Masking/Cooling hot exhaust air

[surfing_oz]

Hi all!

 

New to the forum. I've been searching around in Lighting/Ventilation and Security so as not to double up on threads being posted, but I can't seem to find a relative thread or answer anywhere.

 

Starting my own small grow room using 600-1000W lights. The space will be about 6ft(L) x 2ft(W) x 6ft(H). I've read up all about carbon filters/scrubbers, ducting, exhaust fans, fans to pull cool air in and pretty much everything else. I still have a major question though.

 

Is there anyway to COOL the exhaust air, before it leaves the grow room. I've read about Leo using FLIR cameras to detect heat in terms of grow room lights (which you can avoid by using Mylar etc), but what if he uses the FLIR and sees hot air streaming out of the side of someones house/apartment at 4am in the morning. Generally speaking people aren't baking cakes etc at that time :S

 

So yeah. Is there anyway at all to cool the exhaust air before it streams out into public space for Leo to pick up on?

 

Many thanks for any helpful comments

[phreakah]

You could pump the hot air up into the roof, to where the hot water system is....

[surfing_oz]

You could pump the hot air up into the roof, to where the hot water system is....

 

Thanks for your reply phreakah, appreciate it

 

I actually live in an apartment and don't own it. I will probablly be moving out to buy another or buying this one outright, however that will probablly be about another 6 months or so, maybe longer. Can't go cutting holes in anything unfortunately I read a thread (http://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/138842-about-cooling-exhaust-air-just.html) where someone was thinking of experimenting with a bong-type idea, where the water cooled before exiting the air duct. Seems a little over the top, but if there's no other way makes sense I guess. I think someone else said if you were going to do that you'd need a huge gallon drum so the duct could travel several feet under cool water. Just seems unpractical...

 

Any thoughts welcome

[dimplex]

heya mate, i might have an idea.. just off the top of my head.. spitballin here.. but it may be possible to cool the air by exhausting (im assuming your cool air is the ambient air) ambient air with the hot air. now obviously depending on how hot your air is (how hot is it by the way?) you may never cool it down without something serious like air con or this 'bong idea'

[brick]

You could get some soft drawn copper tube say 1/2" diameter. Make a coil out of it, being careful not to kink it anywhere. Coil size to fit in side ducting.

Then you would have to pump cold water through it pretty slowly to get a good heat transfer and run the water to waste somewhere.

 

Portable air con, refrigerated type, if you could fit it in your cab would be the most practical. You would need to vent the air con out a window though.

People use their air cons all the time so heat signature would not be a problem.

[jimbojones5678]

It's something I worried about when I set up my exhaust system a few years ago but couldn't really find a solution to it - except in winter when my fireplace flue is right near it.

 

All I can add is that LEO flies over my property all the time and I've never had any dramas and I'm pushing out air from multiple 600s.

 

Jimbo

[surfing_oz]

Thanks for the relpies! So nice to see people helping each other out on the net instead of bitching on youtube all the time, haha

 

dimplex: that is actually a fantastic idea, if you're thinking the same as I am. Correct me if I'm wrong, but are you saying; the exhaust fan pulls hot air out from the grow box, and the hot air travels along DUCT 1 to be expelled outside. On route it is met by DUCT 2, a seperate duct that pulls in ambient air. The air from the two ducts mix, hence cooling DUCT 1's air as it is expelled into the public?

 

That sounds like a very smart thing to do, to me anyway

 

brick50: I'm not familiar with copper tubes etc but that actually sounds great also as it wouldn't just mix the air but would chill it. I need to do some research on constructing a device to do what your saying because I'm not too technically minded. I'm ok with the grow boxes etc because there's info all over the place on construction and venting, but I'd need some time to really look into it. Great idea

 

jimbojones5678: Yeah, I'm having the same worries as you were. Recently I've heard choppers going over my place quite frequently (Probably heard them about 6-8 times in the last month). I think they were working on Task Force Noise, who just busted 3 meth-labs in Sydney for meth amphetamines and illegal firearms as they would be producing HUGE amounts of heat, far more than grow houses I think anyway. Can I ask you though, are you just guessing that it's LEO flying over you, or are you certain? I caught a glimpse of a chopper hovering over mine today and it was red, blue and white stripped. Dunno if that tells you anything. Anyway to tell or just assume it's them?

[brick]

"(Probably heard them about 6-8 times in the last month)"

 

I getthat every day as I live not too far away from the Air police. I don't think they are looking for small grows.

 

The red white and blue heli sounds like the Air Ambulance.

 

Better to be thinking the way you are rather than being blase about it, most small grows get busted because of you talking to someone or sticky nose neighbours or just by chance.

 

Don't let any paranoia spoil your fun and satisfaction. Just be careful.

[pisspotgrower]

Nothing better than talkin security.....more security better i sleep .... But i do wonder how this technology would be able to differ some heat coming out of a duct ( in summer probably gets close to ambient temperature anyways ) and say the average 1000- 2000watt blow heater from kmart all ya grandmas and probably most of u sit on all winter ? 99% of busts im sure comes from informants ( keep ya mount shut ), steeling electricity ( pay ya bills )and stupid shit like random pull overs for speeding while the dick head grower was moving his plants.

 

This heat issues i put down in the same category as ya electricity usage when someone hanging a new light n thinks the 600watts is gona spike an investigation. While its still a risk its something that if ya to paranoid about ya gota ask....how will i handle the stress when my room is actually full of weed >

Edited March 16, 2011 by pisspotgrower

[surfing_oz]

Nothing better than talkin security.....more security better i sleep .... But i do wonder how this technology would be able to differ some heat coming out of a duct ( in summer probably gets close to ambient temperature anyways ) and say the average 1000- 2000watt blow heater from kmart all ya grandmas and probably most of u sit on all winter ? 99% of busts im sure comes from informants ( keep ya mount shut ), steeling electricity ( pay ya bills )and stupid shit like random pull overs for speeding while the dick head grower was moving his plants.

 

This heat issues i put down in the same category as ya electricity usage when someone hanging a new light n thinks the 600watts is gona spike an investigation. While its still a risk its something that if ya to paranoid about ya gota ask....how will i handle the stress when my room is actually full of weed >

 

I totally agree with you p'p'grower, I'm just trying to find out if there would be anyway before I setup my grow. I'll be following through regardless, but I also agree with others that it's better to be safe than sorry, so yeah, just trying to think of something that I could do.

 

I did various searches on google for; "converting heat to electricity", "convert hot air to cold air" and so on and so forth, however it seems that even the worlds top scientists are yet to crack how to do most of these things, efficiently anyway.

 

I was thinking maybe buy a functioning fridge and dedicate it to chilling a slim barrel of water. Have the exhaust air duct come through the side of the fridge and enter the barrel below the rim of the barrel (via a sealed hole) but above the water. The duct then travels to the bottom of the water where the hot air exits. The air travels upwards through the chilled water, cooling it. Once it reaches the water's surface it bubbles out and travels further up into another exhaust fan which pushes the air out into the public.

 

That sounds as if it would work to me. The power would probably be huge, but just brainstorming atm. Critique the method later on.