Perptual Harvest 2017 Micro Version

[sillyhead123]

Hi everyone! I hope to help others with my thread. I currently have a spacebucket with a 270w UFO LED(more like 150w lol). It is pretty neat, however I would rather have smaller plants that are easier to work with, and keep clones at all times incase one dies. Currently if a plant dies I have to replant a seed, and well seeds are expensive.

The spacebucket is simple, one intake fan, and reverse the ufo exhaust fan for well.....exhaust. I want to keep this cab as simple as possible, and drill the least amount also.

I have a cab that is 31.5 x 24 x 12.3.

I am going to use for veg/flower, and keep a bonsai mum also. The bottom is veg, top is flower. I will use 12" for the veg chamber, and the remaining 18" for flower. I will be topping and doing basic LST.

I have 2 pc fans I can use for intake/ or just overall air re-circulation.

I have a few questions before I finish the build and get it going.

1. I need to keep light out of the flower side. I caulked the edges around the wood seperator. If I run the intake on the bottom in the veg chamber, well then somehow the air needs to get to the top. Would a simple 90 degree PVC elbow take care of this in the floor? Paint it black, angle it away from the light and it would work and keep the pressure high?

2. I am running screw in led bulbs, I like the simplicity and they will run cheaper/cooler than the crazy heavy wasteful UFO LED. Is a 3 prong strip running plug to screw in adapter fine? I will use heavy duty double sided tape to tape to the top of each chamber. 2-3 lights per chamber for 30w each. This is a SMALL CAB, so should be okay...

3. Carbon filter. I could drill another hole for exhaust fan. Run 2 80mm pc fans stacked with a carbon filter hanging out the back. However I would like stealth. Any other suggestions to keeping it all inside the cab?

I will most likely prop one door open, until flower time. However I have never grown plants this small before. I have no idea what the smell is like. Is it equivalent to just leaving a oz on the table?

 

[frica]

Those UFO LEDs are Chinese epistar leds most of the time.
I don't know how often they renew their tech if they do at all.
Epistar has never been known for their quality anyway.

Normal white LED bulbs you can get from the store on the other hand have improved massively over the last years.

Yea it would work.

 

[HuffnPufferfish]

most led bulbs use epistars afaik
that size for veg and flower AND stealth, ima say good luck because it will be a tight fit..

depens what kind of ounce it is, some do some dont.. but plants will smell and small plants will smell just as good or bad as bigger plants, just less air being vented

 

[sillyhead123]

Exactly, they are using 2009 tech. I got a few 100w screw in led that output 1500lumens @14w.. not bad

 

[sillyhead123]

Here is my cab sketch. The back of this cab is the cheap cardboard material... however pc fans are very light. I could also always ditch the intake, and just put a hole in the floor/back wall. Since this cab is literally .25 sq feet.

Another option is to put a 4" duct on the side, and run a carbon filter through that..

 

[sillyhead123]

 

[grouchy]

I run a very similar size cab as the one you are planning to build. If you want it to be stealth you will need to change a couple things.

You will need an exterior light trap unless it is kept out of sight, it's hard to explain a glowing box. You will need a better light trap between the two rooms as well or it will stress the girls in flower. Two 90 degree elbows with the inside painted black creating a 180 degree bend per hole (you'll need multiple holes for proper air flow) should work.

I really advise not using an intake fan if you plan on a carbon filter. Using two fans, one on each side of the carbon filter, for the exhaust and a passive intake will be more effective than one exhaust fan and one intake fan. When you run intake fans you run the risk of creating positive pressure and that will cause smells to leak out of any cracks.

If you can get some aluminum tape it will really help you seal up the cabinet and it works great for light proofing. I would recommend not using double sided tape to mount the power strips. They will get hot and tape can fail when it heats up. Most power strips have mounting holes for screws on the back.

If you wanted to gain some extra headroom you could easily mount the led chips on a flat heat sink at the top of the cab. They generally come off the base/socket easily and there are only two wires you need to extend per chip. You could then mount the power strip and socket outside the cabinet keeping it cooler as well.

Feel free to check out my thread if you want. I've been running my stealth cab for over 7 years and the last two years were led only. Here

 

[Chappi]

I have used an intake fan and I recommend it if you can get a speed controller and make sure that there is negative pressure, an excellent point grouchy brought up.
Having an intake fan will put less stress on your extracting fan and will be more efficient in cooling your setup imo

 

[sillyhead123]

I run a very similar size cab as the one you are planning to build. If you want it to be stealth you will need to change a couple things.

You will need an exterior light trap unless it is kept out of sight, it's hard to explain a glowing box. You will need a better light trap between the two rooms as well or it will stress the girls in flower. Two 90 degree elbows with the inside painted black creating a 180 degree bend per hole (you'll need multiple holes for proper air flow) should work.

I really advise not using an intake fan if you plan on a carbon filter. Using two fans, one on each side of the carbon filter, for the exhaust and a passive intake will be more effective than one exhaust fan and one intake fan. When you run intake fans you run the risk of creating positive pressure and that will cause smells to leak out of any cracks.

If you can get some aluminum tape it will really help you seal up the cabinet and it works great for light proofing. I would recommend not using double sided tape to mount the power strips. They will get hot and tape can fail when it heats up. Most power strips have mounting holes for screws on the back.

If you wanted to gain some extra headroom you could easily mount the led chips on a flat heat sink at the top of the cab. They generally come off the base/socket easily and there are only two wires you need to extend per chip. You could then mount the power strip and socket outside the cabinet keeping it cooler as well.

Feel free to check out my thread if you want. I've been running my stealth cab for over 7 years and the last two years were led only. Here

Thank you I actually put foam insulation around the edges, and it keeps 90% of all light out...surprisingly. However this is going in a secret closet..so it doesn't matter. I just need it light proof for the flower chamber.

Ive looked around for the LEDs on aluminum, however cant find a DIY guide. It looks very very simple. Remove the light, driver and just put some sealant on a aluminum strip, then mount it flush with the top. It seems very easy...

Do i really need to bother with that much venting in this small of a cab though? Ill keep a mother in here, and then clone to 12/12 pretty quick since the area is so small. Since they are not going to get large, i doubt I need to go all the way as I would in growing a medium sized plant. Fans really wont be needed to strengthen the stems, ect.

I might skip the intake, and just do a passive intake and keep it even simpler. I have no idea how bad 2-4 small flowering plants will smell though.

 

[Goats]

i have some cab designs in my head, and with all of mine i have them using an inline fan + filter with speed controller so i can dial it down and keep things nice and quiet.

depending on strain, plants can be really loud in flower. even if it's not a particularly stinky strain, it will 100% be noticeable to anyone who comes in your house.

 

[grouchy]

i have some cab designs in my head, and with all of mine i have them using an inline fan + filter with speed controller so i can dial it down and keep things nice and quiet.

depending on strain, plants can be really loud in flower. even if it's not a particularly stinky strain, it will 100% be noticeable to anyone who comes in your house.

Make sure to use a variac as opposed to a fan speed controller. They cost about $70 but they are better for the fan and they wont cause the fan to hum.

I have had smell leaks before and it's definitely noticeable. Carbon filters and negative pressure are mandatory in my situation.

 

[grouchy]

Thank you I actually put foam insulation around the edges, and it keeps 90% of all light out...surprisingly. However this is going in a secret closet..so it doesn't matter. I just need it light proof for the flower chamber.
Check to see if you see any light when the veg area is lit and the flower area is open in a pitch black room. If you see any light at all it needs fixed.
Ive looked around for the LEDs on aluminum, however cant find a DIY guide. It looks very very simple. Remove the light, driver and just put some sealant on a aluminum strip, then mount it flush with the top. It seems very easy... If you are using aluminum strip instead of a heatsink you will want thicker aluminum to keep it cooler. Anything is better at cooling than those bulb sockets though. The cooler the leds run, the more light they put out. Its not necessary to do it but the advantages of more headroom and cooler operation make it worth it imo. You will want thermal grease or thermal adhesive to mount the chips to the aluminum. I use Arctic 5 thermal grease and self tapping screws to mount mine. When you remove the chips it is possible there could be enough wire to cut in half and use wire connecters or crimp terminals and avoid soldering. You just need to extend the wires and reconnect them

Do i really need to bother with that much venting in this small of a cab though? Ill keep a mother in here, and then clone to 12/12 pretty quick since the area is so small. Since they are not going to get large, i doubt I need to go all the way as I would in growing a medium sized plant. Fans really wont be needed to strengthen the stems, ect.you will need some airflow to avoid bud rot and mold. If your exhaust fans are strong enough than circulation fans won't be necessary.

I might skip the intake, and just do a passive intake and keep it even simpler. I have no idea how bad 2-4 small flowering plants will smell though.

Smaller grows aren't really easier by any means and stealth makes it even harder to get dialed in. It's much easier to change things before the plants have started to grow. An easy way to test how stealth your setup turned out is to turn on all lights and fans and light an incense stick inside the cab. If you can hear, smell or see it while it's running, someone else can too.