. Did you have to gut anything major to pull off the construction?

P.S. You might want to cteate some kind of lift to get those seedlings right up under those lights, or plexiglass when it's in. They'll grow much better under the more intense light.

 

[rastagrass]

i was thinking about putting some kind of little shelf under the plants to get them closer to the lights. and yes i took out the whole cooling system. at first i was worried about the freon in the compressor but as i was taking it out i put a hole in the ice tray which had freon running through it to keep the ice tray colder than the rest of the fridge. so i went ahead and cut the rest and took everything out of it.

ps about how close to the lights do you think id bve able to put them without running the risk of burning the seedlings?

 

[Elephunk]

Dude, I use 3 65w fluorex home security flood lights. I keep my freshly popped seedlings within 3 inches of the lights and they just explode with growth. Looks like a pretty sweet veg cab. I'm in the same boat. Trying to find a good stealthy mother/clone cab to supply my perpetual scrog with clones.

And speaking of which... For your closet flower room...

Ever think about running a scrog in there? It really does boost those yields. Check out the 400w scrog that NBG did. And just think how much room you have for multiple plants in a perpetual scrog cycle. I think your stockpile of bud would build up really fast.

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=12653&highlight=400w+chronic+scrog

Or if you want to run a SOG method... Check out Northern Farmer's HP Stadium grow.

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=57927&highlight=hp+stadium


Just some ideas for you. Maybe these will help you think of better ways to utilize your grow space when you go to use it. Hope it helps.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Last month I tried setting up a larger fridge as a veg box... I have tried all kinds of stuff to cool it but not cool it too much. It was either 100* with the fan off or 50* with the fan on... it was <40* outside at night. What a hassle. I have now given up on it. I couldnt find a way to set up a thermostat control on the temp. I had six 40w CFLs in it. Good luck with the build and I am going to check in to see how it goes.

Air is a heat sync, dirt is an insulator. The top of the plant thrives in temp swings of 30-40 degrees a day, every day. It's what it's designed for. The roots dig down into the dirt and hide in the dark. They like consistancy and steady temps.

Try an aquarium heater in your res or a heat mat under pots of soil. Run them at night only. As long as you can keep root temps between 65-75, the top of the plant won't care.

My nights rarely hit 40 but, they hit the mid 50's and lower consistantly in the winter. Plant's are doing fine.