TheFury
Oh, the humanity!!
Here I go again, causing mischief. I just spent all day condensing my unwieldy grow rack setup down into a terrarium. Just got a 24"x18"x24" terrarium delivered today, and so far the results are great! Here's the play-by-play:
1) Out with the old...
2) Reclaim some space
3) Fasten a clear acrylic panel to the bottom of a 4x 2' T5HO fixture with gaffers tape---keeps the spray off the bulbs
---Cooling system---
For the cooling system, I'm using a water cooler design I stole from this thread
--thanks for the tips, robthered!
4) Unscrew the taps from the front of the water cooler
5) Snag yourself some 3/8 NPTF to 3/8" barbed hose adapters.
6) Fit some fans to a PC radiator. I used a dual 80mm radiator and a pair of low-noise 12VDC 80mm fans. My radiator has 3/8" pipe fittings, to match the fitting size of the pump and the inlet/outlet adapters on the cooler
7) Scope out the inside of your cooler. There should be one 3/8" OD protrusion at some point. Fit a piece of 3/8" ID flexible tubing onto it with a hose clamp (see the pattern? Everything is 3/8"!).
8) Make a 10' coil of 3/8" OD copper tubing and put it in the reservoir. Fasten it onto the tube from step 7 using a hose clamp.
9) Attach the pump and seat it in the reservoir. I use a 210GPH pump and it's way too powerful.
10) Slide some flexible tube insulation over the tubes. I use 5/8" ID insulation because my tubes have a 5/8" OD.
11) Put some teflon tape (aka thread sealing tape) around the barb fittings.
12) Hook everything up with hose clamps and slide the insulation over the joints.
13) Plumb the cooler input/output to the in/out ports of the radiator. Fill the reservoir with 30% cold-weather windshield wiper fluid (the kind without soap!) and 70% RO water.
---Other Stuff---
14) Hook up the Hygrotherm
15) Hook up the humidifier
---Modified Exo Terra Monsoon Mister---
The Monsoon is a great little machine, but the reservoir is just too small. Luckily, that's an easy fix:
16) Replace stock 1/8" ID connectors with longer tubes for a deeper reservoir
17) Buy a 4 gallon bucket. Cut out holes--one for the refilling port and one for the intake tube.
18) Rest the unit on top of the bucket. Voila!
19) Install the nozzles.
---Finishing touches---
20) Throw down some egg crate
21) Hit it with a layer of sphagnum... BAM!
---Then, just add plants---
I'll keep posting updates as my plants adjust! So far the temperatures have stayed in the low 70s despite an ambient temperature of 83 degrees in the room. Humidity holding steady at 79%. Let's see what kind of a nighttime drop I can get
Thanks for watching!
1) Out with the old...
2) Reclaim some space
3) Fasten a clear acrylic panel to the bottom of a 4x 2' T5HO fixture with gaffers tape---keeps the spray off the bulbs
---Cooling system---
For the cooling system, I'm using a water cooler design I stole from this thread
--thanks for the tips, robthered!
4) Unscrew the taps from the front of the water cooler
5) Snag yourself some 3/8 NPTF to 3/8" barbed hose adapters.
6) Fit some fans to a PC radiator. I used a dual 80mm radiator and a pair of low-noise 12VDC 80mm fans. My radiator has 3/8" pipe fittings, to match the fitting size of the pump and the inlet/outlet adapters on the cooler
7) Scope out the inside of your cooler. There should be one 3/8" OD protrusion at some point. Fit a piece of 3/8" ID flexible tubing onto it with a hose clamp (see the pattern? Everything is 3/8"!).
8) Make a 10' coil of 3/8" OD copper tubing and put it in the reservoir. Fasten it onto the tube from step 7 using a hose clamp.
9) Attach the pump and seat it in the reservoir. I use a 210GPH pump and it's way too powerful.
10) Slide some flexible tube insulation over the tubes. I use 5/8" ID insulation because my tubes have a 5/8" OD.
11) Put some teflon tape (aka thread sealing tape) around the barb fittings.
12) Hook everything up with hose clamps and slide the insulation over the joints.
13) Plumb the cooler input/output to the in/out ports of the radiator. Fill the reservoir with 30% cold-weather windshield wiper fluid (the kind without soap!) and 70% RO water.
---Other Stuff---
14) Hook up the Hygrotherm
15) Hook up the humidifier
---Modified Exo Terra Monsoon Mister---
The Monsoon is a great little machine, but the reservoir is just too small. Luckily, that's an easy fix:
16) Replace stock 1/8" ID connectors with longer tubes for a deeper reservoir
17) Buy a 4 gallon bucket. Cut out holes--one for the refilling port and one for the intake tube.
18) Rest the unit on top of the bucket. Voila!
19) Install the nozzles.
---Finishing touches---
20) Throw down some egg crate
21) Hit it with a layer of sphagnum... BAM!
---Then, just add plants---
I'll keep posting updates as my plants adjust! So far the temperatures have stayed in the low 70s despite an ambient temperature of 83 degrees in the room. Humidity holding steady at 79%. Let's see what kind of a nighttime drop I can get
Thanks for watching!
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