Yeah, I wondered if using the old dehumidifier water would be bad. I was just thinking it would be OK because it has been evaporated. Basically distilled. It shouldn't have any impurities if it's just out floating around in a clean room I figured. I could see it causing other problems though, like messing with PH. And considering I don't adjust PH at all and everything is good (knock on wood), I guess that isn't something I'd even want to mess with. I am happy that my PH is just naturally in check. Oh well, wish I had a floor drain to run that to. But I guess for now I'll just do it the old fashioned way... I don't do any real formal air exchange in the room. I think the carbon scrubber fan pulls air through the cracks from the rest of the house and window leaks, etc. And that's about it. I don't know how much outside air it pulls in or anything like that, but it seems to be OK anyway. Adding CO2 couldn't hurt, right? Thanks for the input, and thanks for the compliments. About 6 weeks to go... let's hope I can keep it together in the final stretch!
Co2 will most likely make it hotter in there. Also with out being able to clear the air in the room you could kill your self with co2 bro. And the water from the dehumidifer is nice and clean now but once you have run it for a while it gets nasty. And there is no way to get it perfectly clean, every little nook and cranny. And most likely there will be things growing in it before long. Plus the pH thing you noted. That's why I said "I wouldn't risk it" Not having fresh air coming in may catch up to you in the flowering stage. Is the basement all open or is your room enclosed? If you are open air down there that scrubber isn't going to be able to properly deodorize. You will see in a couple more weeks they will start stinking bad and the smell will waft all over your house. You will not notice it if you are home a lot but leave and come home after a while and when you walk in your house it will hit you in the face like a slap. You really should think about cutting some holes and mounting that scrubber properly. I'm not saying that to sound bossy or like I know what I am talking about and you don't it's just the way it is. Look back through your thread several guys have said the way you are using that filter is curious. They are being nice and trying to hint to you that is not the proper way to utilize that piece of equipment. Most of these guys either don't know or don't want to sound like a dick or be mean. So a lot of times they drop by and say looks great or keep up the good work. I however am not like that. I tell you what is work writing this rant. I personally like your room but fear the worst. Like Mike Holmes says make it right. If it's an enclosed room cut a Air vent in the floor from the room above. Make it look like a cold air return or a AC/Heat vent. Then cut a hole in the wall on the other side of the room and mount that scrubber. When you shut the door the scrubber will handle all your air movement. It will create negative pressure and pull air from upstairs into the room through the room scrub it and spit it out. When it's nice out open the house up. If you are worried about light in the vent bring it down with some ducting and do a 90 degree turn or 2. Spray paint inside of the elbows with flat black spray paint and bam you have a light trap. On the scrubber side you don't need a light trap. However I would try and make the room exhaust stealthy.The filter will block the light. Now onto my work how rude of me I have no journal for you to refer to however I do have pictures of my work. Kinda like a home builder, or a person that builds decks or fences. You call them up and they come over and they look at your property and they give you an estimate. The good ones bring a photo book of jobs they have done and are proud of. So you can get an idea of what to expect. I am not your friend that comes over and tells you to do this bad thing or that bad thing. I am a fellow grower who wants you to succeed. I have nothing to gain from your failure. So with that said feel free to compare apples to oranges. Like the kia commercials with the hamsters you can go with this or you can go with that.
I have to empty my dehumidifer the old fashioned way to by the way it's just another chore. So same boat bro.
Looking GREAT man! I like the fact that your asking questions and not just shooting from the hip. My buddy who stops over from time to time to check out my grow always says "Ah, just do "insert bad thing here" it can't hurt their just plants". I'm always looking for the right answers and not guess work. Ask and do it once, not trial and error.
I was just going to use a CO2 tank and controller. One that releases CO2 only when it drops below 1300ppm and stops when it hits 1500ppm. Those types don't create heat, do they? Yeah, I think that was a bad idea. I'll just keep dumping it and topping off the res. Thanks for the input, and you may be right. This is one aspect of this grow that I was going to wait and see how it pans out. The only reason I mounted the scrubber like this is because the Can Fan/Filter website says you can run it this way, in a "scrubber" configuration rather than as an exhaust. I just thought it would be easier to keep it contained than it would be to be blasting air and AC out into the wilderness. This is a single, enclosed room in the basement. The basement is otherwise open with a living room, etc. The room is sealed, but far from completely. There will always be cracks and crevasses. I am counting on those cracks to be big enough for air to be pulled into the room right now. If it works, I will continue to keep it simple. If the smell becomes an issue, or it looks like the plants are suffering, I will have to change. But for this grow I will leave it alone unless it becomes a problem. Nice pictures. Looks like you know what you're doing. And I like that song!
Thanks! I tried to get educated as best as I could before starting this project. I took a lot of the information and answers I found and am giving it an honest try. I will tweak it from there. There is sometimes so much conflicting information out there on a subject, that it's hard to tell if something truly has a right or wrong answer, or if it's just personal preference. Recently I've been looking at all of my lower flowers and thinking how not only aren't they getting any light and will never develop into anything great, but they are also blocking airflow throughout the plant and would be a likely place for mold to develop. When I went to look into trimming them, I got a million different opinions. What do people here think about trimming lower branches/buds to open up the plant more and promote airflow through the remaining plant? I was thinking about testing the idea on one or two plants and see if it made any difference at all growth wise...
You do not blast it into the wilderness you relocate to another area of your house. It is a scrubber after all what should come out is clean odor free air. When it doesn't then it's time to change it. Or it isn't being used right. The only way I would vent my grow area outside is if it where the same temp outside as in all the time. But it's not and as you pointed out, you do not want to spit air that you spent money on cooling to the outside. I will put it to you like this if you walk into my room right now the smell will bowl you over. Outside the room you can't smell anything. The company telling you it can be used like this is like apple saying I can use my iphone to actually make phone calls. Not even joking about that one. And if anything you are creating positive pressure in that room buy using that carbon filter in that manner meaning every little crack in that room air is probably being forced out when that shit actually starts smelling it's going to go everywhere. I know you said that you have done lots of research and so have I. Not to mention growing off and on since the 90's. This bothers me so much I went back looking for anyone else using it in this manner and what I came up with was bump-kiss. Sorry. What you may have read and perhaps misunderstood was the use of the word sealed and not sealed. I considered my room sealed but for different reasons than you consider yours sealed. In that the air coming in passes through a controlled opening that utilizes a filter. And is exhausted out through another filter through a controlled exit. Making it a sealed system so long as the door is shut and negative pressure is achieved. You have a vault with no real fresh air coming in. You are just recirculating stagnate air and cooling it. In the vegetative stage there is very little smell. Once they start flowering oh boy look out. Here is an example of how much is to much escaping smell of the grow area. I have a forced air cooled hood it is sealed or so you would think right. In fact there were tiny little holes where the metal comes together and the bends are riveted. And the glass slides out and the rails that hold the tempered glass not a perfect seal either. So with that said and the fact that I use my home HVCA unit to pull air on that light and cool it before dumping into the house or recycle heat in the winter for warmth. I realized when I first set it up that the rails may be an issue so I foil taped around the glass completely however the half a dozen pin holes I neglected to tape over came back to bite me in the ass. Remember that wafting all over the house I mentioned and not noticing because you become desensitized to smells that you are exposed to all the time. Well one day I left the house all day came back and as soon as the wife and I walked in the house the for mentioned slap in the face occurred. Because of 6 or so tiny pin holes in the hood. And the scrubber is 2 feet away from the hood running all the time and contains 12 pounds of active carbon in it. So I am not just speaking from all the research that I have done but from actual experience. And yes foil taping over the pin holes solved the problem. The hood is in fact sealed now and no more problems with odor. Sorry for the ramble and keep in mind that I am not flaming you just trying to help you and convince you. I bet you will be convinced when you find out on your own. Sometimes you just gotta figure shit out yourself. Makes life more interesting that way I suppose.
I think I misunderstood what you were saying before. Yes, I could vent to somewhere else in the house. That's a fine idea. And I honestly never considered it. I will look into it. Right now everything is OK. My carbon filter is way oversized for this room, and that's no accident. I am out of the home every day for at least 10 hours. Plus we have company over pretty often. My parents were just here yesterday. No one has ever mentioned any smell or anything at all, and we are 3 weeks into flowering. I will think on this whole exhaust idea and figure something out. You're right, I definitely need some more air movement. I have a pretty good idea actually already. I will look into it some more and see what happens. My phone has been broken for a week or so too. I will post up some pictures this weekend. Everything looks great. Lots of buds, and plants over 3' tall.
Forgot to address the co2. Bottled co2 will not raise the temp in your grow area. And after some more research I did find someone using the scrubber like you are. But it was like a whole warehouse type deal with a 1000's of plants in it. The way the warehouse is set up is a CGE or (closed growing environment). Much like you do. They recycle there air just like you do. However they do not use bottled co2 they utilize co2 generators because bottled co2 is to expensive. They also have elaborate ducting and ac units to deal with the heat and humidity produced while making the co2. The reason why they have it set up as a CGE is to keep from getting busted or ripped off much like you do. I also imagine they prefer making their own co2 to buying it in bottles is to stay off the radar. Now with all that said I have no problem admitting when I am mistaken and I was so I apologize. But in the same breath I will add that the reason why I had such a pain finding this technique is because no one really uses it because of the expense and the hassle. It's cost effective to utilize what mother nature provides for free. Now if money is no object than by all means. However when it's all said and done and what you end up with may be out weighed by how much it costs to produce it. Most of us start growing because we like good smoke and hate the hassle of getting it and then being disappointed by the weight or quality. There was also a mention of health risks using a CGE and co2. But if you plan on using a controller then it will probably be alright unless said controller fails and inundates you. The ultimate grow room | Cannabis Culture Magazine That link will take you to the article and there are some good pictures that show the whole operation. Looked into refilling co2 bottles ranges from $10 to $20 for 5lbs. So I don't really know what that translates into as far as how long that will last you. Then there is the initial cost of the equipment. Could add up. But in your case if you want to run it CGE then co2 is your only option it looks like. You could get a meter first that measures the co2 in the air and maybe see where you are as far as levels before plunking a bunch of money into all that equipment and start making regular trips to the welding supply store or the local paintball facility for refills. Food for thought. Or just ventilate the room like I initially suggested. I have great success without the use of co2 as you can see from my junk also in a basement just like you. I'm glad I don't have to deal with that co2 issue. Compare it to dumping the dehumidifier bucket except you have to go some where and shell out a bunch of money not to mention expose yourself. And by that I mean unless you have your own soda fountain or kegalotor or something or do a lot of paint balling. You know things that would mask what you are actually using it for then people may become aware of what you are doing. Anyway another long ass ramble from spooky talk to you laters.
Thanks for taking the time to research and help with the input that you have. To me a more self-contained system seems like it might be less hassle in the long run because you are eliminating so many of the variables that can create problems in a lot of other styles of rooms. It will be more expensive initially, but in the long run I think it might save money. I think my room is sealed enough that I can get away with just CO2 bottles versus needing a generator. Besides, I don't think I will ever run more than 2000w in this room and 30 plants. I happened to be blessed to be living in a city with a grow store on almost every corner, and they all refill CO2 relatively cheaply. Considering the controller is the most expensive part of the equation, I would definitely start with a controller and bottle before thinking about moving up to an expensive heat-producing generator. Hydrofarm makes an inexpensive little syringe CO2 tester that I was thinking about picking up. Only problem with that is that in order to use it, I would have to open the door and then close the door which would I think effectively flush the entire room of it's old air. Or I could buy a digital meter for around $180, but I think I would rather put that money towards a digital meter/controller. I wasn't going to even think about any of that until next grow though. Thanks again for stopping by!
No problem. I learned some stuff myself. I love learning new techniques and tackling a problem or what I might think may become a problem. Now I am stoked to see you put in co2. Bet the results will be wonderful. Did you say hydro shop that's a dirty word mister. Yeah my closest one is like 40 miles one way and IMO way freaking over priced. I avoid them at all costs. I have found that everything the couple hydro shops have near me can be obtained on ebay substantially cheaper and without sales tax if ordered out of state. And free shipping like 90% of the time. And I don't have to drive a 80 mile round trip and pay for toll roads.
I have one about 3 minutes from the house, and they are a nice small local company that has been in business for quite a while. Almost everything for this grow I ordered online, but it is nice to be able to pick up some pieces locally. A lot of the stores in town are competitive with online prices, and some are even online retailers themselves. My only concern is when I think how easy it would be for people to follow customers home from these stores. Any kind of people...
My thoughts exactly or a drug cop who is bored and decides to sit across the street from the shop tap your plate number in as you leave in his little laptop and bam he knows exactly where you live unless the car isn't yours and is registered to another address, He doesn't even have to follow you. He can drive by your place at his leisure with an I.R camera first to see if your house stands out heat wise from the surrounding houses. Then if he suspects you he can get a warrant and check your electric bill for anomalies. And then it's your house with a warrant and a dog most likely. Of course that's all worse case scenario but it could happen. And just like that. If I were a drug cop it would occur to me. However small timers just trying to eek out a little smoke for yourselves they probably wouldn't waste their time.
Well, my phone is still not cooperating. I've been trying to fix it, but I guess I will have to throw in the towel and replace it. Anyway, took some cool pictures just now with the Canon. Much nicer pictures. Everything is going very well.
Looks real good at 30 days into flowering. You started 12/12 on the 19th last month right. Right on track looks like. The different strains at different heights Should have LST'd those sativa's. Then they would be about the same height as the indica's. Known sativa I would have topped it let the 2 top shoots pop up about 6 inches then tied them both down at 90 degrees. Then the 2 shoots under that will pop out and do the same. Not only will you keep her low but she will have a ton of fat ass buds because more bud sites are exposed to direct light. Doing that would also require at some point you give them support to as the buds will become very heavy. Those pics I posted of mine a couple pages back that is what I essentially did except I didn't tie anything I snapped them and let the heal up. Then support with dowels. Cropped. Your stuff looks beautiful man. +rep. I was also thinking those top nugz you are developing will probably need support to at some point they are going to be huge. TIMBER. LOL. I have had those top nugs so big they try and topple the rest of the plant even growing strait up and not topped. Or bend the trunk under them and the stem starts looking like a BOW. or U shaped. To long and to much weight at the very tip. That is what she said..... Anyway bravo sir on the fine work looking forward to future updates.
You know it's not to late on those really tall ones tie them down gently toward the center of your foot print. Any spot were there are no top shoots present. Gently arching like a bow so nothing snaps. I guarantee it will with in hours of doing this the tip will turn it self upright and all the buds under it will also right them selves toward the light with in a few days. That way you can try and level that canopy a bit. And get the most out of your light. They look nice and thin and will not mind it. To late to crop that is for sure you want to have cropping wrapped up before second week of flowering. So tie them off near the tip and gently arch them over. As far as they will let you and you feel comfortable with. Let them get used to one stretch then see how it goes and if you want to do more later you can untie her and wrench her down some more. As long as you don't break anything it will not interrupt the flowering process. They shouldn't skip a beat. If anything you will be helping your self in the end yield wise. You got low stuff there that the light could be closer to if it were not for the giants next door. Plus the one in the corner looks like it may be getting shadowed by the taller plant next to it to some degree. Just a thought of course they are your babies not mine. I would not tell you to do it if I hadn't done it myself. Wait much longer though and it will be to late to do that. Idea try one plant if you like the results do the rest. You probably have a few days still.
Thanks for that advice. I will get some string and give it a try this week. It would be nice to have the light down lower for the little guys. Next time I will do all one strain from one mother. Was hoping to do a super high-yield Skunk #5, but my mother won't be able to support that many clones by then, so I am going to have to do something else. We'll see...
Even with same strain you will run into a couple plants here and there that get a little taller than the rest as you see it happening start cropping or tying them down to keep the canopy level as possible and a bud site in every spot in your canopy. You can achieve the scrog look with out using an actual screen. And by cropping I don't mean cutting I mean bending branches down to where you want them instead of where they want to be on there own. They heal with in days and end up stronger than before you bent them. A nice knot will form where you make the bend. Start doing this toward the end of veg stage and you can make adjustments up to the second week of flowering. The way you have it now you will have a lot of nice top nugz for sure but end up with a lot of unimpressive lower stuff due to no direct light. Just my 2 cents per usual.