Inline Carbon Filter Mounting Orientation

Hi guys, So I decided to buy a carbon filter as this different strain im growing smells quite strong.
I didnt really think much about mounting this thing when i bought it, I was more trying to pair it properly with my current fan. I received it and quickly realized it was really big!

My tent is 5' high x 2'x4' . This filter is 22" long and 9" wide(max 450cfm) for a 6" fan(400cfm). (No name ebay brand with coconut charcoal)

So with the 6 inch ducting installed its 28" long.

My reflector is about 3 inches from the cieling and centered so I cant install the filter above it and obviously the tent being 24" deep I cant install it perpendicular to the reflector either.

The manufacturer recommends you install it with the fan sucking so it needs to be in the tent.
The only solution i can think of is standing the filter vertically in a high corner, which ive done with the fan outside the tent.

Im wondering if this orientation will effect its performance as every single setup ive seen has the filter hanging horizontally.

Im not sure its working well as im still smelling the plant slightly. Especially when the timer turns off the light, I get a waft of plant smell but not weed smell but like chlorophyll fresh grass smell, which i got before i installed the filter and thought would be filtered after installing it.

Your thoughts?

What cfm is your filter rated for? If it’s rated for 200cfm and you pull 400cfm it would explain your smell leak.

The idea of putting the filter towards the top of the tent is because heat rises, so it help exhaust heat a little better. Your set up works though. Just keep a little fan blowing, which you should have anyways.

You can install the filter outside of the tent if you need to, but t isn’t optimal as it creates back pressure on the fan causing it to over work, and that can decrease the life expectancy. Better to pull than push through. But in a pinch it will work.

Hi there, the fan is 405cfm and the filter is rated max 450cfm. I noticed the ducting im using from the filter to the fan isnt exactly air tight, its cheap and seems to have microscopic holes in it. I just taped up the ducting that is in the tent, maybe that was where the leak is coming from. Ive got a one fan blowing across the canopy and one blowing down near the soil level. I know this is over kill but i have 2 x 340cmf intakes, they both have filters lowering thier cfm and i can create negative pressure if i dial up the power on my exhaust fan.

Here are a couple of pictures of my setup.

Although its not ideal lots of people have their filter set up like this.
The best thing you could do would be get that duct all the way to the window, at the moment its recirculating warm air.
The ducting you were talking about is probably the inner layer of acoustic ducting which has probably been sold as real ducting, on its own its useless. I know you have solved that by taping it up so that should be fine.
It should be inside another layer with a plastic membrane around it and a layer or rockwool or fiberglass, someone obviously is selling gear that's not fit for purpose.

I assume your fans stay on 24hours a day?
Cheap filters are cheap for a reason, if the carbon is not packed down properly then you get gaps and the air will flow through the path of least resistance meaning dirty air is not getting scrubbed!

See if it works now you taped the holes up.

What are the main points that make the vertical setup not ideal? Space ? Efficiency?
I couldn't get the duct completely out the tent hole as the filter is offset to the front corner. I think the taped up duct is doing the trick, it was super cheap ducting so im sure you are dead on with your theory (19$cnd for 25 feet)
I unfortunately dont have a window to exhaust to, it had been exhausted out the door into the rest of my apartment but it looked quite ugly lol.. Hard to tell by the pictures but its angled to sorta blow out into hall. The temps haven't changed since i set it up like this though.
Yup, I run the fans 24/7. I had my timer during lights out doing a 30min on/off sequence but the humidity would hit 90%! Now its hitting 69% during lights out which is still slightly higher than I want. I cant afford a dehumidifier so im going to add a couple of containers of silica gel. I think it should be fine though as its nearly winter and my electric base board heaters really dry out my place.
Oh, I also meant 2x 240 cfm intakes (cant edit the post again)

I have a filter outside my tent with the fan inside blowing into it. It works very well. Once the air goes through it before being exhausted you shouldnt have a problem. I have 4 plants late in bloom and I cant smell a thing.

Yeah, I read quite a few threads about blowing into the filter and it being fine. Ive aslo read an equal amount saying its hard on the fan, less efficient and reduces the life span of the filter.
I think its working now that I taped the duct inside the tent.

danmitch1 said:

Yeah, I read quite a few threads about blowing into the filter and it being fine. Ive aslo read an equal amount saying its hard on the fan, less efficient and reduces the life span of the filter.
I think its working now that I taped the duct inside the tent.

Click to expand...

well if you consider how a filter works, as in air moves over beads of carbon and as this happens the charged bead adsorbs charged particles. looking at each individual bead, you can either change the direction of the airflow or reverse the orientation of the bead, its the same thing. Some filters are made to be reversable (mine is) but that only changes the end of the filter the air comes into the filter, not the flow direction (relative to the bead) or orientation of the bead (relative to the filter housing). Reversing the airflow just ensures that the all of the beads are fully saturated at both ends of the filter.
as for the fan, its the same, the pressure differential is the same either way.