DWC res water to hot

[Smokey57]

I have a 6 bucket DWC in the 1st week of growth. 5 gallon buckets with 4 gallons of water each. 5x5 grow tent, two 600w HID with air cooled hoods, 6 inch fan, charcoal can filter. From the beginning I felt i was going to have a problem with rez temperatures being to high. That is what is happening. Room temp 80, rez temp 77. this looks like a perfect eviroment for algae, root rot, etc etc. The whole idea of going DWC was so that I would not have to pump water. Looked real simple for my first aqua grow. Using frozen water bottles might work but i am not prepared to change out ice bottles 2-3 times a day. What happens when using ice bottles later in the grow when the bucket is full of roots. Ice bottles touching the roots can't be a good thing, major shock and stress i would think. This was supposed to be simple. Everything is working just like advertised but no one really mentions that the water temp would be to high. i can't see in ANY DWC (not rdwc) that water temp would not be a problem. Water chiller doesn't seem to be an option as they are expensive and i would need 6 of them. I have tried running the air lines thru a cooler full of ice hoping that running cold air thru the air stones might help but it only dropped by one degree. What other options do i have?
Smokey57

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[Organic Miner]

You really need to invest in a chiller! I did and made all the difference in the world! Warm room , cold roots, heaven for the plants. Look at Active Aqua Chillers. They sell them on Amazon. A chiller is worth the investment!

Edit: sorry didn't see your last statement. Maybe this not an option, unless you change your setup.

 

[Smokey57]

are you kidding 500-1000 to chill the water. just doubled my investment.

 

[Organic Miner]

are you kidding 500-1000 to chill the water. just doubled my investment.

Well, for me I had a 16 5-gal bucket RDWC setup and the $400 investment kept my buckets at 67 degrees when the room was 80! Not for everyone. I wasted money on DYI solutions before buying an off-the-shelf model. Could of saved money in the long run. My plants it!

 

[Smokey57]

Not running rwdc

 

[cool2burn]

Will probably have to get a water chiller or increase airflow I mean those are really the only two options water absorbs heat like it's going out of business

 

[Organic Miner]

Well, if you want to think outside the box, you could get some rigid foam insulation, cut hole that fit your containers, then separate the upper part of your room from the lower. Trying to use the coolness of the floor to get your buckets cool, and separating them from the warm upper air. Even throw in a mini a/c to keep the air down there cold.

Just spit balling here.

 

[cool2burn]

Water has a high specific heat index—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. This is why water is valuable to industries and in your car's radiator as a coolant. The high specific heat index of water also helps regulate the rate at which air changes temperature, which is why the temperature change between seasons is gradual rather than sudden, especially near the oceans.

It is hard to keep cool for sure

 

[Organic Miner]

Water has a high specific heat index—it absorbs a lot of heat before it begins to get hot. This is why water is valuable to industries and in your car's radiator as a coolant. The high specific heat index of water also helps regulate the rate at which air changes temperature, which is why the temperature change between seasons is gradual rather than sudden, especially near the oceans.

It is hard to keep cool for sure

That's why I went to a chiller and swear by it now! It doesn't seem like that will work in @Smokey57 case. Controlling the heat is always the issue.

 

[cool2burn]

I would get a chiller then get a really long tube run the tube thru each bucket making sure the tube goes under the water line. The i would get a chiller and run water from a separate resistor and chill that. That will make the chilled water in the tubing go thru the warmer water in the buckets and would only require 1 chiller.

 

[rkymtnman]

Not running rwdc

hth pool shock (chlorine) to run a sterile res. or heavy dose of hydroguard if you want to run beneficials.

 

[rkymtnman]

I would get a chiller then get a really long tube run the tube thru each bucket making sure the tube goes under the water line. The i would get a chiller and run water from a separate resistor and chill that. That will make the chilled water in the tubing go thru the warmer water in the buckets and would only require 1 chiller.

tubing won't transfer heat. you'd need stainless or titanium tubing to transfer heat quickly like that. it could be done for sure like that though

 

[cool2burn]

tubing won't transfer heat. you'd need stainless or titanium tubing to transfer heat quickly like that. it could be done for sure like that though

What about copper tubing the flexable stuff it is not to expenxive. https://www.walmart.com/ip/3-8-Flexible-Copper-Tubing-20-Length/195984729?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=1210&adid=22222222227060409918&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=165089646702&wl4=pla-272879263904&wl5=9012261&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=112353941&wl11=online&wl12=195984729&wl13=&veh=sem Like this but longer

 

[rkymtnman]

copper and nutrient salts don't play well together.

check out a home brewing website for a stainless wort chiller. i used one in my rdwc setup. just run separate water source thru chiller and thru wort chiller.

 

[cool2burn]

copper and nutrient salts don't play well together.

check out a home brewing website for a stainless wort chiller. i used one in my rdwc setup. just run separate water source thru chiller and thru wort chiller.

That would work i was thinking copper because its water resistant and transfers heat incredibly.

 

[maxamus1]

There is an old thread in here some where called bubble heads I believe good place to start. But honestly cooling the buckets down some how would help out tremendously.

 

[firsttimeARE]

6 chillers costing $350 per or

25ft of 1" poly ($13)
(7) 12 gal HDX tough totes ($49)
(24) 1" bulkhead fittings and various elbows and tees (max $100)
(1) 400gph or so pump ($30)

$190 + (1) $350 chiller = $540 vs. $2100

Advantages:
One res to check.
A bigger res (once a plant gets going those 5gal buckets which hold 3 gal are going to be a pain in the ass both with pH swings and res top offs/changes). Those 12gal totes hold 6gal so the water is 1" below a 6" netpot lid.

Could squeeze more if you used a spacer of some sorts, but 6gal im running now and its working good enough for the 3'x3' canopies I have. Only gotta do 10 day res changes with a 6gal start and a 6gal topoff.

 

[cool2burn]

6 chillers costing $350 per or

25ft of 1" poly ($13)
(7) 12 gal HDX tough totes ($49)
(24) 1" bulkhead fittings and various elbows and tees (max $100)
(1) 400gph or so pump ($30)

$190 + (1) $350 chiller = $540 vs. $2100

Advantages:
One res to check.
A bigger res (once a plant gets going those 5gal buckets which hold 3 gal are going to be a pain in the ass both with pH swings and res top offs/changes). Those 12gal totes hold 6gal so the water is 1" below a 6" netpot lid.

Could squeeze more if you used a spacer of some sorts, but 6gal im running now and its working good enough for the 3'x3' canopies I have. Only gotta do 10 day res changes with a 6gal start and a 6gal topoff.

even cheaper you can get cheap chillers off craigslist cheap or free people start fishtanks then abandon them all the time

 

[firsttimeARE]

Well yeah could be cheaper if you know any santa clauses just handing out free chillers.

I live in the burbs but you makiing me feel like I live in the ghetto.

No one in my area giving out free chillers.

 

[cool2burn]

http://seattle.craigslist.org/oly/grd/5987336326.html just 1 example