GROW TENT AND Co2 in the bedroom, deadly combo?

hi,

awhile back i saw this grow journal posted by rumpleforeskin, you guys should check it out if you've not seen it, pretty unbelievable i think he gets about a lb outta one plant using DWC and a 600w HID using the SCROG method. anyway the dude inspired me to start growing indoor so a year and a half later after much craigslisting, ebaying and general foraging i have a secret jardin 48"x48"x81" tent, a 20lb Co2 tank and regulator, a 600w dual spectrum HID cool tube and ballast and a 100w flourescent MH light that i'm not sure if i'll use. To top it all off i finally ordered a D.W.C./Aeroponic/fogponic combo system outfitted for three plants sitting in 9" mesh pots all
mounted in a 37gallon rubbermaid reservoir thing.


My question for this forum i guess is how should i best control the heat issues. obviously pumping air straight through the cool tube is key, but how many more fans do you guys think i'll need?


Is it worth investing in A/C if im definitely gonna use Co2? how does that work, do i just work the A/C like with fans and turn them off while the tank spits Co2? will A/C just suck out all my co2 unless i do some serious converting to the intake stuff on the A/C which quite honestly i't not prepared for. is there an A/C model that would work well in my setup?


If i don't use A/C and opt for fans,(which is what i'll probably do) should i have to put the fans near the top of the tent since the Co2 sinks to the bottom, this will help reduce co2 loss right? do fans really work for keeping things cool? im worried bout root rot etc. im thinking they will if i run the lights at night and use negative pressure created by the top fans to pump in cold air from the outside (strange enough it gets cold at night in socal). so basically the setup goes on fant one at the top, then a 6" tube at the bottom running to a window, negative pressure from the top fan should pull in the cool night air from the bottom tube right? just wanna be sure before i put all this together.



My final and perhaps most important question is, is my tent airtight enough to be dealing with Co2??? if i run the co2 at night with the tent in the corner of my bedroom am i gonna wake up dead? damn, hope not. even if i dont wake up dead, am i just gonna leak all the co2 out and not be able to keep up that prime 1600ppm. is mylar air tight? if anybody knows anything about this please help a brotha out. thanks

Ok I'm a outdoor grower that just started indoors and I'm just buying all my co2 stuff now and I did a lot of research and here's a set up that I conclude to be perfect for this type of grow.

First set up your tent and have the filter out side the tent connect the 6" fan to that then the ducting to the fan then run it in the tent to the hood then back out of the tent venting out of a window. Note that no air is being removed from the tent just the room the tent is in.
Then get a ac, portable or window (don't fuck around with out one unless the out side temps are cold then I would say get a heater, just cuss you got it it's security in case of extreme temps) keep the ac out of the tent then vent it in there using insolated ducting your going to have to rig up something to connect to the ac vent that you can connect the ducting to. Like a wood box to screw over the ac vent then cut a hole in the box for the 6" insolated ducting. Run that into the tent up high because cold air will settle to the bottom. Then get a tempature controller with a tempature probe thing so you can hang it over the canopy. This will also let the temp controller be out side the tent close to the ac. Plug the ac into the controller (note: make sure your ac will turn back on if you unplug it then plug it back in) then set the day and night temp then run the controllers probe into the tent and at canopy hight under the light. Set up your co2 run ocilating fan to mix up the air just below or at canopy level. You want the co2 to be even in the tents air as much as possible. And use a co2 monitor not a timer People will say different but I say spend the money so you have absolute control over your environment

well I got bored after reading about 1/4 of this and just jumped to the end so to answer the last question I would say get some silver tape at home depot or lowes and seal the seams( inside or out I dont think it matters really just so you make them air tight). and then since you have a cool tube hook that up( if you dont know how to do that you are a noob and a dunce, you also would have to have no common sence(?)). next if you have heat issuses in the tent even still then more fans and or an A/C unit will help but set it so it turns off when you have the co2 on so your not blowing it into your room and not only wasting it but posibly causing deadly levles of the gas to build up( this would be a very bad thing do not let this happen) other than that you should be good, and if your paranoid about the co2 in your room you can set up a co2 meeter next to the tent and if it gos off well then you have a problem, also if your still paranoid about the co2 and I suggest this in the first place is this set your co2 for times that your not in your room and give it about an hour to clear out of the room before you go in it( i.e. open the fucking window)


well thats all I got, I'm sure I spelt shit wrong and left shit out but you got the just of it all.

-wyatt, grow in the desert.
oh p.s. if this helped you any rep is a great way to repay someone.

As long as you can control your temps you wont need a AC with Co2 , Your co2 comes on at lights on and running your Co2 @1500 PPM allows you to grow with temps up to 85 degrees. I doubt you will ever get a true 100% sealed tent I have a grow room and I still lose a little co2 just make sure your hood / cool tube is air tight. You dont need to exhaust if you have a carbon scrubber. I have mine on the floor running because your plants eat up co2 and in return make / give off oxygen and any old air is getting scrubbed by the carbon scrubber.

kkday, your the man, thanks alot, i would say you pretty much answered all my heating questions+some other stuff, now all i gotta do is save up for an a/c and a co2/temp controller. any suggestions anybody on cheap reliable controllers? is it retarded to buy that sorta stuff used?

GrowintheDesert your post was less helpful, thanks anyway tho. i like the idea about sealing the seems, what do you think about using that camping glue type stuff normally for waterproofing non grow tent tent's seams, might work. maybe some sort of pluming silicone. back to that question later.

BeavrHuntr, muchos gracias. i gotta question tho, doesnt a carbon scrubber remove excess co2 from the air, not oxygen? wouldnt that be counterproductive when im trying to build up co2 levels. Do most people vent, even if they have an A/C just to remove built up oxygen? please explain, not sure i totally understand venting, any further advice is greatly appreciated. thanks again. i like you DWC white russian grow btw, well done.

I run Co2 for 15 minutes then my scrubber for 15 minutes back and forth during the cycle and then Co2 off and scrubber on. It has worked well for me. One thing know one has mentioned is that the amount of Co2 used in a tent is rather small. --You'll barely open the float value once you do the calculations. The 15 minutes allows the gas (heavy)to fall to the plants and then what little is left is pulled back up past them with the scrubber.

Now the fun part. I used to fill Co2 and I'm well trained in it. I would never sleep in a room with a Co2 tank. Never. If it starts to leak you will die in your sleep. And Co2 tanks do leak! And guages do fail! Best of luck.

gracias meltdown, were you talking like some sorta closed circuit thing where the co2's just pumped back up to the top of the tent through the scrubber, the scrubber never really linked up to exhaust so you dont lose any co2? i was looking into that and some other forums been saying it'd work if you pump a/c'd air into the tent as well.

couple more questions for veteran hydro enthusiasts, has anyone tried using aquarium pH controllers on their rez? the ones designed for hydro are way to expensive but fishstore ones are only like a 100 bucks. think they'd work? thanks

another question, rather than buying a dehumidifier, couldnt i theoretically just put a bucket of rice in one corner, like a big ass salt shaker?

But a bucket of rice is an invitation for bugs... But yes is would work.

theo212 said:

gracias meltdown, were you talking like some sorta closed circuit thing where the co2's just pumped back up to the top of the tent through the scrubber, the scrubber never really linked up to exhaust so you dont lose any co2? i was looking into that and some other forums been saying it'd work if you pump a/c'd air into the tent as well.

couple more questions for veteran hydro enthusiasts, has anyone tried using aquarium pH controllers on their rez? the ones designed for hydro are way to expensive but fishstore ones are only like a 100 bucks. think they'd work? thanks

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I use a large basement room, so really the entire room "fills up/enriches" so to speak. I just keep adding very small amounts into the system/room every 15 minutes and it works for me. The plants get plenty and I use one and a half 20 pounder every grow. If you use this stuff in tight spaces watch out. Bad things do happen. The stuff is dirt cheap and you should never want to "seal" any environment to keep in Co2. --Headaches, dizziness and a pounding chest means you're about to die.

I'm interested in the ph controller...let me know how it works. I use DWC with water farm drip rings and airstones

I run a sealed room with no exhaust (11' x 13')
4 x 1000w air cooled 6" hoods.
13,000BTU Portable AC unit with separate exhaust and intake for the condenser. ** I had to tape up all the seams on bottom of the uinit to make it air tight**
Tank C02 with Co2 reg/valve plugged into the grow room controller.
Everything is controlled by a CAP fuzzy logic co2 controller - Light timer
portable 35 pint dehumidifier
One desk oscillating floor fan and one tall stanging fan with oscillation to keep the air circulating in the room which is super important above and below the plants.
hydrofarm bucket system 8 x converted to RDWC buckets which are about 3 gallons each and a 5 gal res, Sorta small but it keeps me on top of the nutrients.

I can control my room anywhere from 68F-80f I never let it get hotter but I keep it at about 75
Humidity can be taken down to 34%RH on the full power setting. * good for forming crystals *
1 20# tank of C02 at 1350ppm lasts me about 3-4 days but I grow some large bushy plants now.
I have a chiller but do not use it because my nute solution reaches about 75f at the end of the day and starts at 69-71 degrees.
I get about .5lbs but have seen up to .7 lbs per plant.

Why not get a big bucket of Silica Gel beads and some baking soda! I use a dehumidifier since my room is big and sealed
I have a fuzzy logic c02 controller which holds it at about 1350ppm when i set it at 1300.
I just take the tube from my actuated c02 valve and stick it in the grill of my standing fan to blow co2 at them.
I don;t think it matters where you inject it if you have proper air circulation in your tent or big room, this is very important if you want a good environment
where the ladies will be happy.

meltdown213 said:

I run Co2 for 15 minutes then my scrubber for 15 minutes back and forth during the cycle and then Co2 off and scrubber on. It has worked well for me. One thing know one has mentioned is that the amount of Co2 used in a tent is rather small. --You'll barely open the float value once you do the calculations. The 15 minutes allows the gas (heavy)to fall to the plants and then what little is left is pulled back up past them with the scrubber.

Now the fun part. I used to fill Co2 and I'm well trained in it. I would never sleep in a room with a Co2 tank. Never. If it starts to leak you will die in your sleep. And Co2 tanks do leak! And guages do fail! Best of luck.

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so is your scrubber an exhaust, does it pull air out of your basement? or just back above the plants? you also said co2 in a sealed environments a bad idea, how would you set it up then?

sorta pointless for me since i have a tank but i had this idea the other day, thought it'd be awesome for someone else... dry ice is just frozen co2, couldnt one drill holes in the bottom of a cooler, hang it from the roof of one's grow tent and then just let the co2 rich ice melt back into co2 gas and have it float down onto the plants. found some sites about it the other day too, apparently its been experimented with just not sure how much ice one would need for say, a weeks worth of growing. also is dry ice expensive?

theo212 said:

......am i gonna wake up dead? damn, hope not....

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I promise you wont wake up dead, you could die,but you wont wake up dead.
Sorry I don't have anything constructive to add other than I agree w/ meltdown, dont use a tank in your bedroom.

theo212 said:

sorta pointless for me since i have a tank but i had this idea the other day, thought it'd be awesome for someone else... dry ice is just frozen co2, couldnt one drill holes in the bottom of a cooler, hang it from the roof of one's grow tent and then just let the co2 rich ice melt back into co2 gas and have it float down onto the plants. found some sites about it the other day too, apparently its been experimented with just not sure how much ice one would need for say, a weeks worth of growing. also is dry ice expensive?

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Dry Ice works great but it is uncontrolled. --Blocks will last longer than the pellets. How long it lasts depends on the temps in your room. A tank and regulator work best.

I use a filter and blower at the top of my tent to exhaust the tent and pull in fresh air from the bottom vents. My Co2 line is at the top of the tent and drops Co2 down onto the girls. I run small amounts of Co2 for 15 minutes then kick on the blower for 15 minutes. -- I forget for how long before I turn the Co2 off and leave the blower on. This works for me really well. --To each his own

I zip up my tent and that is it. I don't seal anything. Co2 is a very heavy gas. Why people think it has to be sealed I'm not sure. It probably helps them achieve PPM goals. I prefer a touch and feel method along with my knowledge from filling thousands of those dam tanks while working through college.

theo212 said:

sorta pointless for me since i have a tank but i had this idea the other day, thought it'd be awesome for someone else... dry ice is just frozen co2, couldnt one drill holes in the bottom of a cooler, hang it from the roof of one's grow tent and then just let the co2 rich ice melt back into co2 gas and have it float down onto the plants. found some sites about it the other day too, apparently its been experimented with just not sure how much ice one would need for say, a weeks worth of growing. also is dry ice expensive?

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roomtogrow said:

sxx2excwqecx

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What about a bike pump releasimg air
slowly in grow rooom

(I'm still new to CO2 so take my words as you wish.)

Mylar itself is just a sheet... it depends if it's wrapped around a frame (not air-tight) or stuck on a wall of an air-tight room (is air tight).

The tent will Not be air tight. How can the Zippers be air tight, and you can not seal or tape them shut?

I would NOT run CO2 In the bedroom you sleep in, WITHOUT a CONTROLLER!