Cheap 250w diy cooltube, no cutting

just try it out... do a dry run. I'm willing to bet you could put your hand on that glass tube with that much cfms running through it... But I don't really know, so be careful. It just seems like a lot of air movement to be at a constant temp that hot.

 

Bump. Pics?

 

I made one out of a $10(cad) hurricane glass. Its not pyrex and works awsome.

 

What is quartz glass called in wall-mart terms? Is Pyrex a quartz glass?

I would worry more about glass shattering from the heat rather than melting, if you use cheap glass. But with over 200 CFMs the glass will probably be cold or maybe warm.

 

There is no such thing in wally world. Quartz glass is made from 100% silica sand. I has very few inpurities in it. It has a working temp of about 1500C. You have to use a hydrogen/oxygen torch to heat it to that temp. It has a coefficient of expansion of 0. This means you can take the white hot glass and quench it in hydro flouric acid and it will not break. Pyrex is a lesser pure form of quartz to keep it simple. sorry about the spelling my spell check is not working at the moment. Also I use quartz glass as an IR, heat, filtrer in our UV curing and IR drying machines. Hope this helps.

 

So Pyrex should be somewhat efficient at blocking IR?

 

I have just orders a bake a round Pyrex tube from ebay for my DIY 250w cooltube I will be hopefully posting a tutorial but not sure if I can post a new thread as I'm a new member

 

^ov kourse yew kan

 

What a cool tube does is direct air flow directly over the lamp thus removing the heated air. Pyrex is not an efficient IR filter, although it will absorb some. The low melting point of pyrex is more of an issue than IR filtering. You will be ok as long as you have the proper amount of exhaust. To much overcooling of your lamp will cause the lamp's running voltage to drop and could possibly damage the capasitor(s) in your ballast. Not enough and well, you could have a catistrofic lamp failure.

 

You think a bulb could really get too cool with just a regular cool. Tube no ac? It should be fine as long as it stays within its operating temperature which it says on the ballast right??

 

Yes .I think you will be fine as long as your fan is properly sized and it does not stop as long as the light is on.

 

I hate it when people try to source EVERYTHING weed growing related from walmart or fred meyers or whatever the fuck regional store in their area and end up slicing themselves with shattered glass, or something catching fire, or just flat out failure resulting in catastrophic damage.

My wise word to the kiddies in weedland, SAVE your fucking milk money and buy a cooltube from ebay or amazon, save the DIY hastle of messing with extremley hot bulbs, wiring and trying to fuckign cool EVERYTHING with a bunch of daisy-chained PC fans....

Jesus Fernando Chavez! you freakin tards leave the DIYing to the simple things like cloners, gro cabs, green houses and hydro systems. Plastic cant explode or shatter into your face or singe the skin off your damned hands, and stop playing with electricity, you all think electrical tape is a guaranteed fail-safe.... go stick some keys in a socket like we used to in the 80s and get it out of your system.


BUT to be a little more constructive, I dont think any walmart glass PERIOD in any section of walmart will withstand the heat the lamp gives of over time (12+hrs)
I know for a FACT that the flame(s) on a candle (even 6"diameter candle with 3 wicks) would not get hotter than 100-150F

The bulb gets much hotter than that, would heat up the glass tube, and say you wanted to foliar your plants one day in a freak accident, the mist from the sprayer hits the HOT GLASS and it shards into you eyes and face leaving microfragments that work their way deeper as you talk and move facial muscles and cause permanent facial damage to facial expressions!!!! *gasps for air*

in closing, try it and report back to us how it works for you. XD

 

How come no body ever got back to us with their cool tube results?

 

im guessing house fire?

 

Well let's see if a PM will work?

 

Is it necessary to pull outside air through the cooltube and vent it to the outside, or can you pull air from inside the cab, through a carbon filter, through the tube then to the outside? Thanks in advance for the response!
bongwater

 

I've run 3 grows with a 4" hurricane glass, from walmart, with a 400w hps. Exhaust goes directly outside...tied into my dryer vent. I can place my hand on the glass no problem. I'm vegging with cfl right now, but will add said 400w lighting with the cool tube in the next week. I'll post up pics when ready.

 

Cool, finally some results. how many cfm are you pulling across your lamp?

 

I have a 4" vortex fan with 176cfm. My grow space is only 100cf, so I'm replacing the air about every 45 secs.

 

you can pull the air from either INSIDE or OUTSIDE. Pulling from INSIDE allows you to use ONE fan to exhaust the room AND cool the light