To the Pros - please help me with my growroom design! Sealed vs Vented

[lush]

Hello,

Long time lurking around under another username. I’m finally planning a more serious op that I want to share and hopefully give something back to this community that I learned everything from…

I’m considering the design of the space. I have 2 bigger rooms (1 and 2) and a smaller room (3). 4 will not be used (it being a chill/trim space). The lights used will be 4-6 SpiderFarmer G8600 – each covering a 5x5. I would like to have 2 separate flower chambers in order to stagger the work and harvest, although this is not a necessity. I need a veg space too, of course.

I also need to make a decision on whether to 1. vent the rooms, 2. create sealed rooms, or 3. use tents and use the outside room as a lung room. Framing an actual room inside the room is not an option in this place.

On one hand, I’m not sure I want to go for a sealed room because I don’t have experience with such designs and I am somewhat constrained by my electricity bill – I don’t want it getting really high.

On the other, LEDs apparently require higher ambient temps and also emit less heat, so I’ll most likely have to add heat, more than having to remove it. Sealed / lower air exchange might actually cost less in my case. I might also buy some CMHs to combine with the LEDs for the winter months.

I have considered using only one of the bigger rooms for flower and making it a perpetual harvest, but the idea doesn’t appeal to me because I would like more granular control over the temps/RH throughout the flower cycle.

I am leaning towards the 3rd option – using tents and conditioning the air in the outer room to be perfect. I think this might be better than just using the rooms because I will not have to condition the air of the whole volume of the room but only the growspace/tent. Also the smell control should be easier, I think.

I should also mention that I live in a coastal city and there aren’t that huge differences between temps year-round. Average Jan temp is 36F, average Aug temp is 75F, outside RH is 65-80% for most of the year. That’s why I think I can use the outside air to my advantage and maybe employ the 2 times/minute air exchange

as alternative to CO2 supplementation. Although I’m not opposed to using tanks either.

So, my current plan is:

• ACs and dehumidifiers in both rooms 1 and 2; humidifiers inside the tents in veg

• 10x10x7.5 flowering tent in one room

• 5x5 flowering tent and a veg tent in the other room

• Room 3 for drying/storage

• Passive outside air intake from room 4

• all tents exhaust straight to the outside; I keep the intake air perfect via the room appliances; I maintain 1-2/minute air exchange at all times

So, the questions:

• How does the plan sound?

• Is there a point using the tents at all? If decide to not use tents at all, is it going to be very wasteful if I combine active air exchange and also run an AC in the room?

• Should I vent the tents to the outside or seal the outside rooms and just exhaust into them, adding CO2 supplementation?

Thank you for everyone spending some time to help out!

[Smoklahoma]

Welcome to OG @lush. If you’ve be lurking awhile you already know this is a great place with great people. I built sealed room with Co2 injection. It does give me total control of the environment but it is a power hog. If the electric bill is a concern pick a different option. From what you described, I think your best choice is using tents in a lung room. If everyone in that room is on the same schedule you don’t even need the tents. Plenty of co2 in the house, maybe more than outside. I think you would get less fluctuations using house air but everyone’s situation is different. I don’t consider myself a pro but that’s probably the direction I’d go.

[webeblzr]

1st, commercial or user grow? I’m a user grower, in a fucked up state.
I’m more a KISS grower myself.
Started in boxes, built a room. Ran that a while, then went to tents, had 3 plumbed together.
I’d not do a sealed room, unless your commercial, with a decent budget.
Ran tents for 15 years and last year chucked them all for panda rooms, so much more versatile for my old guy ways.
Make it easy on yourself, get a perpetual set up rolling, trim jail time is more spread out, hell the whole process is more in steps over the big slams of work, in a big spaces.
Wish you all the best, in your endeavor, and please ask me if you want to know my ways.
There will be way more and better answers for you coming, this house has a LOT of FAR better minds than mine.
EDIT: Most sorry, welcome to OverGrow!!

[lush]

@Smoklahoma

control of the environment but it is a power hog. If the electric bill is a concern pick a different option. From what you described, I think your best choice is using tents in a lung room. I

Thank you for replying

1. What makes it a power hog - mostly the AC or dehuey? Are you running lots of lights, with the outdoors temperature being very high? Is the return worth the investment?
2. If I use the room as a lung, would you vent it outside? I very much doubt the house air will be enough without CO2 supplementation or an exhaust. I might be misunderstanding you.

[lush]

Hey, not my first commercial one, but the first where I wanna do things intelligently.
Perpetual room sounds good but I would like to change the temp/RH/VPD throughout so I stray away from it.
Do you find in panda rooms harder to condition the air due to the bigger volume, or the smell harder to control?

[webeblzr]

Im in a basement, maybe a 20’ x 15’ x 7’6" to bottom of floor joists.
After sealing (insulation batts) between the rooms, from floor sub base to block concrete block, a 9" or so space. That whole area is made into 3 seperate areas, germ/clone/vegging area.
Then 2 other flower areas, and my last ever tent that bounces between late veg (18/6) or flower tent.
It’s a perpetual cycle space. cycle.
I ran ducting (6" stove pipe) from another area of the basement, over there is where I placed my big assed filter, screwed in the 6" Vortex, running 24/7 PULLING from the grow area.
No, it is not perfect, but for my needs it is FAR easier to work Panda walled areas, over the tents to me. That is why I call it, my last tent ever.
It maybe a horror to others, but I do not know them.
Also for me, when I cut my first plant in late 2000/2002, weed per ounce around here was $350.00, and a 1 K light and and hood was $700.00!
Fuck that price, I learned how to buy parts and make them.
Made hoods, made everything I could, for cheaper cropping.
I did not sell weed, but I’d barter with the devil anytime I could.
Of course, back then I needed in room AC, certain times of the year.
Then, LED’s came along and murdered the AC, HID’s needs for me.
I grow with my eyes, nose, so I do not have the VDP stuff, well I got this:

All the best to ya!!

[Smoklahoma]

Haven’t really broke it down to what equipment draws what. Running a 11000 btu ac, dehumidifier, humidifiers ,circulation fans and 2 950 wat draw led lights, co2 injection in a 4x12 grow room that has 2 4x4 areas on each side with equipment in the middle. Plus a nute room with 5000 btu ac, air pump and water pumps for a ebb and flow system. It costs an average of $1200 to $1300 per 4 month grow. Been averaging about 3 1/2 pounds per grow depending on how may plants i kill along the way. So I think its worth it. Many people I know intake air from lung room exhaust outside and have plenty of co2 to grow plants. Every situation is different but I had to build my grow room in a uninsulated shed.

[lush]

Anyone else got any advice?

[DannyTerpintine]

respectfully you are far from ready for a sealed grow. C02, Heavy Duty Dehumidifier, Good Ac, high level of competency in environmental control. Not to mention building/labor costs of actually building a sealed room. The real question is what’s your BUDGET? Because in a space that large, you need deep pockets for a seal room.

I would either build out each room with active intake/exhausts and scrubbers. And good air flow (Fans).

OR

Put tents in a lung room. (but /I would not put a flower and veg tent in the same lung room unless absolutely necessary.)

[Foreigner]

I agree with the above comment.

How much power do you have available? My dehumidifier pulls 5 amps. Add another one and 2 ACs…

My grow is on a single 15 amp circuit.

[lush]

Thanks a lot, budget is sufficient and I might have the competency (remains to be seen); but like I said, I would like the power consumption to remain low. My concern with active intake is I might need to heat the space for most of the year since LEDs are supposed to dissipate the heat well.

Couple of questions:

1. If using tents, do I directly vent them out of the room, or build a separate exhaust to vent the room?
2. Do you think it’s better to have constant high rate of air exchange for sufficient CO2 at all times and maintain other parameters with the AC, OR use a fan controller to control temps/RH and add a bit of CO2 supplementation for when the fan is less active?
3. Using tents seems to me to have the advantage of having less volume of air that you need to keep in optimal range, is my thinking correct?

[lush]

Good point, going to be speaking with an electrician this weekend

[Red13]

@lush

So, the questions:

• How does the plan sound?

The plan sounds 1 inspiring. 2 very complex
Hi lush I’m in the similar situation to you at the moment i’ve got similar temperatures to you. Except I’m a tiny bit Warmer

If I had tackle your problem first, I would make sure I have all of The instruments to measure that important elements like temperature, CO2, level humidity, etc.

Then I would start a grow And I would keep measurement of these elements and modify things as I go. And I would come back here getting advice on specific questions

I wouldn’t worry about CO2 tanks too much, but I would keep an eye on my levels and use my venting

I’m sure once you get started, things will evolve. And if you keep working at you’ll get your perfect room. You got a lots of professional advice and I’m sure you will continue here.

I always learn best from my mistakes so get started and keep getting advice from here

I hope you do well lush

[DannyTerpintine]

@lush

Couple of questions:

1. If using tents, do I directly vent them out of the room, or build a separate exhaust to vent the room?
2. Do you think it’s better to have constant high rate of air exchange for sufficient CO2 at all times and maintain other parameters with the AC, OR use a fan controller to control temps/RH and add a bit of CO2 supplementation for when the fan is less active?
3. Using tents seems to me to have the advantage of having less volume of air that you need to keep in optimal range, is my thinking correct?

1. you can do either or. You just have to see what works for you environment in terms of heat and odour control.

2. You don’t need C02. Don’t overcomplicate things until you’re ready. (You know you’re ready when you have no doubt about moving forward with it because you KNOW what you must do.)

3. You are WAY over thinking it. Just grow brother.

Just go start today. And then before the next grow you can make some adjustments.

[Foreigner]

Yeah, ditch the CO2. It’s a fun idea but get it all dialed in first.

[lush]

Thanks, I am not considering the CO2 anymore, still debating about using a tent or not

[DannyTerpintine]

it’s kind of hard to give advice without knowing your budget and comfort level. There’s so many different ways you can set that space up.

Realistically you could fit all 6 of your SpiderFarm lights into one of the two bigger rooms. (It’s a 4x4 footprint for flower by the way, 5x5 is for veg.) Then you’re looking at a small-med size mini-split to cool all of that, plus maybe 2-3 smaller dehumidifiers or one good anden.)

It seems like you might be more comfortable with something like… getting 3 (4x8) tents, use one for veg, stagger two for flower, use the other room for clones, and the forth for drying. Put two of your spider farm in each of the 4x8 and that’s 6 lights.

You’ll have the be the judge of what you’d be most comfortable doing. I’m just using my best judgement from what I gathered from this post to give you some suggestions.

[Red13]

Hi lush. I just want to suggest that some months of the year the rooms will be much better for growing due to the natural ambient conditions.

That’s how it is for me six or seven months of the year is really great that’s the time I do most of my growing. And there is three or four months of the year where the conditions are so cold that I don’t even know if it’s cost-effective to grow. I think it’s good, you were willing to postpone CO2 It shows your pragmatic.

[lush]

You’re raising a good point - the manufacturer lists the footprint as 4x4 or 5x5. I was set on using 5x5 as it seems to me this is too much light for 4x4 and a restraint in space will reduce the yield IMO. But the LEDs can be dimmed down, and doing this can help reduce electricity usage. So now I’m considering using the 4x8 tents.

Or using just 4 lights in 2 5x10 tents…

[blowdout2269]

On this note:
I have found that running in my basement room will prove challenging in the winter months. But, if I have a lot of plants going and am growing with all of my lights, I can use the fixtures themselves to raise the room temp. I always have fans blowing across my boards and drivers to keep them cool anyways. Though I will add an additional oscillating fan or two to move that warmer air around the room. It actually works quite well.