do window ac units leak smell?

jonjon777 said:

first off I want to thank you guys because there is no clear information on this there is a lot of misinformation out there and I don't need an educated guess I want somebody who has done this before, because if I go into flower it starts to stink, I'm in trouble...

Now, there has to be ways to make the situation better, I'm thinking...

take the unit apart in use caulking and spray insulation to ensure its air tight

Run two carbon scrubbers

Maybe even put a can of ona gel in the damn thing!

ANY other ideas are appreciated silly or not...

Thanks guys!

(Alcohol, I just commented in the other thread asking if this was possible never mind that as we're discussing it here)

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mini split.

We have a winner! Haha lol...
of course mini split is the best choice and that's what I'm going with come May, right now cash is scarce...

I would like to stay with the electrical I have wired so I'm thinking that I'll just use a one ton, 14000 unit I have, I know it's not going to give me complete control of the temperature and if its too much I'll turn down lights.... As long as my rooms below 80 and resiviors below 70 I'm all smiles...

Thanks everyone,

if there's anything else you can suggest, as far as seeling it don't hesitate...

Again I was thinking

take it apart n use silicone spray and foam insulation spray to ensure its sealed, maybe some weather stripping as well as two scrubbers and ona... anything else?

Just pop the cover off a window unit like you going to clean it. They are separate but not completely air tight. There will be plastic or foam or both to direct air.

Noob2grwn said:

Caulk and foil tape are your friend, for both light and air sealing. Mastic sealant is the way to go for anything permanent. It's messy to work with, and a beeotch to remove...but that stuff is a true permanent seal barring physical damage. If in doubt, a simple smoke test will let you know if a unit/structure/or anything is reasonably air tight. My experience is not cannabis related, but I've done lots of smoke testing for air tightness. Using copious amounts of cannabis smoke to smoke test would give you the extra element of smell to judge by.

A layer of foil tape covered in mastic makes one hell of an air/light barrier.

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There is your answer. They are mostly air tight. A little work and it will be fine.

thanks everybody know 1 last question as far is testing what do you guys suggest I could use to test this, I prefer to get it done and tested in the next week or two because I can't have my ladies in there while I do it and they are growing rapidly...

smoke bomb in a stink bomb or what?

I'm not going to light an ounce on fire that's stupid lol...

So I got this baby open, honestly, why not just kill the fan in the rear? Heat? That'll eliminate all issue for smell..?

I went ahead and decided to use caulking for the scene and then I coated the entire thing silicone spray, next I covered with two layers of plastic, and debating on using can insulation to fill in the gaps... I don't want to compromise the unit, allowing it to overheat... I would cut off the fan in the rear but I'm worried about the same issue there...

suggestions?

See pic!

Don't cut the fan off in the rear! You'll burn up your compressor

I don't like that plastic. Go get yourself a bucket of mastic sealant http://www.homedepot.com/p/Speedi-Products-1-2-Gal-Water-Base-Duct-Mastic-Sealant-AC-DMS-0-5/202907021 and a cheap paint brush and go to town. This one small bucket would have saved you all that caulk and silicone spray, and trust me it works better.

I'm going to, this was just a 10000 unit I had lying around, theb 14000 is in my dads tool shed...

What about around the ac itself? Cut out some plywood and insulations board and use mystic?

I usually put foam board in the entire window and foil tape it in place and to the window unit. This stuff is fine: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rmax-R-Matte-Plus-3-1-2-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-R-3-2-Polyiso-Rigid-Foam-Insulation-Board-754404/100572981?N=5yc1vZbaxx The thicker the better. But most crappy single pane windows only have an insulative rating of R1, so this will stop air/light leakage and quadruple the insulation factor of cheap windows. Reflective side out.

I don't like to mastic a unit in place...makes it a bitch if you have to remove it. Remember to use lots of caulk under the unit where it rests on the window sill. I put the foam board behind the cheap accordian-style install kits the units come with. But plywood is almost always better, then form board over that. Just make sure to really clean the window frame and unit so that the foil tape sticks properly.

jonjon777 said:

first off I want to thank you guys because there is no clear information on this there is a lot of misinformation out there and I don't need an educated guess I want somebody who has done this before, because if I go into flower it starts to stink, I'm in trouble...

Now, there has to be ways to make the situation better, I'm thinking...

take the unit apart in use caulking and spray insulation to ensure its air tight

Run two carbon scrubbers

Maybe even put a can of ona gel in the damn thing!

ANY other ideas are appreciated silly or not...

Thanks guys!

(Alcohol, I just commented in the other thread asking if this was possible never mind that as we're discussing it here)

Click to expand...

What I read is that the waste water from condensation, will have enough terpines in it for a trained dog to detect.

If you have a trained drug sniffing dog set to check out your house I think you've already lost the battle. If the cops have a tip about you they can get their dogs to make a "hit" whether they smell something or not and in they come. And those dogs can smell through walls.

Hot peppers repell does, or so the myth goes... Ghost peppers burn there nose, I guess, I got some...

I my ac has a drain, it uses half inch tubing... I was going to run it back in..?

obviously none of these methods are foolproof but they can't hurt and I think in most situations they could make the world of a difference...

Also, all my neighbors smoke, literally all of them, which I'm hoping is a good thing

I wouldn't run the line back inside. The condensate pan is outside already, so re-routing the drain line back inside won't keep the waste water from being outside to begin with. It would be a pain in the butt, not accomplish what you want and asking for water damage. I think you are going above and beyond what most people even think about doing to be safe. As long as you don't tell anyone you're growing I think you'll be safe.

My first grow is about a month into veg and just started to really smell. The room they are in has a window unit that I sealed with foam board, foil tape and caulk. I didn't bother with the extra step of pulling the unit apart and sealing, so you're one up on me. There is absolutely no smell outside. There is lots of smell inside! My gf was stressing about the smell inside, so I put my ionizer/ozone generator on a recycling timer in the room next to my grow room. On 2 minutes off 20 minutes and absolutely no smell unless you go into the room. I have no exhaust/intake/carbon filters because I don't care if the grow room smells and draw air in and out the rest of my house for air exchanges. I'm still a noob, so I don't know if this will work in flower, but I think it will. I'm still adjusting my recycling timer to get to the point where I produce just the perfect amount of ozone to kill that delicious smell. When I don't smell ozone or weed, it's right on.

I have a scrubber, might get a second...

How many watts u running?

what exactly is an o zone generator is that the air filter that uses like a magnet/static cling to grab the sent molecules?

I was just in use the peppers outside and inside, along with the carbon scrubbers and burn some oils if need be... Ive heard of people scrubbing rooms outside of the room too.

N it really doesn't smell bad unless you start playing with the buds, the second you touch them and anyway the stink comes out.

Ya, it actually generates O3 molecules that eliminate odors. I did lots of research on them before setting it up. Lots of pros and cons. Most people disagree with running it in an occupied living space. After lots of research, my opinion is that its ok as long as you don't generate enough O3 to be harmful. I just use my nose as a gauge...if I can smell ozone at all, I'm generating too much.

It's amazing the stank it can neutralize. My girl has smoked in her car for years and isn't exactly on the ball about cleaning. Her car stunk. I put my ozone generator in her car with the windows up for a couple hours, let it air out after, and absolutely no stank. I wouldn't recommend or advise against it at this point because it's too new to me. My growing and cannabis odor elimination experience is too little to give advice. But my hvac experience is solid.

can I ask why everybody dogs the portable AC units? they have one and a half ton rentals where I'm at 4 $100 a month for 6 months, they have dual vents so that the air is not recirculsted and it seems like a perfect fit for very cheap, if I don't like it I can take it back and I can just put a can filter on the exhaust. I know it would work but everybody seems to suggest I not try it why is that?

I don't like them because typically the unit is in the same area that you are trying to condition. Even with the exhaust, this adds to the heat load = counterproductive. They are also usually very cheaply made. You have to empty the little condensate drain catch, which sucks. Many of them have an automatic cut-off switch, so when the drain catch is full the unit kills to avoid water overflow. This could be spell disaster if you aren't there to empty the water and the unit shuts off and your temps skyrocket.

I have virtually no experience with them, other than refusing to work on them. I tell people to try to diy it, call someone else or replace it. There must be people that like them because they sell so many of them. But IMO a window shaker beats them in every application that includes a window.

I just figured it wasn't ideal quick fix for me and cheap at that.

I'm getting a split in April or May. I'm pumped. Here's what I'm considering.

http://www.alpinehomeair.com/viewproduct.cfm?productID=453067106

they also have a one and a half ton for $200 less, not sure which way I'm going to go though, I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it you know