b8MAN Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Hi again all The grow is going surprisingly well and is a few days into flowering. The only potential problem is the fact that the humidity in the house in general is showing as 70%, which i assume will be too much for when the buds start to form. If i close the door at night to keep them a bit warmer then it goes up to 80%! I'm wondering is this a faulty humidy meter? or do I need to open the window to the room (which is a cupboard inside a spare bedroom which is occasionally used for drying clothes, but not recently so shouldn't be the source of the humidity). Or what would you recommend?????? And also when does the humidity become an issue as it currently a trade off between temps and humidity. I have a TD160 running 24/7 and am using 2 envirolites. I haven't started using a heater yet as when i close the door temp stays above 16C. Thanks B8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S2001 Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Hi m8. Firstly are you letting the soil dry out? How often are you watering? And if that's not it your going to need a dehumidifier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owderb Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 i'd check your meter m8 cos it shouldnt be that high in the house.And 70% humidity in the flowerin stages is askin for trouble.Read your profile and by the looks of the set up cant really see why its so high.Also u dont mention your temps when the lights are on.Try and get the lights off temps as near as u can to the lights on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b8MAN Posted November 2, 2004 Author Share Posted November 2, 2004 I'm watering about every 3-4 days at present. I am letting them dry out a fair bit between waterings to encourage root growth as they were transplanted into final pots quite late before going into flowering. But this should mean lower humidity shouldn;t it? Lights on temps are about 21C at flower height and 26-28C at the top of the wardrobe. Lights out temps drop to about 16.5C. I've just put a heater in there in preperation of the cold nights, but i'm not sure how this will affect the humidity of the space. The plants are currently growing really well, but I agree that the humidity is a worry. Also, would putting the fan on a timer affect humidity? It could be the meter which is faulty. I've tried resetting the sensor but it maintains the reading. Next thing is to try it with a PSU rather than batteries. This is my first grow and i'm determined to get a healthy crop out of them. Too much time, hassle and money have been invested for this to go wrong now. I'll keep checking it to see if i can get it down / correct. B8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magpieshaman Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 do yu have space for a dehumidifier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b8MAN Posted November 2, 2004 Author Share Posted November 2, 2004 I don't know - how big are they? B8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kmus2K Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 I have a similar grow space, 2 x blues running (reds in standby for flowering) and my humidity is between 35 and 65 (after water) - usually 40 to 50. I keep my bedroom window open all night and day, but its a good few meters from the grow-robe. TRD and Osc fans run 20/4 (goes for 2 hours after lights out, then off for security reasons) Again it might be too early (only 2 weeks in veg) for me to give an decent input, but thats my 2p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S2001 Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 (edited) I don't know - how big are they?B8 256096[/snapback] They are about 2ft tall and 18"x12", and if you do get one go for one with a heater Just wrote a huge reply and my PC crashed………..ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh………….. If you check the humidity in your house I think you will find it’s between 50 and 70%. If you are NOT pulling in FRESH air then the humidity will rise. I use a TD160 to pull air in from an OPEN window, I use a TD250 to pull out in to my attic where there is an open window. From what I gather you are NOT using an open window for fresh air, is that correct? Question: Where are your passive intakes and is there an open window. Question: Where does your out take go Edited November 2, 2004 by scotlander2001 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-Whizz! Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 (edited) Lights on temps are about 21C at flower height and 26-28C at the top of the wardrobe. Lights out temps drop to about 16.5C.256075[/snapback] Before you go out and buy more equipment, how are you measuring those temps??? What I mean is, where do you have your hygrometer? It should not be in direct light, prefably it should be in the shade under the canopy. If you cannot get it in any shade, then make a foil hat for it... Then when you are reading air temps and not radiant temps will you be taking accurate readings. Forget the top of the cupboard, that's where your extraction should be, taking away the stale hot air. You do have extraction Hope that helps! Good luck with the rest of your grow Edited November 2, 2004 by G-Whizz! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b8MAN Posted November 2, 2004 Author Share Posted November 2, 2004 Thanks for all the advice people - luckily I've got a few weeks before buds form to get this right. I think my main problem is that I don't really open the window too much. The wardrobe is contained in a box room with passive intakes at the bottom of the wardrobe (about 3" away from the wall) and the fan output at the top, sucking air in from the room and expelling it into the same room (expelled with a td160 on low setting). I can open the window for a few hours a day, but as it faces the road I can't leave it open all night. The humidity level is read from under the plants which are under the lights. But so far they've been basically the same as the room's humidity (give or take depending on when it was watered). Lights off readings have been taking high and low for the last few days, which is when i became aware that it really is too high. I thought that leaving the door open would allow air to be exchanged with drier air from around the house. Expect now i've found that even that is too humid. What I really need to establish is how long the window needs to be open for the humidity to decrease, and how long this will last before it's too high again. I've also found these http://www.shop.edirectory.co.uk/easylifeo...649&afid=105749 - which are super cheap wardrobe dehumidifiers (which i suspect are just silica gel). I don't have high hopes for these - What do you think? I'm going to experiment with the opening windows / doors to see how it goes and keep you posted. Thanks again for the tips B8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kmus2K Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Is it possible for you to feed your growrobe from a remote window (or roof space?) Failing that u could put a wire up a external dehumidifer and force it to vent directly into your growrobe (through sealed venting) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magpieshaman Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 (edited) I've also found these http://www.shop.edirectory.co.uk/easylifeo...649&afid=105749- which are super cheap wardrobe dehumidifiers (which i suspect are just silica gel). I don't have high hopes for these - What do you think? I dont hold out much hope for them either ye'll spend all yer time tring to find some wher to dry them out and I dont think there designed to work with quite that much "damp" MS Edited November 2, 2004 by magpieshaman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S2001 Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 Hi m8. Yeah that’s your problem no fresh air. I had the same problem and my room, I ended up with damp walls. If you think about it you are just recycling the air in your room which is going to get more and more humid. Can you not move your drobe near a window? Another wee trick that someone just told me about, you can cut some cardboard or white plastic the size of the top of your pots and put a slit down the middle and then place it over the stem and the soil. That should help with the heat drawing out the water from your plants. Seems like the solution for you is getting some fresh air in their! Good luck m8. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big C Posted November 2, 2004 Share Posted November 2, 2004 hi b8man agood way to check your hygrometer is wrap it in a damp cloth for about ahour and check the reading is between 94%-96% if not adjust hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b8MAN Posted November 3, 2004 Author Share Posted November 3, 2004 Thanks all for the help ppl. I'm beginning to seriously wish I could invite you over for a smoke when this is all done just to thank you for the support. I've been opening the window and airing the place as much as possible which brought it down to about 65%. But then started to experiment with the fan heater and had the surprising result of having the humidity fall. Theory - I think the area between the pots (where the hygrometer was) was containing pockets of damp air which weren't being circulated by the passive inlets. Adding the fan moved the air around a bit, and adding the heat made the moisture rich air more likely to rise and be vented from the room. I haven't got it perfected yet, and think an oscillating fan might be a wise purchase soon (hell, i'll need one eventually anyway). But it's progress, and the plants are looking and smelling lovely (new pic on the diary later). As for the humidity of the house being so high - still unsure. But as long as the grow room is cosy, I don't really care. B8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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