[SIZE=medium]Hi guys,[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Alright so, very green grower here, needing some advice. I have been experimenting with turning a tin shed in my backyard into a grow shed but I'm encountering some issues. For the record I have successfully grown 2 plants from seed to bud. I want to redesign my setup and see if I can't increase yields, safety, etc.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]The Setup[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Tin shed, 10'L X 5'W X 7' on a concrete foundation. Rectangular, 1 door, no windows.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]X2 600 watt HPS cooltubes.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Mylar sheeting for the interior walls.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]3 circulating fans (standard house fans).[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]The exhaust is a passive vent to allow air in and out.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Electricity is run from a standard outlet on the side of the house, underground through a PVC pipe to the shed.[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]My Climate[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Summers can reach 116 degrees or higher, the winters can go as low as the 40's. Average temp is 70-80 degrees. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Grow Type[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Soil[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Problems[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Alright so my 2 main problems at this point (as I see it) are pretty common, temperatures and ventilation. I would like to grow year round and temperatures in the shed can reach 100+ degrees. [/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]Questions[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]I'm planning to install a portable A/C unit in the shed to offset the temperatures. Thoughts?[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]My current ventilation system (3 house fans, passive vent) is clearly not cutting it. I don't think I'm moving enough air in and out. I have a vortex fan that I haven't installed yet. I plan to create a box frame for it and suspend it coupled with a dimmer to keep the noise down. I would then have hosing hooked up to it, 1 end going to the outside to pull in air, the other end running through the 2 cool tubes and then out of the shed for exhaust. Thoughts?[/SIZE] [SIZE=medium]I am very paranoid about the electrical system and fires. All of the electronics are housed in a compartment above one of the lights. So I have 3 fans, 2 lights (including ballasts) all running off of a standard electrical outlet. Thoughts on a standard electrical outlet powering all of this equipment?[/SIZE]
If you're using a extension cord a fire is just a matter of time, that's a lot of juice. You need a hard wired pannel in your shed, an a.c. will pull some power. You can have a electrician wire the shed without suspicion as long as there is no grow equipment in there. You need a carbon filter. 1200 watt grow is gonna stink to high hell.
600w hps, a 5k btu a/c run about 5 amps, give or take. When it's all said and done you'll be pushing 20 amps. You need a 30 amp line for that shed, not an extension cord. Tell the electrician that you plan on running a lot of saws or something. If I was converting a shed for growing I might install a split a/c. They're expensive but you can locate the compressor far away from the shed so that no noise is coming from it. Portable a/c's suck balls, everybody I know who uses them tells me they are a waste of money. I would use one 6" inline to cool the lights separate from the grow. Outside air comes in one side, through the lights, and out the other without mixing with growroom air. If you're running an a/c and NOT exchanging the air in your grow then you'll need to add co2 and humidity controls. Personally I think you'd be fine with an inline fan on a timer exchanging the air in the grow once per hour and constantly when the lights and a/c are off, but if you've got the funds then you might as well throw down on full atmospheric controls.
A tin shed will be like adding AC to an oven. If its so hot there ditch the lights and grow in the sunshine.