Carbon filters need to make sure that they get the job done! If there is one product you do not want to fail, it is your filter! CarboAir have a range of filters that could not be more effective in clearing volatile organic compounds (smells) that your plants produce. Building on years of experience producing and manufacturing high quality carbon filters and extract solutions, CarboAir carbon filters are literally the finest filters you can currently buy.

Firstly, they have an extremely deep 60mm bed depth. Before CarboAir filters came to market, the largest depth of bed was roughly 45mm. The extra 15mm provides an extra longevity to the filters, and ensures every smell Is captured! The coarse carbon granules themselves inside the bed allow for a fantastic airflow rate, while not creating too much pressure on the fan. You won’t find a lower pressure drop on any other filter! The filter housing itself has been designed in conjunction with Systemair to ensure maximum efficiency, and to top it off, it is all hand built in Europe.

Global Air Supplies as a company in England are relatively new, but the people behind the scenes have been active in bringing you the finest high-quality carbon filters for a long, long time. Having previously been responsible for bringing Rhino Filters and the I.W.S system to the hydroponic market, the genius that is Ian Collins has been working on something new to revolutionise the extraction side of hydroponics.

• Gets rid of 100% of grow room odours.
• Hand built housing – exceptional quality!
• 60mm depth of carbon bed.
• Quality checked and approved by Systemair.
• Purpose built to work with Systemair fans.
• Compatible with almost any brand of extract fan.
• Years of experience in carbon filters.
• European made - no Chinese manufacturing!
• Plug and play – ready to use straight out of the box!

• CarboAir 60 Filter 6'' 150/660mm // 1350m3/h
• CarboAir 60 Filter 8'' 200/660mm // 1700m3/h
• CarboAir 60 Filter 8'' 200/1000mm // 2250m3/h
• CarboAir 60 Filter 10'' 250/660mm // 2000m3/h
• CarboAir 60 Filter 10'' 250/1000mm // 3100m3/h

CarboAir carbon filters are filters purposefully designed to filter the air from your hydroponic grow room and remove any unwanted smells, VOC’s, pathogenic fungi or mould spores that are causing you problems. Simply hang the filter up in your room, connect a suitable extraction fan and length of ducting to the unit and start extracting purified air without a trace of any odours!

Carbon filters work on as a combination of two fundamental principles. Firstly, how well the type of carbon inside the filter captures the smells, how well this carbon is packed together and how well has the filter housing been designed and built. All three of these factors affect how well the air flows over the carbon. You only need a small contact time with the carbon to eliminate any smells, and these factors all contribute to that factor.

At their heart, the carbon inside the filter is really what makes it all possible. It is the property of the carbon itself that allows all the magic to happen. Not all carbon is the same how-ever, and finding a source of carbon that sets you apart from the competition can be trickier than you think. There are a few properties that effect how well carbon works so let’s have a look at a few of them:

Surface area: Carbon is full of tiny little microscopic holes called pores. These pores come in all different shapes and sizes all depending on what type of material made the carbon in the first place. There are three types of sized pores in general: Macro and Micro. For removing plant odours though we are more concerned about having micro pores. So, while you need a high surface area from you carbon, it needs to be made up of the right pore sizes otherwise it will not trap the smell! This ‘trapping’ action is called adsorption. The smell sticks to, or gets caught up/entangled on the surface of the intricate pore structure of the carbon.

Choosing the right source of carbon for the job is vital! Different carbon from different starting materials will all have different surface areas and pore structures. You cannot simply take a random bit of material, burn it and then make a filter from it. How you actually burn / heat the carbon also plays a huge part in the resultant pore structure. Different temperatures or moisture content in the oven will all result in different properties for the end product. Ensuring you have a consistent supply of premium carbon is a must for proper air filtration.

Forms of carbon: Carbon can come in all shapes and sizes, from powder to granular to pelletised, there are all sorts of ways of forming carbon. Powdered is not particularly suitable for carbon filters as it can be too detrimental to air flow rates. Usually pelletised or granular carbon is used in filters, as they provide a decent amount of contact time with the air, whilst not slowing it down too much. Pelletised carbon is much heavier than granular, and can be slightly more uniform in the filter when packed, but usually is not quite as effective as granular types of carbon at removing VOC’s overall.

Other Physical properties: Things like the hardness of the carbon or whether it is positively or negatively charged can have a large impact on whether it will be effective for removing VOC’s. Not just at removing VOC’s either, but simply how well it transports. For example, if it is not very hard then it may end up being vibrated to dust during transport from all the vibrations.

The Metal Housing: This is almost as important as the carbon itself that is being used. If the carbon filter housing is not designed and manufactured to the correct standards, then even the best quality carbon in the world cannot help you. The depth of the bed needs to allow a decent contact time, the length of the filter of course allows for a higher volume of air, but even things like how well the flange is connected to the mesh all plays a part in the overall function of a filter. Without significant consideration in to the design of the housing, a filter will not be very effective.

CarboAir have produced filters that are an evolutionary jump away from their previous incarnation, Rhino Filters. There are many ways in which the design of the filter has progressed to give you the best air filtration money can buy.

Here are just a few of the key reasons:

• Pre-filter: The pre-filter is an often overlooked part of a filter but it is hugely important! The CarboAir pre-filter is noticeably thicker than other brands. In fact, it is a whopping 2.5cm thick. This is adequate to catch all unwanted dust particles and make sure you have a nice long life from the unit. It is completely machine washable and is rated to last just as long as the filter itself, 18 months.
• Mesh Housing: The mesh housing has much smaller holes than you may be used to with other filters. Having a much smaller hole size for the mesh may be harder to manufacture, but offers two very good benefits. Firstly, it is 55% open (that is, empty space), compared to other filters that are typically around 52%. So straight away you get a much more efficient air flow overall. Secondly, as it is so fine, there is no need for a fabric mesh material, commonly used as a sock inside the filter to stop the carbon falling through. This means nothing is unnecessarily restricting airflow, again contributing to a highly efficient through-flow of air.
• The type of carbon: CarboAir are quite secretive about where they have sourced their carbon from, to prevent the onslaught of copycat manufactures jumping on their bandwagon. CarboAir use granular based, activated virgin carbon in their filters, rather than heavier and less effective pelletised carbon. Compared to the RC 4/12 granular carbon used in Rhino filters, the granules in CarboAir are slightly larger and much coarser, allowing for a much better air flow throughout the filter, while not compromising on removal of VOC’s.
• Sealed Flange: In CarboAir filters, there is a unique feature around the flange that ensures the carbon bed is always stable and, more importantly, that no air passes through the filter without hitting the carbon. A ring of spongy synthetic material is compressed against the flange and the carbon bed, creating an air tight seal and ensuring that no stinky air will ever make its way outside your grow room.
• Bed depth: Again, no half stepping with this. A huge bed of 60 mm is used for these CarboAir filters – 10-15mm larger than the previous industry standard. This allows for a much greater contact time with the carbon and so removes smells much more efficiently. As the carbon itself is larger and coarser, having a deeper bed does not impact the airflow in the same way it would with smaller particles of carbon.
• Easy to hang: A small feature, but one that is pretty significant, is the little hanging hooks that are in built into these filters. Rather than having to put straps around your filter, which would reduce the airflow, you can simply hang from the hooks mounted along each edge. It couldn’t have been made easier for you!

Simply use the hooks to hang your filter up in your grow room, connect it to your extract fan and turn it on! It is pretty much that simple! It is always a good idea to make sure that you are using the appropriate size fan for your filter, otherwise you may not be moving enough air to deal with the heat from your grow lights. CarboAir are the only filters to be quality approved and recommended for use with Systemair fans. Give us a shout in store for advice on which one would be best suitable for you.

The reason you need to match your filter appropriately is because of the pressure it puts on the extraction fan – decreasing its output. Anything you put on a fan will cause it to drop its airflow. It’s a bit like putting your hand over your mouth when you try to breath out. The same goes for bends and kinks in your duct run as well, each one can reduce airflow by 10% in some cases! You want your fan, filter and ducting to be as straight as possible so you get the best air flow rates possible.

Try to place your filter in your grow room where it will draw a naturally even amount of air from every area of the room. For example, in a square room, you want the filter in the centre of the room. The idea is to evenly draw all the hot and stale air from every pocket of the grow room and get rid of it, so try to avoid putting it in places that may restrict this. If you need any help setting up your extraction system, please give us a ring in store. We are happy to help.

Avoid placing your filter directly above humidifiers, or anywhere that has a consistently high relative humidity. Deposits left from unclean or hard water will stain your equipment (like reflectors) and clog up your carbon filter. Ideally ensure the water supply is from de-ionised or RO water.

Identify air leaks by lighting a splint and running it along your extract line. If there are any gaps then you will see the smoke get sucked into the duct run, indicating you need to give more attention in this area to achieve an air tight seal.

Wash your pre-filter between every cycle to keep it performing at optimum rates.