18x23 inches closet - Is it enough for a decent grow?

HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
HydroRed said:
Cant say since I've never built one. Im sure if you wanted to though, you could block off one a bit to restrict the air flow to even it out though if that were an issue.


Not sure what you mean? If you mean a louver to only open when the fan is on and the air is pulling in the inlet, you can use a 4" dryer vent louver to keep the passive intakes closed when not drawing air.


If you put (3) 90* elbows together to form a "s" bend and add some flex hose etc to it then light wont come through. Light cant bend around corners so you manipulate the ducting to prevent the light from coming through the ducting. Poor mans light trap lol
Also, you can spray paint the insides of the elbows flat black to prevent any reflection etc. You would assemble this on the outside of the box of course to reserve room for your plants.


Use a 12V computer case fan. 140mm fan can be bought for $9.99 from newegg.com They are anywhere from 46-86cfm and super quiet.
You can get a 12V 1000mA charger plug from a old phone etc to power it.
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I was thinking something like this https://www.activarcpg.com/air-louvers/product/1000-lightproof-louver-overlapping-channel-blades

And do you think a 12V computer case fan can pull enough to vent properly, through a carbon filter as well? And create a proper negative pressure in the cabin?

And I misspoke, I don't want to block air, I want to block light. .. No idea why I said air.
 
HydroRed

HydroRed

Well-Known Member
HandyGringo said:
I was thinking something like this https://www.activarcpg.com/air-louvers/product/1000-lightproof-louver-overlapping-channel-blades

And do you think a 12V computer case fan can pull enough to vent properly, through a carbon filter as well? And create a proper negative pressure in the cabin?

And I misspoke, I don't want to block air, I want to block light. .. No idea why I said air.
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Actually your right with the fan. Sorry, I wasnt thinking about the carbon scrubber etc. :dunce:
You can get the 280cfm one you were talking about and put a speed control on it to regulate it to the speed you need it to run best at.
That louver in your link would probably work well too.
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
HydroRed said:
Actually your right with the fan. Sorry, I wasnt thinking about the carbon scrubber etc. :dunce:
You can get the 280cfm one you were talking about and put a speed control on it to regulate it to the speed you need it to run best at.
That louver in your link would probably work well too.
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But what kind of 280cfm fan should I go for? For optimal silence? I was thinking of one of those big box fans, that you suspend from the ceiling in bungee cords. like this


But I can't find any lower than 500m3/h and that's probably 5 times what I need, at least.

What kind of fan would you suggest? If I'm going for silent? I will probably add a silencer to the end of the run as well. on top of the cabinet. And insulated ducting.

And are you sure you can dim fans? My current fan just turns off when I try dimming it with one of these


Sorry for all the noob questions, but it seems like you know what you're talking about! :)
 
HydroRed

HydroRed

Well-Known Member
I use a maxfan 334 cfm fan and it is very quiet without any boxes or mufflers. Once you connect it to the filter it gets whisper quiet. It also has a speed control built onto it. I believe they might make it in a smaller cfm 4" version as well.
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
look for a "router controller" to run your fans, basically just a rheostat with a dial, but set up for heavier equipment than a house dimmer, won't shut off when you turn it down like a household dimmer from the hardware store will.
i took a plastic tote, cut a hole in each side for the hoses, hooked my fan up inside it, then put old clothes and packing foam all around it and closed up the tote, you can barely hear it.100_2121.JPG
 
T

THE KONASSURE

Well-Known Member
HandyGringo said:
I already got something like that, I got this one http://www.clasohlson.com/uk/S&P-TD160-100-N-SILENT-In-Line-Duct-Fan/32-3122

I was looking for something more silent.. Not sure what the consensus is.
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Get yourself a 5" box fan (like the one you put up a picture of but smaller), they do them in wood and metal, I would go with a 400 to 700cmh fan, and run 4" ducting but if you want meg silent go with 5", 6" or 8" insulated ducting as its the air rushing down the pipe that makes a lot of the noise

300cmh may sound like plenty but some girls can really stink late into flower and you have a very small space extra available airflow will help with cooling and leave you headroom if you upgrade the box or lights, plus every time I increase airflow I get better and faster growing plants, I mean they should live outside....

Also them dimmer fan speed controllers suck if you want to slow a fan a proper motor speed controler works way better
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
if odor is an issue, don't forget that filters have a cfm rating as well, you need a filter rated higher than your fan. smaller fan is ok, bigger isnt, the air can't go faster than the filter is rated or it wont have time to work
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
look for a "router controller" to run your fans, basically just a rheostat with a dial, but set up for heavier equipment than a house dimmer, won't shut off when you turn it down like a household dimmer from the hardware store will.
i took a plastic tote, cut a hole in each side for the hoses, hooked my fan up inside it, then put old clothes and packing foam all around it and closed up the tote, you can barely hear it.View attachment 3796004
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That's genius. Cheap and fast solution. Thanks for the idea! And how do I tell a proper controller from a shitty one? Like what makes the difference? Currently I can turn my fan down like.. 10% then the fan shuts off.

THE KONASSURE said:
Get yourself a 5" box fan (like the one you put up a picture of but smaller), they do them in wood and metal, I would go with a 400 to 700cmh fan, and run 4" ducting but if you want meg silent go with 5", 6" or 8" insulated ducting as its the air rushing down the pipe that makes a lot of the noise

300cmh may sound like plenty but some girls can really stink late into flower and you have a very small space extra available airflow will help with cooling and leave you headroom if you upgrade the box or lights, plus every time I increase airflow I get better and faster growing plants, I mean they should live outside....

Also them dimmer fan speed controllers suck if you want to slow a fan a proper motor speed controler works way better
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How's this one? http://www.servovendi.com/uk/wood-soft-box-extractor-airfanr-isobox-hdf-250-m-h-125mm.html - It's pretty big.. But I would be able to slow it down like.. by 70% and it would still be plenty. It's for 5 inch ducting, I could run 5 inch insulated ducting.

And what's the difference? like how do I find a proper motor speed controller over a dimmer?
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SA5YAUS/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
this is what i have, i bought a cheap one from the store and it does exactly what you say, it runs full open but when you dim it much at all it just cuts off.
this one has a full on switch, then if you put it on variable it will run so slow i can barely feel it. if you turn it all the way up on the variable setting its running about 95%, you can hear a slight difference when you flip it to full.
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SA5YAUS/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
this is what i have, i bought a cheap one from the store and it does exactly what you say, it runs full open but when you dim it much at all it just cuts off.
this one has a full on switch, then if you put it on variable it will run so slow i can barely feel it. if you turn it all the way up on the variable setting its running about 95%, you can hear a slight difference when you flip it to full.
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What kind of fan would you recommend? And I'll see if I can find a controller like that. Would change everything. A tiny space like mine probably only requires like 70cfm..
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
4 inch inline fans are as small as they make, usually 190 cfm. beware of the "booster" fans that come built into a piece of stove pipe, and will say 190 cfm or more, thats if they're assisting a bigger fan, most of them are hardly 100 cfm by themselves.
a big box hardware like homedepot or lowes ought to have a router controller, or you could just use the link i posted, order that one or a similar one from amazon
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
4 inch inline fans are as small as they make, usually 190 cfm. beware of the "booster" fans that come built into a piece of stove pipe, and will say 190 cfm or more, thats if they're assisting a bigger fan, most of them are hardly 100 cfm by themselves.
a big box hardware like homedepot or lowes ought to have a router controller, or you could just use the link i posted, order that one or a similar one from amazon
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Something like this ? http://www.hydroponics.eu/fans-and-filters-c-29/extractor-fans-s-79/blauberg-biturbo-10cm-cable-187m3h-9185.html

And I'll try to find an alternative in Europe. Sadly I'm not in USA, or I'd have a lot more options to choose from ^^
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
http://www.ebay.com/itm/232008189374?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
i use this one, but the one you linked will work just fine. thats not what i meant when i said built in a piece of pipe, i meant something like this
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0141KEQIQ/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
these are meant to add to a long line to help get the air to the main fan, even though it says 240 cfm, thats as a booster, by itself it might be 100 cfm. the one you linked is good.
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/232008189374?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
i use this one, but the one you linked will work just fine. thats not what i meant when i said built in a piece of pipe, i meant something like this
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0141KEQIQ/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
these are meant to add to a long line to help get the air to the main fan, even though it says 240 cfm, thats as a booster, by itself it might be 100 cfm. the one you linked is good.
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Oh I know what you meant by built in a piece of pipe. It's a coincidence that the one I had my eye on had a feature like that. But.. Are the kind of fan you linked better than the one I linked? I heard those ones are better at pulling? Perhaps the increased fan size means less noise?
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
actually i think the ones you linked are supposed to be quieter, but they're usually more expensive. i'm cheap, a plain old inline fan works, and you already saw my answer to the noise issue.
oh, and by the way, all these fans are going to suck better than blow, they'll be more efficient if you draw air out of your tent through them instead of trying to push air into your tent with them.
 
HandyGringo

HandyGringo

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
actually i think the ones you linked are supposed to be quieter, but they're usually more expensive. i'm cheap, a plain old inline fan works, and you already saw my answer to the noise issue.
oh, and by the way, all these fans are going to suck better than blow, they'll be more efficient if you draw air out of your tent through them instead of trying to push air into your tent with them.
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I'm going to use the inline fan I already have, inspired by your sound proofed box. I'll save a lot of money that way.

So, just to help myself, and give you an idea:

I'll get a box, fill it with sound proofing foam + the inline fan, and drill holes for the ducting, it will probably fit like a glove so I won't have to use silicone or foam or anything around the edges.

I'll hang the box by the ceiling in bungee cords just to be sure there's no vibration escaping.

I'll get a router controller, a proper one, and dial down the fan so it's performing like it has to. It's currently doing 130m3/h, and I'm not sure how much my space requires, but I'll find a way to calculate it.

Thanks a lot for your help!
 
T

THE KONASSURE

Well-Known Member
HandyGringo said:
That's genius. Cheap and fast solution. Thanks for the idea! And how do I tell a proper controller from a shitty one? Like what makes the difference? Currently I can turn my fan down like.. 10% then the fan shuts off.



How's this one? http://www.servovendi.com/uk/wood-soft-box-extractor-airfanr-isobox-hdf-250-m-h-125mm.html - It's pretty big.. But I would be able to slow it down like.. by 70% and it would still be plenty. It's for 5 inch ducting, I could run 5 inch insulated ducting.

And what's the difference? like how do I find a proper motor speed controller over a dimmer?
Click to expand...

http://www.servovendi.com/uk/grow-hydroponics-gardening/wood-soft-box-extractor-airfanr-isobox-hdf-750-m-h-200mm.html

get that one and step it down to 5" you won`t need an in fan, just a good brand of carbon filter if smell is an issue
 
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