Does anyone have any insight on thermal detection of an indoor grow room. Is this form of detection used frequently by authorities? Would a fan exhausted HID lamp solve the problem? If not, what type of insulation would be proper to line the ceiling if this supposed room was on the upper floor of a building? Would a 250 W HPS pose a threat at all? Any help on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Peace, JangoBaDango
Where do you live? In the UK It may be legal but in the US, you need a hell of a lot more than a helicopter thermal scan.
i never understood that? i mean if u have a 250 watt lamp on in your house in a cab how could they tell by flying over? i mean u have a attic and insulations and its not hotter than 85 degrees in your cab anyways. noway they can see. maybe if u had a house full of 1 k'sor soemthing
It is now unconstitutional for the US to use thermal imaging either for indoor or outdoor grows. Do they still use it? Who knows? But, they can not prosecute with it any longer. As a side note, to detect indoors you would need at least a 1000 watt HID to give off enough heat to give a signature.
Well, the police CAN use thermal imaging, but they MUST HAVE A WARRANT FIRST. The use of thermal imaging was determined to be a search within the scope of the 4th amendment, requiring the police to first obtain a warrant. The result is that using thermal imaging is not very useful for cops, because if they have a warrant anyway they'll just come into the house. The Supreme Court case is Kyllo v. US, 533 US 27 (2001). You can read about it all over the net. Try this one: http://www.erowid.org/freedom/courts/supreme/supreme_case2_comment1.shtml
If im not mistaken, it was used in the UK alot to bust comercial grows on roof tops. The also has thousands of watts being used and then could be detected. Wether you live in the US or UK you have nothing to worry about if your growing a few plants. Just go with a 400-600 watt light.
Teledingo, Check out this link, this has been discussed before: http://forum.grasscity.com/showthread.php?t=90659&highlight=Infrared+detection Here is what I said after some investigation (by the way you are correct): They can get heat signatures from an indoor grow room. They also can get an infrared signature from an outdoor grow known as FLIR. The other boys and girls are correct; both have been banned however; the cops still use them to confiscate plants but, not to prosecute. Check out these descriptions with links... http://www.marijuana.com/Bible.php?loc=27&id=1 FLIR : Acronym for Forward-Looking Infrared, it is a thermal imaging process whereby differences in heat emission are measured and reflected on a videotape. Heat concentration is indicated on a videotape on a spectrum of light to dark, with bright white showing intense heat. Increasingly, law enforcement personnel are using FLIR thermal imaging to detect indoor marijuana growing operations. However, the Supreme Court in the U.S. has recently banned the use of FLIR to find these operations. http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/2857.html The US Supreme Court has ruled that Forward-Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) technology, which is used to detect heat escaping from grow rooms, is unconstitutional unless cops get a warrant to search your home first. However, cops are still known to use these devices illegally, especially if they just want to trash your grow house and take your plants, but not press charges. Detecting heat from a distance is not an exact science. A strong heat source creates a weaker signal in a room that is well-insulated. Growers who are worried about FLIR technology should insulate their rooms thoroughly. They should also avoid excessive heat build up and vent outgoing air through a cooling system or other discreet method. Also, I found some old info on another BB that said that for lights to be detected indoors 2- 1000 watt HID's have to be in use. Here are some newer links: http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/2960.html http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/4291.html
The machine that you use to dry your clothes shows more thermal heat than your 250w HPS. As well as your oven, among other things. No stress.
Very true 250 watt hps is nothing. Long before i ever got into mj i did saltwater reef tanks and i used 2000 watts of lighting and no one ever asked any questions. You have nothing to worry about once you get up to overr about 2k then you can start thinking about this.
Thermal scans are to detect grow rooms that occupy whole houses. A single room won't raise too big an alarm, but if you were doing an entire floor with several thousand watts of juice flowing they'd do a fly over and monitor your water and electric bills. You'd see cruisers in the area looking for odd activity and then they'd pop someone leaving or entering for something stupid like a broken tail light. Quick search gives probable cause and then you're boned. They don't waste the effort on personal growers. Follow the three rules of growing and you'll be ok. 1) Don't tell anyone 2)DON'T TELL ANYONE 3)Break only one law at a time. You grow, that's your one.