Excessive heat?

[lordbeguile]

I'm growing a single plant in an apartment closet with a 400 watt HPS. The air according to my central cooling thermostat reads on average of 76 F. However, in the clost itself, I'm getting an average reading of 91 F. This is the case despite the fact that I'm using a small floor fan and have the doors open when I'm home to provide for ventilation. It doesn't 'seem' that hot in the closet, but I'm worried that the heat may be too much.

Also, the other day my timer was set too early before I got home from work, so the door was closed when the light turned on.. and with no fan on, mind you. After two hours and I returned home, the digital thermo read.. 116 F! This especially concerns me, because once the plant starts to get larger, I will have to keep doors closed more often to avoid the lingering aroma. How can I keep the heat down without cutting into my ceiling or door, which obviously isn't an option in an apartment. Thanks in advance to everyone, cheers

[dobshibby]

lordy lordy lord,,lol.i see you have a few temp probs so i'll throw in my 2 cents.first off a 400 watt hps in a closet grow for one plant is over-kill,a few cfl's(compact flourescent lights)would have been enough and would be way cooler than the hps.second you mention a fan,i presume you mean a desk fan,thats fine and will keep it cooler but if you cant put holes in your wall or ceiling try putting a hole on the back of your closet up high and attach an extractor fan to **** out the hot air biulding up,a 4 inch(10 centemetres)kitchen extractor fan will work well and are pretty cheap.the fact you cant cut holes to get the cooler outside air in will restrict you alot on keeping it cooler but the things i mentioned above would definatly help.a couple of other things you could do if you dont mind a little hassle everyday would be to freeze some ice cubes every night and place them in a zip-lock bag and put them in the base of your closet in a "plastic bucket" so as they melt it will just hold the water in the bucket for safety(water and elec dont mix too good,lol).one other thing that might work,i say might because i've never tried or heard of it but will do it on my next grow,would be to add a sheet of glass or perspex between the light and the plant effectively making two compartments,the heat should stay in the top area and get sucked out by the fan,while the light shoud still penetrate through the glass without any lumens being lost.its just an idea i got so if anyone else has done this please add your info.well i have waffled on for long enough so i hope some of these tips will help,,,peace out.

[bigbudsbruddah]

You need to vent you light out of your closet. Thats the only way to stop the heat from building up.

[Growdude]

What I do in my closet with 2 400 HPS is I open the doors and use a box fan mounted at the top of the doors blowing out, I also use a smaller oscilating fan on the floor blowing in, keep your AC turned up and all is well.

[lordbeguile]

Thanks for the replies.. After some consideration, I think I will continue to leave the closet door open, the small floor and ceiling fan on.. as well as continuing to run the a/c more often (ouch). I'll just need to get a lock put on the door, it's a spare bedroom anyway. I've also considered that my cheap digi thermometer may be a piece of sh*t. It honestly doesn't feel 91, but I just wanted to take ensure that it never gets 'too warm'.