Carbon Filters

Absolute Beginner Q: Carbon Filters

Just how well do carbon filters work to remove the pot odor? Do they remove ALL the smell? The answer to this determines Where I can possibly put a grow tent and even IF I can have a grow tent at all. Of course, I realize that the smell will leak whenever I open / close the grow tent.

Thanks in advance! I'm a newbie grower dealing w. the end of my outdoor grow. Interested in the possibility of an indoor grow for the winter.

Just like you said it buddy, it'll get rid of the smell but when you open the tent the smell will leak, try your best to seal the room as well as the tent.

Carbon filters do work, the carbon acts like a magnet to smell molecules holding them in, so they need replacing once in a while.

You can make one with active carbon rocks and a sock, i think it's this stuff but not sure, aquarium people use it to get rid of bad bacteria and smells in the water filter, same thing i think but not sure, maybe someone can chime in.

"I'm a newbie grower dealing w. the end of my outdoor grow."

Just outta curiosity, why are you bothered with the smell when you had a garden outside full of plants ??

Ac infinity now sells one that is refillable and it's in the ballpark price wise of the other filters that are comparable to it. I picked one up but haven't used it yet. My other filters all do their job for at least a grow. Some 2-3 grows.

They work pretty well, given that you refill / replace them regularly and have the right size filter.

joe_croupier said:

"I'm a newbie grower dealing w. the end of my outdoor grow."

Just outta curiosity, why are you bothered with the smell when you had a garden outside full of plants ??

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Didn't mind the smell outside whatsoever. My only concern was that it might bother my neighbors. Even when outside, the smell was really strong.
However, I know that if the plants were inside, the smell would drive my family crazy. Also, worried that my books might absorb the pot smell - like books in cigarette smoker's houses.

sh0wtime said:

They work pretty well, given that you refill / replace them regularly and have the right size filter.

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I've been real happy with Terabloom carbon filters for quite a while and use this:

Carbon Prefilter

Haven't had to change the Terabloom in 2 years and I grow in dirt, so it gets dusty as hell inside the tent.

I can concur. I've owned my Terra Bloom for about 2.5 yrs now. It's as good as it was out of the box.

Syntax747 said:

I can concur. I've owned my Terra Bloom for about 2.5 yrs now. It's as good as it was out of the box.

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Not if you've used it.
I'm sure it's a nice filter, but all carbon filters have a finite life. Effectiveness declines with use; it's the nature of the beast.

Billy the Mountain said:

Not if you've used it.
I'm sure it's a nice filter, but all carbon filters have a finite life. Effectiveness declines with use; it's the nature of the beast.

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Helps tremendously to filter out dust _before_ it gets to the carbon cannister. In addition to using the carbon pre-filter, I also use these on all duct inlets and outlets:

Macro filter

I'm on 2 years with my Terrabloom so far.

so for me it was between a ac infinity carbon filter and a spider farmer carbon filter. they each costed 49.99 and honestly i could not be happier with my decision i turn my lights on at night and usually when i wake up in the morning my entire house smells like cannabis i mean the whole thing lmfao after i installed the carbon filter the smell is literally gone! no more smell! im not sure how long this effect will last but for know my smell problem is gone! with a good carbon filter you can grow indoors <3 :3.

the reason i picked spider farmer and not ac infinity is because i have a spider farmer 4 inch inline fan so figured i would just buy they're carbon filter also

You get what you pay for.
Though there are reliable mid price filters these days, still avoid super cheap filters.

The other thing is how you use it.
If you vent into the same room they tend to not function as well.
If your humidity is really high they stop working as well.

Personally speaking , there's no smell outside my rooms.
But if you crop in an open room there's a chance your neighbours will smell it.. depends on how your house is constructed.
Old terrace houses often have a single skin wall or even gaps where shared joists pass through the brickwork.
So if the situation allows, crop in the tent.

Best bet is to do things right and use a filter with a good reputation and vent out of the house.

They work great for 60 to days. Then they work good for 30 days. Then I would change. I usually run a extra filter in my room. Just a big 6 inch filter sitting on the floor on its base, with the fan connected right to the filter blowing down into the filter.

I go cheap and change often, Im not sure premium brand name or price gives a longer life.

If you run a ac unit in the room your tent is in it will help keep the room under negative pressure and stop smell leak out of the room for extra safety.

ProPheT 216 said:

They work great for 60 to days. Then they work good for 30 days. Then I would change. I usually run a extra filter in my room. Just a big 6 inch filter sitting on the floor on its base, with the fan connected right to the filter blowing down into the filter.

I go cheap and change often, Im not sure premium brand name or price gives a longer life.

If you run a ac unit in the room your tent is in it will help keep the room under negative pressure and stop smell leak out of the room for extra safety.

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You change filters after 90 days?
Are you talking a specific brand?

coreywebster said:

You change filters after 90 days?
Are you talking a specific brand?

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Yea I change them about every 3 months. No specific brand. I noticed that the filters collect an almost unnoticeable smell to us of decomposition. Even tho they do not leak weed smell bad at 90 days I feel like they start to attract Flys looking for decomposing matter during the warm months. Every 90 days fixed that problem.

A prefilter is important for extending the life of a carbon filter. Operating in a moist environment such as a grow tent also reduces the effectiveness of activated carbon. You can refresh it by putting it in an oven and bake at 400f. I have a filter that's 17 years old and works great because I have maintained it. Good fittings between fan and filter are also important, it's surprising how much air can leak through a small gap.

ProPheT 216 said:

Yea I change them about every 3 months. No specific brand. I noticed that the filters collect an almost unnoticeable smell to us of decomposition. Even tho they do not leak weed smell bad at 90 days I feel like they start to attract Flys looking for decomposing matter during the warm months. Every 90 days fixed that problem.

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Wow.. they should last at least two years but I've never considered the pest element of the situation.

ProPheT 216 said:

Just a big 6 inch filter sitting on the floor on its base, with the fan connected right to the filter blowing down into the filter.

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This could be contributing to the pest problem.
If you think about it, blowing into the middle of the filter is asking the smallest amount of filter surface to do the hardest work and all your bugs, bacteria & fungus spores are going to live in the dark, dirty core of your can.
You could try turning your fan the other way up to suck the air through the filter and put a pre-filter (filter sock) around the outside.
I think this is how the filter is designed to function.
Good luck with your grow.

Mullumbimby said:

This could be contributing to the pest problem.
If you think about it, blowing into the middle of the filter is asking the smallest amount of filter surface to do the hardest work and all your bugs, bacteria & fungus spores are going to live in the dark, dirty core of your can.
You could try turning your fan the other way up to suck the air through the filter and put a pre-filter (filter sock) around the outside.
I think this is how the filter is designed to function.
Good luck with your grow.

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Appreciate the thought.

Filters are designed and capable of being using on both sides of the fan. As far as I can tell the surface area is the same as the air has 2 pass thru all layers regardless of what layer is first. I do agree keeping a clean pre-filter helps.

ProPheT 216 said:

Appreciate the thought.

Filters are designed and capable of being using on both sides of the fan. As far as I can tell the surface area is the same as the air has 2 pass thru all layers regardless of what layer is first. I do agree keeping a clean pre-filter helps.

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Filters are more efficient (less static pressure) pulling air through rather than pushing through. The surface area is not the same on the two opposing surfaces; the surface area on the outer circumference is dramatically larger than the inside surface. The filter can be used either way but efficiency will suffer, not to mention the problems from not using a pre-filter, which isn't possible when pushing air through.