Mini split questions?

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
Anybody using a mini split?
Would a 9000 btu be better than a 14000 btu portable ac?

Could I install a 120 volt minI split condenser inside a house near a window?

Might sound crazy but it has to be stealth and a condenser outside won't work.

I'm thinking this would be great if I can pull it off. No smells to filter. And I bet it will do a better job than these piece of shit portables.
 

jkwrestling13

Well-Known Member
Why cant you have the condenser outside? A/C units aren't illegal. As for having the condenser inside I would definitely never do that personally.
 

dude_bro_

Member
It would generate extreme heat inside the room the condenser is in. Also there is not 100% efficiency between condenser and evaporator. So unless the grow area is completly isolated with a thermal barrier, heat soak from condenser may render the whole mini split useless. Also to be considered for stealth. They will be vibrations and noise generated from the compressor cycling and the overall noise may be anti stealth in a residential application.
 

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
Yeah it just doesn't seem feasible
The idea would be to place it in a far off room and blow a fan out the window.

That's pretty much what I'm doing with the portable right now. It's just that I need better fans I guess because the back pressure is fucking the compressor.

It can't be outside.
 

dude_bro_

Member
If it absolutely HAD to go down. You could put it in a different/further room and build an enclosure around it near the window you would use to vent heat. That would isolate it from the room, and would be very near the same thing as it being outside. Vibration still sucks, but if outside is completely out of the question. Do what you must. And to try and be helpful.. what about the attic. It would be easily "ventable" and who cares about heat build up in attic? Plus hoses would reach I would think just as easily as another room.
 

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
I'm down to 80 with lights on. Gonna order a dual hose. Should be better since it won't pull so much air from outside the tent and won't use the conditioned air to cool the comp.
 

jijiandfarmgang

Well-Known Member
Heat build up in attic can be a bad deal.

Mini splits are the way to go. For stealth I've seen people get creative and put multiple condensers under exterior porches behind lattice.

High temps usually equal diminished THC. Some strains are affected differently.

- Jiji
 

DDub

Well-Known Member
If you attempt to build an enclosure for the condenser of a minisplit and exhaust the heat created you must be very careful. That could potentially cause you big problems. Not only could it restrict the actual cooling abilities of the unit, you could potentially fry the condenser all together, and perhaps although I doubt it, start a fire. You would need a good fan set inline on ducting from the heat escape of the enclosure. Said fan should somehow be triggered only to activate when mini-split is also on.

Is a window banger an option for you? Much easier to exhaust the heat from a window banger that hangs on an interior wall. The SPT (I think is the company) WA-1222 would suit your needs well I believe.
 

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
In in a tent. 9x5.5 .
Can't see how that would help me.
I can't put a mini split outside
I could put a window ac in the window but that wouldn't be in my tent where I need it.
Also, I'm at the high end n of my amperage capacity so another ac won't do it.
It's one ac. And the best I can do is a dual hose portable.
Still got to vent the heat out to the other side of house where it isn't an issue.
 

CrazyKappa

Well-Known Member
You don't need the ac to dump into the tent, just the sealed room the tent is in. You just have your carbon scrubber/fan dump the hot air from the top of your tent into the room, then have your intake be at the bottom opposite corner, it will circulate just fine. Its what i have, my AC is in the window, then i just circulate the cool room air into my tent.
 

CrazyKappa

Well-Known Member
Don't do that hack job, yes the hot air comes out the very back, but where did that hot air come from? See all those vents in the sides/top? Well those normally sit outside as well, well air goes in there, and out the back. Think about this for a moment, when you use it indoors, all your nice cool ACed air is being sucked out a vent.

If your run said contraption, its no longer a sealed room, you have negative pressure. So you will waste AC, waste CO2 if your running it, and never control your humidity. Just use a window job in the window, also you need to match your AC to your needs. You want that AC running continuous, for one its the most efficient electricity wise, second you will get humidity spike every time it kicks off.
 
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bgmike8

Well-Known Member
Don't do that hack job, yes the hot air comes out the very back, but where did that hot air come from? See all those vents in the sides/top? Well those normally sit outside as well, well air goes in there, and out the back. Think about this for a moment, when you use it indoors, all your nice cool ACed air is being sucked out a vent.

If your run said contraption, its no longer a sealed room, you have negative pressure. So you will waste AC, waste CO2 if your running it, and never control your humidity. Just use a window job in the window, also you need to match your AC to your needs. You want that AC running continuous, for one its the most efficient electricity wise, second you will get humidity spike every time it kicks off.

Yeah. There is a tutorial out there on how to make two boxes for an I door ac. Too much trouble imo. That thing in the video is just the same as the single hose portable I have now ...
 

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
You don't need the ac to dump into the tent, just the sealed room the tent is in. You just have your carbon scrubber/fan dump the hot air from the top of your tent into the room, then have your intake be at the bottom opposite corner, it will circulate just fine. Its what i have, my AC is in the window, then i just circulate the cool room air into my tent.
You really think that will work?

I ts an 11x11 foot room probably 8 foot ceiling. Inside is the tent which is almost 10 x6 x 6. I have two 600s air cooled.

So by what your saying, you think I could exhaust out with a 400 cfm fan into my filter which is what I'm doing any way via the portable. And I'm also sucking out through my light because it seemed to drop the temp more than in taking another 20 feet from a window..

This would probably keep a negative pressure and I could passively intake through tent holes the air conditioned air .

You think this would be enough??
 

coughphee.connoiseur

Well-Known Member
Hello if anyone I decided to direct my question here since its titled mini split a/c which is what I'm using.

I have concerns about daytime ( lights on temp. flux.) I have just ran testing, but with the A/C set to 66-68 with the lamp power maxed out the temperature fluctuates consistently between 70-80 every 5-10 minutes.

This seems like a lot of stress on the A/C system, yeah? and also concerns me a little about the stress on the plant.

Normal and I'm just over thinking? or should i make some adjustments?
 

bgmike8

Well-Known Member
Hello if anyone I decided to direct my question here since its titled mini split a/c which is what I'm using.

I have concerns about daytime ( lights on temp. flux.) I have just ran testing, but with the A/C set to 66-68 with the lamp power maxed out the temperature fluctuates consistently between 70-80 every 5-10 minutes.

This seems like a lot of stress on the A/C system, yeah? and also concerns me a little about the stress on the plant.

Normal and I'm just over thinking? or should i make some adjustments?
Set it lower and see if it runs longer and more stable. Sounds like you're running and stopping over and over again
 

CrazyKappa

Well-Known Member
How many windows do you have in that room? If your running air cooled lights, you can duct the intake and exhaust to a window, and still maintain a sealed room. A window AC recirculates the air, there is no negative pressure, so long as you do not have any intake or exhaust going in or out of the main room, its a sealed room. Its the problem with even most portable ACs, there is that heat duct, well that air come from your room, and unless you have a separate intake duct, (very few have this setup) your room is no longer sealed.

To answer your question, yes if your run a ac in the window, (or mini-split) then duct from the top of that tent to exhaust into that room, and open up one of your lower vents on the opposite side, it will work great, and you will have a sealed room, that you can now control humidity, and run CO2.
 

CrazyKappa

Well-Known Member
Hello if anyone I decided to direct my question here since its titled mini split a/c which is what I'm using.

I have concerns about daytime ( lights on temp. flux.) I have just ran testing, but with the A/C set to 66-68 with the lamp power maxed out the temperature fluctuates consistently between 70-80 every 5-10 minutes.

This seems like a lot of stress on the A/C system, yeah? and also concerns me a little about the stress on the plant.

Normal and I'm just over thinking? or should i make some adjustments?
It sounds like you did not properly size your AC to your room, you want it sized properly so it runs continuous, it will eliminate both temperature, and RH spikes. You have two real options, add more lights, or get a smaller mini-split. Or just deal with the spikes, your temps are well within norm, just not consistent, its your RH you really have to worry about, those spikes can cause real trouble if they are too high.

You would need to see if your AC can handle it, but you could buy an external controller, i have one that has settings where i can choose 3,5, or 7 deg intervals. So if its set to 70, when it goes above 73,75, or 77 deg it will kick whatever is plugged into it on.
 
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