Growing in a dirty attic ?

Hi peeps, first post be gentle.

I've read some great stuff on your forum.
I'm in the early stages of planning a growing room, I've got a few things figured out but I have some concerns :-

I plan on growing in the attic space. The attic is actually a Turret (Cone shaped roof, how apt !)

It is really dirty up there and I am concerned about the cleaness of the air. I could get an extractor but my only place to vent it would be some small gaps in the roof slates of the turret (about 3m up).

Is this do-able or is the dirty air a no-no from the start?
I could build a big box and do the growing in there, is that my best bet ?
Is there any other method to clean the air the plants will be breathing ? I've seen extractors with fans and carbon filters for sale, would this do the job ? (venting out through the small gaps) .

thanks in advance for any comments

 

Why is it dirty up there? Too lazy to clean it?

 

Surgical mask and shop vac.
The plants should help keep the air clean after the fact.
...What kind of fans exactly? Link?
Here's a grow thread..I'm sure somebody else will be more helpful. Good luck.
http://hipforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=62690

 

The attic has old insulation on the floor between the joists and its very dirty. Changing it all would be a nightmare, there are cables and pipes strewn all over the top of them.

I was gonna floor a couple of square meters that are clear of pipes to do the growing. I was thinking I could replace some of the dirty insulation, I'm not convinced the air would still be clean enough.

Thinking of this type of fan setup: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hydroponics-fan-carbon-filter-grow-lights-plants_W0QQitemZ7764952843QQcategoryZ1510QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I'm thinking this would just circulate the dirty air though ? The carbon filter should absorb some of the odour i guess.

I've read a good few grow guides, but I've never seen much detail about the cleaness of the air, hence the question.

What do you's think? Will I be wasting my time if its too dirty up there ?

Cheers for the replys. Appreciated.

 

im thinkin of doing the same in my loft, if u wanna floor the loft n the pipes are a prob use 2 x 2 along the joists to bring u up above the level of the pipes n shit then ya can floor right over the top. I guess yer from the U.K seeing that u use meters, i read on this forum some one saying that the screws can pick up on people growing in their loft from helicopters using heat sensing equiptment, gonna look into that myself n see if extra insulation would do the trick

 

Aye mate, I'm from UK. I'm not sweating on the helicopters. Don't think they bother with that caper in my neck of the woods I'm not planning on any Charlie Bigtime operation here.

Just wanna know about the dirty air.

cheers

 

Hi greenblood I'm in the UK to.
I would cover the floor in plastic sheeting and wipe over dusty pipes etc with a damp cloth. Put a couple of air ionisers in the attick these will make all the dust and air born pollutants fall from the air and stick to surfaces. Also put a good extractor fan in the roof, this will change the air in the room several times an hour. The extractor fan and ionisers will also remove odours. Hey presto clean air.
Remember the attick needs to be completely dark during flowering go in there through the day and fill in all the gaps letting light in between slates etc.
I wouldn't bother with a grow box, without it you have more space to grow plus it will be easier to keep temperatures down. Using a good extractor fan is essential this alone will give you a constant supply of fresh air.

 

If struggling with fitting an extractor fan you could attach it to some ducting then vent it through the floor. As long as the extractor is fitted high in the room it dosn't really matter where its vented to as long as passers by don't smell it. Building grow rooms does involve some DIY and a little initiative.

 

Thanks for the reply Buffoonman. I'll look into the ionizers, cheers.

My problem is gonna be venting the extractor fan. I may need to remove a slate from the roof.

As for the gaps in the slates - they are miniscule, there are no shafts of light or that. Reckon I'll have the 'dark' cycle at night anyway.

Thanks again for reply.

 

Marijuana requires fresh air, the more the better.
When the CO2 in a given space is exhausted, growth ceases.
Most attics get too hot during the summer to grow decent pot.

 

Hi Ranger,

What are you saying then ? I'm not getting anything constructive.
Growing in an attic is a no go in your opinion ?

cheers

 

Dude, what's the average temp during the summer where you live? Now imagine how hot a closed room at the top of the stairs might get. Then figure how much air would need to be moved in order to counter the oven like effect of the slates! example: outdoors - 80 bright sun on slate; causes attic to be 100 degrees or more, there are still radio staions around here that cook turkeys in closed autos during the summer to show what happens to pets and babies left in autos by dumb people. The gist is lots o' ventilation is needed, you might try pulling AC air from down stairs up through attic to outside.
Then there's tropical strains that prosper in temps up to 120 F.
Sweet maryjane will grow nearly anyplace on earth, but like any other plant it adapts to the environment, the results may or may not be to your liking, you'll never know if you don't try, doing is learning.

 

Marijuana requires fresh air, the more the better.
You wil have to intake fresh air (ideally from the floor of the attic) and exhaust stale air (ideally from the top of the attic). If you try to exhaust hot air any other way than straight up your gonna need giant fans to overcome physics (heat rises).
Either way, it's gonna take construction.
How about growing outdoors? Free light, fresh air, etc.

 

Cheers for the replies gents.

Crazy temperatures aren't a problem where I am. Out doors is a no-no, the plants would die of fright rapidly

I'm hearing what your saying about ventialation.
Time to get the hands dirty me thinks.

Thanks a lot!
Appreciated.

 

Green, sounds like you and I might live in same weather pattern, we've seen the sun maybe 10 days since xmas, so outdoor growing leaves somewhat to be desired.

 

Try moving to the UK whats the sun?

 

No Doubt!