Budley Doright
Well-Known Member
And insulate the intake if drawing cold air in
. Which he's not.
Condensation problems
- Thread starter blue...yum
- Start date
. Which he's not.
HydroRed
Well-Known Member
Opinions aside, I do know factually that a fan will run quieter & last longer pushing than pulling. Which will wear down a fan quicker -pushing 80* air from the room through the lights , or pulling hot 120* air from the room and light then through the fan? The manufacturer of my fan even states in the manual to use it in a pushing setup when working with "above normal room temps".I'm sure op has figured this out but for future reference, yes insulate the pipe with insulated flex when drawing in cold air and it won't condense trust me lol. Look at heat recovery ventilators and see how their installed in cold climates. The air being pulled in is not an issue, it's the inside air condensing on the cold surface of the pipe. And yes lowering the humidify will help but unless the pipes are insulated with the proper material it's gonna be a desert before its stopped. Insulated flex has a vapour barrier with insulation in the middle, no moisture will get in the insulation causing mould, again trust me lol. I draw -20 air in and I get no condensing. This is why grow ops ruin houses, very limited knowledge in ventilation that causes mould. If the room is drying out and your in a cold climate then there are two choices, less air brought in or humidify but I myself have only had to humidify once and that was a week at -35, so yup sometimes a humidifier is needed, but also I am old lol. Did I mention I hate Canada in the winter. Also the push pull thing with fans (inline) is a mute point in that the effectiveness does not change re air flow, what does matter is the effectiveness of what's attached. Carbon filters work better when pulling due to larger inlet surface area and fan motors work better at cooler temps, before the lights if cooled. If someone has a fan curve chart that shows pull versus push I would love to see it, I'm going to set up an test at work to measure the difference using manometer and amp meter next week to see what happens
If you set your room up properly in the first place, you shouldnt experience condensation. I run year round with AC in summer and outside air in winter to cool my room. None of my vents are insulated and I've never seen not a drop of sweat or condensation on any of my vents. I am in MI so we see some very cold winters as well. It took me a couple configurations but I got my room dialed in within +/- 4 degrees at all times. I also have to add that mine is a room -not a tent, so variables are obviously going to be present.
Either way I am definitely interested to hear the results of your test. Would you be testing at full amp draw from "on" to "full operation" for a set amount of time then reverse the position of the fan in line and run same test?
Budley Doright
Well-Known Member
That's exactly what I said, you do not want your fan on the hot side of things. A cooler fan runs more efficiently than a hot one. As for the push pull thing I honestly don't know but the static pressure would be the same so I can't see a difference. Now for the condensing thing, it's all dependant on the surface temp of the pipe and your relative humidity of the room, once you fall below the dew point it will condense and by using insulated flex that will not happen, your room must have an extremely low relative humidity if you are bringing in cold air through a single wall pipe and it's not condensing, there is no other explanation, probably 20ish %, if the incoming temp is below 0c. That's why there is a vapour barrier inside the wall of your house, same principle. If your running that pipe through an exterior wall you might want to actually make sure it not condensing inside the wall. Is your low humidity hurting growth? Fucked if I know lol. I just know about air quality cause that's what I do every day, I'm complaining FYI not bragging lol. And all I'm saying is insulated flex will solve the issue if there is an issue. It's not hiding a problem, it's not going to cause mould, it's just not allowing your indoor warm, humid (relatively speaking lol) air from dropping below the dew point temperature and condensing. This is why I cringe when I hear people running there exhaust into an attic space, or up a chimney, where again the moisture drops out and yup there it's gets into the insulation or in the tiles and does major damage. Another bad one is putting a room into a negative and drawing outdoor air through cracks in the exterior, yup it condenses in the walls and yup mould. Sorry for the long winded post, just came in from the grow shed and I got a strain that we call "talks a lot" lol.
Budley Doright
Well-Known Member
Is there a point where it actually gets to low though? I have no clue other than what I have read here and from what I've read the consensus is like 35%. Honestly mine is what it wants to be lol. All I really worry about is temps. I did try a humidifier once but it was a real pain in the ass to fill it so I said fuck it.Forgive me for talking shit, but this thread makes me wanna do this
Throw that damn humidifier in the trash. Or put it in your room for when you get sick
Or don't listen to people that have been growing for years and end up fucking up your plants and grow room.
Your choice.... I'm just glad I don't have water droplets all on my shit.
Edit: keep in mind YOU are creating this condensation problem...
