Odor control for small indoor grow

hi there.

First time grower here and I have one plant going indoors in a 2x2x5 tent under a 450W LED.

I’m about three weeks into flowering and the smells are starting to ramp up and I’m assuming in about a week or two my whole place is going to start stinking to high heaven.

I purchased an iPower 4” carbon filter and exhaust fan from amazon but it just came in the mail and this thing is way bigger than I expected. No way I’ll be able to fit it in the tent especially since my plant is already maxing out the space in there. I’m also concerned that if I do hook this up to my tent it will turn it into a vacuum chamber. Def seems like overkill for my super small setup

Does anybody have any tips for odor control in a small indoor grow setup like this? I’m considering returning the filter and fan in exchange for something less imposing.

Thanks in advance for any tips.

Figure out how to make the filter work. You may need to place the combo outside of the tent if space is not available.

My first grow was in a tent 4 feet tall, because I didn't understand the height requirements. I used a S&P td100 and a 4" filter. You can make it work.

You may need to tie some branches down or supercrop. Do it quickly if you can, it may be too late.

Look for a fan speed controller, about a tenner in a growshop or online. For a fan/filter that size you will be ok with one of those, i have one on my 4” red scorpion fan and filter. Bigger fans will need a variac of some sort.

Turn it down enough so you still get negative pressure. That way you are not pulling loads of air through, your fan will be quieter and more importantly you are not getting smells leaking. You are right, it WILL start to really stink soon.

As @HitemwiththeHine wrote, think outside the box...literally! My cabinet is 28” x 15” x 32”...you think you have a small space!! I had to put a box on the side of my cabinet, with a hole between the two, and put my fan and filter in that and pull air through the hole to be filtered.

Put the filter vertically not horizontally, put the filter outside and push air through it instead of pulling, put it all outside and put a box over as a disguise.... there are ways to do it, you just need to not panic and something will suddenly click.

Good luck.

You don't have to have the filter in the tent.

Yes, you can keep the filter and fan outside the tent, open up your screened tent vents and then the stinky air can be pulled out of the tent, pushed through the filter and to exhaust. Voila!

Thanks everyone for the replies.

So I set up the filter and fan outside of the tent with the ducting leading from the top of the tent into the fan and then into the filter. I made sure to tighten the clamp around the ducting as tight as I could but it seems like there is a small amount of air leaking where the clamp joins to the top of the fan. I taped it up and i still feel a small air current around that area.

Any idea what I could have done wrong?

Stankyjane72 said:

Thanks everyone for the replies.

So I set up the filter and fan outside of the tent with the ducting leading from the top of the tent into the fan and then into the filter. I made sure to tighten the clamp around the ducting as tight as I could but it seems like there is a small amount of air leaking where the clamp joins to the top of the fan. I taped it up and i still feel a small air current around that area.

Any idea what I could have done wrong?

Click to expand...

Try just tape. If not tape then clamp it.

Stankyjane72 said:

Thanks everyone for the replies.

So I set up the filter and fan outside of the tent with the ducting leading from the top of the tent into the fan and then into the filter. I made sure to tighten the clamp around the ducting as tight as I could but it seems like there is a small amount of air leaking where the clamp joins to the top of the fan. I taped it up and i still feel a small air current around that area.

Any idea what I could have done wrong?

Click to expand...

Any holes in the ducting? You shouldn't feel any air except for whats coming out of the filter.

After you get your duct/connections sorted, watch out for stank leaking through the fan itself. I had to encase my fan in plastic wrap to stop all leaks.

Observe & Report said:

After you get your duct/connections sorted, watch out for stank leaking through the fan itself. I had to encase my fan in plastic wrap to stop all leaks.

Click to expand...

So I ended up doing the same thing wrapping the fan in plastic wrap and that seems to have stopped any leaks. Thanks again for the tips