Need Your Opinion - Cooling a Garage 4x4 Tent

[Backyard_Boogie]

Hello everyone. I have a brand new 4x4 tent in my garage with a new Scorpion Diablo LED board. I need to purchase an exhaust fan and carbon filter but before I do I wanted to get everyone's opinions. I live in Southern California our summers do get hot in the 90s but I'm by the beach so it usually doesn't get much hotter than that. I need a way to not only limit smell but also cool my tent. Has anyone here ever used the Cloudline inline duct fan? Do you think it can truly keep a tent cool in a hot summer garage? Apparently they control temperature as well as humidity and it seems like it may work well. Only concern I have is the unit pushes the cool air into the tent. I have always set up my tents so that the fan pulls the air through in order to suck the tent tight and prevent smells from seeping out the zippers. How would you setup a Cloudline in a tent? Is there a better product out there to keep a tent cool? Please let me know I want to make sure I get a good system, I grow super dank strains that smell up a storm so the system I set up not only needs to cool well but also needs to be able to be hooked up to carbon filters. Thanks.

 

[tobh]

I run both a cloudline t6 and a raxial inline s6. The T6 is pulling exhaust, and I tend to run it at half speed. The S6 is for intake and I run it at full speed. I have the t6's controller set to go 100% at temps over 90F and it seems to do alright. They're good quality and quiet enough. Adding a carbon filter shouldn't be an issue. Controlling the garage temp may be the bigger hurdle, honestly.

 

[Backyard_Boogie]

I run both a cloudline t6 and a raxial inline s6. The T6 is pulling exhaust, and I tend to run it at half speed. The S6 is for intake and I run it at full speed. I have the t6's controller set to go 100% at temps over 90F and it seems to do alright. They're good quality and quiet enough. Adding a carbon filter shouldn't be an issue. Controlling the garage temp may be the bigger hurdle, honestly.

I was hoping that I could run an a/c system to exclusively cool just the tent. Given the Summer high temperatures do you think it is just better to get a larger commercial grade A/C system to cool the entire garage instead? It seems like it would just costs fortunes in order to cool an entire 2 car garage when my ten is only taking up around 1/10th the total garage space. Perhaps you or others can give me some advice as to the cheapest way to cool a single tent in this situation.

 

[Anthem]

Your are going to need AC with that light IMO. If I has to guess it is going to take about 2500 BTU's to keep the tent cool. Might be a few hundred less but 2500 is going to help when conditions are not ideal for the A/C. The window units, like your boy Burnz runs are super effective about the best bet for you. Also if you put the tent inside of an enclosure and seal up the room you can run CO2

 

[tobh]

Yeah, running an AC in the tent without it being sealed is just a game of diminishing returns honestly. You'll lose floor space (4x4, floor space is an expensive commodity) and your exhaust fan is just going to be dumping all that cool air out into the garage anyhow. Personally I'd do a minisplit in the garage if it's a finished garage. Serves a few benefits, and in the long run is a worthwhile investment over spending $$$ running a little unit in the tent that will continuously cycle.

As Anthem said, another option is to build a sealed room around the tent, then that alleviates the entire issue of the AC consuming floor space in the tent and wasting the cool air. Doesn't have to be all framed and sheetrocked, you can easily do it with some of the foam panels found at any big box hardware store.

 

[BurnzYzBudZz]

You could build a small 2x4 box with the wall banger in it. Then you intake the cold air into the tent. Depending on the temps the T6 will kick on and exhaust the air back into the little box. Kinda like a closed loop air system I guess you could say. Other than that you’d have to cool the whole garage and intake the air from the garage into the tent

 

[Anthem]

You could build a small 2x4 box with the wall banger in it. Then you intake the cold air into the tent. Depending on the temps the T6 will kick on and exhaust the air back into the little box. Kinda like a closed loop air system I guess you could say. Other than that you’d have to cool the whole garage and intake the air from the garage into the tent

He could do something like that but something like a refrigerator card board box would be better, more air for the a/c to draw from. He could also get a portable and just run the exhaust to a vent in the side of the garage. Only problem with that is going to be the air out of the portable is going to smell the place up.

 

[Backyard_Boogie]

I really appreciate all this info fellas. Just to give you guys an idea of what Im working with this is a picture of the space in my garage. I own the house so I can modify it however i want. i was originally gonna do 5x5 tent with my new Scorpion Diablo but I actually found out that it wouldn't fit. When we moved in this house a few months ago there was no shelves or storage at all so I installed two extra large metal ceiling storage racks. When I measured after they were already installed I realized that i had just enough space to fit a 4x4 in the corner but 5x5 wouldn't work. Im wondering what you guys think the best solution would be here? Should I consider boxing it in with a permanent wall? I think i might have just enough room to do that there is about 6 inches between the tent and the metal ceiling rack. Also BTW all the junk in front of the tent on the ground is gonna be cleared out. Old file cabinets and furniture other shit I will be donating to clear more space. What are your thoughts given the tight space in that corner?

 

[tobh]

Oh man... you're gonna run into the same issues myself and @Aqua Man have. Only two access doors with only one really being accessible is a brutal tent configuration. That being said, building a "lung room" like Burnz said is probably the best bet. Recirculate the air through the cold air box, and you won't waste so much energy. The upside is you may not need a dehumidifier if you get the right kind of AC unit that pulls enough moisture out of the air. Downside is, more floor space used and more restricted access.

Or, I like the idea of installing a minisplit. There are quite a few benefits such as keeping the garage and it's contents a consistent temperature year round, and can add a tiny bit of equity when you sell if you sell to a car enthusiast or someone that wrenches a lot. I say tiny because most people can't give two shits about a climate controlled garage.

 

[Gasman5.0]

I’m a new too growing but I wanted too share my experience with a grow tent located in hot area. I’m on the Texas upper gulf coast and I had bought a 3x5 tent and set it up in the back of my RV/ Toyhauler’s garage (it’s 8’x10x10’) with one little LED Moresen 1000w (205w@outlet) and a 4” inline fan/ carbon setup. When outside ambient temps reached into the upper 80’s it became obvious I’d set the tent up in an environment too be a oven. I tired cooling it off with 5000btu window unit but the exhaust heat from air conditioner heated the small garage’s air and the tents exterior in the process and it was so inefficient it nullified the ac and actual got hotter inside the tent over two days of operation so bad I had too pull the plug and move as it was doomed too fail...so my shop had a 4x5 restroom I never used so I gutted it and insulated the walls with R-13 fiberglass and covered that with 1/2” foam insulated board then I put 10” of insulation in it’s ceiling and taped and sealed it off and I installed the same 5k btu A/C and I added an additional Samsung quantum LED light that measured 250W at the outlet and 8” fan/filter setup in addition too the 4” fan/filter. Now I do not exhaust any air so I’m just scrubbing and cooling what’s inside the insulated room. I ran one grow through the dog days of summer with the lower 80’s for lows and mid 90’s for highs and the setup worked flawlessly but the AC seemed too cycle on and off fairly often but for short periods as it maintained set point quickly and easily. I thought I’d wait till winter for my next grow when the outside ambient temps in the 60-30’s so the A/C would not be cycling on/off as much and possibly reduce cost but that has not been the case as it does cycle on/off a fraction less and a shorter duration period it’s not much which tells me it’s insulated very good unlike that grow tent I failed too keep cool in a hot outdoor environment. I’d strongly lean towards a small dedicated grow room if possible over a grow tent that’s setup outdoors if possible.
My little AC cools the room very easily and very quickly keeping it @ 73f rh55~40% something that was impossible in the tent.

 

[Gasman5.0]

Something else too consider when setting a room up in a warm outdoor garage with concrete floors is the concrete acts like a massive heat sink that will influence the sealed room temperature up or down causing more or less AC cycling when there are differential temps in concrete floor and the sealed rooms air temp. I built a raised floor with a air gap inside my growroom using 2x4 covering it with 1/2” plywood. I then sealed the small gap between the plywood floor walls gap with caulking and I taped over that.

 

[Backyard_Boogie]

I really appreciate this in depth info fellas. Yeah I am likely gonna have to do a hard walled room or an air tight sealed outer tent with my smaller grow tent inside. Either way its gonna need to be sealed tight to trap in the cold air. The more insulated route is better but also more money and time to set up. Im gonna go ahead and get my plants moved in there on this cycle without the AC since its winter. Daytime temps are gonna be manageable for at least a few more moths so either way I should be able to finish this current grow. Once we start hitting about April/May thats when the mercury starts to climb.

 

[biggerbud420]

Hello everyone. I have a brand new 4x4 tent in my garage with a new Scorpion Diablo LED board. I need to purchase an exhaust fan and carbon filter but before I do I wanted to get everyone's opinions. I live in Southern California our summers do get hot in the 90s but I'm by the beach so it usually doesn't get much hotter than that. I need a way to not only limit smell but also cool my tent. Has anyone here ever used the Cloudline inline duct fan? Do you think it can truly keep a tent cool in a hot summer garage? Apparently they control temperature as well as humidity and it seems like it may work well. Only concern I have is the unit pushes the cool air into the tent. I have always set up my tents so that the fan pulls the air through in order to suck the tent tight and prevent smells from seeping out the zippers. How would you setup a Cloudline in a tent? Is there a better product out there to keep a tent cool? Please let me know I want to make sure I get a good system, I grow super dank strains that smell up a storm so the system I set up not only needs to cool well but also needs to be able to be hooked up to carbon filters. Thanks.

View attachment 1082012

i got the fan

 

[Goblinkiller]

Something to consider with cloudline is that its mixed flow. It could be a problem. I am looking at vortex vtx fans. I also need to cool a 4x4

 

[Bluntsmoke]

If you live within 5 miles of the beach you probably don't need AC. I'm in central california and we hit 95° already and I haven't used the AC yet. Schedule light hours around the coolest time of the day like 8pm on to 8am off or something similar. Use the natural cool air the coast provides.

 

[Backyard_Boogie]

Hey Guys. So I really appreciate everyones help with this. I wanted to give you all a quick update. As I mentioned before I decided to go with the HLG Scorpion Diablo light. I originally wanted to do a 5x5 tent but I had to settle for a 4x4 because the larger wouldn't fit in my garage. This is my first run in the new tent. Im on around day 50 these are 4 different strains in the tent. 4 big plants in total. Starting in the front right going counter clockwise around the tent we got...

- XXX OG (homemade seed run - crossed with mystery bag seed)
- Space Wrangler Sativa (homemade seed run - crossed with mystery bag seed)
- OG Kush (Cut gifted to me by Burnz here on THC Farmer)
- Lemon Wookie Glue (Cut gifted to me by Burnz again)

All ran in recycled homemade soil. This was the second run with this soil so I added bloom boosters on this run to juice it up. Last run it was living soil this run not so much LOL