Green Gnome
Member
Hail Friends,
I live in a tropical country where part of the year the temperatures
get into the high 90's F and the humidity can reach 85%. The natives
grow outdoors, it is sadly not an option for me. Therefore I am doing
an indoor stealth 'closet' grow in a big wooden wardrobe. The grow
space is about 9' feet tall, 8' wide, and 3' front to back.
The wardrobe is in an upstairs bedroom connected by a landing to
another small room, both with windows. At night the bedroom air
conditioner runs so that we can sleep comfortably. During the day I
run powerful floor fans to create a breezeway, with the air moving
from the grow space room, through the landing, and out the back
window. Even so, temparatures could easily reach the mid 90's...
Very briefly, I will be using HO T5 flourescent lights for the entire
grow, with one set for veg and one for flower. This is all I have
access to, (thank you to the reef aquarium trade!). There are no
indoor plant grow supplies available here, it's the tropics, it's a
'developing nation', and they grow outside. I'm sure some will say
"not ideal", but they burn cool, they are what I can get, and will
have to do. This is a personal medical grow, hopefully the results
will suffice for me. Anyway, back to today's concern, keeping it all
cool!
I plan to put in a passive air intake screen at the space's bottom,
and a bathroom ceiling fan blowing out the back near the space's
ceiling. I will also have the requisite small circulation fans placed
strategically in the space. The thing is, I don't think that's going
to be enough to keep temperaratures in the ideal 70's F range.
So, I am going to have to use some kind of small air conditioning and
dehumidifying unit. I have seen a lot of brands and types online, and
have spent some time at the local 'Home Pro', but am a bit bewildered
by the variety, so any recommendations would be great!
I also think it would be a good idea to insulate the inside of the
grow space. Right now it's just very thin wood on the back (good for
cutting!), and 1" thick cabinet wood on the doors, sides and top.
Again, the variety o0f insulation is daunting, so I would welcome any
advice- something 2"to 4" inches thick, and having either a good,
safe, reflective surface, or be paintable with white acrylic. What do
you folks think?
Basically what I am envisioning is a kind of refrigerator. I can use
foam strips and magnets to give the doors a bit of a seal, and will only open them
at night when the room's air con is running so that I won't lose the
inside temperature. That means the lights will run at night as well.
I think I have touched on all the basics, again, any advice would be
greatly appreciated! Keep it Green, Friends!
I live in a tropical country where part of the year the temperatures
get into the high 90's F and the humidity can reach 85%. The natives
grow outdoors, it is sadly not an option for me. Therefore I am doing
an indoor stealth 'closet' grow in a big wooden wardrobe. The grow
space is about 9' feet tall, 8' wide, and 3' front to back.
The wardrobe is in an upstairs bedroom connected by a landing to
another small room, both with windows. At night the bedroom air
conditioner runs so that we can sleep comfortably. During the day I
run powerful floor fans to create a breezeway, with the air moving
from the grow space room, through the landing, and out the back
window. Even so, temparatures could easily reach the mid 90's...
Very briefly, I will be using HO T5 flourescent lights for the entire
grow, with one set for veg and one for flower. This is all I have
access to, (thank you to the reef aquarium trade!). There are no
indoor plant grow supplies available here, it's the tropics, it's a
'developing nation', and they grow outside. I'm sure some will say
"not ideal", but they burn cool, they are what I can get, and will
have to do. This is a personal medical grow, hopefully the results
will suffice for me. Anyway, back to today's concern, keeping it all
cool!
I plan to put in a passive air intake screen at the space's bottom,
and a bathroom ceiling fan blowing out the back near the space's
ceiling. I will also have the requisite small circulation fans placed
strategically in the space. The thing is, I don't think that's going
to be enough to keep temperaratures in the ideal 70's F range.
So, I am going to have to use some kind of small air conditioning and
dehumidifying unit. I have seen a lot of brands and types online, and
have spent some time at the local 'Home Pro', but am a bit bewildered
by the variety, so any recommendations would be great!
I also think it would be a good idea to insulate the inside of the
grow space. Right now it's just very thin wood on the back (good for
cutting!), and 1" thick cabinet wood on the doors, sides and top.
Again, the variety o0f insulation is daunting, so I would welcome any
advice- something 2"to 4" inches thick, and having either a good,
safe, reflective surface, or be paintable with white acrylic. What do
you folks think?
Basically what I am envisioning is a kind of refrigerator. I can use
foam strips and magnets to give the doors a bit of a seal, and will only open them
at night when the room's air con is running so that I won't lose the
inside temperature. That means the lights will run at night as well.
I think I have touched on all the basics, again, any advice would be
greatly appreciated! Keep it Green, Friends!