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Mini air conditioner for drying box, has any one bought one that's any good?

Pipecarver

Pipecarver

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I built a box 3'x3'x4' = 36 cu/ft I'd like to cut in a small air conditioning unit. with exhaust out the back to keep my temps down...I'll have a harvest come in with low temps in the 70's overnight. If I insulate my box I can keep it cool enough for a proper dry.....There's so much crap out there does anyone have any advice or point me
 
I've been looking into a small wine fridge to try a dry in. The temp range on them seems just right.

For you, have you thought of making a diy peltier cooler?
You could make it to size

 
@ninjadip I dry in a wine fridge.get one that is thermoelectric and not a compressor. This will keep the humidity from swinging up and down when the compressor kicks on and off.i also have an ink bird humidity switch hooked to a tiny dehumidifier in the bottom. You can keep it 60 and 60.the humidity spikes the first day or so.takes about 10 days depending on bud size.
 
Pipecarver said:
I built a box 3'x3'x4' = 36 cu/ft I'd like to cut in a small air conditioning unit. with exhaust out the back to keep my temps down...I'll have a harvest come in with low temps in the 70's overnight. If I insulate my box I can keep it cool enough for a proper dry.....There's so much crap out there does anyone have any advice or point me
Click to expand...
i dry in a cabinet the same size, i don't have a temp issue just a humidity issue and i use one of the eva dry mini dehumidifiers. it doesn't put out any heat at all. i have it connected to an RH controller so it only runs when needed. lasts about 4-5 years before the motor makes racket.

DSCN0816.JPG

do you feel it's going to be that warm in there that you need an AC unit? just watch it doesn't get to windy inside the cab with an ac.
 
Stoneyluv said:
i dry in a cabinet the same size, i don't have a temp issue just a humidity issue and i use one of the eva dry mini dehumidifiers. it doesn't put out any heat at all. i have it connected to an RH controller so it only runs when needed. lasts about 4-5 years before the motor makes racket.

View attachment 15520

do you feel it's going to be that warm in there that you need an AC unit? just watch it doesn't get to windy inside the cab with an ac.
Click to expand...
I have a small dehue but that's not an issue my large dehues cover that but my temp will be in the high 70's if not higher and I'd like a small air conditioner / cooler to help get my temps down in my dry box.......The only small coolers/ chillers/ air con are these that you add water or ice to but I can see them doing the job.1690633390025.png
 
stonemason said:
@ninjadip I dry in a wine fridge.get one that is thermoelectric and not a compressor. This will keep the humidity from swinging up and down when the compressor kicks on and off.i also have an ink bird humidity switch hooked to a tiny dehumidifier in the bottom. You can keep it 60 and 60.the humidity spikes the first day or so.takes about 10 days depending on bud size.
Click to expand...
Good tip on adding a dehumidifier and controller, ty
 
Pipecarver said:
I have a small dehue but that's not an issue my large dehues cover that but my temp will be in the high 70's if not higher and I'd like a small air conditioner / cooler to help get my temps down in my dry box.......The only small coolers/ chillers/ air con are these that you add water or ice to but I can see them doing the job.View attachment 15578
Click to expand...

If you live in a very dry environment those types of coolers will work. We use large versions to supplement our home AC but our climate is very low RH and very hot, like living in the desert, so the evaporative cooler tech works for us.
It's not cold like AC but it can knock the temps down 5-10 degrees in a small space using only 70 watts.
This is what we have

But if your climate is humid at 60% or higher they don't cool very well and they'll add humidity using one indoors.
 
Bandit420 said:
If you live in a very dry environment those types of coolers will work. We use large versions to supplement our home AC but our climate is very low RH and very hot, like living in the desert, so the evaporative cooler tech works for us.
It's not cold like AC but it can knock the temps down 5-10 degrees in a small space using only 70 watts.
This is what we have

But if your climate is humid at 60% or higher they don't cool very well and they'll add humidity using one indoors.
Click to expand...
Yes, very humid here when its hot and I'll have to dry some in 3-4 weeks...in Aug 30c @ 90% ish...I can get the humidity down but not the temp...I've been looking for something small but I can get full sized used for $100. or wine coolers around the same price.
 
Bandit420 said:
If you live in a very dry environment those types of coolers will work. We use large versions to supplement our home AC but our climate is very low RH and very hot, like living in the desert, so the evaporative cooler tech works for us.
It's not cold like AC but it can knock the temps down 5-10 degrees in a small space using only 70 watts.
This is what we have

But if your climate is humid at 60% or higher they don't cool very well and they'll add humidity using one indoors.
Click to expand...
Agreed. Honestly even in dryer climates they don't work all that well at least the one I had bought. Maybe it would make a difference if it was right next to you but you have to constantly reup with ice or water or whatever.
 
Pipecarver said:
I could screw my box to the front of an old fridge too, seal it up with duct tape and plastic but that would take up too much space...lol...olny for 10 days at a time but a Duct taped old fridge dry box has a Canadian ring to it
Click to expand...
I'd just go with a portable and vent the air into your chamber to keep the temp down.

Do you have a spare closet you could use as a lung room? You could cool the closet and put the 3 x 3 in it to better control temp and humidity.
 
Rootsruler said:
I'd just go with a portable and vent the air into your chamber to keep the temp down.

Do you have a spare closet you could use as a lung room? You could cool the closet and put the 3 x 3 in it to better control temp and humidity.
Click to expand...
Good idea but nothing that big...I built a box for 8 plants...and its too big and square...its a bit of an abomination, eye sore monster box that doesn't fit anywhere.....ya....it might end up an outdoor cat house.......but its dried 2 crops nicely and with some cooling it could at least be a functional eye sore.
 
Pipecarver said:
Good idea but nothing that big...I built a box for 8 plants...and its too big and square...its a bit of an abomination, eye sore monster box that doesn't fit anywhere.....ya....it might end up an outdoor cat house.......but its dried 2 crops nicely and with some cooling it could at least be a functional eye sore.
Click to expand...
Better a functional eye sore than a pretty paper weight.
 
ninjadip said:
What do you think about making a thermo electric cooler yourself using peltier tech?
Click to expand...
It didn't look like anything more than a fan, neet looking fan but I didn't get how the thing cooled at all. I need something to drop temps 20f and I don't think that will do it....I think I'll need a proper air conditioner. I was kinda hoping for something small but there are lots of used portable around I can get of facebook market place. We just bought a new used Midea14,000 btu unit for upstairs $400 they were asking for $600......there's so many for sale I think they'll accept any reasonable offer....Do In hear $100 for a $300 unit?
 
Pipecarver said:
It didn't look like anything more than a fan, neet looking fan but I didn't get how the thing cooled at all. I need something to drop temps 20f and I don't think that will do it....I think I'll need a proper air conditioner. I was kinda hoping for something small but there are lots of used portable around I can get of facebook market place. We just bought a new used Midea14,000 btu unit for upstairs $400 they were asking for $600......there's so many for sale I think they'll accept any reasonable offer....Do In hear $100 for a $300 unit?
Click to expand...
IF they're cheap enough then I think it would be a good idea.

You could also go with the cooler with a fan DIY A/C if money is really tight.
 
Pipecarver said:
It didn't look like anything more than a fan, neet looking fan but I didn't get how the thing cooled at all. I need something to drop temps 20f and I don't think that will do it....I think I'll need a proper air conditioner. I was kinda hoping for something small but there are lots of used portable around I can get of facebook market place. We just bought a new used Midea14,000 btu unit for upstairs $400 they were asking for $600......there's so many for sale I think they'll accept any reasonable offer....Do In hear $100 for a $300 unit?
Click to expand...
I was hoping you would ask, look up peltier cooling. It works by thermoelectric instead of a compressor. They don't get as cold as a compressor type a/c but can hit 20 below ambient temp max. Low power, small footprint, you can add as many peltier modules as you want to beef up that design I posted.

This is the same tech in wine coolers and some aquarium water chillers. Efficient. Def worth a look. A lot more effective than evaporative coolers.

Another option would be to repurpose a college/dorm/hotel fridge and use that compressor.
 
Rootsruler said:
There's a store in my area that sells second hand and damaged and out of the box stuff. They currently have around 30 wine chillers on the floor but they want $500 for them. Pass.
Click to expand...
ya Kijiji has some
 

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My wife went with friends to the native casino not far from us and won $6002 days ago.....yahoo.....so yesterday we went for diner in Halifax and to the casino in there,,,we won $500....double yahoo......I'll get something for sure now with a bit of extra cash......this computer is fked so I'm looking for an upgrade. I'll bring my upstairs comp down here and get something that will be specifically for streaming movies....i7/quad core,32GB/1TB...at least that's what my eyeballs are looking at now...do you know anything about computers?
1690826833125.png1690826833125.png
 
Not sure if you are asking me. Can you provide a link?

The only thing I would upgrade right away on that would be the wifi card. If you have a wifi 6 generation router then I would get a wifi 6 generation card for your PC. This is close to 3x faster than AC WiFi. But you need a wifi 6 router to take advantage of this speed. I upgraded my router and card two years ago, my laptop is 3 rooms away from router my speed doubled with the upgrade. Wifi 6 is exceptional for distance and speed

Screenshot_20230731-144006.png

Intel Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) Desktop Kit, AX200, 2230, 2x2 AX+BT, vPro® https://a.co/d/ankgABJ


Edit, make sure you check compatibility before buying, they have submodels for compatibility issues.
 
I am in the market for a new router so this is good tech study, my old 710 Dell probably is not ready and may not be compatible but I must research to make an informed purchase,right. SSgrower thanks
 
I like to build my own computers.

@ninjadip - my wifi receiver is hard wired onto the motherboard, Aorus. I still have a couple open slots on the board. Would your upgrade require a separate, dedicated receiver plugged into one of the slots and a compatible router? What router did you use? I currently use the X finity company router and just returned a surfboard router that I was going to set up to try and increase speed but just placed the company router higher up and in a place with less obstructions and speed increased so no need for the router but faster internet is always a plus if there is an integrated solution that has real world results.
 
Rootsruler said:
I like to build my own computers.

@ninjadip - my wifi receiver is hard wired onto the motherboard, Aorus. I still have a couple open slots on the board. Would your upgrade require a separate, dedicated receiver plugged into one of the slots and a compatible router? What router did you use? I currently use the X finity company router and just returned a surfboard router that I was going to set up to try and increase speed but just placed the company router higher up and in a place with less obstructions and speed increased so no need for the router but faster internet is always a plus if there is an integrated solution that has real world results.
Click to expand...
What exactly do you mean when you say hard wired? It might be one of these small chips in there that is replaceable, if not then putting a full card in will also work. Should be able to turn the built in one off from BIOS or Device Manager. This is a picture of the laptop/mobile chip.
Screenshot_20231212-185206.png
If I were you I would wait for wifi 7. It should be finalized any day from what I hear
www.tomshardware.com

Wi-Fi 7 to get the final seal of approval early next year, new standard is up to 4.8 times faster than Wi-Fi 6

Better later than never?
www.tomshardware.com www.tomshardware.com

I don't use the Xfinity modem/routers because it's a racket, I can buy better equipment and pay less than renting theirs when you look at how much you pay to rent their box for 1-2 years.

You would have to look up your Xfinity router model to see if it is Wi-Fi 6/7 compatible to see if worth the small investment of upgrading your wifi card to wifi 6, $20.

If you ever look again for your own cable modem again, find out what the maximum amount of channels your ISP plan gives you and get a modem that uses all of them. The other number that it is very important is the DOCSIS version, get the highest your ISP supports. My preference is to have a separate modem and router, but that takes a little more configuration on first setup compared to a combo unit.
Screenshot_20231212-185940.png
 
Pipecarver said:
I have a small dehue but that's not an issue my large dehues cover that but my temp will be in the high 70's if not higher and I'd like a small air conditioner / cooler to help get my temps down in my dry box.......The only small coolers/ chillers/ air con are these that you add water or ice to but I can see them doing the job.View attachment 15578
Click to expand...
I have one of these. It’s crap. A normal fan is better over ice or water bowl.
 
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