5 Best Inline Fans for Your Grow Rooms

 When it comes to growing plants inside a building or in a tent, having a good quality inline fan is one of the most important pieces of equipment you need to have. When plants are young, they are pretty easy to care for but once they mature things get a little bit harder.

You need to make sure you have enough CO2 available so your plants can get as much as they need. You also need to make sure that the air doesn’t go stale and is being moved around and replaced with fresh air frequently.
 
The way that you calculate the size fan you will need is by multiply the length x width x height x 1.33. The final number will be the minimum sized unit you will need and you can go a little bigger but never smaller. Having your air well ventilated and replaced helps avoid problems like mold, too much humidity, and a build-up of heat inside your grow area. All of these things can really destroy your plants. If you can prevent these problems from happening then your plants will be stronger, bigger, and healthier.

5 Best Inline Fans for You

ECO Farm 4 Inch In-line Fan Exhaust and Intake Fan for Grow Room-White

Features:

While this fan might be small, it actually comes packing a punch. It is one of the best inline fans on the market. The unit comes with a high and highly efficient air flow. In addition to this, the unit operates quietly which is perfect . It draws a low amp which makes it perfect for small outlets and inlet connections. As though this is not enough for a feature, the unit also comes with a sealed motor shaft. This works to protect the fan from moisture. The strong casing is nickel plated which protects the unit from corrosion. Courtesy of its small size, the fan is compact and easy to install into any flat surface. Despite its 4” fan size, the unit still provides a whopping 190 CFM of airflow. Very low noise, Less than 37db, with variable speed controller, can easily adjust the fan speed. The fact that it is one of the least expensive units on the list makes it a perfect solution if you are just starting out with a small space.

Hydrofarm Active Air 4" Inline Duct Fan

Features:

Hydrofarm is one of the most trusted brands in the cannabis growing industry. The active air inline fans are among its in-demand products. Active Air inline fans are well-loved by many because of its proven durability. It is being designed with a ceramic-coated metal housing. This coating increases the lifespan of the components by reducing heat and friction. It also helps to prevent corrosion caused by thermal and acidity. Furthermore, the ceramic layer also gives your device a nice sleek-look. This inline fan is being equipped with a premium molded impeller. Its high-quality construction makes it possible to deliver excellent performance. Moreover, this fan also produces low-noise output. It is a big advantage especially for those who wish to keep their grow spaces discreet and low-key.

Apollo Horticulture 4 Inch Inline Duct Fan

Features:

The Apollo Horticulture inline fan is made to be of high quality and is easily the best inline fan. However, despite their high qualities and features, they also are designed to be budget friendly. The unit is made of steel. This makes it strong and durable. In addition to this, the fan casing and parts are all covered in powder paint to protect it from humidity and keep it from rusting. Needless to say, these were designed to last. However, the brand does not offer a lot of options as other fans on the list with regards to fan size. It is also important to note that the inline vent fan comes with a built-in speed controller. Additionally, it comes with a noise rating of 69dB.Last but not least, to make the inline fan easy to install, it features a mounting bracket as well as an instructional pamphlet.

HURRICANE Inline Duct Fan for Grow Room

Features:

This inline fan is unique as it comes in not only 3 sizes but 5. The Hurricane Inline fan is made from steel. This speaks volume of its strength and durability. However adding to this, the stainless steel is finished with a durable powder coating. The coating is attractive and also works to keep the fan parts and housing from rusting due to humidity in the grow room. In addition to this, it is also important to note that the unit comes with an 8-foot power cord with a 120-volt rating. It is important to note that the unit also comes with a variable speed controller and can work with a charcoal carbon filter (this is, however, bought separately).

iPower Inline Duct Ventilation Fan for Grow Tent

Features:

iPower offers a wide range of size options for hydroponic ventilation systems. Their fans do not come with a variable speed controller, but any controller that can be purchased separately will work with iPower fans. iPower is one of the only manufacturers that offers an all-in-one package for its fans that includes the ducting, so that you have everything you need to set up your fan inside of your grow tent, grow cabinet or grow room right away. These all inclusive packs are available for the four inch and six inch fan sizes and come with a carbon charcoal air filter and eight feet of ducting.

What to Consider Before Buying an Inline Fan

As with anything related to growing cannabis, there’s a lot to consider before making any substantial purchases. Knowing beforehand your exact needs will always make your decision that much easier.

In the case of inline fans, they play multiple roles within the grow room, and it’s best to understand how you’ll utilize them first.

Inline Fan Size
As always, size does matter, but only in the sense of how much air will be needed in the grow room. A 10’x10’ grow tent will need a much larger inline fan compared to a 2’x2’ closet space. So, you’ll first need to measure your grow space.

After measuring your grow room, it’s important to visualize where everything will be once the room is up and running with plants. Every inch of the room needs to be accounted for because it’ll be a disappointment to buy an expensive inline fan that won’t fit.

By visualizing your grow room, you’ll be able to decide if you’ll hang the inline fan outside the room, in the room and on the floor, or in the room and attached to the ceiling. Generally, these are your only three options.

Inline fans come in a broad range of sizes, from 4” to industrial-grade 18”. Such a wide variety of sizes presents growers with many options. Some may decide to size-up to allow for a smoother transition into a larger room or some may size-down because their grow space won’t let anything more substantial.

This is why it’s crucial to measure and visualize the grow room so you can purchase an appropriately sized inline fan.

Power Rating
Another essential aspect to consider when buying an inline fan for your grow room is its power rating. This is typically presented in CFM (cubic feet per minute).

A simple way to determine how much power is required is by quickly measuring the height, width, and length of the grow room. Next, multiply these three numbers to determine the total cubic feet of the room. As a rule of thumb, growers have established that 3-minutes is the maximum amount of time that it should take for your inline fan to exhaust all the air in the room. Therefore, divide the total cubic feet by 3. This should give you a basic estimate of your CFM requirement.

Your CFM requirement will increase as you add additional items to your inline fans, such as ducting, carbon filters, and the heat from grow lights. Once again, it’s important to understand the CFM requirements before you begin your grow operation because it’ll be a disaster if you realize your inline fan is too weak to exhaust hot air efficiently.

Inline Fan Noise
This is usually the most significant factor to consider when buying an inline fan. Unless you’re lucky enough to live in your own house with no one to complain about noise, then you’ll require the quietest inline fan.

You might not think it’s all that important, but once you’re standing next to a 12” inline fan on full power, you’ll reconsider. Although cannabis is legal in many states, most growers don’t wish to advertise their business.

There are many reasons why growers want to keep their hobby discreet: professional ambitions, family matters, courtesy to others, or just plain privacy.

Luckily, the vast majority of inline fans are incredibly quiet compared to those on the market 5 years ago. Still, it’s important to shop around for the quietest inline fan on the market.

Some inline fan manufacturers go so far as to encase their fans in special housing to decrease their decibel output. Your overall environment will dictate how far you’ll need to go to keep your inline fan silent.

Heat From Lighting
Grow rooms require a high amount of light. This light comes at a cost: heat. The thousands of watts that you throw at your plants eventually catch up with your grow space by increasing the temperature drastically. A hot grow room means a slow death for your cannabis crop. The best Inline fans act as regulators by exhausting this hot air from the grow room. They counteract the heat by bringing in cooler air from another source.

This is why it’s essential to determine your power requirements beforehand, so your inline fan can quickly exhaust your grow space before any heat can adversely affect your plants. Growers commonly use high-intensity discharge (HID) lighting. This type of illumination encompasses both HPS (high-pressure sodium) and MH (metal halide) and ranges from 300-watts to 1,000-watts each.

Your choice of lighting will directly impact the power requirements of the inline fan. Inline fans cool grow spaces down by not only pulling in cooler air from another source, but also by venting the heat through ducting that’s attached to the lights.

Usually, HID bulbs are placed within hoods that boost the light output with reflectors. These hoods are generally semi-sealed, with a glass panel directly below the lamp. Built-in flanges on the sides allow for an airtight connection to ducting.

The ducting is routed outside, or to another room. Whether your inline fan is pushing or pulling the hot air out, it’ll effectively keep the temperature at a reasonable level.

Humidity
Mold and fungi are every grower’s worst nightmare. Mold is too difficult to spot until it’s too late, and fungus is capable of wiping out your entire stable within weeks. Humidity is the primary cause of mold and fungi outbreaks, and the best inline fans are the first line of defense when battling a humid room.

First, you’ll need to determine what season you’ll be growing in. Second, you’ll need to understand if the region you live in is prone to high humidity. The information gleaned from these two factors will give you a great idea of which inline fan is right for you.

When grow rooms aren’t vented properly, the air becomes stagnant and moist. As time increases, so does the possibility of issues such as powdery mildew. The constant burst of fresh air that circulates through the grow room lowers the overall humidity, thus lessening your chances for contracting a devastating plant disease.

Carbon Filters
The aroma of cannabis is variable, but everyone can agree that it’s very noticeable. You’ll be hard-pressed to convince someone that you keep a skunk in your house, so you’ll need a method to scrub the smell.

Carbon filters do precisely that, and they come in a wide range of sizes depending on how many plants you’re growing. Inline fans work in conjunction with carbon filters because they are usually mounted on them. When viewing pictures of grow rooms, you’ll always see a carbon filter attached to an inline fan, or vice versa. This is because a carbon filter needs an inline fan to pull or push the tainted air through the carbon particles.

Conclusion

As you can see, inline fans along with carbon filters and dehumidifiers play an integral role in maintaining the ideal environment in your grow room. Buying the quietest inline fan will allow you peace of mind while ensuring that your plants stay happy with fresh, cool air.

If it weren’t for the best inline fan, you’d spend a fortune on air conditioning costs, thus rendering indoor growing completely inefficient. The inline fan’s job is a difficult one. It pulls air from one source and pushes it out to another. In between, it needs to efficiently push air through the carbon filter, ducting, and lighting.

This is why you can’t overlook your inline fan choices. Inline fans can make or break your cannabis crop, so it’s critical that you understand your grow room set-up.