New Highland Setup

Inside the Tent

Whew, it's been a busy month. I'd been thinking about upgrading my highland set-up for a few months, but now that it's mostly done, I have to say that I underestimated the amount of work that it would require. Originally, I had been growing my highlanders in sealed terrariums, with four-bulb T5HO units on top, and fans and thermometers inside. Intermediates were on open shelving units lit by the same four-bulb T5HO units. Temperature was controlled, roughly, by either opening/closing the window and/or placing a fan in the open window or by an air conditioner. There were a number of problems with this setup.

The Outside Duct, Fan, and Humidifier

First, there was the temperature problem. Opening and closing the window is fine, if you know what you're doing and have time to do so, but if you go on vacation for a week...well...we all know how accurate the weathermen are. So, any time I left for a while, I'd come back to plants that were suffering, especially smaller, more delicate plants.

Second, there was the problem of humidity vs. airflow. The intermediates suffered in whatever humidity my house had. In winter, that hovered around 15% - 20%. In summer, it was much more manageable. The highlanders, in contrast, had very high humidity, but there is only so much air in a 55-gallon tank, too little for very good air exchange, meaning I had to be on constant guard for algae and pests.

Third, besides light timers, I had very little automation. It's somewhat annoying to have to methodically check each and every plant container to see if they need water. It was even more annoying to be sitting at work wondering if the house's heating system was keeping up with the freak cold snap. Hopefully, the upgrade will solve all those problems.

A View into the Tent

I decided to go with a grow tent, specifically a GrowLab 145, and transfer the shelves I was using for the intermediates (these ones), into the tent. I knew I would be reusing the 2-foot four-bulb T5HO units (these ones) I had on the shelves, as they fit nicely on the shelves and I could also reuse the thick plastic garden trays that I was using (these ones) in order to maximize plant space. Additionally, the GrowLab 145 was just big enough that I could fit three shelving units inside in a "U" shape and have a little room at the end of the "U" for a large pot, a smaller shelf, or something else I might need in the tent. (As it turns out, I currently am reusing a fan and a humidifier inside the tent).

The Metal Shelves

I ended up going with a GrowLab tent rather than a less expensive brand not only because I had heard that it was good quality construction and the size was perfect for my reuse of items, but, mostly, because it has two large sealed 2-foot by 1-foot "windows" that can be viewed from the front of the tent. As a consequence, I (or other people) could stand outside the tent and see the plants inside without upsetting the fragile environment inside. (This is ideal for my household were we regularly look at the plants).

Given that I was concerned about humidity causing the metal components of the shelves to rust, I decided to (slowly) upgrade the shelves to white ones (for their higher reflectivity) after determining that spray painting my current shelves would be a frustrating and, ultimately, fruitless endeavor given the reviews I'd seen online of such painting. Hopefully, pre-painted ones will be less likely to rust.

The Fan and Ducting from Outside

I also wanted a way to cool the tent without negatively impacting the humidity in the tent and, hopefully, not negatively impacting the warmth and livability of the room where the tent is located. As a consequence, I decided to go with a fan attached to semi-flexible drier hosing to pump cold air in from outside when necessary. I ended up buying a 4" Blauberg inline fan (this one) because of the good reviews for the brand and the fact that a 6" fan would be much, much more expensive. (I could buy three 4" ones for the same price as one 6" one at the time I was shopping). As it turns out, semi-flexible drier hosing is 4", so that was a good choice. It will be controlled by a thermostat. (I'm currently trying out an Inkbird ITC-308, which has some limitations. I'm likely going to switch to Inkbird's new model when that becomes available. (The new model should have the ability to set temperatures across 24 hours, rather than a constant temperature). That won't be available for a couple months).

T5HO 4-Bulb Unit with LED Replacements

As far as lighting goes, T5HO bulbs get hot. That's currently my biggest problem. I've been searching for cool temperature LEDs, and I think I found some with Luxul's T5HO replacements (which I bought here). I've bought four bulbs to test. So far, I haven't noticed any difference, except that they are cool to the touch. Given, however, that I have so many T5HO bulbs and given how cold winter gets, I'm thinking I may not switch over all the bulbs to LEDs, if the Luxul ones prove to be good for growing plants. Instead, I may switch over half (or so) for winter time in order to allow the T5s to provide some heat for the tent without my having to worry that it's getting too hot.

My only problem with the setup right now is that turning the fan on to cool it lowers the humidity dramatically and I still haven't managed to automate watering. I have a plan for both of those, however, so stay tuned for another update in a few months.