Grow Room Floorplans. Here to help.
- Thread starter phillipchristian
- Start date
hey phillip, so i was putting in the hoods into the tent and realized theres only a 6 in vent hole on the left wall and a 6 in vent hole on the top. originally i thought there was 6 in vent hole on both left and right walls so i can just connect the ducting to both so i can aircool both hoods.. should i duct the carbon filter through hood in tent 1 to the outside to the Y connector and then do the same for tent 2? its alot of curveness. u think the 6 in max fan would still work? if you have a different way im up for it too. i already bought both the can 33 and 6 in max fan. i can still take it back to the store to exchange
phillipchristian
New Member
Hook up the carbon filter to each hood. Hook up 1 fan on the otherside of each hood. Suck air through the carbon filter, then through the hood, then exhaust it out of the tent. 2 independent systems. Then you have created negative pressure in the tent which will help with cooling. Just make sure to let your fan run even when the lights are off.
vertigo me
Member
Hey Phillip i would like to make my first post on this forum commending you on your vast knowledge and assistance to the other members...
I am hoping you can make a growroom plan to suit my needs and hopefully give me some other advice.
I will start with the room its 8' x 8' x 8' it is a south facing bedroom. See below for room.
From my research i am attempting to grow 20 plants 3 ft tall avg in a 5 x 8 area of the room (this is what i think is the right space needed) also i was looking at using 2 or 3 600s 2 lightwould be ideal but i will run 3 if needed to getter a better yield. For the exhaust fan i was looking at 250-300 cfm (is this correct as i calculated growing space not total room space) which will be going directly out the window and the intake is coming from a hole in the ceiling going into a t bend and ducting going along wither sides of the ceiling dropping either side to the floor. Im unsure to go passive or agressive intake for the setup taking into account UK climates, . I was also considering a temperature controller unit to keep optimum temp dont know if i am over complicationg things so hopefully from what i have given you can come up with a tweaked or a grow room plan more suited.
Also i am no electricial there is one Doudble socket in the room will this be ok to run everything without problems ?
Eagerly await your respone Thanks
I am hoping you can make a growroom plan to suit my needs and hopefully give me some other advice.
I will start with the room its 8' x 8' x 8' it is a south facing bedroom. See below for room.
From my research i am attempting to grow 20 plants 3 ft tall avg in a 5 x 8 area of the room (this is what i think is the right space needed) also i was looking at using 2 or 3 600s 2 lightwould be ideal but i will run 3 if needed to getter a better yield. For the exhaust fan i was looking at 250-300 cfm (is this correct as i calculated growing space not total room space) which will be going directly out the window and the intake is coming from a hole in the ceiling going into a t bend and ducting going along wither sides of the ceiling dropping either side to the floor. Im unsure to go passive or agressive intake for the setup taking into account UK climates, . I was also considering a temperature controller unit to keep optimum temp dont know if i am over complicationg things so hopefully from what i have given you can come up with a tweaked or a grow room plan more suited.
Also i am no electricial there is one Doudble socket in the room will this be ok to run everything without problems ?
Eagerly await your respone Thanks
phillipchristian
New Member
Hey Vertigo, thanks for stopping by and for the kind words. Welcome to RIU.
There are some issues with your layout and planning but I think we can get them fixed. First thing is your electrical. If there is only 1 outlet in the room then chances are that that outlet is shared with outlets in the hallway or another room next door. Would you know how many amps that circuit is rated for? I am not familiar with UK electrical standards but I do believe you are 240v there. This being said I would also assume that you are using 15amp breakers for household outlets. You will need to check the breaker panel and see which breaker or fuse is controlling that outlet. Simply plug something into it and turn the light on in the room. Flip breakers till you see that the outlet shuts off. You may notice the light in the room shuts off as well. Check other outlets and equipment in the area to see if that breaker also controls them. Make a not as to the rated amps for that breaker. You will find the number 10 or 15 or 20, etc... on the handle for the breaker. If you can it would help a lot if you could take a picture of the breaker panel and distinguish which breaker is controlling that outlet.
Chances are you are going to have to add an additional outlet to that room or look into using less wattage. A 600w ballast pulls around 2.7amps at 240v. This means you will be pulling just over 8amps with just your ballasts and you will still have to put fans, dehumidifiers, pumps, a/c, etc... on that circuit. I am not sure if that "Electrical Positioning" space on your diagram is the actual breaker panel; if so then you are in luck because wiring your room will be easy then.
I am assuming that this entire space is meant to be a flower room? Do you already have a veg room or are you planning on doing both in this room? If so then I assume you will be growing from seed everytime because you will not be able to have your clones/moms in the same room as your flowering plants. Can you ecplain to me your plan in regards to this. If you need a room for veg then we have to design something into this space.
Chances are you are going to need an a/c unit. Running 1800w of light in a space that big is going to create some heat that probably can not be dealt with via an active or passive intake and exhausting the hoods. The issue I see with your intake is that it is coming from the attic. Attic air; especially in the summer; can be extremely hot. Uing that air to cool your room could be counter productive. The other issue that I see is that you will be exhasting 3 hoods through 1 vent to the window. this would be fine if you hade them in a straight line but as you have then setup I do not believe a 6" fan will have enough CFM to compensate for the curves in the ducting. Even a high output fan. You may want to look into either using a large fan and a duct reducer or oversizing a portable a/c unit and venting the hoods back into the room.
I am also confused about your Carbon Filter. Do you have it inline with the exhaust from your hoods? Are you planning on pulling room air through your hoods and then exhausting that? I would just attach the carbon filter to a fan and mount it from the ceiling. Have it exhaust directly back into the room or into the attic to create some passive intake from under the door or via a port you construct somewhere.
I know it's a lot to think about but feel free to keep the questions coming.
vertigo me
Member
Thanks for the speedy reply. I will check about the electrics for you and get back to you ASAP, the point i marked is where i was looking at mounting the sockets etc and not the breaker panel.
As for my vegging and clone/mom room i am using another room for this which will be 7x10x8.
I aggree with you about the attic so can you think of another way of getting fresh air in? What about through the window and venting it out of the attic possibly. As for the heat issue i thought the extraction fan being controlled by a controller unit will sort this and havent even thought about the need of a a/c unit. Aslo i have not got ducting between the lights i have not thought about a setup like that. Think it would be easier if you could design something for that size room to grow 20 plants that would be great and we can go from there
and i will take on board your advise ..
As for my vegging and clone/mom room i am using another room for this which will be 7x10x8.
I aggree with you about the attic so can you think of another way of getting fresh air in? What about through the window and venting it out of the attic possibly. As for the heat issue i thought the extraction fan being controlled by a controller unit will sort this and havent even thought about the need of a a/c unit. Aslo i have not got ducting between the lights i have not thought about a setup like that. Think it would be easier if you could design something for that size room to grow 20 plants that would be great and we can go from there
and i will take on board your advise ..
phillipchristian
New Member
I think you will be much better of pulling air from the window and ducting it to the attic. Just use that air for your hoods and exhaust the carbon filter back into the room. Wince your hoods will be a closed system then you won't have to worry too much about smell getting in and passing to your attic.Thanks for the speedy reply. I will check about the electrics for you and get back to you ASAP, the point i marked is where i was looking at mounting the sockets etc and not the breaker panel.
As for my vegging and clone/mom room i am using another room for this which will be 7x10x8.
I aggree with you about the attic so can you think of another way of getting fresh air in? What about through the window and venting it out of the attic possibly. As for the heat issue i thought the extraction fan being controlled by a controller unit will sort this and havent even thought about the need of a a/c unit. Aslo i have not got ducting between the lights i have not thought about a setup like that. Think it would be easier if you could design something for that size room to grow 20 plants that would be great and we can go from there
With that much light bud I really think you need to look into a portable a/c. I mean, we can setup your filter to exhaust to the attic and that would create negative pressure in the room but even if you had a 12" high output fan sucking air out of that room I still don't think it would draw air in fast enough to keep the room cool. You can pick up 12.000btu portable a/c units for less that $400. You are going to save money on fans and ducting anyway so in reality you'll probably only be spending another $150 and you for sure won't have to worry. If you decide to get one try and find a dual hose unit.
Let me know what you decide and I'll start drawing up some plants. With 3 600w lights you'll have no problem flowering 20 plants in there.
Trulife69
Active Member
yo phillip..If I do suck all the air out of my grow room with the portable a/c..Would I need to be pulling fresh air in like from a window...I read "The room should completely exchange air every 5 minutes" so.. How would a guy set that up?? Would it be bad to just suck all the air out the portable and not have fresh air in? Bad for plants??? Anyways...I got a window and a 6" booster and I didnt know if thats something that would work but... Maybe you could straighten me out on this so im not so lost.
Thanks Phil
Thanks Phil
phillipchristian
New Member
Hey bud, if you get a dual hose portable a/c you won't have to worry about sucking air out of your grow room or even worry to much about the smell. They do not exchange air with the room. The air used to cool the coils is taken in by 1 hose and exhausted by another.
If you are worried about negative pressure don't be. Air will come into the room via cracks in the doors and walls. Unless you were a contractor and built the room specifically to seal it you will have passive intakes that will allow air to be replaced in the room. Having fresh air in the room is always good. Just realize that if you actively bring air in from outside via the window then you raise the chance of getting mold, bugs, mildew, etc...
vertigo me
Member
Thanks for the response paul. First off i would like to make it clear i want to try and keep electrical consumption down to not alert the electrical company. Do you or anyone else have any ideas on what i could get away with in the UK. The electric is payed via a pay as you go key and since being in the house only once (2 wks ago) has anyone come to take readings to my knowledge. I est. that 3 x 600w lights alone @15p a KWH will be over hundred pound a month. Thats not taking into account everything else and then the veg/clone room etc. Am i ok with electrical company or you think it will be too suspicious? I know that electrical companies would rather the cash and from research people only get caught when using a ridicolous amount of electric. Hope im being over cautious but if you or someone could clarify it would put me at much more ease.
Taking into account the above and also this is my first grow. I would like to keep pricing at a reasonable amount im allready expecting 1-1.5k for all equipment etc. As for your design i see you are looking at me using vented hoods and ducting them all etc. I have seen some designs like this but have not looked into the benifits or even thought this is what would suit my growroom. As i am a newbee i made the design from what i thought technically is sound but as you pointed is flawed. The main design came from a video i saw (the video link in next post) and i tryed recreating that to suit my room. I then thought about how i would control temperature and thought i could purchase a temperature controller unit for the intake and exit fan so when temp rises fans kick in and when it lowers fan knocks off, i thought this system would keep noise and electric would only be used when needed, would this system work and avoid the use of the aircon?. i would like to keep things budgeted for the build of the growroom, but i dont want to compromise on what is the correct setup.
Await your respons and hopefully a design that will be suited for my needs
Thanks
Taking into account the above and also this is my first grow. I would like to keep pricing at a reasonable amount im allready expecting 1-1.5k for all equipment etc. As for your design i see you are looking at me using vented hoods and ducting them all etc. I have seen some designs like this but have not looked into the benifits or even thought this is what would suit my growroom. As i am a newbee i made the design from what i thought technically is sound but as you pointed is flawed. The main design came from a video i saw (the video link in next post) and i tryed recreating that to suit my room. I then thought about how i would control temperature and thought i could purchase a temperature controller unit for the intake and exit fan so when temp rises fans kick in and when it lowers fan knocks off, i thought this system would keep noise and electric would only be used when needed, would this system work and avoid the use of the aircon?. i would like to keep things budgeted for the build of the growroom, but i dont want to compromise on what is the correct setup.
Await your respons and hopefully a design that will be suited for my needs
Thanks
vertigo me
Member
[video=youtube;Ahj1Hjw3URs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahj1Hjw3URs[/video]
phillipchristian
New Member
Hey Vertigo, I think a lot depends on whether you are living in the house. You said you have only been there once in 2 weeks so does that mean that you are not living there full time? If not then you are definitely fine. 3 600w lights basically pull the same electricity as your would use every day in kitchen appliances. If you are living in the house then their are some things you can do to cut down on electricity in other areas. Like using less a/c and heat. Turning your hotwater heater off or buying an tannkless hot water heater. Putting your fridge on a timer to shut off when you go to bed and for a few hours during the day. Also try unplugging as much stuff as you can when you aren't using it. If you can do all of this then pulling an extra 2500-3000 watts in light and equipment will be fine.Thanks for the response paul. First off i would like to make it clear i want to try and keep electrical consumption down to not alert the electrical company. Do you or anyone else have any ideas on what i could get away with in the UK. The electric is payed via a pay as you go key and since being in the house only once (2 wks ago) has anyone come to take readings to my knowledge. I est. that 3 x 600w lights alone @15p a KWH will be over hundred pound a month. Thats not taking into account everything else and then the veg/clone room etc. Am i ok with electrical company or you think it will be too suspicious? I know that electrical companies would rather the cash and from research people only get caught when using a ridicolous amount of electric. Hope im being over cautious but if you or someone could clarify it would put me at much more ease.
Taking into account the above and also this is my first grow. I would like to keep pricing at a reasonable amount im allready expecting 1-1.5k for all equipment etc. As for your design i see you are looking at me using vented hoods and ducting them all etc. I have seen some designs like this but have not looked into the benifits or even thought this is what would suit my growroom. As i am a newbee i made the design from what i thought technically is sound but as you pointed is flawed. The main design came from the video link below and i tryed recreating that to suit my room. I then thought about how i would control temperature and thought i could purchase a temperature controller unit for the intake and exit fan so when temp rises fans kick in and when it lowers fan knocks off, i thought this system would keep noise and electric would only be used when needed, would this system work and avoid the use of the aircon?. i would like to keep things budgeted for the build of the growroom, but i dont want to compromise on what is the correct setup.
Await your respons and hopefully a design that will be suited for my needs
Thanks
Those lamps you see in the video are not familiar to me. I have seen them before but they seem to be almost a fluorescent lamp. If you are using HID (HPS & MH) lights then you will have heat issues in your room and will either need to duct the lights out of the room or get an a/c to handle the heat load; or both. Just having an air intake and exhaust works for tents or rooms that have only 1 light or low wattage. In your case this is not applicable. If you are on a budget and concerned about electricity right now then maybe 2 lights would be a better choice for now. You will most likely still have to cool the room with an a/c but you will have less setup costs and electricity usage.
vertigo me
Member
Thanks for that reply. Puts me at ease with the electrical issues and know of people around my area doing 30 plant growns with no issues. As for living there yes i live there but use very little electric at the moment just the basics no dishwasher tubledryer though. And when i saod only been there once i was referring to the elec guy coming to read the meter, that is to my knowledge has only been once in two years to read it? I am going to have a word with an electrician friend who im hoping can clear a few electrical questions up but i am wondering if that means they dont come to read the meter very often and i am using a pay-go system then they will not know how much electricity is being used anyway or do they know directly? Also without trying to be too sketchy about getting caught the roof of the house is inadequitely insulated, i can get hold of insulation cheap through a builder friend but what i am getting at is will the heat signature from the roof be like a beacon for infa red choppers or will this not differ from going out the window or up the attic? ui did think about going out the boiler flu in the room ?? I have spokenb to one or two people about my concerns and they say i am worrying but i would rather be cautious than nieve ...
Anyway back to the plan. I will stick with 3 x 600s and just save untill i can afford them and running them it woint cost alot more running the 1 600hps compared to the return in crop. I would also like to note that when taking into consideration the design i would like to make my growroom based around a perpetual cycle so i am having a continual outgoing of crop on a reg basis. The other room i have available is 7x10x8 and has again one large window opposite the door on the shortest walls.
Anyway back to the plan. I will stick with 3 x 600s and just save untill i can afford them and running them it woint cost alot more running the 1 600hps compared to the return in crop. I would also like to note that when taking into consideration the design i would like to make my growroom based around a perpetual cycle so i am having a continual outgoing of crop on a reg basis. The other room i have available is 7x10x8 and has again one large window opposite the door on the shortest walls.
phillipchristian
New Member
I am going to be honest with you Vertigo, I really can't comment on the "Pay-as-you-go" systems cause we have nothing like that here. I imagine that the electrical company always knows your consumption whether an inspector comes out or not. I don't think a grow of your size will draw any suspicion though. As for infra red helicopters I think the laws are different in the UK then in the US. If you can get the insulation for chep then I would go ahead nad use it. Any exhaust heat from your lights should be exhausted through the biler flu or kept in the room and cooled with the a/c. If you exhaust it out the window I imagine that might be suspicious. Going to the attic with the exhaust air would also be a good idea.
vertigo me
Member
Ok well taking into consideration what has been said can you make up a floorplan for me. I know you have mentioned about having vented hoods but a question out of curiosity how would the design differ with other open hoods?
Also i managed a picture of the electrical board:
One switch controlls all the upstair lighting.
One last thing i have read up about the electrical con unit only briefly and saw a few comments mentioning about the costs of running one of these. Can you explain to me the need of the aircon unit for me to better understand the need for one of these or possible variations of another way to sort the problem the aircon is solving.
Also a little about the veging room can you make up a possible design for the 7x10 room and equipment to be needed (pretty please) so i can start putting in place a total cost of equipment to get it all up and running.
Thanks
Also i managed a picture of the electrical board:
One switch controlls all the upstair lighting.
One last thing i have read up about the electrical con unit only briefly and saw a few comments mentioning about the costs of running one of these. Can you explain to me the need of the aircon unit for me to better understand the need for one of these or possible variations of another way to sort the problem the aircon is solving.
Also a little about the veging room can you make up a possible design for the 7x10 room and equipment to be needed (pretty please) so i can start putting in place a total cost of equipment to get it all up and running.
Thanks
vertigo me
Member
If the image is not clear then it says the circuit is protected by 80A 240V 30mA and main switch 100A
phillipchristian
New Member
Hey Vertigo,
First things first; I'll put the design up in a little bit. Still working on it and I have some things to finish but I'm headed to dinner in a little with some friends.
Open hoods will add ALL of the heat from your lights into the grow room. It will also shorten the length of your bulbs and require you to clean your bulbs regularly. The advantage is you have less light lost via the glass on a air cooled hood. You will not have a choice if you go this route; you will need to oversize your a/c unit. A portable unit may not be enough and you might possibly need 2. Air cooling your hoods is not hard. All you will require is the hoods; some ducting and a single inline fan. I would exhaust them into your attic. I understand you want to try and avoid putting in an a/c but you might not have a choice. Especially with summer coming. These HID lights put off a lot of heat. As well do the ballasts for them and any dehumidifier you have in the room. From experience I can tell you that even if you exhaust your hoods into the attic or outsid you may still need an a/c; if you have open air hoods with no exhaust I can gurantee you are going to need a/c.
That electrical picture is too fuzzy and it's hard for me to determine which breaker is for the actual room that you are using. Plug something in the outlet in the room you are using. Then flip the breakers till that outlet shuts off. Then check all of the outlets around it in other rooms and lights in other places as well. You want to see what else is on that breaker. Then let me know the size of it. I need the number on the actual breaker. I can see that they are numbered B32, B15, and B6. The red breaker on the right is your main service disconnect. The larger breakers with the orange tabs are most likely heavy appiances like heaters or central a/c. It says on the board that their is only 1 circuit for outlets. I wonder if they are wired so that all outlets are on the same breaker. If so, then you will need to be carful as to what is plugged into outlets if you are going to be running your grow equipment. The B32 breaker for the outlets is a 20amp breaker. Each one of your ballasts will draw 5amps. So you will be at capacity with just the ballasts for that breaker. I need more info though. You need to see what else is plugged into the ballasts and also what that breaker actually controls.
What do you need to have in your veg room? Are you going to have mother plants in there? How many vegging plants do you need?
First things first; I'll put the design up in a little bit. Still working on it and I have some things to finish but I'm headed to dinner in a little with some friends.
Open hoods will add ALL of the heat from your lights into the grow room. It will also shorten the length of your bulbs and require you to clean your bulbs regularly. The advantage is you have less light lost via the glass on a air cooled hood. You will not have a choice if you go this route; you will need to oversize your a/c unit. A portable unit may not be enough and you might possibly need 2. Air cooling your hoods is not hard. All you will require is the hoods; some ducting and a single inline fan. I would exhaust them into your attic. I understand you want to try and avoid putting in an a/c but you might not have a choice. Especially with summer coming. These HID lights put off a lot of heat. As well do the ballasts for them and any dehumidifier you have in the room. From experience I can tell you that even if you exhaust your hoods into the attic or outsid you may still need an a/c; if you have open air hoods with no exhaust I can gurantee you are going to need a/c.
That electrical picture is too fuzzy and it's hard for me to determine which breaker is for the actual room that you are using. Plug something in the outlet in the room you are using. Then flip the breakers till that outlet shuts off. Then check all of the outlets around it in other rooms and lights in other places as well. You want to see what else is on that breaker. Then let me know the size of it. I need the number on the actual breaker. I can see that they are numbered B32, B15, and B6. The red breaker on the right is your main service disconnect. The larger breakers with the orange tabs are most likely heavy appiances like heaters or central a/c. It says on the board that their is only 1 circuit for outlets. I wonder if they are wired so that all outlets are on the same breaker. If so, then you will need to be carful as to what is plugged into outlets if you are going to be running your grow equipment. The B32 breaker for the outlets is a 20amp breaker. Each one of your ballasts will draw 5amps. So you will be at capacity with just the ballasts for that breaker. I need more info though. You need to see what else is plugged into the ballasts and also what that breaker actually controls.
What do you need to have in your veg room? Are you going to have mother plants in there? How many vegging plants do you need?
hey phillip i just picked this up for my 4x4 http://solis-tek.com/1000_watt_electronic_ballast_dimmable.html gives off no heat and theres no noise at all. i also ended up getting a 8in max fan for my exhaust. i got it for $195. thanks for helping me out on my tent
phillipchristian
New Member
Glad to see it all worked out bud. Keep me posted on how things go. Good luck.
Bwpz
Well-Known Member
How does this one look? Each frame is made of 2x4's and stapled/velcrowed panda film to make every wall accessible. 6 Plants in each section, except the mothers/clones. 435CFM exhaust fan with 2' carbon filter in veg room. 745CFM exhaust fan with 2' carbon filter in the flowering room. There will also be 16" oscillating fans in both rooms. They're flood and drain systems with 15 gallons of water in each resevoir (4 resevoirs). Growing in 6" rockwool cubes only, shielded by panda film covers.
