DJ Skunkworkz loudspeaker grow cab

Hi GCers,
I'm new here. Been lurking for a long time now. Finally decided to put my thoughts down on so you guys could take a look.

I need a stealth solution. I can't go the HPS/fans/carbon filter route. It's too much heat and too much noise.

Instead I've decided to go with induction lighting (like CFLs but better) and a closed grow environment supplemented with CO2. This means I've only got to cool my light. No carbon filter, no huge fans and much, much less heat than a HPS setup.

I'm going to build a pair of these loud speakers. The outside dimensions are 20" x 14" x 36". The grow chamber inside measures 18" x 12" x 30".

I'm planning on using a push pull configuration with high quality, low noise, 100 cfm computer fans. They are speed controllable so I can dial in the noise and heat with the speed of the fan.

These illustrations have one side and the top missing. Just imagine a 10" woofer and horn tweeter on one of the narrow ends. These will be fully functional loudspeakers. The gaps at the the top on each of the narrow ends allows air to be draw in on one side, pushed down past the bulb. The air is then pulled out the other side and exhausted through the gap near the top on the opposite narrow end. The inside of the air path will be painted matt black to help trap escaping light.

Still with me? Here are some graphics that will hopefully make some sense.





I'm planning on using 150 watt electrode less florescent lamp. One speaker will have a 2700 color lamp. The other speaker will have a 6500 color lamp. One speaker for vegging and one speaker for flowering.

What do you guys think? I'm going soil until I get the hang of this. Then maybe DWC.

 

I'll contact the vendor and ask for that emission spectra graph. Sounds like that is the secret sauce in determining if a light is going work for growing or not. It'll be interesting to see what they send me.

I'm going to use a CO2 Boost Bucket. I'm not going to monitor the PPM. It's a very small volume of space that needs supplementation so I think the bucket will work fine. I'd be much more skeptical of using a bucket in a grow tent or a larger room.

I've used 55 watt PL-L twin tube florescent lights with good success. I've never worked with HPS or MH. Too much of a fire hazard and too much heat.

If the numbers on that induction light come back with negative results I might build an LED array.

I really appreciate the heads up on the emission spectra graph.

 

I've done some more thinking and I'm starting to have second thoughts about induction lighting. I don't want to gamble success of this project on lighting of an unknown quality.

My last grow a couple of years ago was with 55 watt PL-L compact florescent lights. I'm going to stick with that formula because it gave me good results.



Four of these CFLs will give me 220 watts with far less heat than a 250 watt HPS/MH with nearly all of the performance.

I've gotten them in both 2700k and 6500k color temperatures. I like the wiring, ballast and reflector kit from this vendor. The remote ballast can be mounted outside of the cabinet to keep the heat down.

The biggest problem I had last time was with fans, heat, noise, light traps, stealth intakes and exhausts. I tried a number of different solutions that all had draw backs.

During the last go around, I really admired the Ice Box approach to heat. With some supplementary CO2 I could go with a closed grow environment if i could replicate that rig for some CFLs.



After poking around on the web I believe I've got the solution.

Although I haven't done an extensive search across the web I suspect what I'm about to propose has never been tried before on this micro scale.

I'd like to use a forced air heat exchanger (radiator) like that Ice Box with cold water to cool the interior temps in this grow cab.

Below is the forced air heat exchanger I'm proposing to use. It's designed to work with 3 x 120mm computer fans.



High quality 120mm fans can move around 60 cfm a piece.

Next, I need a little pump to move the liquid through the radiator.



This pump moves 317GPH at a maximum pressure of 50 psi. It's equipped with a speed control so I can dial in the exact amount of pressure I need.

The last part of the puzzle is how to remove the heat from the liquid so it's cold.

Behold, a Peltier (solid state liquid cooler). I kid you not. No noisy compressor. No refrigerant. All in a tiny pint size. This model providers 63 watts of cooling power.



This cooling system uses the same highly efficient design used in huge buildings like hospitals, airports and shopping malls. Very cold water is circulated through pipes to forced air heat exchanges that create air conditioning.

I'm planning on building a little frame to mount the four CFLs and reflectors so that they can be raised and lowered as a unit. Part of the fabrication will also include a bracket on one end to mount the heat exchanger (radiator) so that cold air can blow across the cabinet directly below the CFLs. This will not only circulate the air in the cab to prevent bud mold and promote thicker stems but it will also cool the lights and bring the temps in the cab down. With a fan speed controller designed for a PC I can dial in the speed of the fans to increase of decrease the temperature inside the cab.

Supplemental CO2 will be pumped into the closed grow environment courtesy of a CO2 Boost Bucket.

No light traps, no carbon air filters, no fans exhausting into the room, far less noise and much better stealth.

Here is an initial design for the dimensions of the cab. The interior chamber measures 16" x 24" x 30".



With 2.66 square feet of area the 220 watts of CFL lighting delivers 82 watts per square foot.

With some patience, skill and the right genetics I suspect I can harvest 2+ grams per watt.

I did some dew point math and as long as the RH is around 50% or 60% I can keep the cab in the upper 70s easily without having to worry about hitting the dew point at 59 degrees.

It's ambitious because it pushes the envelope with some new applications of existing technology.

Here is the cost break down:
$75 3 x 120mm stout, high output fans
$100 pc cooling heat exchanger (radiator)
$50 pc cooling water pump
$300 solid state liquid cooler
$140 reflectors, mounting hardware, wiring and ballasts for lights
$100 4 x 2700k, 4 x 6500k 55 watt CFL bulbs

The total clocks in around $750 dollars for the lighting and air conditioning. A CO2 boost bucket will run another $130 dollars. The construction of the cab will be another $500 dollars for a furniture grade, solid wood cabinet that anyone would be proud to have in their home.

Expensive? Sure. Money isn't really an issue. What's more valuable to me is the stealth aspect of the solution. No fan noises from exhaust ports on the cabinet. No weird light leaks.

Thoughts?