Grow Room A/C

[CannabisJohn]

Thanks for the quick response. I think I'll start with a single 3 ton as it'll be cold season here for a while, and we're only running 4kw thus far (ramping to 6 or 8 shortly)

A question on insulation: I assumed that weak insulation would actually work in my favor as the outdoor temperatures will always be lower than my room temps from 6pm to 6am, but you seem to imply otherwise. Does the A/C loss to insulation somehow outweigh the heat loss to insulation?

It can.

 

[srs bznz]

Could you explain what conditions favor insulation? In my mind it seems like a mini split AC is a device which speeds up the transfer of heat from inside to out - the opposite of thermal insulation, as long as there is more heat inside the room than out. So it would seem to me that unless your average outside temperatures are higher than your desired room temperature, insulation is detrimental. Average highs here usually don't break 80

 

[CannabisJohn]

Maybe only 80F outside but what temp is it in your garage when it's 80F outside?

 

[srs bznz]

Honestly, not certain, but it's not too much of an oven, buildings not far on either side of it. I also plan on running co2 @ 1500ppm and keeping temperatures in the high 80s in the room. I'm still thinking the average temperature differential favors me not having insulation, can you recommend any relevant resources or provide advice on how to determine exactly when it is or isn't useful to insulate? Maybe as simple as keeping a thermostat on either side of the surface you're considering insulating and tracking the average difference?

 

[CannabisJohn]

Honestly, not certain, but it's not too much of an oven, buildings not far on either side of it. I also plan on running co2 @ 1500ppm and keeping temperatures in the high 80s in the room. I'm still thinking the average temperature differential favors me not having insulation, can you recommend any relevant resources or provide advice on how to determine exactly when it is or isn't useful to insulate? Maybe as simple as keeping a thermostat on either side of the surface you're considering insulating and tracking the average difference?

If the area surrounding your room gets warmer than you want to maintain your room at any time it will cause net heat added to your room. Which may be a problem if you are close on sizing your a/c. I am not an engineer but want your room to be able to be run how you want at ALL times (even temps 10-15F above normal).

 

[BNUTTHEHUT]

Does anyone have any experience with these Ideal-Air Mini Split Air Conditioner 24,000 BTU 13 Seer

I like the precharged line idea.

 

[aRiv]

i would stay clear from those ideal air units.. no one seems to have much luck with them, atleast in this hot an humid climate.. if precharged lines is your reason i would spend a bit more and go this route



all tho with the right tools you can install a regular name brand split :D

 

[ECOutlaw]

Quick question. Will ac condensers steam in single digit temperatures? A friend is wanting me to wire in low ambient kit to his 2 ton fujitsu (he likes the simplicity of sealed room vs forced air set up) and I dont want to do the work if its going to be for nothing. We are in northeast where it gets pretty cold.

 

[HookedonPonics]

Hey John. Im setting up 2 completely sealed and extra insulated flower rooms this is my first time using anything more than a mini split so bare with me lol, both rooms will each have a co2 burner and santa fe 110 pt dehuey. One is 28x18x10 with 12k bare bulbs an the other will be 12x18x10 with 11k bare bulbs. all ballasts and chillers etc are located outside of the room. Summer temps here get up to 100 outside. I want each room to have an individual unit so both rooms can be cooled at the same time when im vegging. Do you think a 5 ton unit in each room will do the trick because im worried about it might be a little oversized for the 11k room but a 4 ton might fall shy during the summer. Also what are some good brands of 5 ton a/c's with air handlers that i can put a top plenum on? Anyways thank you for your time

 

[BNUTTHEHUT]

i would stay clear from those ideal air units.. no one seems to have much luck with them, atleast in this hot an humid climate.. if precharged lines is your reason i would spend a bit more and go this route



all tho with the right tools you can install a regular name brand split :D

These look nicer. Has anyone had any experience with these friedrich units?

 

[CannabisJohn]

Quick question. Will ac condensers steam in single digit temperatures? A friend is wanting me to wire in low ambient kit to his 2 ton fujitsu (he likes the simplicity of sealed room vs forced air set up) and I dont want to do the work if its going to be for nothing. We are in northeast where it gets pretty cold.

No it won't

 

[CannabisJohn]

These look nicer. Has anyone had any experience with these friedrich units?

Friedrich in general is good. Don't like their remote stats for their mini splits

 

[CannabisJohn]

Hey John. Im setting up 2 completely sealed and extra insulated flower rooms this is my first time using anything more than a mini split so bare with me lol, both rooms will each have a co2 burner and santa fe 110 pt dehuey. One is 28x18x10 with 12k bare bulbs an the other will be 12x18x10 with 11k bare bulbs. all ballasts and chillers etc are located outside of the room. Summer temps here get up to 100 outside. I want each room to have an individual unit so both rooms can be cooled at the same time when im vegging. Do you think a 5 ton unit in each room will do the trick because im worried about it might be a little oversized for the 11k room but a 4 ton might fall shy during the summer. Also what are some good brands of 5 ton a/c's with air handlers that i can put a top plenum on? Anyways thank you for your time

I use 6000 btus/ per 1 kw bare bulb. So in that case you should use 5.5 tons in 11k room and 6 tons in 12k room. I use this number to take into acct other variables like dehueys,etc. I'm not saying 5 tons won"t cool ur rooms but I think worst case. I want ur room to run at temp at all times. If you are willing to dim or turn off lights on hottest days then put 5 tons in each room. Look at Trane or York.

 

[BNUTTHEHUT]

CJ,
Is there any way to use my house ac to cool a grow room? House has central air. Grow room is 10x12 with 4 1000w air cooled and the ballest are in the garage. Could I just put a thermostat in the room and install a motorized damper with some extra duct work? The unit is old and need replacing, furnance does too. House 1900sqft in so cal, 3 bedrooms, 10ft ceilings. ( We only run the ac 2-3 months of the year. I wanted to ad a mini split in the room but my lady thinks it might look strange to have to units outside, plus we were gonna replace the central air anyways. Would this work? The breaker is 50amps, whats the largest unit I can put on that power?

 

[CannabisJohn]

CJ,
Is there any way to use my house ac to cool a grow room? House has central air. Grow room is 10x12 with 4 1000w air cooled and the ballest are in the garage. Could I just put a thermostat in the room and install a motorized damper with some extra duct work? The unit is old and need replacing, furnance does too. House 1900sqft in so cal, 3 bedrooms, 10ft ceilings. ( We only run the ac 2-3 months of the year. I wanted to ad a mini split in the room but my lady thinks it might look strange to have to units outside, plus we were gonna replace the central air anyways. Would this work? The breaker is 50amps, whats the largest unit I can put on that power?

Most likely a 5 ton unit on that breaker. You could use the house a/c

 

[HookedonPonics]

Thanks alot i always like to plan for those worst case scenarios because they come ever to often with these hot summers. If your ever up in Norcal give me a shout i could always use a legit HVAC guy

 

[jimbobthe3rd]

Dear CJ, I'm setting up a sealed environment, will be using a 8kw (27k btu) mitsubishi split, was wondering if I ran 8x 600w lights on a flip flop only 4 on at a time, being at 65-70% of capacity of the split how long would the unit last running 24/7? And how often would it cycle on and off? Insulation is excellent the room is always 70 no matter outside temps. If I couldn't get at least 1-2 years from the unit running 24/7 then I'd just run half the lights and only have ac running 12 hrs a day. Thanks for your help so far!

 

[CannabisJohn]

Dear CJ, I'm setting up a sealed environment, will be using a 8kw (27k btu) mitsubishi split, was wondering if I ran 8x 600w lights on a flip flop only 4 on at a time, being at 65-70% of capacity of the split how long would the unit last running 24/7? And how often would it cycle on and off? Insulation is excellent the room is always 70 no matter outside temps. If I couldn't get at least 1-2 years from the unit running 24/7 then I'd just run half the lights and only have ac running 12 hrs a day. Thanks for your help so far!

Would expect 1-2 yrs is reasonable if the unit is maintained properly. Would suspect unit would run 65-70 percent of time.

 

[ghost79]

I have a 12,000 BTU portable air conditioner, would the exhaust if I vent it out the window as it's made to do, do you think it would give off any odor whatsoever, or should I ventilate it through the ceiling of the attic if the odor is an issue?

 

[CannabisJohn]

I have a 12,000 BTU portable air conditioner, would the exhaust if I vent it out the window as it's made to do, do you think it would give off any odor whatsoever, or should I ventilate it through the ceiling of the attic if the odor is an issue?

Will give off odor.