HELP! HALLLPPP!! Light/Heat Issues

[dalvis]

Okay so I bought my entire set up via a website that suggested X material for Y grow. THEN I decided to research all of the ins and outs of growing so I decided to tweak my set up.

Started with a 2x2x4’ tent with a 150W LED with 4” exhaust and clip on fan. After reading about more light = better yields and observing my expectations for this new project I decided to grab a 450W LED. Came in today and was concerned about canopy clearance so I turned around and ordered a 2x4x5’ tent (this maxes out my grow space and budget).

Anyways I hooked up my new 450W and hung it as high as I could (~26” from canopy) and zipped her up. A few hours later I casually checked in on the lot and my temperature had soared to 97 degrees F!!!!!!!

So I’m at an fork in the road. Do I revert back to my old set up (2x2x4’ with 150W LED and 4” exhaust) or do I push forward with the 450W and 2x4x5’ tent? My 2x2 held in the upper 70s lower 80s so this jump to 97 really scared me. Will the 2x4 carry this much heat? Should I upgrade my exhaust with the 2x4? If so is a 4” hole to the outside big enough or do I need to make a bigger hole? Should I downgrade the 450W? God so many questions.

I’d like to get 4.5-6oz/harvests. That’s my goal to make this investment worth it to me. Have been really enjoying growing and may expand later but that will take some work. What I need to know right now is how to approach this heat situation while still obtaining my grow goals however if that’s not attainable with my space then how I should proceed.

I know this is long winded I have that habit. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Currently have the tent open to vent heat but sitting at about 83 degrees. Much love.

[dalvis]

In a panic I switched back to the 150W so I could seal off the tent and let her run overnight. Patiently awaiting your save me responses.

[homegrown]

do you have an exhaust fan? Sucking air out of tent? If yes, do you have a fresh air intake vent open as well? What is the room temp where your tent is situated?

[dalvis]

4” exhaust to outside. Only a fan hooked up inside. Grow space is an utility closet with no climate control, however is one door away from central AC/heat. No air intake due to light leak concerns.

[homegrown]

You need an exhaust fan sucking air out of your grow space. Preferably at the top of you grow space..and an open vent at the bottom of your grow space. The fan inside the tent is needed for air circulation..but will do nothing for cold air exchange. Gotta vent the tent...

[dalvis]

Okay I understand. Always had exhaust going out of the tent but assumed air would be pulled in through fabric and zipper. Currently have the 3” hole that my power cords go through open. Will that be enough to get enough air in? Still have the 150W in there as I have work and can’t monitor it. Will put the 450W back in tonight and see if the heat doesn’t get out of hand. Still gonna go with the 2x4 tent though cause why not?

[golfnrl]

What homegrown said...fresh air in, stale air out.

[SoOrbudgal]

You mean no vents were open???

[dalvis]

Correct. Learning from my mistakes. Hopefully nothing detrimental yet 😳😳😳

[AccidentalGardener]

I have a 2x4x5 tent in a garage without access to fresh air. I have to crack the roll door an inch or two, or the whole garage will be Steamy Magoo. Your 4" fan will work for your 5 footer. My fan is outside to make more space inside - it could go on top but I'm too short, lol.
You need to open a lower vent, opposite side. Absolutely need fresh air getting into the tent. (think about how you feel after 10 minutes wearing a mask...)
If you have light-leak worries, a cardboard box will serve as an effective trap:
Find one that fits around the bottom vent on the outside and then cut out the side of the box facing the wall. Easy peasy. I don't have mine secured, but it's not a high traffic area, either.
Good luck!

[golfnrl]

AccidentalGardener that is a nifty set up. I'd like to have my fan outside the tent but haven't figured out a good way to do it. My tent is 3x3 and goes all the way to the ceiling. How's the fan noise?

[AccidentalGardener]

golfnrl I looked at the pictures on the Amazon ad for the fan before I bought it. And on this site, and a few other places. I'm in the down unit of a duplex, so there is no one under me. My stuff is against the wall that has our living room on the other side. And I needed a table. My duct could be shorter, but it's working and I have no idea what I'd do with a piece of ducting less than a foot long...it's built like a Slinky for a reason :P
I can't hear the fan in the living room, and my upstairs neighbors can't hear it in their unit. I have my garage door cracked and the police can't hear it, lol. (bahahah, yep. someone took out our mailboxes in a hit-n-run 7/3 and I gave a statement to the officer...about 2 ft from the garage door. So the filter is working...)
I do have one of my circulation fans positioned to the right of the vent inside to help draw clean air in along with rustling my bushes

[golfnrl]

That's funny AccidentalG...glad that filter was doing its thing! I have a 6" fan inside the tent w/ two duct silencers and I can still hear it through the walls. Its not a problem at all except the sound bugs me. It's probably not that bad but still...

[AccidentalGardener]

And looking at my own trap, I think I'm going to cover it in black paper. You don't want your trap reflecting light at all. Also, I have something black behind my tent. Inside I want it reflecting, outside, I don't want light bouncing anywhere, lol.

[dalvis]

Update:

Moved the exhaust to the top and opened the view hole and placed a fan blowing in. It’s definitely getting air flow as the tent is bowing out instead of in! Heat is still definitely an issue as it’s holding at about 90F. However it has been a hot few days and my AC has been struggling. Hopefully the bigger tent will alleviate some of this issue so hopefully it won’t be something that I struggle with during these hot summer months.

[dalvis]

okay I removed the fan and secured the flap open. lights on in an hour and a half so we will check on them then. May just switch back to the 150W until the 5’ tent comes in.

[homegrown]

Hows your temp after the adjustments?? cooling down any?

[dalvis]

Was actually coming on here to leave an update.

The temperature was hanging around 90F after I removed the fan. Still using the fan to encourage cool air into the space my tent is in just not right into the air vent like before. The tent is kind of in a neutral position in that it’s not bowing in or out.

Another thing that I noticed is that the exhaust hose feels warm near the air pump but the air is cool once it goes outside. I’m worried the heat is dissipating right back into the room. I currently have a 100 CFM pump and I just ordered the 197 CFM to replace it. I can’t return the 100 CFM so I was thinking of hanging it high in my tent room to try to get rid of the hot air. Figure it can’t hurt during the hot months.

So last night I just said eff it and went and bought a window AC unit. I hooked it up in the room closest to my grow room and let her run all night, still using the fan to encourage cool air into the area. I checked the tent this morning (lights still on) and the temperature was sitting at a nice 82F. I’m sure with my upgraded exhaust pump and larger tent the situation will only improve. Will send updates as that happens over the week.

[AccidentalGardener]

It can only cool down to what the temp is of the air is where the unit is drawing from, so if it's sweltering going in, the system has to work that much harder. I think humidity is going to be my nemesis...this summer is a steamy mess. We don't have A/C in most houses - only commercial places. But oy, the humidity is a bear. Struggle to keep it below 55% and I feel like throwing a party when I get it below 49%. I can always tell if someone closes the garage door because it gets muggy fast.
I cannot keep up with climate change - and that's just the one happening in my garage, lol.
Continued success in the struggle!

[dalvis]

New exhaust fan came in today and it was complete junk. Already ordered another one (different kind) so no update other than the addition of the air conditioner has helped a lot. Plants seem healthy. New tent and fan come in a few days so will send update then.

[UndergroundFarmer]

Sorry to hear that. I've had a crap one before. Now I have an AC Infinity fan. They are a bit more expensive but the extra cash is worth it for the quiet and reliability.

[AccidentalGardener]

What a bummer! Which one did you get that was crappy? So we don't get that same one?

[UndergroundFarmer]

It was a Vivosun 4" inline fan. The major fault was that the the two halves of the plastic shell around the fan blades were supposed to go together in a twist and lock fashion. Trouble was that the two halves wouldn't stay locked, they would separate, the fan would hit against the shell which would bend the shaft a little causing it to buzz against the shell which would lead to the halves coming apart more often until the whole thing would fail. If anyone out there has one of those fans, I strongly advise you to unplug it and wrap the seam between the two halves with tape to prevent it from coming apart while the fan is spinning.