Let's Convert an A/C to a Chiller...

Discussion in 'Do It Yourself' started by jakesterjammin, Jun 22, 2012.

  1. #1 jakesterjammin, Jun 22, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 5, 2013
    OK, I have reservoir heat issues.... :D
    So I'm going to turn a 5,000 BTU Window A/C into a 1/4hp Chiller to chill my nutrients.....  ;)


    Parts:
    I use a 3/8" x 25' Stainless Steel Wort Chiller = $44.00 ($13.00 to ship to my address)
    (this Stainless Steel Wort Chiller comes with 20' of hose and a garden hose fitting for the 3/8" hose, so it's ready to go)

    1 - 40 gph submersible pump = $9

    1 - 5,000 BTU Analog A/C unit = $100

    1 - Cooler - $10

    So we're setting just under $170 for this conversion to chill a 55 gallon drum of nutrients...



    NOW, you do not have to spend the extra money on the Wart Chiller Coils, you can just get a 25' of 1/2 or 3/8" stainless steel tubing, but IT MUST BE STAINLESS STEEL if it's going to come in contact with nutrients..  Other metals will corrode, leach into the nutrient, and the plants....




    OK, I KNOW it's going to be asked as 99.9% of conversions just hang the A/C's evaporator right in the reservoir.... :eek:
    ALL A/C (new and old) evaporator coils contain copper which we cannot use in our reservoirs with nutrients..

    It's already been proven we MUST use at least a 304 Stainless Steel, because copper leaches into the nutrient.
    Another reason, all a/c evaporators have a coating on them to prevent corrosion of the fins...
    We DO NOT want that to come in contact with our nutrients..... 

    The people that just hanging the evaporator in the reservoir are not right in the head... LOL :D



    OK, this is a REAL simple conversion....



    Started by with a new 5K Window A/C unit, cost $99 + tax...
    [​IMG]





    Then I took out all the screws out of the A/C's cover to expose the insides....
    Real simply and usually just a few scews around the corners of the cover....
    [​IMG]

     
     
    Now I took the screws out of the electral box, and simply layed it down, no need to disconnect any wires...
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    I then removed the top fan shroud and that sometimes is taped on..
    The motor is a single shaft motor, it drives both fan blades (evap and condenser fans)...
    [​IMG]


     
    The yellow fan blades in the above picture is what we need to remove, because that's where we're going to put the small cooler reservoir, so we have to cut that fan blade off...
     
    I used a hacksaw for this task and took seconds.....
     
    So ALL of the fan motors are held on with 2 or 4 screws, and in this case it was 2 at the base....
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
     
    I removed the screws and raised the motor directly up so I can remove the bottom fan shroud...
    I did not need to unplug the motor on this model of A/C.....
    [​IMG]
     
     
    After removing that bottom shroud I reinstalled the fan back onto the A/C unit with the screws I took out..
    After I had the fan installed again, I took a hacksaw, and cut off the evap fan (the yellow fan blades)..
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    Now I needed to find a small reservoir and after a quick look around....
    Perfect, an old plastic tool box... :D

    ​But I'd suggest get a small cooler big enough to fill with water and submerge the evap...
     
    So I tilted the evap a little, taking care not to kink the lines, then slipped the toolbox in place..
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    Now I took and bent a piece of sheet metal to seperate the hot side (where the fan is in the above pic), and the cold side (where the cooler or in my case, toolbox is).... I simply used self tapping screws and screwed it right to the A/C's metal bottom....
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    At this point we're done inside the unit and can put the cover back on..
    After I put the cover on, I simply screwed a few screws in the metal separator I made....
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    Then the electrical box I simply zipped tied to the side and we're done....
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    Lastly I used a little foil tape to seal up the seams and make it look pretty....
    ​And put the 40gph pump in the reservoir, and some zip ties to tidy everything up.... 
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    To control the new Chiller I use my DIY Nutrient Temp Controller....
    http://forum.grasscity.com/do-yourself/1117153-lets-build-nutrient-temperature-controller-35.html
     
     
    That's the conversion....
    I use the Stainless Steel coils inside the nutrient reservoir itself, and then the cold water in the chiller's reservoir is pumped through the SS coil by the 40gph pump in inside the chiller's res....
     
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
     
     
    This chiller will drop the 55gal nutrient reservoir around 10 degrees within 15 minutes...

    :wave:
     
  2. Beautiful JJ, love the chiller! Brilliant idea!

    Best thing is the old lady fueled your motive! Good girl!
     
  3. So without my wife fueling my desire for DIYing shit :D I would have spent $130 for this DIY chiller...
    Again, right now I'm only looking to cool down maybe 100gal total...


    But now the wife went out and spent $104.00 it jacked up my cost to 234.00..
    If I would have just bought the new A/C to begin with, the total cost would have been around $215.00


    And STILL a far cry from a 1/2hp @ $500 and even a 1/4hp @ $400....
    So I figure it's a cheap way to cool 100-150gal... ;)





    Update pic.....


    :wave:
     

    Attached Files:

  4. well done jj :yay:
    now i need to find an ac local and get working.

    thank you very much for the DIY.
    a :) middy
     
  5. Thanks you guys....

    Also ML, I wish that I had a small old cooler...
    That would have been perfect, but all I had handy was the old toolbox....

    Right now I'm using the Styrofoam pieces that the A/C was packed in to insulate the chiller's res...
    That Styrofoam and some spray foam insulation called "Stuff"...........

    Another great American product... :rolleyes:
    I'll post up some pics later when I'm all done....


    Also, this morning I went down, the chiller's compressor was not running, the chiller's circulation pump was running (pump that cycles the cold water through the coils in the res), and nutrient res temp was 70... As I was working down there, the chiller's compressor cycles once for about 4 minutes, and then about 6-7 minutes later the chiller's circulation pump shut off....


    I checked the nutrient res's temp and it was 65....
    So it seems I have a 5 difference from the time the chiller's circulation pump turns on to cool the res down,
    to the time it shuts off at desired res temp...


    I wish that was more like a 3 difference, but oh well....
    Keeping the res between 65 and 70F, I'm happy with that...... :D
     
  6. I cannot rep you any time soon but I will be. +Rep

    That some serious Mad Scientist Stuff !

    Good Vibes
     
    • Winner Winner x 1
  7. I posted this in my grow thread but wanted to post the data here too..

    After 24hrs of use, here is how this conversion is working out for me....



    Right now the chiller's circulation pump comes on at 70 (21c) and off at 65 (19c)....

    That works out perfect for me, because I get about 3 raise in temp after a flood..
    So we start at 65 (19c), after a flood the res is around 67-68 (20-21c), then after the second flood,
    it kicks on the chiller's circulation pump and chills it back to 65 (19c)....


    The chiller's compressor only cycles once in the cool down and for like maybe 2 to 3 minutes tops..
    It takes about 5 maybe 8 minutes tops to drop 45gal res down 5 once the chiller's circulation pump kicks on...



    Now I want to have the chiller feed a manifold, which will allow me to run lines up into the chamber for the DWC tubs..
    That way I can run some accurate nutrient tests maintaining suggested nutrient temps....


    :wave:
     
  8. as i happens i do have an old travel powered coolbox that died ;).
    could you not fix a bit of polystyreen to act as a float to raise the coil in the res ? would that help give you that 3* your looking for ? but what do i know i'm a sodin chippy :D
    middy
     
  9. Ya that's what I did now....
    I secured the chiller's temp sensor to the its res, and then adjusted it...



    So here is an addition which I had setting in my desk collecting dust...

    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]



    So now I can monitor both chiller res temp and nutrient res temp...
    In a couple months the Trashcan nutrient res will be swapped out for a 100gal and 5 more sites added to the system..


    :wave:
     

    Attached Files:

  10. Oh and the nutrient temp above is only because I'm refilling the res for a change to flower nutes... :D
    It's just water in there now....



    :wave:
     
  11. flower nutes :)
     
  12. OK, I been watching this thing all day and I can set both chiller and nutrient res to whatever temp I want...

    Chiller Res: On @ 50F and Off @ 45F
    Nutrient Res: On @ 71F and Off @ 68F....


    Again it takes about 5 minutes to drop the 3...
    The chiller's compressor comes on once every other "res chill down" and runs for about 3 minutes... :D
    So with results like this, I see NO PROBLEM chilling around 150gal on the hottest of days.... ;)


    [​IMG]




    :wave:
     

    Attached Files:

  13. #13 jakesterjammin, Jun 24, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 24, 2012
    OK, more pics.........


    Well MIDLIFE, it's not the prettiest Pig in the poke, but it dam sure gets the job done.... ;)



    So here is what I did...
    Again, I wish that I would have seen an old cooler in my hunt.....


    I took the a can of "Great Stuff" which is just spray insulation that expands and turns into Styrofoam ($3.99 a can)..

    [​IMG]




    Then I took the Styrofoam the new A/C unit come packed in, cut it up, sprayed the back of it with "Great Stuff"
    and then stick it to the toolbox, then taped it in place until the "Great Stuff" jelled up (15 min)......

    Once I had the 3 side of Styrofoam stuck on to the toolbox, I started filling in the cracks...
    Again this really is "Great Stuff", because it expands and works its way into all the cracks and crevices...
    After an hour or so, it turns into Styrofoam and now you just take a sharp knife and trim it up...


    Tossed some duct tape on the corners......
    Because NO Hillbilly project is complete without Duct Tape!!! :D



    Here is what I ended up with..........
    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]




    Now to show you how thick the Styrofoam is.............
    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]




    So I decided to turn the chiller down some and open her up a little.... :D



    OMG in 12 minutes I had to take my foot off the gas or I was going to wreck into a pole or something!!!......

    [​IMG]



    2hrs later I come back and it's the exact same temp.... :hello:




    Now what this proved to me that this can also be reversed.....

    Meaning, we can run sub-zero temps in this small chiller res, then run the coils through the chiller's res....
    So now you would pump your nutrient through the coils which are in the sub-zero temps of the chiller's res....


    The same way as a manufactured chiller would do....
    All they are doing is taking a stainless steal tank, putting an evaporator in it, and getting it to sub-zero temps...
    Then you pump nutrient through the chiller's coils submerged in sub-zero temps....

    You would have to use Anti-Freeze good to -50, because these 5K BTU A/C units will pull a small res
    down to around -35..
    Or maybe a washer fluid, which is good, but is flammable as well... :eek:


    Water has the best heat transfer properties though...
    And one reason I choose to go with the coils in the nutrient res, pumping chilled water through them...
    Well that and I was lazy, not wanting to buy the stainless steel tubing and coil it myself.... :D
    So I bought a Wort chiller which really is made for 5gal buckets....



    This conversion is finished..... :metal: and time to :bongin:



    :gc_rocks:
     

    Attached Files:

  14. great work as always jj,

    this will help many many growers on GC and many other sites also once the word starts to get around , make yourself a ´jj chiller´ man will be the word on the web.

    I vote for a sticky..
    middy
     
  15. I don't know shit about hydro...lol but this is cool! You want to keep the water cool I presume because warm water grows bad shit or harms the roots? Scoop me.
     
  16. [quote name='"MIDLIFE"']great work as always jj,

    this will help many many growers on GC and many other sites also once the word starts to get around , make yourself a ´jj chiller´ man will be the word on the web.

    I vote for a sticky..
    middy[/quote]

    A JJ chiller, lmao hell ya.

    Beautiful work JJ love the tool box!
     

  17. Warm water temperature is more prone to growing algae, holds less oxygen and can lead to root rot...;)
     
  18. #18 jakesterjammin, Jun 24, 2012
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 24, 2012
    Check this out Middy....

    After the nutrient res (trashcan) popped a hole in it last night, I shut the chiller off, and unplugged it...
    Today when I get back from getting the new CAP 55gal drum res, here is where the temp was in the chiller's res....


    Around 12hrs after I shut off and unplugged the JJ Chiller ( :) ).....
    [​IMG]


    :yay:



    Yes, you're correct...
    In hydroponic we need to keep the nutrient temp between 65-70F
    Which is a LOT easier said than done when your res is in an 80 room.... :D


    Thanks bro!!

    Ya, like I told Middy, I wish I would have found a small cooler, or even a little smaller toolbox....
    But it is, what it is, and it really works GREAT for what I needed....


    Then the $300-$400 savings over a 1/4hp chiller helps a LOT too... :D


    But really, IMHO from what I've seen thus far from this conversion, it almost compares to a 1/2hp chiller...
    Which is like $600 bucks by time you tack on shipping costs, and every local shop, is $650-$700.....


    So to get even a 1/4hp chiller for $200, ya that's worth a little of my time to make one... :smoke:


    Then the JJ Chiller is really more versatile over the others!!!

    With this conversion, you can chill different reservoirs that contain different nutrients, where the store bought chillers, you can't do that, and only get to chill one nutrient because you cannot mix them running them through the chiller...



    :wave:
     

    Attached Files:

  19. sweet and well :cool: jj

    the wife has been away all weekend and my czech is not that good to find things on the local sites, so monday she has a job ;).
    middy
     
  20. I love it... seriously epic... wish i could rep you, I cant

    the pics help me along with my diy cooler using a de-humidifier i'm going to do... it won't look as good as yours does though... but nice one on documentation... and nice that its right in your sig

    keep it up
     

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