I drilled the 6 pop rivets out and removed the intake cap. Pretty basic concept. It was only sucking air in through the first few inches of the mesh according to a lit flame. I used a 1200mm drill bit to loosen up the compacted carbon and it seems to have revitalised it
how long do carbon filters last?
- Thread starter Stealthstyle
- Start date
Do you have any idea of how much charcoal is in them by weight? There's a factory nearby where I can buy 25kg for $300. A new Phresh 600mm 6" one is roughly $300. Thinking it might be cheaper to refill. If they only hold 5kg that's like getting 5 new ones. For the same price.
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
You should be able to calculate the volume of how much is in there then compare that to wt/vol of packages sold online to figure out the wt/vol of what your filter holds. If you have already opened yours then it should be easy enough to weigh it out tho it will be heavier than virgin charcoal as it's loaded up with hydrocarbons from your plants. You could bake it in the oven to get rid of those pesky odor molecules and repack it. I have an old one I've been thinking of converting into a keif tumbler using a BBQ motor to turn it.
redi jedi
Well-Known Member
You are ruining your filter. Its supposed to be compacted so contaminants are trapped in the carbon and cant 'go around' it.
I know that. I used a 1200mm long 1/2" shank auger drill bit and only drilled through the carbon in about 8 spots then dropped ut onto a pad so the loosened carbon would recompact. I then packed some newspaper into the top. It has revitalised it. Not ruined it. Sort of like doing a catalytic convertor on a car with steel wool. Though doing this was a lot easier as I didn't have to trick the ECU into recognising the correct back pressure. I just did a similar thing on a 41 Willys coupe I'm building. Dropped a 6.3 biturbo out of an AMG Mercedes into it. Getting the catalytic right on that was a bastard. Alls good though. No errors on the STAR diagnostic and over 1100hp at the back wheels.
So do you think they compact these ones they mass produce in a factory in China correctly? I was raised to learn how to fix things for myself. Even when I buy a new washing machine or similar from China I'll grab the impact driver, open it up and go over the screws personally. 50% of the time I'll find a few key nuts, bolts and screws that are barely hand tight. You get a lot longer life out of things if you do your own quality control.
Roughly how much weight do you think you lost when you emptied it? 50%? I know lifting it above my head to hang it on the 2 shelf brackets I screwed to the brickwork it feels quite weighty. I'd say around 5-6kg for a 600mm long one. After doctoring it up and washing it through like someone else advised. I'm getting a fairly good flow and no smell. Before I did this it wasn't doing much. My garage is near the front door and in the right conditions the girls were a bit smelly. Now it's over a week later and they are a lot smellier in the tent but all you can smell right at the garage door is the fuel and oil smells off the motorbikes parked under cover 20 ft away. I'm happy.You should be able to calculate the volume of how much is in there then compare that to wt/vol of packages sold online to figure out the wt/vol of what your filter holds. If you have already opened yours then it should be easy enough to weigh it out tho it will be heavier than virgin charcoal as it's loaded up with hydrocarbons from your plants. You could bake it in the oven to get rid of those pesky odor molecules and repack it. I have an old one I've been thinking of converting into a keif tumbler using a BBQ motor to turn it.
Billy the Mountain
Well-Known Member
I think the lesson was, as you said, don't use tap water in an ultrasonic humidifier.
I don't agree about ditching the pre-filter. Actually, the pre-filter did exactly what it was intended to. A quick wash and its as good as new.
Without the pre-filter, the ultra-fine dust would have been sucked into the carbon filter
I don't agree about ditching the pre-filter. Actually, the pre-filter did exactly what it was intended to. A quick wash and its as good as new.
Without the pre-filter, the ultra-fine dust would have been sucked into the carbon filter
redi jedi
Well-Known Member
Empty out all of the carbon in your filter and then try to get it all back in without vibrating or tamping. If you cant, thats a good filter.
Instead of washing it can I blow it out with the work compressor I use on cars or would the resins be too sticky. I'm looking at mine and it looks more like dust and doesn't feel tacky at all. Where the straps were it's brilliant white. The rest is a grey colour like the hepa filter on the Dyson (that gets clogged every 10 minutes it feels). I was using it as an inner tent suction. This time I've washed it and fiddled with it and I've reversed it. Instean of outside in it's blowing inside out. Can feel on the only opening in another duct outlet it's sucking really well with no stink outside anymore but I have removed the outer pre filter sleeve.
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
The odor molecules that get trapped by the carbon can't be blown out with air. They are trapped in minute cavities in the carbon and can be forced out by heat. I can't recall the temp but it's around 400F. Can't go over 451F as that is the ignition temp for stuff like that and the odor molecules themselves are a bit like lighter fluid so it would act like charcoal briquettes if it gets hot enough. Baking the carbon in the oven will be stinky as hell tho.
Give me the dimensions of the filter and I'll calculate the volume of carbon for you. Inside and outside diameter of the cylinder holding the carbon and it's length. Just the length of the cylinder holding the carbon excluding the flanges. I have a brand new 24x6" 600cfm one still all wrapped up in it's original packaging I bought 4 years ago and never got around to using. Was $170 then.
That's pretty much exactly the same size filter I have. Is it worth paying AUD$330 for 25kg of activated carbon from an outlet that sells it on the industrial side. They do the really big ones like in restaurants so when you get no smell of the kitchens flooding the seating areas. I'm guessing though that I wouldn't use more than a kg or 2. If that's the case I may as well get smaller packaging from an aquarium store. Though we have added another area which will need it's own filter very soon. Cheers mate.The odor molecules that get trapped by the carbon can't be blown out with air. They are trapped in minute cavities in the carbon and can be forced out by heat. I can't recall the temp but it's around 400F. Can't go over 451F as that is the ignition temp for stuff like that and the odor molecules themselves are a bit like lighter fluid so it would act like charcoal briquettes if it gets hot enough. Baking the carbon in the oven will be stinky as hell tho.
Give me the dimensions of the filter and I'll calculate the volume of carbon for you. Inside and outside diameter of the cylinder holding the carbon and it's length. Just the length of the cylinder holding the carbon excluding the flanges. I have a brand new 24x6" 600cfm one still all wrapped up in it's original packaging I bought 4 years ago and never got around to using. Was $170 then.
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I started getting the phone calls about 6 weeks from telling them the cupboards are bare. Impatient buggers
I wrapped the end closest to intake flange with plastic wrap forcing it to exhume from further up the filter this seems to help too as I think it'll breathe and get blocked closest to the flange. Was thinking of getting a booster fan to help it really pressurise it. Maybe that'll force a more even extraction