closed growing environment question (CGE)

Hello all.

This is a question for those who have or are knowledgable on CGE growing, this is also called Sealed Grow Room.

www.cannabisculture.com/articles/3368.html if you have never heard of this.

my question is, how can you use a split air conditioner with these, doesn't the ac suck in air from the outside and push it inside? which in turn would create a pressure difference and the supplemented air would have to be pushed out of the room and wasted?

ac units are designed not to mix air. they remove the heat from the air in the room using refrigerants which are then pumped through heat exchangers where air is passed over the coils to remove the heat from the refrigerant. the least efficient is the portable ac and the window ac because they use the same fan to blow the air back into the room and to cool the coils so they aren't 100% sealed. the most efficient are the minisplit and air handler because they send the refrigerant outside to condensors to be cooled and then sent back to the unit to cool the room air.

As scooby said. Splits don't use outside air. So no they don't mix the air. And that's the only thing holding me back from being fully sealed.

Warlock1369 said:

As scooby said. Splits don't use outside air. So no they don't mix the air. And that's the only thing holding me back from being fully sealed.

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thank you, these mini splits seem really cool, would you need an electrician to put one in?

HalfSackZach said:

thank you, these mini splits seem really cool, would you need an electrician to put one in?

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I think so, some sorta professional...unless you get a plug and play model, which someone showed me once, but it was more expensive...I don't really know for sure, but they're intimidating to say the least if you're a novice in home improvements....But I have a deal for local pickup on ebay near me for a unit with 15' preset lines for 400 bucks...I think you need someone to come check to make sure you're not leaking refrigerant at the very least...If I'm wrong, someone please step in, I'd love to pick that one up for 400 and install it myself.

if you have it up to a window you can split the ac yourself with some modding. Get a cheap window AC on craigslist and gently pull the evap out, the tubes will bend more than you think if you go slow and be wary of the braze joints. Set up a fan behind it and let it go in your grow area. while keeping the box up to the window and hang the condenser out the window so it looks normal from the outside. Best part is dont have to potentially tip off an HVAC guy to your grow and youll only drop like $100. P.S. make sure to keep the temp probe in the same room as the evap, it normally comes attached to the front fins anyway. Then get some foaming insulation and seal where the copper tubes enter your grow area. All set to go CGE..!

Metasynth said:

I think so, some sorta professional...unless you get a plug and play model, which someone showed me once, but it was more expensive...I don't really know for sure, but they're intimidating to say the least if you're a novice in home improvements....But I have a deal for local pickup on ebay near me for a unit with 15' preset lines for 400 bucks...I think you need someone to come check to make sure you're not leaking refrigerant at the very least...If I'm wrong, someone please step in, I'd love to pick that one up for 400 and install it myself.

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Few signs an AC is low on refigerant, unless you have gauges. First if you can check to see if it handles a load. Pretty straight forward, turn it on, let it run, see if it gets cold one the indoor end. Honestly though without tapping the system with gauges it isnt the easiest to tell. I know that units low on refrigerant also get much colder on the evaporator at the loss of cooling capacity. You can check the temp on it with some sub zero therms. If it's under -35 id be wary. However easiest way is still see if it handles a load.. make him test it and check the air temp coming out. I wouldnt mess with it if the air is warmer than 60 degrees F.

you're gonna need an electrician. you'll probably need a dedicated 240v line for the compressor and a 120 or 240v line for the inside unit. you can buy precharged ones. not sure how quality they are. probably need an HVAC guy to check them anyway. you will need to cut and weld lines from the unit to the compressor.

HalfSackZach said:

thank you, these mini splits seem really cool, would you need an electrician to put one in?

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You can find some units that are sold as DIY kits. Frostbox and Excel Air sell these types of systems, but you will need an electrician to wire it up.

You should find a trustworthy HVAC guy and start building a relationship. I think most HVAC contractors also know the necessary electrical to install the system.

Depending on your construction needs, the HVAC guy can probably even install other electrical requirements, so you can try to coordinate tasks and save on labor.