Co2 and Exhaust

M

mrmatt

Active Member
So Im ready to start using Co2 and I have a few questions for my peeps here on RIU. Im sealing off my room and I was wondering how I can exhaust my air conditioner (which is inside my room and exhausts outside) without loosing all the precious Co2? Am I supposed to build my "sealed" room without exhaust? Or is there a professional method of recirculating that Co2? I appreciate everyones help :-D
 
I have not used CO2, not been in a situation to justify the costs. I believe the practice is to have it on a timer where the fans are only on when the temps get too high and the Co2 shuts off. Then when it cools back on they shut off and CO2 turns on. Also, from what I've read plants have more heat tolerance in high CO2.

I hope CO2 veterans chime in, I'd love more in depth knowledge as well.
 
mrmatt said:
So Im ready to start using Co2 and I have a few questions for my peeps here on RIU. Im sealing off my room and I was wondering how I can exhaust my air conditioner (which is inside my room and exhausts outside) without loosing all the precious Co2? Am I supposed to build my "sealed" room without exhaust? Or is there a professional method of recirculating that Co2? I appreciate everyones help :-D
Click to expand...

Hello. Your sealed room should be 100% sealed.

What type of A/C you got? window, portable, one tube, two tube, ductless split, etc?
 
MasterS said:
I have not used CO2, not been in a situation to justify the costs. I believe the practice is to have it on a timer where the fans are only on when the temps get too high and the Co2 shuts off. Then when it cools back on they shut off and CO2 turns on. Also, from what I've read plants have more heat tolerance in high CO2.

I hope CO2 veterans chime in, I'd love more in depth knowledge as well.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Only other way you could do it would be to run an exhaust fan on a closed line. Cool air from outside through a sealed hood and back out the window. Than you would need other intakes and means to supply fresh air coming into the room.
 
tommyo3000 said:
Hello. Your sealed room should be 100% sealed.

What type of A/C you got? window, portable, one tube, two tube, ductless split, etc?
Click to expand...

I actually run 2 air conditioners. one small portable 12,000 btu unit that exhausts right out the window, and a 1 ton portable unit (retails for $3500-4000) i got used and refurbished for $1200. it has a 12" exhaust and its ducted outside. the airconditioners sit next to eachother. my room is 100% insulated with r-13 value insulation. im still needing to sheet rock, but ive got all my plumbing and air conditioning done. after i sheet rock, ill be caulking all the corners, and taping and floating all the seems. hoping to achieve the "sealed" room.

I wish someone could give me more info on how the timed exhaust set up works...

I appreciate you guys!
 
mrmatt said:
I actually run 2 air conditioners. one small portable 12,000 btu unit that exhausts right out the window, and a 1 ton portable unit (retails for $3500-4000) i got used and refurbished for $1200. it has a 12" exhaust and its ducted outside. the airconditioners sit next to eachother. my room is 100% insulated with r-13 value insulation. im still needing to sheet rock, but ive got all my plumbing and air conditioning done. after i sheet rock, ill be caulking all the corners, and taping and floating all the seems. hoping to achieve the "sealed" room.

I wish someone could give me more info on how the timed exhaust set up works...

I appreciate you guys!
Click to expand...

Wow, nice setup. Ihave a 24x8x8 room made of plywood, sealed, insulated, with a 14,5000BTU window unit in the wall.. Inside I have a 4000 watts flowering room and a 600 watt veg room. I burner CO2 and have a CAP PPM3 monitoring and dosing the CO2.


Your setup sounds good.. I have to marinate on what it is you are asking for a bit....

tommy
 
you only need fresh air to replace the CO2 that the plants use.if you are adding enough CO2, you wont need fresh air.
 
mrmatt said:
I actually run 2 air conditioners. one small portable 12,000 btu unit that exhausts right out the window, and a 1 ton portable unit (retails for $3500-4000) i got used and refurbished for $1200. it has a 12" exhaust and its ducted outside. the airconditioners sit next to eachother. my room is 100% insulated with r-13 value insulation. im still needing to sheet rock, but ive got all my plumbing and air conditioning done. after i sheet rock, ill be caulking all the corners, and taping and floating all the seems. hoping to achieve the "sealed" room.

I wish someone could give me more info on how the timed exhaust set up works...

I appreciate you guys!
Click to expand...

OK, if you are completely sealed you need to add CO2 and air condition (possibly dehumidify, too).

Your window unit should not be "exhausting" any air from your room to the outside. If it is a model that does that, get a different one. You are not "sealed" if it exchanges air with outside. ---EDIT -- I see you are using a portable tube? One tube? out the window? No good if you are :( :(

Same goes for the other unit you are talking about.. If it actually mixes your growroom air into it's exhaust, it should be a no-go.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my 14,500BTU window unit. It can cool 4,000 watts of non-air-cooled lights AND runs on 110V.

tommy
 
A single-hose system takes in the air from the room, cools it and puts it back into the room. A single-hose unit creates a slight negative pressure in the room it cools because it does not return all of the air it takes in from the room. A small amount is used to cool the unit and is expelled through the exhaust system. Unconditioned air from adjacent rooms is often drawn into the cooled room to compensate, and this creates a slight inefficiency in the system. A single-hose system usually cools a room down more slowly than a dual-hose system.
A dual-hose system takes in air from the outside with one hose, cools it for the room, then expels the hot air out the other hose. Because a dual-hose system takes in air from the outside, it avoids the negative pressure problem. When the outside air is cooler than the room, the dual system can cool down a room faster. However, when the outside air is warmer and more humid than the air in the room, it is less efficient than a single-hose system. A dual hose system also usually has two fans, which means that energy usage is higher, but it may cool the room faster.
(A mini-split air conditioner is less common than the other two but is sometimes considered portable. These units separate the compressor and condenser coil from the fan and evaporator coil. The compressor is located outside of the home and air handler is located inside the home. Some models come with multiple air handlers that use one compressor. Usually, each air handler cools one room. These units work more like a central air conditioner, but are less expensive. They generally require professional installation.)

single_vs_dual_hose.gif


all air conditioners have exhaust -- only some do not actually remove any air from your growroom. Like my window unit. It doesn't suck air from my growroom out through the back. The back is where the heat comes off of the coils...
 
Thanks Tommy, I will consider selling the units i have now to get 2 units like yours... Im sure i can get those at home depot right? If Im understanding you properly I only need a "window" unit that has the radiator looking coils on the back ( to prevent sucking air from my room ) Am I understanding you?
 
mrmatt said:
Thanks Tommy, I will consider selling the units i have now to get 2 units like yours... Im sure i can get those at home depot right? If Im understanding you properly I only need a "window" unit that has the radiator looking coils on the back ( to prevent sucking air from my room ) Am I understanding you?
Click to expand...

Mine is a samsung from home depot or lowes. It appears they don't carry the brand anymore... I dunno.

There are a couple of things to consider:
1) newer electronic models don't turn back on after power outage. I just came home from being out for 3.5 hours and when I came home I didn't hear my a/c running in the garage. Since it is 88degrees OUTSIDE today, I knew my garage was hot and the a/c was off... 106degrees in the room... I aired it out (stinky) and turned the a/c back on... I wish i could find an older one with knobs that has no electronic on/off.

You do understand me about the venting.. You have to somehow make sure there is no exchange through those heater coils.. For example, imne has a lever that allows fresh air to come in.. I don't use it.

I don't even have mine in a window.. it goes through the wall and into the rest of my garage, which is too hot to use.. but it works great.

You could call the manufacturer of the window unit you like and confirm if any air exchange occurs.

Ductless mini splits are THE WAY to really go, but about $1200 is expensive for most.
 
mrmatt said:
I found this...http://www.google.com/products/cata...a=X&ei=ZrPiTanEJeXM0AHot7G7Bw&ved=0CG4Q8gIwAg

Is that what your talking about??

Where I live it easily gets above 100 degrees F outside everyday... A powerful unit is paramount for anyone in the south. Would this 18,000 btu unit be appropriate??
Click to expand...

3500 btus per 1000 watts of light is appropriate.
Once more consideration - how cold does it get where you are? A/Cs don't work too well below 65.. You need a feature called "low ambient" operation that lets the ductless mini split work when outside is from 65 down to 30s..

http://kingersons.com/mini-split-air-conditioner.html#30000btuductless

notice they have cheaper ones (lower SEER efficiency rating) and more expensive ones (more efficiency)

some are pre-charged with freon so you don't need an HVAC guy.
 
We get the occasional freeze, but when it gets cold, couldn't I just put the "outside" portion of the unit inside of my garage or a water heater closet where it stays warm? Im not too worried about the cold, unless I really need to be... lol
 
These are semi-permanent. You have the compressor outside and the other part on your wall inside. They get hard-wired into your eletrical system and then you drill at 2" hole through the wall for the freon tube to connect the two parts. Usually the outside part is on a little slab or deck or something.

Well, it just depends on your weather.. I live in the south but in the mountains, so we have snow and stuff. I need a low ambient unit or the a/c simply would not work during my winter months..
 
like he said, it is a window unit. all I have ever seen have a switch to pick between adding fresh air & recirculating the room air.
 
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