How should I set up multiple air cooled vertical lights?

I am unsure of how to proceed in setting up my room. I will be running three to four setups in my room. Each setup will be one vertical air cooled hps and a few plants surrounding it. I can only pull air from above the room in the attic. I am not sure what the best way to run my duct work will be. I see a few options, none of them sound ideal.

I could run a seperate line for each setup in the room. So for three setups, I would need six holes in my ceiling. Three intake and three for exhaust.

I could run one larger diameter duct for an intake header and feed the other three setups from that. They could each have their own exhaust directly above them.

The last idea I had was to run one long length of duct. It seems so inefficiency with all the 90 degree bends it would have to make. I would also need a very powerful fan or a few inline.

If you have any ideas, PLEASE HELP!! I am so stuck on this one. thanks on advance!!

Pulling air from a attic isn't the best idea. It gets hot in summer. Would be better to just pull from the room if that's the only other option. A window would be better. But dumping into the attic is a great idea.

what light wattage.

nm i am going to bed. take all of your watts and multiply by 3.41. that is the number of btus it would take an air conditioner to replace. add in another 1000 btu for each digital ballast. 350 for each pump. 500 for high velocity fan. 200 for other fans.

add em all up and that is how much a/c you need in that room to compensate for the heat given off. get you one inline duct fan per unit and pipe the cold air directly into the cab. cut a hole in top of unit for exhaust and you are done. with no holes in the ceiling.

a smart man would add in some extra btu for room heat. especially if its in a warm part of the house.

I think pulling from the attic is the most viable option for me. If I pull from the room, I would have to add a bunch of carbon scrubbers to my set up. I suppose that is an option, butI get nervous exhausting air that has had contact with my room. I don't want to leak smells at all, I am in an apartment complex.

I am not sure how to intake though a window and keep it looking and sounding discreet.

The attic is hot in the summer. I have added a large fan already up there. Once I run my air cooled lights that pull pull and push air in the attic I am hoping taht all that air movement will assisit in keeping attic temps down. Even if the intake air is higher, it should help keep the main room cool, right? Should I consider using more powerful fans to help compensate?

Ur first mistake is doing it in a apartment you got balls for that one hope you get it off

I had to hide a intake and exoust in my window before. All you gotta do is find a cheep window AC. People give them away here just gotta pick it up. Then you gut it. Don't destroy it. Pull it apart. You can use the guts as a water chiller later. All you want is the shell that sticks out the window. Place a screen at the end so it still looks like the radiator fins. Place in the window and run you hot duct to the back and intake to the sides. Sence it's a AC nobody will question the sound of air. Clean air in clean hot air out. And no holes to patch. And if you look in the water cooled room thread there is a how to on making the rest of the AC a water chiller that could cool your tents.

Csmith84 said:

I think pulling from the attic is the most viable option for me. If I pull from the room, I would have to add a bunch of carbon scrubbers to my set up. I suppose that is an option, butI get nervous exhausting air that has had contact with my room. I don't want to leak smells at all, I am in an apartment complex.

I am not sure how to intake though a window and keep it looking and sounding discreet.

The attic is hot in the summer. I have added a large fan already up there. Once I run my air cooled lights that pull pull and push air in the attic I am hoping taht all that air movement will assisit in keeping attic temps down. Even if the intake air is higher, it should help keep the main room cool, right? Should I consider using more powerful fans to help compensate?

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you cant add heat to heat and get cold. three set-ups is a lot of heat. you also cannot add that much heat to a room and expect it to be 'livable' without some sort of extra cooling.

I am still stumped on this one. I went around the complex and no one has ac units in the windows. I really do not want to stick out. I feel like using attic air for intake would work. It's not ideal, I know. 4-5 months out of the year I would have to deal with very hot attic temps. If I up my fan speed the air cooled set should still help keep a lot of heat out of the room.

If temps do get out of control I may be able to build an intake header in the attic. I could hide an intake by the opening on the peak of the attic, is that called a gable? It's three stories high so I doubt anyone would hear the air sucking in if I use insulated duct and a quiet fan.

If you have ideas, please share them! The window ac was a really great idea, I just don't want to stick out.

I will be using 3 lights, either 400 or 600 watt depending on a few things. I try to always use 400 in the hot summer months to cut down on electricity. I like using higher wattage bulbs in the winter instead of having to heat my room.

I am currently running two 600's and one 400 and cooling my space with my home's one ton unit. This place is 1200 sq feet. The apartment has a newer 1 ton ac so I am hoping it will be more efficient. The apartment is smaller too, only 1050 sq ft. I am hoping that will be sufficient. I want to get a mini split system for a backup one day. I have a few window ac's on hand now in case of emergency.

yah that would probably make you stick out like a sore thumb. not to mention the taking the chance of getting maintenance up there when you arent home to find out why you need a window unit to stay cool. i didnt realize you were in an apartment. you can always buy a portable unit and pipe the exhaust up into the attic.

i just know how hard it is to keep the heat down and what it takes to make life easier. but i also know from experience that the only way you learn is through your own trial and error. good luck.

I don't think such a large grow is feasible in a third floor apt. If anyone sticks their head up into your shared attic, you will be discovered. The noise and vibration of the fans is going to attract attention. Drawing hot air from the attic isn't going to cool your lights effectively, no matter how fast you run the fans. Complexes are notorious for wanting to enter your apartment all the time. You should reconsider your plans.

Glad to see the trolls post are gone.

Red1966 said:

I don't think such a large grow is feasible in a third floor apt. If anyone sticks their head up into your shared attic, you will be discovered. The noise and vibration of the fans is going to attract attention. Drawing hot air from the attic isn't going to cool your lights effectively, no matter how fast you run the fans. Complexes are notorious for wanting to enter your apartment all the time. You should reconsider your plans.

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I may have to get more creative with cooling my lights, I'm really stuck on this one!! My location is pretty sweet though. My attic is not shared. My apartment is on the very end and for some reason the attic is completely seperated, I'm not sure why it was built that way.

I know the owner of the place and I don't have to worry about people nosing around or maintenance at all. I changed my lock and deadbolt so even if maintenance accidentally tries to enter my place, they won't be able to with their keys. My only issue is fixing any problems that come up on my own! I'm fairly handy so I am hoping this won't be an issue.

I have done sound checks and I do not think noises and vibrations will be too big of an issue. I used to run RDWC but got away from it because the air pumps noise and vibration was very tough to hide. I use panasonic whisper inline fans, they are really quiet especially with insulated duct work.

I used to use wall mounted oscillation fans to save on floor space but they vibrated the walls too much. Regular oscilating fans that sit on the floor on a rubber mat have proven to be much quieter.

I have to keep my game face on at all times, but I really like my location now. There is no room for error though. I have to be VERY careful with odd smells, sounds, and activity here.

Thanks for your input, I had a lot of those similar thoughts that you mentioned.

If you can spare the expense, LEDs might work for you. The heat load may be low enough that you won't need any venting. I have little experience with them, so I'm not going to promote them. Enough lights to equal what you have in HID would cost a small fortune. I would suggest that you not put the grow in a room that maintenance would have a reason to enter. IE: bedroom with bath, bathroom, closet with heater or A/C, etc. Maintenance does have the right to enter, with notice, or in an emergency.

As to vent multiple lights:
Run three light fixtures in parallel. One main intake and one main exhaust.
1)8"duct from window or other source
2)1 8"x6"x8" wye, 6" to connect to first light intake,8" to 8" duct
3)1 8"x6"x6" wye, 6" to connect to second and third lights intakes and 8" to above duct
4)1 8"x6"x6" wye, 6"to connect first and second lights exhausts and 8" to 8" duct
5)1 8"x6"x8" wye, 6" to connect third light exhaust and 8" above duct and exhaust to attic
This should give roughly equal airflow thru all lights, one 8" exhaust fan, one 8" optional intake fan.

You can make a box that fits snugly inside a partially open window, with an open side facing outside. Paint the inside black. Connect your ducting to the box. Vent the exhaust to the attic. Suspend your fans from bungee cords to stop vibration.
I have a box in my window that handles both intake and exhaust, because I didn't want to put holes in the ceiling.