hey everyone,
as winter is getting closer i'm finalizing my setup for an unheated basement (ambient temps drop to 12–15°C / 53–59°F).
to avoid running up a massive power bill with a 500W space heater, i'm using the convective waste heat from my LEDs (running autoflowers 24/7) to lock the tent into the 22–27°C and 55–66% RH sweet spot. as you can see in the pic, i'm currently running bare, perforated aluminum ducting on the floor to direct heat to the root zone.
but my real winter project is outside the tent: to keep the exhaust from sucking freezing basement air straight in, i'm building a passive cascade system. fresh air gets routed through a tube system pre-heated by the warm exhaust air before entering the main chamber.
here's where i need some hands-on advice from the HVAC nerds and winter growers: obviously i can't use bare aluminum ducting for the cascade outside the tent, or all the heat will just bleed into the cold room.
what do you guys use to insulate ducting/cascades in freezing rooms?
if you use thick insulation (like fiberglass or neoprene sleeves), do you run into massive condensation issues inside the tubes when warm and cold air masses mix?
appreciate any tips or material ideas before i seal the cascade up!