Mold in attic???

[Surfr]

Hey everybody! I peeked my head into the attic tonight and noticed what looks like white mold growing on the plywood every where. I some of the wood was damp as well. This leads me to believe there is a leak in the roof somewhere. Now here's my question. I grow room exhaust flows into the attic. Its dry air(not humid at all) being exhausted in there. Could dry air being vented into an attic cause mold? Or is it strictly caused by the roof leak? There is also snow on my roof at the moment. Any info is appreciated!

 

[hiboy]

I would say anything is possible, but to get a better idea is the mold by the grow room vent tube or is it farther away. Closer would suggest yes it is likely that the two are connected. Spray some Kilz or bleach mixed with water on it a couple times. Then get ya ass in there next time it rains and see what up
hiboy

 

[CAPO]

everywhere?....even if your dehumidifier keeps the Rh factor low, that doesn't mean that your out-take filter/fan isn't handling humid air, especially if it's near the ceiling. Through transpiration, the stomata open up and drop 90% of the water that the roots take up. That's a ton of water and a carbon filter and dehumidy can't absorb that much water. I think you simply need to vent outside in a more direct way. hiboy is right about the bleach water in a 10-15% mix will kill it. (a roof leak would be pretty easy to spot if it's causing that type of damage imho)

 

[FLB]

you are going to destroy everything in your attic if you dont change you current venting. You should not push any kind of air up there. The mold is coming from all the humidity that is building up from your grow and the simple fact of condensation forms when hot air hits cold. Stop your current methods and they do make a spray that will seal the mold up and keep it from spreading.

 

[sky high]

The air in your attic is cold and there's snow on the roof. The air you are exhausting is moist and warm. This causes condensation on the surface of the plywood. As a result, the air being vented keeps the space warm enough to grow mold.

I would get a pump sprayer and some physan it if you can find the product....and go on recon...LOL. Then I'd stop venting into the attic. Could cause some serious problems down the line...

be safe

s h

 

[Surfr]

Thanks guys! I am going to switch up layout first thing tomorrow.. What do you guys think about venting into the house through a kitchen cabinet? Too damp to blown into the house? If so, I could just vent it outside.

 

[sedate]

I could just vent it outside.

Um. That.

Is certainly your best bet.

You can get duct work from Lowes that makes outside air vents *real* easy.

 

[Smokey503ski]

Plus if you vent into your Kitchen cabinet, you will be paying less in heating bills. I would put a damper on the end near the kitchen so it does backdraft cold air back into the grow room.

 

[Surfr]

Plus if you vent into your Kitchen cabinet, you will be paying less in heating bills. I would put a damper on the end near the kitchen so it does backdraft cold air back into the grow room.

This is what I was thinking. My heating bill is upwards of $200 a month so if I could not some of that off, it would be awesome!

 

[hiboy]

You might get a smell in your kitchen if you vent in there. Check (go sniff) your output and see if you detect anything before doing the job 2 or 3 times
hiboy

 

[Surfr]

You might get a smell in your kitchen if you vent in there. Check (go sniff) your output and see if you detect anything before doing the job 2 or 3 times
hiboy

Def no smell what so ever.. I talked to a couple people and they think it's not a good idea to bent into the house because of the damp air. I think i will just run it outside.

 

[Surfr]

So I ran the exhaust out to the outside tonight. On every side of the house there are 2 or 3 rectangular shaped vents built in. I simply cut a hole in the drywall and ran my exhaust out one of those vents. The only problem now is how loud it is on the side of the house. You cannot hear it when you are more than 10 feet away, but it is still a concern for me. I am going to pick up a duct muffler tomorrow.. Any suggestions??

Thanks!

 

[aSilvrHaze]

this sweet ass DIY muffler by TrichromeFan

 

[bloads]

My attic has the same exact problem, it's covered in white.

As soon as I moved my plants out of my closet, and into a bedroom, where i used the heater vent (into the attic) as an exhaust, my plants developed powdered mildew.

I know the source of moisture is definitely leaks in the roof, because I can see the sky through my bathroom fan (in multiple spots). I let the landlord know about this problem months ago... maybe it slipped his mind.

 

[Surfr]

Well shit, I guess it's time for a new carbon filter. There is some smell getting through and I could smell it as I pulled into the drive way today. I can't pick one up for about a week so I am going to run the exhaust into the house for safety measures till then.

 

[Surfr]

If its possible turn your exhaust fan down, Mines on a "Speedster" at half throttle, Alot quieter then full speed, Ive got it tied to a thermostat switch with a probe, If the probe hits 80 the exhaust fan that cools my hoods turns on. Then it runs at half speed with my AC set to 69 and the room sits at 82-84 with 1500 ppm's of Co2.
Lights of goes straight back to 69*.

Good Luck :harvest:


View attachment 134665

Unfortunately, it has to stay on full speed to keep the RH down. If I turn the fan down, the RH goes above 50% and I start to get real uncomfortable, lol... I am thinking of picking up a dehumidifier tomorrow though..

I picked up a Phresh Filter duct muffler and it reduced the sound dramatically. I am pretty stoked on it.

 

[bloads]

I picked up a Phresh Filter duct muffler and it reduced the sound dramatically. I am pretty stoked on it.

After googling that, I became inspired for a nice DIY project.