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Booth Ventilation (and Cooling) System- I Need a Better Way

 
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Glenn Moore
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Joined: 24 Jan 2005
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PostPosted: Tue May 22, 2018 8:21 pm    Post subject: Booth Ventilation (and Cooling) System- I Need a Better Way Reply with quote

Like some of you, I have a (4x4 Enhanced, 6 years old) WhisperRoom booth. I have the ventilation system on it which consists of a small noisy fan attached to a hose that is connected to the booth. I have never been able to have this fan on while recording because it is far too loud and is right outside of the booth. The Ventilation Silencing System that WhisperRoom sells is well over 500 bucks and MIGHT help, but I am not willing to plunk down 5-Large on it unless I know for sure it would cool the booth down dramatically. Sometimes I am in the booth with the door shut for over 30-45 minutes at a time and the little thermometer I put in there regularly approaches 80 degrees after just a few minutes. Now that summer is here, it's gettin' hot in here.....even in my basement where my studio is. If you have a booth, is there a better option? Anyone had any success with the Ventilation Silencing System?

In the past, I have even put a dryer vent hose on my A/C vent and then attached that to the ventilation system fan. It cooled the booth down but I still got a little noise from it so I do not want to go that route again.

Outside of sitting on a block of ice, or having an ice chest in the booth (which I have considered) does anyone else use a reliable cooling system so you don't sweat...and/or faint?

Glenn
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jim edgar
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Joined: 27 Jul 2015
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Location: SF Bay Area, CA

PostPosted: Wed May 23, 2018 7:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The speed of the fan has a lot to do with how much noise you hear, so if you can find the slower speed draw fans, that should help. There are also "silent" cooling fan units designed for home entertainment systems.

A slow speed draw fan on the other end of a long flexible dryer ducting with a baffle-box between it and your booth shouldn't really cost $500 to add on. The baffle-box (essentially a foam-lined unit with a L-R-L-R maze inside it) will reduce the noise of the attached fan. The length of the ducting will help, as will chunks of foam in there as well.

However, the most helpful addition I found was a remote on/off switch to trigger the fan.

I'm pretty heat-tolerant, which helps... but we do get in the 90-100 range in late summer. I've put every ice pack from the freezer into a bowl at the intake vent, and it does make a difference. I've been thinking about a Redneck Air Conditioner where my draw tube is connected and I omit the fan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITtlxjvLQis
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Lee Gordon
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PostPosted: Wed May 23, 2018 11:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If nothing else, I would replace the dryer vent duct with something like this:
http://www.quietflex.com/qas-flex-duct/ .

For my booth, I have a Fantech FG-4 like this.


The fan is very quiet, so with isolation boxes on both the intake and outlet, I can't hear the fan itself, but I can still hear the flow of air into the booth, so I generally don't run the fan while I'm working, but I will switch it on while I'm editing or between takes,
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Glenn Moore
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PostPosted: Thu May 24, 2018 11:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Good stuff. Thanks for the ideas. Any more are welcome.
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Foog
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PostPosted: Thu May 24, 2018 1:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm in a similar situation to Lee, right down to shutting the fan off when recording (got a remote for it right beside my mic at all times), except that I have a Panasonic fan. This guy here:



https://na.panasonic.com/us/home-living-solutions/ventilation-indoor-air-quality/ventilation-fans/whisperlinetm-remote-mount-1

These suckers push a lot of air, and are surprisingly quiet. Surprisingly pricey too though.
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JohnV
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PostPosted: Fri May 25, 2018 6:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You need 2 things that are opposed to each other...

THING ONE- a fan that can push reasonably serious amounts of air through your room.
THING TWO - a fan that is quiet.

the answer is called a baffle-box.. it's a sizable wooden box (variably 2x4x1 feet) that, inside, is a labyrinth path for air with sound damping. It is in line of your air-flow for your booth, your booth vent is on one side and your fan on the other, well isolated from the room.

https://goo.gl/images/V2StW6

hope that link works.. couldnt figure how to post a jpg...
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Lee Gordon
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PostPosted: Fri May 25, 2018 8:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I built two such boxes, one on the intake side, and one on the outlet side between the booth and the fan. Both are connected to the booth with lengths of insulated flexible ducting. If I had it to do over, I would have connected at least the inlet side directly to the booth with no run of flexible duct.
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Foog
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PostPosted: Fri May 25, 2018 9:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Good call on the bafflebox, John. I did the 2 fans + baffle box thing initially. If you expect to record with the fan on, it's definitely a good idea and does make things quieter. Unfortunately for me, I personally still found the fan sound to be a bother. Then again, I'm the guy who tested a dozen monitors before finding a pair that didn't give off the tiniest of hums that drove me nuts. So it's probably just me.

At any rate, with my workflow, workspace, climate, etc, I'm lucky enough to just be able to shut the fan off when recording without really suffering for it. And I even found that one fan on its own was enough for my needs. (anyone wanna buy a barely used panasonic whisperline?)
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georgethetech
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 07, 2018 12:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Foog wrote:
Panasonic fan. This guy here:



https://na.panasonic.com/us/home-living-solutions/ventilation-indoor-air-quality/ventilation-fans/whisperlinetm-remote-mount-1
.


I installed one of these on the opposide of the wall (made a hole in drywall for the 4" duct), and it runs through 3 baffles (VSS) into the WR. Haven't heard it since in his booth.
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ballenberg
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PostPosted: Fri Jun 29, 2018 11:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

George...does this mean you're using the WhsiperRoom's ventilation silencer, or is it a custom built unit ...or 3?
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Quicksilver
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 06, 2018 3:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey Glenn

You might want to consider putting the AC in the booth.

I have a unit like the one linked below and the hot air exhaust tube/vent is the exact size of the vent hole in my Whisper Room. I know it takes up some valuable real estate in a 4x4 but if you can find an AC that's a little smaller or make room, it's another option to consider. It's also a DE-humidifier, so your gear will like it.

https://smile.amazon.com/Honeywell-MN12CES-Portable-Conditioner-Dehumidifier/dp/B008UHXLGA/ref=sr_1_10?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1530916833&sr=1-10&keywords=air+conditioner

Obviously, you can't run it while recording but it cools down the booth in less than a minute, it's meant for an entire apartment after all, so cycling it between takes isn't a problem.

Just a thought.
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Glenn Moore
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 06, 2018 8:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes I have been thinking about a portable A/C like that too. Thanks for the link. I bought a small one (table top) at Target a few weeks ago but returned it because it did absolutely nothing to cool the booth. Saw this on HSN today too-

https://www.hsn.com/products/delonghi-evaporative-3-in-1-portable-space-cooler-with-/8610633

The only drawback with these is splashing/spilling the water all over the floor when moving it in and out of the booth. Does the one you have spill easy when you pick it up?
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Bruce
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 07, 2018 8:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Both types of air conditioning have big difficulties for cooling a booth. Unless you port the exhaust from the room air conditioner all the way outside it will just put the heat it removed from the booth into the room the booth is in, basically negating the effect over all.

Evaporative coolers only work if the air in the booth is dry and there’s an exhaust vent. If not your booth will just fill up with wet air. They work well during dry months in homes in the desert where they’re known as “swamp coolers”.

Blowing or sucking fresh air through the booth is the most practical solution.

B
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Quicksilver
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PostPosted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 11:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Glenn Moore wrote:
Yes I have been thinking about a portable A/C like that too. Thanks for the link. I bought a small one (table top) at Target a few weeks ago but returned it because it did absolutely nothing to cool the booth. Saw this on HSN today too-

https://www.hsn.com/products/delonghi-evaporative-3-in-1-portable-space-cooler-with-/8610633

The only drawback with these is splashing/spilling the water all over the floor when moving it in and out of the booth. Does the one you have spill easy when you pick it up?


There isn't any water, mine is a de-humidifier. And yes, you have to exhaust the air outside of the booth, preferably outside of the home but it will work as long as you are venting from the booth, even if it's just into another room. That's not ideal and you will need to run the AC more but I worked plenty of full days that way before I got the extra exhaust tubing to vent outside.
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