ice to cool res???

growpotsmoke

growpotsmoke

Active Member
i did a search and came up with nothing. does anyone use ice to cool there res???? my res is at or over 72 deg my buddy told me that that can slow things down or kill my babies. so i was thinking of freezing 12oz soda bottles and putting one in in the morning and changing it out at night when i come home form work. my re is about 2 and 3/4 gals i don't think its going to get to cold but hey thats why i am asking for your info.
thanks everyone for the help!!!:mrgreen:
 
gspott

gspott

Well-Known Member
my friend is currently growing and he did mention that cold air, like winter snow cold, will actually change the color of the bud. i havent seen this in action but would be a cool experiment.
 
jcdws602

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
gspott said:
my friend is currently growing and he did mention that cold air, like winter snow cold, will actually change the color of the bud. i havent seen this in action but would be a cool experiment.
Click to expand...

This is not what the thread is about but yes with colder temps. if the strain you are growing is capable of turning purple, the colder temps will bring it out.
 
jcdws602

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
growpotsmoke said:
i did a search and came up with nothing. does anyone use ice to cool there res???? my res is at or over 72 deg my buddy told me that that can slow things down or kill my babies. so i was thinking of freezing 12oz soda bottles and putting one in in the morning and changing it out at night when i come home form work. my re is about 2 and 3/4 gals i don't think its going to get to cold but hey thats why i am asking for your info.
thanks everyone for the help!!!:mrgreen:
Click to expand...

How much higher??Cuz that temp is ideal.With that said I don't see why your plan wont work as long as those bottles are sterilized.
 
miccyj

miccyj

Well-Known Member
It might be worth investing in a chiller, I think using ice would be to hard to control the temp. If you make it to cold, you could shock the plants.
 
jcdws602

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
mid 60's - 72 degrees is ideal,,.,.,.,.,...,,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.I heard this on another forum,haven't tried it yet but sounds reasonable

"To keep the reservoir cool, in the heat of the summer, mount a small computer 12vdc fan, blowing air down into the reservoir. The splashing of the returning nutes, or bubbles from an airstone, will have small water droplets in the air above the nutrient solution. The fan blowing in will evaporate these water droplets, and acting like a swamp cooler, it will drop your nutrient temps."

He also says to try an insulate the res.
 
Dystopia

Dystopia

Active Member
In my experience res temps between 65 - 75* F are fine, if you get much above 76* you become more susceptable to problems.

I think you'll be fine with your soda bottles, too cold is usually not a problem. Some people say putting frozen stuff in the res stresses the plant, having ice next to the roots, but I have yet to see any adverse effects from doing this.

In order to control res temps, for starters I build my reservoirs out of ice chests, at least 5 gallons per plant. The ice chest helps a LOT in controlling temp swings, and more water means more stability in water temp, ph, and nutrient control.

During the summer I top off my reservoir using a 1/2 gallon plastic jug that I jury-rigged with some drip tubing and a 1/4" drip tube shutoff valve. I freeze the jug overnight, then in the morning I stick the tube in a hole on top of the res. The water thaws throughout the day, slowly topping off my res and helping to keep it cool. Also acts as a cheap a/c for the grow area.

When necessary, I use those little blue ice bags you can get at WalMart to lower my temp - one bag drops the temp about 2* in my 7 gallon res.

I keep my res temps between 68-70 degrees using these methods. I used to grow in buckets, but found that my res temps climbed into the low 80's during the summer...
 
growpotsmoke

growpotsmoke

Active Member
jcdws602 said:
mid 60's - 72 degrees is ideal,,.,.,.,.,...,,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.I heard this on another forum,haven't tried it yet but sounds reasonable

"To keep the reservoir cool, in the heat of the summer, mount a small computer 12vdc fan, blowing air down into the reservoir. The splashing of the returning nutes, or bubbles from an airstone, will have small water droplets in the air above the nutrient solution. The fan blowing in will evaporate these water droplets, and acting like a swamp cooler, it will drop your nutrient temps."

He also says to try an insulate the res.
Click to expand...
i notice a big drop in temps in the boxs when i mist my plants with sparkling water. the temp drops about 5* for a few mins.so i get what is going on with what your trying to say.
Dystopia said:
In my experience res temps between 65 - 75* F are fine, if you get much above 76* you become more susceptable to problems.

I think you'll be fine with your soda bottles, too cold is usually not a problem. Some people say putting frozen stuff in the res stresses the plant, having ice next to the roots, but I have yet to see any adverse effects from doing this.

In order to control res temps, for starters I build my reservoirs out of ice chests, at least 5 gallons per plant. The ice chest helps a LOT in controlling temp swings, and more water means more stability in water temp, ph, and nutrient control.

During the summer I top off my reservoir using a 1/2 gallon plastic jug that I jury-rigged with some drip tubing and a 1/4" drip tube shutoff valve. I freeze the jug overnight, then in the morning I stick the tube in a hole on top of the res. The water thaws throughout the day, slowly topping off my res and helping to keep it cool. Also acts as a cheap a/c for the grow area.

When necessary, I use those little blue ice bags you can get at WalMart to lower my temp - one bag drops the temp about 2* in my 7 gallon res.

I keep my res temps between 68-70 degrees using these methods. I used to grow in buckets, but found that my res temps climbed into the low 80's during the summer...
Click to expand...
great info thanks man!!!
 
H

henleyhaze

Well-Known Member
you know I do this often and it works well if it gets to hot I just pop in about 4 ice cubes and it will drop it about 3 degrees. i have never used coke bottles, but it usually only gets hot when I leave for work because I lock-up and there isn't alot of air flow, but you never know when a land lord will get nosie
 
jcdws602

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
As long as you keep your grow room cool you should be good,try to stay away from the 80's if you can or invest in some A/C.
 
SHAWTYBANGBANG

SHAWTYBANGBANG

Well-Known Member
http://https://www.rollitup.org/members/shawtybangbang-albums-1st-grow-picture68589-dsc00016.jpg I made my own chiller rubbermade tub, 20ft tube (spiraled on inside of tub),2 elbow threaded fittings(on the inside facing oppisite directions) and 2 straight(in lower/out higher), trashbags for easy maintenance(water). i fill with ice every couple of days and i keep frozen 2 liters too. My reservoir recirculates with it ......... temps 65-70f .......................... sorry for the crapppy pic. I.m a noob but it works.
 
C

cdaly69

Member
I never add ice to the reservoir, but will add chilled water. I usually keep 16oz bottles in the fridge and will add 1-2 a day depending on the weather. I haven't proven anything with a study (chilled water versus none) but the plants have seemed happy.

Cold and hot temps will stress roots. Just used chilled water and you can remove 16oz bottles of res water (and put them in the fridge to cool for tomorrow) when you add if your water level is fine, but this is just what I do.
 
DoobNoob

DoobNoob

Member
Adding frozen water bottles to your res can be done, but the sudden surge of cold will shock the roots and cause the plant undue stress, especially if the bottles or ice come in contact with the roots. It's like stepping out of a sauna and into an icy lake. It just sucks. A chiller is a great way to go, or if you can somehow keep the bottle from actually touching the roots, that would also be better than just throwing them straight in. Also, insulating the res may be the way to go for you since it doesn't seem like your room gets too hot. A little foil tape goes a Looooong way in bringing down res temps. Hope this helps.
 
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