Table of Contents:
About Inline Fans
All the gardening lovers know how important it is to build a grow room indoors. For plants to grow and flourish, a controlled environment is necessary and suitable. Those who know about indoor gardens know that to manage plants, humidity, and temperature are the essential factors that need to be taken care of.
For this very purpose, inline fans are products that help aid the process. An inline fan is a duct fan or duct booster fan. You can either attach this to an already existing duct or individually on its own as well. Its functionality is to provide enough air and ventilation for plants to grow in an enclosed environment. For effective management of the temperature, air and humidity in your grow rooms, this product is a substantial investment to make. Not only does it help with keeping the enclosed environment cool, but it also reduces the impact of the heat that the illumination can cause to the plants. Most of the inline fans also come with screens for keeping all the germs and pathogens away.
Now the question arises what the need for the best inline grow fan is? The simple answer to this is because you need to provide adequate ventilation to the plant and for it to thrive, a well ventilated and temperature-controlled environment. Various environmental factors contribute to the growth of the plants and hence, using a product to balance out the factors is essential.
With adequate ventilation, you can easily control the humidity in the grow room. Plants give out vapour, which leads to enhanced humidity and hence, with proper ventilation, there is no risk of any pests or diseases.
Instructions to set up the eight best Inline Fans for your grow room in 2020
Mostly grow rooms come with various ventilation configurations that suggest hanging the inline fans and filters inside the tent. Carbon filters that are small and medium-sized consider this to be the best solution. It helps with drawing the air in through the filter and allows the air to move gently and slowly, eventually helping get rid of all the hot air that is inside the grow tent.
If the carbon filter is oversized and cannot be hung, it is best to place it on the floor inside the tent because that is the only solution. Placing the best inline fan and filter outside is the last resort if nothing else works out. Even though it helps in providing space, it ends up providing tremendous air pressure through the carbon filter, and the noise of the fan also increases.
Step 1: Attach the inline fan to a ceiling bar that the grow tent already includes. With the help of an adjustable rope clip, the inline fan can be easily hung a few inches away from the ceiling.
Step 2: There are two ways to fit it inside an exhaust hole; either slide the fan over or connect it to the ducting, which can easily be moved around the exhaust hole.
Step 3: Next, hang the carbon scrubber. This carbon scrubber usually comes with ropes for hanging the fan efficiently.
Step 4: Now attach the carbon scrubber to the inline fan to make sure that the fan is pulling air from the scrubber. For attaching it, you can either use the ducting or simply connect them if they are of the same size.
Step 5: Make sure all the parts are in proper order. The air is first pulled in through the bottom ports into the filter and moves through the inline fan, which is then pushed out through the exhaust holes.
Importance of Inline Fans
When you have a grow tent and want your plants to flourish, then the success of this depends upon the kind of ventilation that is provided inside the grow room. It is quite essential to provide adequate air in an enclosed environment through these inline fans, and some of the reasons are listed below:
- Managing the Temperature: Plants need a certain kind of temperature to grow. Lights emit heat and hence, can play with the temperature inside the grow tent. With adequate ventilation in the tent through these best rated inline fans, you can quickly get rid of the added heat in the room that can end up causing damage to the plants.
- Humidity Check: For your plants to thrive, humidity needs to be in check. Mostly plants give out water vapour, which ends up increasing the humidity in the room. The best inline fans for grow tents help in getting rid of the excess humidity by providing adequate ventilation in the room.
- Helps to keep any kind of dangers at bay: When there is too much humidity in the room, it calls for the presence of pests and diseases that affect the plants. With proper air ventilation, there is no need to worry about the presence of such problems.
- Carbon Dioxide in Control: Did you know that carbon dioxide is essential for plant growth? The plants that grow in the natural environment get carbon dioxide directly. Whereas in grow tents, the levels of carbon dioxide are not enough, and increased air circulation helps bring in added carbon dioxide from the outside.
- Strengthening of plants: The plants that grow outside automatically have strengthened stems through exposure to strong and robust winds. To enhance and strengthen the stem of your plants indoors, an effective ventilation system will provide the solution.
Even though the process of having your own grow room is challenging; it helps you grow whatever you want at any point in time. If there is proper ventilation and air circulation, indoor plant growth will not be that difficult.
Features to look for
The best inline duct fan helps provide adequate and proper air circulation inside the grow rooms. This fan is mostly located inside an attic or roof space, keeping it a little far away from the bathrooms.
- Material: The materials define the quality and performance of the inline fan that one will choose. One of the most common materials used for inline fans is steel. Usually, steel is powder coated and has a robust ability to prevent it from any kind of physical damage.
- Size: To determine the correct size of the best inline fan, there are certain things to consider. The bigger the room, the enormous fan you will need because it has to be powerful enough to cover the whole area of the tent. If the grow room is medium-sized or not too big, a 4-inch inline fan will be the right choice.
- Reduced Noise: Noise can often be a problem when it comes to these inline fans. Especially those who live in small houses can have issues with the noise that the fan makes. Hence, it is recommended to go for a fan that generates less sound. In addition to this, the fan must include a whisper-quiet operation that makes it powerful without any noise.
- Speed: An inline fan that provides the flexibility of adjusting the speed as per your specifications is the ideal product to go for. These inline fans will then be easy to control and customize.
- High Power: The amount of air a fan generates is the amount of power that the fan comes with. Power is measured in terms of cubic feet per minute and the higher the cubic feet per minute; the more powerful is the fan. A powerful inline fan is essential if you have a large, grow tent.
- Motor: Along with the power, another essential aspect to consider is the motor. One must get a motor that is high in quality and is powerful at the same time. Also, one that is not too noisy and needs minimum maintenance is the perfect component for these inline fans.
- Installation made easy: Usually, there is no requirement of any experienced professional for installing an inline fan. Fans that come with user-friendly designs can help ease the process of installation. In the package, a mounting bracket is mostly included. Also, the instruction manual should be carefully detailed to make installation quick and easily understandable.
- Warranty: This is another essential feature to keep in mind, and if a fan is well in its warranty period, the option of having it replaced or repaired comes free of cost. It is recommended to go for a product that comes with a warranty for a year or more.
- Length of Duct Run: Inline fans are made to work in commemoration with ducting. If you have a greater distance from the extraction point to the outlet, the length of the duct should be preferably longer. A longer duct can also help with heat transfer and subfloor ventilation.
- An additional intake Point: With the help of the best inline fan for grow tents, it is possible to create numerous inlets or outlets, which helps transfer the heat into multiple rooms quickly.
8 Best Inline Fans for Your Grow room in 2020
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Hydrofarm CFM Duct Fan 6 inch:
This product offers tons of innovation and excellent performance. It consists of innovative brushless thermally protected AC motors that are sealed with life bearings and do not require any kind of lubrication. All Hydrofarm fans are made with ceramic-coated metal housing, UL-recognized components, low noise output, and so much more.
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AC Infinity Cloudline Inline Duct Fan S6:
This fan is designed to help provide adequate ventilation to grow tents. It comes featuring an 8-speed manual controller utilizing PWM. It is a mixed flow inline fan that offers quiet and efficient performance. The package comes with an AC power adapter, installation manual and mounting hardware as well. This inline fan comes with an EC-powered motor that is relatively energy-efficient. It also comes including precise temperature and humidity sensors that work quite accurately.
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AC Infinity Cloudline Inline Duct Fan T6:
This inline fan has an intelligent and smart controller with efficient humidity and temperature programming, proper fan speed control, timer and alarm system. The kit also includes a silent sensor probe, an AC power plug, two duct clamps and the necessary mounting hardware. The T6 fan uses cutting-edge electronically commutated motors that are controlled through electronic pulses and smart programming.
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HydroFarm CFM Duct Fan 8 inch:
This is a durable and ceramic-coated fan that is quite sturdy and well built. It is made using high-quality components and low noise output, which makes for efficient air circulation and reduction of excess humidity. The speed controller comes at an added cost. Additionally, this fan comes with all installation components as a plug and play unit, but this product cannot be used with flexible ducting material.
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AC Infinity Cloudline T8:
Even though this product is not for everyone, it is perfect. The power cord for it is sufficient in length, which makes it easy to install in grow rooms easily. These are genuine inline fans and can be easily connected to flexible as well as rigid ductwork. This one also comes with mounting equipment, and the fan speed is fully adjustable to withstand all weather conditions.
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Vivosun Inline Duct Fan:
This inline duct fan is perfect for all household applications and helps to enhance the airflow in all HVAC units to remove the odours and exhausts. It comes with superior balanced blades that make for a low-noise and efficient operation. This fan cannot be used with any carbon filter and is used as an intake fan to bring fresh air in smaller setups.
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Hydro Farm Inline Duct Fan 10 inches:
Hydro Farm fan is quite efficient and offers a high level of performance and innovation. It comes at a great price and uses thermally protected brushless AC motors. It also includes permanently sealed brushes that don’t require any lubrication. This help covers a larger area with low noise output and long-lasting effectiveness.
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Power 10-inch Inline Duct Fan:
This line of fans offers a good mid-range of inline fans. It comes in a neat package and only includes a corded fan in the box. It comes with a decent lifespan, and it’s easy for a beginner to install it. It is a bit noisier than others but comes at quite a reasonable price.
Types of Inline Fans for Grow Rooms
The various types of inline fans are categorized based on the installed inbuilt motor. There are three types of inline fans available today:
- Axial Inline Fan: This is considered to be one of the most common and best inline fans in the market today for grow rooms. These kinds of fans are perfectly suitable for high extractions at low pressures but are not the best option for longer duct lengths. An Axial inline fan should be installed with a small duct length to the outlet terminal.
- Centrifugal Inline fan: Compared to axial inline fans, the centrifugal inline fans exhibit more significant pressure, allowing one to use longer duct lengths. These fans can be installed in the box a vertical and horizontal way. These fans are high in quality and are made with sturdy and durable structures, to provide adequate ventilation to the grow rooms.
- Mixed flow inline fans: These fans are the centre of both the axial inline and the centrifugal inline ones. They help in balancing out the features of both the types. These mixed flow fans come in unique designs and consume much lesser power to give a power-packed performance. The inclined shroud cover of the fans can direct the airflow direction into the wheel, which helps in increasing the pressure with low power consumption.
Compared to the standard inline fans, the mixed flow ones can provide low power consumption, air pressure as well as noise. These fans come with hemispherical backplates that smoothen the process of air intake and helps reduce the turbulence.
How to use it?
The inline fan for grow tents comes with various components, and when they work together in sync, they produce significant results with added air circulation.
The first is an intake vent, which is the extraction point of the system. A vent that suits the diameter of ducting is the perfect one to buy. The fan is an important component of your system, and hence, various factors such as size and application help you decide on the right one. Then comes an exhaust fan calculator that helps determine the extraction rate required and helps you make a proper decision. The external vent is the end of the system and maybe an external wall or a roof-mounted vent.
For the inline fan to work, the ideal ventilation system would be when the warm air escapes and the fresh air comes inside the grow room systematically. The best kind of inline fans help to push the air in and pull the air out as well. For this, two fans will be something that you might need to consider. There are different sizes of inline fans, and one can also add components like ducting and carbon filters to control the airflow.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
- Do I need a fan in my tent to grow?
The answer to this is yes. An inline fan is essential for the air circulation, and ventilation in your grow rooms. Plants require a certain level of humidity and temperature to flourish and thrive.
- How long do I keep a fan in my grow room?
This depends upon the conditions inside the grow room. Once you have surpassed the recommended levels, you can quickly turn off the humidity and temperature, and you can put it on later when required.
- Why do I need a fan in my to grow room?
An inline fan is significant for regulating the air quality, and plants need clean air to grow. The kind of yield you are looking for will depend upon the ventilation and quality of air.
- How do I install a duct fan in the grow tent?
Mostly, items like insulated and heavy-duty ducts have an essential role in this process. Length and size also play a significant role in the inefficiency of the product, and it is recommended to always keep the duct as short as possible.
Conclusion
The success and growth of your plants need the consideration of small details. To get your desired yield, you will have to ensure that proper and adequate ventilation is provided and good quality of air is maintained. An inline fan helps to purify the air in the grow rooms and helps enhance the performance with the help of a carbon filter.
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