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Heat from lights- air circulation - problem

ok guys, my new growing rack is making my plants flower nicely, BUT
the heat from the lights builds up even though i didn't cover the front with reflectors and it's opened up.
i use cheap shop-lights and on a wire rack.
i have a strong aquarium fan and i thought of using it to replace hot air with cool air
problem is the leaves on some plants flutter when it's on
what should i do?
 
how bout this, ill get a timer and set it to blow for 2-3 minutes every 10 minutes?
BTW i live in singapore, will the fan take away humidity?
i have 2 misters lying around, maybe i should put em in front of the fan?
 
Electronic ballasts anyone?
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If you enclose the space then humidity shouldn't change. The humidity will just move around as humid air. Or will it condense...? The air will definetely move around, but no fresh air will be replaced. Does air circulation mean the air just has to circulate or does it have to be replace with 'fresh' air?
 
this is interesting, so bear with me:

i have a remington clothes dryer fan (found it at the thrift store, who knew the thrift store would be a great place to find cp supplies?) it's shaped like a cylinder. it's burried in the substrate so that you can only see the part that blows, the part that sucks in under  the soil. above it is a bulkhead in the back wall of the tank, and water vapor pours out of it from a humidifier under the tank. the fan blows upward, hits the water vapor and disperses it around the tank. the air circulation is poweful enough to make plant scapes sway a little bit. air circulation is good because it prevents mold, fungi, and makes plant tissue "harder". the fan runs during the day when the lights are on.

if i didn't have a fan- the tank would heat up to leathal levels.

oh yeah, the fan creates anough air circulation that i don't get condensation on the front glass.
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]this is interesting, so bear with me:

i have a remington clothes dryer fan (found it at the thrift store, who knew the thrift store would be a great place to find cp supplies?) it's shaped like a cylinder. it's burried in the substrate so that you can only see the part that blows, the part that sucks in under the soil. above it is a bulkhead in the back wall of the tank, and water vapor pours out of it from a humidifier under the tank. the fan blows upward, hits the water vapor and disperses it around the tank. the air circulation is poweful enough to make plant scapes sway a little bit. air circulation is good because it prevents mold, fungi, and makes plant tissue "harder". the fan runs during the day when the lights are on.

if i didn't have a fan- the tank would heat up to leathal levels.

oh yeah, the fan creates anough air circulation that i don't get condensation on the front glass.

thanks JLAP, that has the same idea and my plan right? Does your fan replenish the air? or just circulates it? mine is an open growing rack...

any other ideas guys? if not ill just use JLAP's idea
 
well, it's different. mine just re-circulates the air that's already in then terrarium. it doesn't pull in any new air from outside.

i think the air is fresh as long as it's moving around and doesn't become stagnant, even if you keep re-circulating the same air over and over.

i'll TRY to get a pic sometime- but i won't be at home alot because my parents are organizing my grandmothers funeral.
 
amazing that you can find time to help others in this difficult time of yours, I am touched. Again, my condolences and best wishes for the funeral JLAP.
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Jason
 
JLAP, sorry to hear about your grandmother

wezx, regardless of the fan you use,

1. to reduce heat AND improve circulation at the same time, i think the key is placing the fan in such that it is blowing as much air out of the tank as possible (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

2. you probably shouldn't place the fan such that air is blowing from one side of the tank to the other b/c this will only move the hot air within the tank and will probably dry the leaves in the process.

3. regarding humidity, if the humidity in your tank is provided by the environment (natural) than the fan will not reduce humidity as it simply replaces the hot air in the tank with cooler air outside....though technically the humidity will drop just a little as hot air can hold more water vapor than cooler air. you should buy a humidistat/thermometer to make sure the fan is doing its job. if humidity drops too much, then you can place some water in a saucer at the bottom of the tank (if you already don't have your plants in shallow water).

4. if your fan isn't good enough and you can't find a clothes dryer fan (JLAPs suggestion), then you might want to go to a local electronics store and get a computer fan and AC/DC adaptor (~$40 US total). splice the wires of the adaptor and computer fan together. a moderator suggested this to me and i did it.....works great.

hope this helps. i, too, am new to this stuff and have been getting a lot of help from the more experienced guys/gals in the forum....this is a great place to learn & get advice.
 
  • #10
thanks jason and chloroplast (chloroplast, would you like me to send you your free plants i promised? are you back from vacation?)


many people neglect air circulation- it's almost as important as light imo.

something i just thought of, you can attatch a sponge to the back of the fan, then you can freeze a gallon or 2 liter bottle of water. make a hole in the side, attatch some aquarium tubing (glue it in with aquarium silicone), then take an air valve (like the kind that come on the air intake of a powerhead), attatch it to theend of the tube and adjust it so it drips about 1 drop every 3 seconds or so. then position it above the sponge. the frozen water bottle MUST be higher than the tube otherwise it won't work.

anyway, my thinking is : the fan will suck up air that passes through the wet sponge. the air is wet and cold because of the wet cold sponge that's saturated with melted water. this humidifies and cools down the tank at night or at day.

hope that isn't TOO confusing.
 
  • #11
wow!! thanks guys!
Lots of nice ideas which i will try!
 
  • #12
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]many people neglect air circulation- it's almost as important as light imo.

Air circulation as important as light? So should I spend the same amount of $ on lights as I do on light...? I probably won't have any plants by the end of it...ah its a hurricane in the terrarium! RUN!
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  • #13
just because something is important doesn't mean it's expensive. the proper soil is more important than light- you cant argue with me on that, but soil isn't expensive.

without proper air circulation, heat can build up, stagnant air is a great home for bad fungi and mold, not to mention in terrarium culture the air movement helps harden the leaves and stems.
 
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