400 watt Cooltube in 3'x2'x5' tent

Hey guys so I just ordered a bunch of stuff off amazon. Should be here in a couple days

I ordered:
-400watt digital with cool tube and hps bulb
-190cfm exhaust fan and filter combo
-3'x2'x5' grow tent
-50 rapid rooters (love these, 100% cloning rate for me long as I add a heating pad)
-hydrofarm 10"x20" heating pad
-Fan speed controller

I have 2 mother plants under a 1000watt MH right meow and already took 15 cuttings with rockwool. 14 from my kush mother and 1 from my cheese mother.

I couldnt find a 250watt combo after hours of searching and decided to just grab the 400watt cooltube. If its too hot i can always just grab a duct fan for intake from my window but i figured the cooltube should help with that concern?

I have a similar tent size with a 400W light and my cool tube lowers the tent temperature by 7F.

Do work yo

rabbogart said:

I have a similar tent size with a 400W light and my cool tube lowers the tent temperature by 7F.

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Thanx man!!! Good to know ya I'm hoping it shouldnt be too hot. Not 100% on how i should setup my ventilation system though. Im wondering if i should do filter to cool tube to exhaust fan? or filter exhaust fan cooltube?

Got my light, rapid rooters, and fan speed adjuster today!!! Tested out the light and i'm happy so far, eventually i will get a hortilux bulb but id like to see how this one does first before i go spend another $100.00. I decided I would do the filter to fan to cooltube setup, makes more sense to have proper straight suction from the filter my buddy "lime73" suggests. I should get everything else in the mail tomorrow

So I have this grow app i just downloaded for shits and i totally forgot about the wattage per square foot rule. It seems as though my app is suggesting 750watts minimum, 1200watts optimal, and 1800watts maximum. I only grabbed a 400watt cuz of how small the tent is from past experience, i grew 3 large plants in a 3x3x6 tent and they were fine without a ventilation system or cooltube. I have a 1000watt i can throw up in the cool tube but dam that'll be hot?.. i'll try it out but not expecting to be able to control that unless i ran winter air into the tent from my window but then that would probably be too cold. Mayb even too cold if i just had it going to the cooltube... we will see

So not that anyone cares but i got the rest of my equipment! Very pleased lol. The ONLY thing that happened was my fan had a screw put in on the side of it for usual purposes that was just a tad too far in so the fan kept ticking off of it inside, luckily i figured that out quick without being dumb and continuing to run the fan and loosened the screw a little to get it out of the way of the fan blade inside. I'll just shave it off with a metal file a bit.

So now that I have all the essentials I just have a few more little things to pick up so i can actually set everything up and see if i can work a 1000watt in there (although its doubtful). Is there a certain type of charcoal i grab for my filter?

Your app is crazy! (It is probably set at meters and not feet) 400 watts is perfect for that size tent. And it will be a much better option then the 250 you were looking for. A 250 produces more heat then a 400. I would reccomend: Filter - cooltube - extraction fan

Certain type of charcoal? Inside the filter is activated charcoal. You want it to be course. They sell a 5 gallon bucket for use in fish tank filters.... But why do u need charcoal if you just bought a fan/filter combo?

Do not try to stuff that 1000 into that small tent. WAY to much heat, and may even cause light toxicity to your plants.

amgprb said:

Your app is crazy! (It is probably set at meters and not feet) 400 watts is perfect for that size tent. And it will be a much better option then the 250 you were looking for. A 250 produces more heat then a 400. I would reccomend: Filter - cooltube - extraction fan

Certain type of charcoal? Inside the filter is activated charcoal. You want it to be course. They sell a 5 gallon bucket for use in fish tank filters.... But why do u need charcoal if you just bought a fan/filter combo?

Do not try to stuff that 1000 into that small tent. WAY to much heat, and may even cause light toxicity to your plants.

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Thanx for your reply dude!!! Glad you said something! I knew a 1000watt would be over kill regardless of this dumb app lol but i was still curious. Didnt know about the light toxicity, i can see it being a thing though for sure.

Ive never purchased a fan/filter before and wasnt sure how the filter was exactly constructed so i had assumed the hollow middle needed to be filled lmao. I'll further inspect my filter now that i have a better understanding of how its made/works haha i feel dumb. Called my local grow shop and asked them. He said that would just be absurd if i had to then also buy charcoal to fill it with, thatd b so expensive. Is there a higher quality type of charcoal or anything the top of the line filters use? My apartment better not stink!

And why would u do filter cooltube fan? I had originally thought this was the better idea actually, kind of just makes sense. But then a friend of mine explained you want proper suction from the filter so itd be better to have it straight attached filter/fan then cooltube

As long as you have the tubing properly affixed to you cooltube, then the cooltube works just like ducting and at the same time drawing the cooler air and pulling it across your hot lamp.

If you do it the other way, yes u will have a bit more suction at the filter, but now you are trying to push air through your cooltube, passed any bends in your ducting and out of the box... Just seems to be alot more resistance


I am thinking you got ripped off or u were sent a defective filter. I have 3 of them right now and they always come pre filled. I run em for a year, toss em out and buy a new one

amgprb said:

As long as you have the tubing properly affixed to you cooltube, then the cooltube works just like ducting and at the same time drawing the cooler air and pulling it across your hot lamp.

If you do it the other way, yes u will have a bit more suction at the filter, but now you are trying to push air through your cooltube, passed any bends in your ducting and out of the box... Just seems to be alot more resistance


I am thinking you got ripped off or u were sent a defective filter. I have 3 of them right now and they always come pre filled. I run em for a year, toss em out and buy a new one

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I might very well have been ripped off, i will get it checked out. My local hydro shop said everything should be fine, that the center is suppose to be hollow then the outside is surrounded by charcoal.

Ya i will have to set it up so its not all crazy with the ducting. shitty thing is my cooltube is 6" and my fan and filter are 4" so it will be kind of hard for complete proper suction from the filter??? Mayb i could do filter/fan/cooltube/ then add a 240cfm 6" duct fan to the end of it???

Here is the link for the fan/filter combo i purchased.. it does say "with virgin charcoal carbon filter combo" so that could mean no charcoal however i read all the reviews on the product and ppl are happy with the filter getting rid of smells so it should be fine.

>>>>>http://www.amazon.ca/VenTech-IF4CF412-Inline-Virgin-Charcoal/dp/B004Q2ER5C/ref=aag_m_pw_dp?ie=UTF8&m=A1ZKRWR52L6WM4

Im curious where to grab FoxFarm nutrients for cheap. Its not sold locally in Canada that I can see. I did manage to find the Big Grow Big Bloom and Tiger Bloom package for $97.00 on amazon.ca but I'm not sure if its really worth it to pay double for the stuff. Same with the "Dirty Dozen" package with everything in it for $123.00 on ebay but then they want another $25.00 for shipping, then taxes and something about another $40.00 cuz of customs etc etc. so probably going to say eff that. My friend has a shitload of stuff kicking around but I like to just keep things straight forward and simple. Mayb i'll grab some GH brand stuff, but i really want a kickass bloom booster to add that isnt going to cost me a fortune and has amazing yield gain. SUGGESTIONS??

filter , fan , cooltube
that way if a bulb pop's your fan doesnt have to chew it up

GibbsIt89 said:

Im curious where to grab FoxFarm nutrients for cheap. Its not sold locally in Canada that I can see. I did manage to find the Big Grow Big Bloom and Tiger Bloom package for $97.00 on amazon.ca but I'm not sure if its really worth it to pay double for the stuff. Same with the "Dirty Dozen" package with everything in it for $123.00 on ebay but then they want another $25.00 for shipping, then taxes and something about another $40.00 cuz of customs etc etc. so probably going to say eff that. My friend has a shitload of stuff kicking around but I like to just keep things straight forward and simple. Mayb i'll grab some GH brand stuff, but i really want a kickass bloom booster to add that isnt going to cost me a fortune and has amazing yield gain. SUGGESTIONS??

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techna flora is a canadian company ..... and i have had really good luck with their recipe for success line up

Technaflora x2... Great shit

tekdc911 said:

filter , fan , cooltube
that way if a bulb pop's your fan doesnt have to chew it up

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Great thinking!! haha thank you! I did buy a cheap ballast, read mostly good reviews but one guy did say it poped after 3 weeks then they sent him a new one so if this is a possibility i dont want to take the risk, exactly!

I'll check out that line thanks guys!! Awesome!

GibbsIt89 said:

Great thinking!! haha thank you! I did buy a cheap ballast, read mostly good reviews but one guy did say it poped after 3 weeks then they sent him a new one so if this is a possibility i dont want to take the risk, exactly!

I'll check out that line thanks guys!! Awesome!

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dont touch the bulb glass with your hand EVER the oil will burn on the glass and cause it to possibly pop
use a paper towel or a piece of notebook paper to screw the bulb in
also HPS need a cool down period every 24 hours to minimize risk of it popping .....
also when the power is cut to the ballast it requires that you wait 10-15 mins for the bulb to cool before being fired again

tekdc911 said:

dont touch the bulb glass with your hand EVER the oil will burn on the glass and cause it to possibly pop
use a paper towel or a piece of notebook paper to screw the bulb in
also HPS need a cool down period every 24 hours to minimize risk of it popping .....
also when the power is cut to the ballast it requires that you wait 10-15 mins for the bulb to cool before being fired again

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Yep i remember those rules real well haha thanx tho man a friendly reminder is always appreciated!

Recipe for success of technaflora i looked up on both amazon an ebay, its only on ebay being shipped from the states for $105.00 with shipping, then plus tax. Which isnt bad, but judging that half of that cost is shipping leads me to believe i should be able to grab it in canada for around $50.00ish.... but where? lol

GibbsIt89 said:

Recipe for success of technaflora i looked up on both amazon an ebay, its only on ebay being shipped from the states for $105.00 with shipping, then plus tax. Which isnt bad, but judging that half of that cost is shipping leads me to believe i should be able to grab it in canada for around $50.00ish.... but where? lol

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Damn, thats expensive shipping! Google Technafloras website and contact them. They will be able to direct you to an online vendor in Canada. They also have a hydro shop finder on their aite that shows where u can walk in and buy it

Ok ive said fuck it i want the FoxFarm brand lol.

I can grab either the trio FF pack of big bloom, grow big, and tiger bloom. PLUS General Hydroponics PH up/down & tester
for $140.00

OR

I can grab the FF "Dirty Dozen" kit with everything in it for $150.00

I will be using soiless mix being "Promix HP" and buying distilled water. The only thing i will be using is a ph tester, i cant afford all the gadgets, ive done just fine in the past, but trying to go for max yield here of course. I dont know what to do.