How do you cool your growroom?

[ufzsolo]

So I'm having troubles with heat at the moment. I've got a 1,5m*1,5m tent with a 600W hps light. I kept the plant on low light for a while (250W) but now I would like to kick it in. Even if I turn into 400W I can't manage the heat. Have a humidifier on (humidity is around 60%), has a 250W fan and a 100w fan for airflow. I keep pouring water on the bottom of the tent for extra cooling but the temperature still goes over 30.
I was thinking on portable AC. The problem is that the normal size ones can cool down a room of 20m2, and they are quite expensive. I barely have 3 m2. Anyone ever tried to use those mini portable ACs? The one with USB? they are small and works great at my desk but I don't know how efficent they are in a growroom.

TIA

[YYCannabis]

You could DIY a swamp cooler. It will help cool the air, and it also increases humidity.

https://youtu.be/aHbQYajfGqM great vid to help you see how easy it is with simple hardware store stuff.

[starramus]

and a swamp cooler is a low consumption device. your electric company will not eat you alive.

[Mr.furley]

Do you have ventilation to remove the air from your room and/or a air cooled hood?

I have both of those things and still have to use night time for lights on and can't grow indoors in summer.

p.s. I don't run a A/C

[homegrown]

Ya i had to fight with heat my first grow in my garage...i lost..had to fork out 400$ for a A/C unit to keep the girls under 95 degrees. Didn't matter what i did to try and cool them, the ambient temperatures in the garage meant i was just pushing warm air over them..even if i exhausted to the outside it was still hotter than fack in the garage. Is it possible to suck cooler air from a different area? outside?

[ufzsolo]

Yeah I do have ventillation in and out as well but still no success. Which AC you using and how did it effect your electricity costs?

[s62]

During the summer, I too had to resort to using a portable AC. I bought big (Frigidaire 12k or 14k BTU, I don’t remember which). When running round the clock, it costs quite a bit. Pulls ~1350 - 1500!from the wall. Keep my temps in check, though.

[Tersky]

Here is the thing. To control heat the best way is to control the temp in the room the tent is in. So to do that there are a few ways. A) make sure to vent the air from the tent outside the room the tent is in B) Get a decent portable ac unit for the room the tent is in. I vent my tents into the same room and i had to get a portable ac unit https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1. Sure it isnt cheap, but it works and works well as long as it's set up right. It cools the room the tent is in so it pulls in cooler air than it spit out. I dont know about electricity costs though. During the summer it runs most of the day tho. I would stay away from putting it in a tent as they usually produce a lot of heat (have to be vented outside see pic) and the cool air coming out can be too cold if it directly hits a plant.

[kingfish]

I try not to grow in summer. I had to this year 'cause I was running out of weed. But my grow suffered for it. I had a real shitty harvest. I don't have a problem this time of year. I use a 1000w HPS and I'm able to get rid of the heat just fine with a big oscillating fan.

[starramus]

My next grow will be vegging in the winter and flowering in Spring. I am sick of 100 + temperatures. Will probably avoid lots of bugs, and pollen too.

[Walty]

I had to resort to punching a hole in the closet and venting my tent into the basement. My wife didn’t like that solution too much, but it’s a cheaper alternative than going with LEDs. 1000 watts puts out way too much heat, which I don’t mind in winter. In summer, I will probably stick to 400/600 watts.

[ufzsolo]

Yeah I tried to do that too before but the high humidity damped my walls So yeah I ordered an AC, it was bloody expensive but I hope its sorted now. Yeah growing in summer its not very good but what can we do, we gotta smoke right?
Btw what is the max temp you would allow in the tent? Also where should I cut corners? 250W nd 25C or 600W and 31C? Its a month for the AC to arrive so I still need a solution here.

[Tersky]

Another way i fight the heat in the summer (typically 90 to 110 F outside) is i change the light cycle. It's a little but of a pain in the ass and requires a bit of planning but i have the lights come on between 6pm and either 6am or noon (12/12 vs 18/6). That way the lights are off at the hottest part of the day and it helps a little. Then when it begins to cool off i switch it back to daytime light cycles. Just remember if you do this for the plants are in veg during the switch give it extra hrs of light and if in flower give it less hrs of light the day of the switch. That way you dont accidentally flower when you want to be in veg or re-veg a flowering plant.

Max temp during veg is 90 F max in flower is 80 F for ideal conditions. You can have slightly higher for short episodes but i have found that it stresses the plant too much and they tend to hermie if exposed to prolonged heat or extreme heat. Obviously sativa dominant tend to be more heat resistant than indicas as they are from warmer climates but even those have limits.

[Farmall]

That’s a judgement call... the plants benefit from light in their development and will be affected by heat . Like being married, compromise... I’d go with the lights case you wind up with cooler than normal temps this season. Your plants will hold up beyond 90F but the ability to synthesize food from light will be compromised and you should try to stay below 85

[ufzsolo]

One more question. Did you experience ever that your carbon filter is clogged or something? If I attach it to the vent, it doesnt work. Not sure what the problem can be, I mean the filter is just some carbon pieces wrapped in a cloth, what can go wrong? It had been used for only 3 weeks...

[s62]

What do you mean it doesn’t work?

[ufzsolo]

I mean if I attach it, the fan doesnt pull any air and I can hear the motor suffering. Like when u accidently suck up a sock with a vacuum. If I attach the filter there is no airflow and the tent can't be cooled down.

[Farmall]

Try reversing the direction and let the blower push air out of the carbon and see if it blows anything out...it’ll happen quickly so watch the can as you plug the fan in....in fact place it on a piece of white paper to see if there’s any visible material....may help you determine If it’s clogged or a possible defective filter.

[SoOrbudgal]

Excellent idea Farmall this is how we check positive and negative air flow at work.

[Farmall]

Lots of practice when my wife clogs up the vacuum cleaner hose....

[Spidermite]

I have my basement air conditioned and heated. I also have now 2 filter fans in the bigger tents. Fist 8 inch fan removed the heat from the 1000watt hps. The second vent the air. Both are run through carbon filters.

I posted this somewhere else but this also helps remove smells and vents the whole basement.

[Spidermite]

If you have a friend in heating and air the furnace fans al.ost never die. So you can get one for free. So you can probably set it up to air out 1000 square feet for under 150 or 200.