Noise

[StonedCold]

I'm going to be investing in a squirrel cage fan and was just trying to get a consensus of how loud they can be. I realize it varies greatly by size, but compared to a ballast, humidifier, or air pump, how close? The man I talked to at the hardware store was as useful as smoking a mint leaf when trying to get high....

Room is roughly 2X3X8 if that gives an idea of how strong of one I'll need to rid my heat from the 400 HPS....

 

[Dada]

I think a 265 CFM squirrel cage fan will do it, but it also depends on how much air you are allowing into your cab. If you don't have good intake, the fan won't do much. You should also get a reflector with glass on the bottom and flanges for air intake and exhaust. This is usually the single biggest source of heat in a cab and you'll notice a difference. If you don't have active cooling on your light, a 265 squirrel cage may not be enough.

Now to your question: If you get a Dayton squirrel cage fan -- the 265 cfm is the 4c447 -- they are pretty much whisper quiet. Of course, you have to mount it solidly on something that won't resonate, but the fan itself is incredibly quiet. They are normally used to exhaust air from houses, so they can't be too noisy. I already had one of these for my house, so I just got another one for my cab. Wiring is easy and these fans last for years even if they run all of the time. You just have to give them a couple of drops of oil once a year.

You can generally find these on e-Bay in the $40-45 range, plus $10-15 for shipping.

 

[StonedCold]

" You should also get a reflector with glass on the bottom and flanges for air intake and exhaust. This is usually the single biggest source of heat in a cab and you'll notice a difference."

What does this mean? I have no idea..... The 400 HPS has a hood and the ballast is outside the grow area.

As for air coming in, its closed off pretty much. There is relatively little air going in except when the tarp, which is used as a door, is rolled up about 3 times daily... next week however, I won't be able to pick up that tarp at all. Will that prevent the heat from escaping??

 

[Dada]

It means you should get a reflector that has a glass plate on the bottom so the bulb is completely enclosed. If it doesn't have that, it will just throw heat from the bulb directly into the cab. This is usually the largest source of heat in a cab -- even hotter than if you had the ballast in there. Take a look at some of the pics in the growroom forum -- you'll see HPS that have reflectors with those shiny flexible tubes attached. That's what I am talking about. But if your reflector isn't enclosed, just attaching flanges and exhaust hoses won't do much of anything at all.

Unless you have a way to draw the cooler ambient air into your cab, you will not get air exchange and you will not be able to blow hot air out. Opening the cab several times a day will help your plants to get air, but it will not give you the air*flow* that you need to help keep things cool. A good rule of thumb is to have twice the area devoted to passive intake as you have to active exhaust. Essentially, you want your squirrel cage fan sucking hot air out from the top of your cab and from your reflector at the same time as it is sucking fresh/cool air in from the bottom of your cab. It's pretty much the same principle as sucking on a straw...

 

[StonedCold]

How would I go about this? I have the typical bat wing style reflector. Is there a way to do it myself? DIY of something??... pictures below....