Piping A/C into grow box?

I have a 5 x 4 x 2 box I just built that must be in my detached garage (uninsulated). There is no other option for placement due to children, space, etc. During the summer months (now) it gets HOT! in there, like 100 degrees or so during the heat of the day. I have a window unit air conditioner in there, but I really don't want to have it cooling the garage, as it would literally run 24/7 until about October. What I'm wondering is if anyone has any experience with piping cool air directly into the grow box when there's a situation like this. I've seen several discussions where people brought temps down by cooling the room or closet their plants were in with a window unit, but that is just not feasible as it would cost me hundreds of dollars to leave that thing running non stop. Insulating the garage is also not an option. The amount of time and $ it'd take to do so just isn't justifiable. So, anyone have any experience with this, or should I just wait for colder months to grow? Thanks!

I'm not sure what you're asking. Are you going to run the a/c 24/7? Can you at least run it while the light in the box is on? That would be the best option. Then get a register vent boot and tape it over the a/c then duct that to the grow box.

If you could find a way to reroute an AC's temp probe into the box you could have it auto shut off when it was cool enough. Easier way, buy a cheap light timer and plug the AC into it. Set that sucker to run when you know its hot in there. You could probably get away with having it run 30 min on 30 min off for the 8 hottest hours of the day, so only 4 hours total, maybe way less that is a small area to cool.

I use a window AC to cool my 11x12 room, but i pipe some of its coldness just like you're thinking of doing kinda, i go about 9ft and drop it right on my hot ladies, more efficiant
Good luck getting temps down,... i once knew such pain

its definitely possible. youll need to run vent tubbing from the a/c to the box and from there you probably could get away with a passive exhaust (that way most of the cool air stays inside the box instead of just sucking it out the otherside.)

OK thanks guys. I considered using a timer like you suggested DIYer, but it's one of those digital display units so I'm pretty sure an old fashioned timer wouldn't work as it wouldn't turn itself back on, it'd just regain power. Go figure, the old fashioned dial knobs kind is cheaper and in this case better. Is there any way to connect a remote thermostat to a window unit? If I could wire it to a thermostat inside the box then I think it could be worked out. I looked at the thermometer in the box yesterday and it had topped out at 95. Granted there was no fan running, but no lights either, so I'm guessing that with lights on in the box I'd be looking at potential grow temps over 100. I have no personal experience but from what I've read that's not going to cut it.

im workin in a detached garage, same scenario, my window ac makes things worse, get a portable and run the hot air tube under the foundation or outside somewhere check out my thread, and post some pics of the space your workin wiht well get you situated


FROM MY EXPERIENCE.. my window ac puts off mor heat than it can battle by producing cold air, so in actuality unless its hanging out a window its a heater for your growroom not an A/C

nice setup you got there SFguy. I considered growing like you, but with kids and family always around I figured everything would need to be in a box. And I'm in the southeast where it gets hot as a mofo. Probably would be a little easier to deal with if I was in NorCal, but as I type it is 90 outside with 82% humidity. That probably makes the heat index like 105. And that's pretty standard until October. Not to mention the one or two heat waves we get every year where temps get in the high 90s. And we don't cool off at night like you guys do. We're lucky if temps drop into the high 70s at night in the summer. Usually low temps hover around 80 with near 100% humidity at night. I'm pretty sure I'd have to choose between dead/stunted plants or $200 a month to run the window unit. And yea it's mounted on a window, I just don't want to pay for running it unless I'm out there. Not to mention a neighbor with nothing else to worry about might find it strange that my a/c is running in the garage all day every day while I'm gone. I think I'm just gonna have to hold off a couple months and see if I can get two grows in during the cool season. I really don't smoke much at all and am only growing because I have such trouble finding someone to buy from. If I could get 4 ozs a year I'd have more than enough. The box I built has three chambers so I should be able to pound out 2 or maybe 3 grows from Oct - April. I just have that "new hobby" impatience thing going on. You know how it is. In the mean time I think I'll dick around with some bag weed seeds and just see what happens. Maybe gain a little experience in the process.

Can you not just cut a hole in the box and mount a window unit to the box directly, venting into the garage?
Would it cool the box the same way it would cool a room?

just put your ac on a timer and make it start an hour before and after your lights on/off and caulk the shit out your grow room.