Novel Ideas of Warming A Coldframe Overnight ?

[ByrneBurnham]

Good afternoon my fellow farmers ! ! As a new person to the State of Colorado I'm gettin my first taste of COOOOOOL nights. Im down around 37* Lat' and as of late its been getting into the LOW 40's overnight. Woke up this a.m. to find the therm' sitting comfortably at 38*. The question I have is what novel ideas do others have at keeping a coldframe that measures 4' (depth)-8' (length) and about 4.5' (height) warm at night ?

So far I've thought of using the following: black gallon milk jugs filled with H2O placed throughout the enclosure (of course the jugs being placed in full sunlight the entire day to really warm up), a "flannel blanket pocket" ( 2 blankets of equal size stuffed with straw and then sewn along the entire perimeter) with each "blanket pocket" sized to fit all "sides and top" of the coldframe, and a few slabs of iron sprayed black to soak in the Sun's warmth during the day also placed throughout the enclosure.

The plants will all be in their own 66 quart storage tote - amended soil is the medium. This "enclosure" will be AWAY from any structure that has electricity (my preferred location) BUT - I do have a spot where I can run an extension cord to an alternate location BUT that area has a huge tree to the South of the it (and we all know that as we head into the Fall the Sun's track goes further South) which means my enclosure would be in the shade for the better part of the shortened day.
Would the above methods keep my plants warm over the next 2 months during flowering - or is it better to go with the alternate location and run a small heater out to the enclosure and just accept the shaded light throughout the day ? My plants are about 2 months from being done as they have just finished preflowering and Im starting to get clumps of pistils forming at most nodes. I should also point out that my enclosure will have 6 mil' plastic cloth "panels" on all sides and top as Im reading more about the benefits of diffused light (plus it'll keep these cold winds from making the ladies even chillier). I will be able to tend to the enclosure daily (multiple times in a day if need be) to place the plastic panels on days that are more windy.

This is NOT a guerilla grow-this enclosure will be on my own property.

Sorry to be so longwinded but just wanted to give you experienced cold weather farmers a good overview of what Im working with........
I thought about placing this in the Colorado forum but realized the U.S. and World too have cooler/colder climates.
Thanks in advance for all of the helpful tips that may come in.
B.B.

 

[Captive]

i've read of creating a heatsink with copper pipes running into it. something like having copper pipes out where they get warmed by the sun, then they conduct the heat into the heatsink. i believe moist sand or fine gravel was what i read. during the day the heatsink warms up and at night it radiates the heat as it cools.

 

[VEGBLOOMWSUP]

water works too. couple of jugs in light. heats up in the day, keep dissipating heat overnight.

 

[trippinballz]

Figure out a way to run a heater to the space.

Make sure the structure will hold snow weight or the first decent snowfall will collapse it.

Gonna depend on the year. Some are warm through November, some are snowy and cold.

good luck

 

[dabs4life]

garden hose(cheap option)buried attached to a water filled heat trap with low rate pump would provide constant stable once dialed in.

 

[Seamaiden]

Line the bottom of the frame with stones (the darker and denser the better), they'll absorb heat through the day and release it slowly through the night.

Water, black containers are a great idea so go with it.

Finally, Christmas lights, a string or two. If you've got cannabis in the frame then I'd use colored lights if any at all, though.

 

[ByrneBurnham]

Captive-T'ballz-VegN-Dabs-S'maiden- thanks a million for the ideas ! ! ! I moved to the CO from S' Florida so heating has never been a concern or issue....with the ideas so far I could really have the 'frame being toasty. Oh-the idea of making sure it'll withstand snow (if any) is a great one...... I'm leaning more and more towards the heater deal and taking a hit on the shaded lighting (the tree is HUGE so there's really no option of cutting it).....plus its a tree you know ? Ive been bringing them in at night (metal shop hangar) but with the larger totes they'll be in for their flowering period (in a day or so) that'll be wayyy too heavy.

Heres a pic of their current enclosure....they're just getting wayyyy too tall for the height of it plus its looking more and more like that circus act of how many clowns can be stuffed in a V.W. Bug.....

What is it with my sideways pics ? Sorry all.....

 

[trippinballz]

So FL to CO is gonna be quite the shock.

If it really turns Winter-like the water/stones/etc are not gonna help.

Historic snowfall data from Denver.



I hope it works out for ya and I hope you have an indoor grow for backup. Good luck

 

[str8smokn]

You could also try a heat-tape( plumbers), I think they make for heating air also check greenhouse heat tape . Can't use Christmas lights since it's flowering time. heat tape could be wrapped around inside of walls to keep ambient temp. It might work?

 

[SpiderK]

These guys use compost for heating and run aquaponics year round in Wisconsin.

I use straw around my roots starting mid oct, midwest 42 latitude ...

 

[Oregon Grown]

A second one slightly larger over the first for a layer of insulating air in conjunction with some of these other ideas could help.

 

[fishwhistle]

Check this thread out!
https://www.thcfarmer.com/community/threads/diy-solar-panel-heater.65648/

 

[ByrneBurnham]

FishWhistle - I believe Ive found the solution for day warming with the above idea ! ! And for nighttime - Ill go with the small heater idea......solar during the day and heater (the type that'll kick on at a predetermined temp) for the night. I'll call that a One-Two Coney Dog Combo anyday ! ! ! Youve all been wayyyyy too helpful and with your ideas (with an outer and inner layer of plastic sheeting forming a space of air between the two) this will be easily handled ! !

 

[ByrneBurnham]

Historical data via weather underground shows our area of CO (only a few miles North of the NM/ CO border) not getting "cold" until late November and this crop SHOULD be done just before then. Thank goodness we're in extreme SouthWestern Colorado and not up North where it gets cold early and fast. I could make 2 of these DIY solar heaters and be set - plus its ultra MacGyver ! ! ! ! Wow - thanks again FishWhistle ! ! !

 

[trippinballz]

Again...it's gonna depend on how it all unfolds. Last year we had numerous snows in S. CO in Oct and about a foot of snow Mid Nov. with lows in the teens.

Daytime temps in the enclosure will likely not be a problem with our intense sunshine here and (normally) daytime temps well above freezing. It's the nights that will be of concern.

That solar device will work during the day....if needed. Chances are even in NOV a closed up GH will be warm enough as it is on most days. Once the Sun goes down though...be prepared. "Stored" heat in water or rocks will disapate too quickly to retain heat overnight, FYI.

Hopefully we'll get one of those Fall seasons where it holds off til mid-late Nov before the dumps come in earnest. Even so, expect your growth to be slower than in Summer.

best of luck

 

[geologic]

If Iceland's Bardarbunga volcano kicks-it-up a bit;
it could get a lot colder,
night *and* day--
for a while...

 

[GoldiNugs]

These guys use compost for heating and run aquaponics year round in Wisconsin.

I use straw around my roots starting mid oct, midwest 42 latitude ...

This is a great idea!

 

[kolah]

We often get freezes, frost and snow in September and for sure in October. Picking early finishing strains in key to growing outdoors or in a GH here in CO. I grow here in CO ( at 9400 ft above sealevel) and have found MJ can take 36-40 F with little problems. When temps hover at 32-34 F for over a few hours, you are at a great risk of losing them.

Everything and anything you can do to keep them warm is a must. The exotic ways make things easier but are often costly and time consuming. More simply, you may decide to light a latenight bonfire (if that is possible...and safe) as you babysit them through the cold nights. 55 gallon drums make good burn barrels, are safe and give off some good heat. Beware as it can get ugly here in CO in a blink of an eye. Watch the forecasts and get yourself a few good reliable thermometers. If you rely on the Farmers Almanac or some long term (crystal-ball) forecasters you'll get burned. Be prepared to set your alarm to get up in the middle of the night to check on things..and maybe even twice a night. On a good note, I have found that sometimes the cold temps trigger plants to finish earlier but that could be a genetic/strain thing as well. Dunno.

Tarps are good, rocks hold thermal mass too...even pebble stones in your soil work nicely. Candles, sterno, water balloons, etc. You really want to keep the beds warm as keeping the roots toasty is of utmost importance. I thought by laying a thick layer of straw on my beds it would keep the roots warm as shit. Sadly it ended up causing a mold issue so I no longer play that game. Avoid running propane heat as it will spike rH levels and you'll end up with rotten moldy buds and/or a dose of powdery mildew. I built a fireplace in my greenhouse and keep my other plants in 5 and 7 gallon buckets which I can easily bring inside when the weather goes sour. I used to get way too stressed out trying to survive the weather and get my MJ harvested without losing them.

It looks like the nights are going to warm up for the next week but it's do or die time for all us outdoors growers here in Colorado.

BTW I sure hope your MJ doesn't outgrow it's enclosures, they just might do some stretching still. And watch out that your buds don't start hitting on your screening should the winds kick up.

Good luck and welcome and I am glad you got the hell out of Florida.

 

[kolah]

add: those oil/electric radiator heaters are a good choice IMO as long as you don't mind paying the Electric Nazi's more money for a couple of months. :)

One year I pulled my truck right next to the greenhouse and left it running just to gain some heat. I made sure the exhaust wasn't blowing directly into the GH...as best as possible. Hey man, sometimes ya get friggin desperate, lol. I later thought of buying a long length of exhaust pipe ,hooking it up to my tailpipe, running the pipe through one side of the GH and out the other side. The heated metal pipe would transfer heat into the GH and no exhaust fumes would have entered inside. I never did it though...instead I made a "quick-make" fireplace out of cinderblock and I was glad I did as the temps dropped and it snowed like fucking mad that same night.

 

[caveman4.20]

Getting those roots in the ground and surrounding them with a heavy finer soil might help insulate root temp.....I wish I could do that but I'm afraid I'm going to have to move them inside......it's tuff in the Rockies the temp drops like a wrecking ball instantly as sun goes down and last few falls including this one has been wet rain hail and snow at night ......it's not impossible and well worth it ....
Tons of great advice all yall are farmtastic!

Tons of positive vibes @ByrneBurnham everyone here helped me survive my first Colorado rocky outdoor harvest and I wouldnt have without them....
Thanks again farmers