Diy Grow box safety issues

N

nickster187

New Member
Hello all, i've build a grow box and im worried about safety.
My main concern is fire hazard.
I have a laptop converter 230->12v 3Amp hooked up to 2x 0.15amp fans. (overkill but i guess its fine )
It will be on for 16h a day for the next 2 months so i need to be sure this is no risk, otherwise i will reconsider.
Since it will be moiety in there due to the watering ( bye hand) i got worried.
Is it smart to put the converter just straight into the box or should i consider some sort of separate area that is almost entirely closed of from the main growing area of the box. Or am i to worried about this ?
My second concern is the CFL fixtures, i've seen pictures online of molted fixtures and it got me scared.
So scared that i considered to put a smoke detector in it, but that will be almost as expensive as the box itself.
I have bad experience with fire in my childhood and i really like to sleep without any major thoughts running trough my mind, So any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance !! greetings Nick.

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HI Nickster187 and :welcome:
I can't really say anything about the way you have things hooked up, I'm no electrician. LOL
But I will say that the FIRST thing you should do is have a working and updated/inspected fire extinguisher in your grow area. Keep it where you won't have to look for it if needed. I keep mine right next to the grow area and have it hanging on a bracket on the wall where it is easily reached.
Hopefully others will chime in on your set up and give their thoughts. :-)
:circle-of-love:
 
yeah that i didn't thing of myself LOL, smoke detector but no extinguisher :O stupid me.
btw guys The lamps and transformer are not grounded ,
But i got ground circuit interrupters in the electricity meter cupboard cabinet. idk if this has any use if my setup don't have ground.
I thought moisty areas like bathrooms should be grounded.
 
Okay, now that I see the pics...I will point out one thing that would concern me. The computer electrical plug in is sitting on the bottom of your grow box. You will be feeding your plants liquids, I would worry about splashes or accidental run off hitting that plug.
Just a thought. ;-)
Actually on closer look, you have an open wiring connection in the same area. That would concern me too. :-)
 
cannafan said:
Okay, now that I see the pics...I will point out one thing that would concern me. The computer electrical plug in is sitting on the bottom of your grow box. You will be feeding your plants liquids, I would worry about splashes or accidental run off hitting that plug.
Just a thought. ;-)
Actually on closer look, you have an open wiring connection in the same area. That would concern me too. :-)
Click to expand...

Agreed on both counts. Fyi, Lowes had a 2 pack of detectors for $8. I found it extremely hard to put my family's lives at stake by saving 8 bucks myself...


And I also want to mention how much I agree that a nice, large (no one ever put out a fire and said, "boy, that extinguisher was too big" lol) proper extinguisher is without a doubt needed.

Keep up the good work, elevate
all cords or electronics of any sort and isolate them (while maintaining air flow) from water and moisture and all will be well my friend.
 
nickster187 said:
Hello all, i've build a grow box and im worried about safety.
My main concern is fire hazard.
I have a laptop converter 230->12v 3Amp hooked up to 2x 0.15amp fans. (overkill but i guess its fine )
It will be on for 16h a day for the next 2 months so i need to be sure this is no risk, otherwise i will reconsider.
Since it will be moiety in there due to the watering ( bye hand) i got worried.
Is it smart to put the converter just straight into the box or should i consider some sort of separate area that is almost entirely closed of from the main growing area of the box. Or am i to worried about this ?
My second concern is the CFL fixtures, i've seen pictures online of molted fixtures and it got me scared.
So scared that i considered to put a smoke detector in it, but that will be almost as expensive as the box itself.
I have bad experience with fire in my childhood and i really like to sleep without any major thoughts running trough my mind, So any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance !! greetings Nick.
Click to expand...

Ok, finally got to a PC to really see the photos well (opposed to my phone) and I am real nervous for you with the wiring my friend. You're gonna HAVE to do something about the exposed connections. While they look like the proper items (connectors) to use (for the most part), they do leave the wiring totally exposed and an errant drop of water or something is gonna be a REAL safety issue. Elevate and insulate my friend, and insulate with the proper equipment, I wish I could tell you what to use but I am sadly not well versed in the ways of the electron. lol. It is very well worth the extra few bucks. Take the connectors to Home Depot even, ask them how to wrap it up safely? Just a thought. Just please be safe.

Side note: Is one fan set to push and the other to pull air? If it were me (again, new as hell to this but a pretty good understanding of construction and physics) I'd have the bottom drawing in fresh air and the top (hot air) blowing it out. I imagine this to be the case but I just wanna help.

Keep us posted please! Good luck sir.
 
Guesstimator said:
Ok, finally got to a PC to really see the photos well (opposed to my phone) and I am real nervous for you with the wiring my friend. You're gonna HAVE to do something about the exposed connections. While they look like the proper items (connectors) to use (for the most part), they do leave the wiring totally exposed and an errant drop of water or something is gonna be a REAL safety issue. Elevate and insulate my friend, and insulate with the proper equipment, I wish I could tell you what to use but I am sadly not well versed in the ways of the electron. lol. It is very well worth the extra few bucks. Take the connectors to Home Depot even, ask them how to wrap it up safely? Just a thought. Just please be safe.

Side note: Is one fan set to push and the other to pull air? If it were me (again, new as hell to this but a pretty good understanding of construction and physics) I'd have the bottom drawing in fresh air and the top (hot air) blowing it out. I imagine this to be the case but I just wanna help.

Keep us posted please! Good luck sir.
Click to expand...

Excellent advice Guesstimator! +reps to you for that!:thumb:
 
Nah, redo it.

There's no good reason to have the wiring or the transformer in the box. The transformer produces heat.

Mount everything outside on the back or something. Don't worry about the CFLs - they'll be fine, and the PC fans are made to run continuously anyway. There's just no good reason to have the wiring connections inside the box. Heck why waste the room ... ?
 
And I would use wire nuts instead of that terminal block. Unless you put it in a box. And yes, remove all electrical stuff save the lamps themselves.
 
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