3rd times a charm (re-posted so people might reply?) Hey guys I just joined because I have some serious questions that havent been getting answers on my previous forum. I have been an RIU member for something like 2 years, I got my start there but no one seems to be able to answer my question. I'm just gonna copy/paste it here and either hope that you guys/gals are more knowledgable/experienced or and/or just more willing to share that knowledge. OK so I have been growing for about 2 years now. Started with 4 bagseed under a open reflector 400HPS in soil. then Went to 2 600 Digital air cooled with co2 setup above an aeroflow 36 and 4 more homemade 6 site aero units for a total of 60 plants at a time FUN FUN.... NOW I am moving and I will be able to devote an area approx 30'l x 15'w x 10'h all to growing. I was hoping to keep the supplies unger 5000 bucks for the upgrade but it's not looking all that promising. What kind of lighting grow medium (soil,aero, etc...) ventilation (can be icorporated with lighting) Smell control (can be incorporated with ventilation) would you all recommend? I am considering going with 12 600 digitals in EasyCool6 reflectors that run 2 rows of 6 and begin with a can 66 filter and a 600cfm fan and end outside. This setup will cost me 3800 not including shipping. Passive air intake for the room or forced? I donno hit me up with what ya got. Will 12 600s cover an area this large? Afterthoughts that I was too lazy to incorporate into the "pasted" part: Should I ditch my Co2 bottle and go with a burner? (I think thats a DUH) Also I think ventilation and Lighting should be separate because of 2 factors. number one is the ability to keep co2 in the room at all times and number 2 is the need for higher velocity fans for cooling the lights. i dont think the inlines will cut it. i am gonna have to buy a few big squirrel cages to push that much air through the lights. i think thats it for now. Let me know what ya got. THANKS!!!
I'm trying to picture what you're explaining. First off, your title says '5000w room upgrade'. If your going to use Co2 you'll need a sealed room with A/C and dehumidifier, then your 12x 600w lights, fans and what not, you will be going into industrial electric use. It could cause suspicion when it comes to paying your electric bill. But getting away from this: Is the grow area close to where you live? Is the grow area close to other peoples property? If you are permitted to grow weed, then the above wouldn't matter to you. I would be able to fit-out that 30' x 15' area and have change from 5000 bucks. You need to know what you want first. You can't very well ask other people what would suit you. If you know what you want, i'm sure there are many members from the city who'd help you out. Infact, i'd love help set-up a nice grow that size.
this question is way beyond my skill level lol. my brain isn't working too well, but a 30x15 room will be 450 square feet and then 12x600watts is 7200 watts, 7200watts divided by square feet only equals 16 watts per square foot and it's my understanding you want 50-100watts per square foot. Why not go with 1000 watters? if you're going big you might as well go all the way lol. i'm guessing it's not going to be filled wall to wall, but that's still only going to be maybe 32 watts per square foot. i'm sure it would work fine, but i'm just going by the rule of thumb. as far as ventilation goes, 12 600 watt lights is going to put out a hell of a lot of heat, and i doubt daisy chaining a bunch of reflectors together is going to work with only one fan drawing air through them. Those easycool reflectors may not be the best idea since the edges around the glass may not be air tight, maybe consider running cool tubes instead since you can seal them off easier. also, if you're looking for squirrel cage fans, check out the stanley blower or the equivalent lasko blower, they're cheap, quiet, and incredibly effective. the lasko blower can be modded to accept 6" ducting rather easily. google stanley blower mod for more information. for this large of scale, i think it would make sense to go with aero or some sort of drip system in soil. i much prefer soil but it would be hell on this scale to acquire and upkeep, vs a large reservoir that can be used for everything. sorry i can't give much input, but this is a pretty large scale. really that's drawing a lot of power and such, isn't that a concern? anyway, good luck in your endeavor!
maybe consider less lighting, but put them on movers. That is A LOT of juice. Even with air cooled reflectors passive intake might not cut it. Probably need an A/C unit as john stated.
I made up a rough materials list. It doesnt include stuff like duct work or little things like that. AND the prices are general, not specific to any one site. Im not sure what single site would have all of this together. Im a fan of HTG but their selection is weak. Anyway take a look and let me know what you think. i might make another column with a specific source and specific prices but for now you get the idea. Ideally this would be up and running before the first of the year. Odor Control Can 150 $ 370 ozone generator $200 Lights Reflectors Ballasts 10 600w Digital $ 3000 10 8" Cool Tubes Fans 12" Max Fan $ 400 2 18" floor fans $75 2 16" oscilating fans $ 70 4 ecoplus 465 cfm $400 Co2 hydrogen water cooled $400 CAP ppm Controller $ 200 Soil 10 bags fox farm soil $180 Grow Bags 200 2 gallon bags $40 Extras 2 Plastic 55 Gal Drums for Res $ 40 Pump $have Hose/Wand $15 Panda film $ 80 new ph/ec/tds meter $ 80 Air conditioner $ Have Dehumidifier $180 TOTAL---------5,330.00 Plus shipping. Ha. Plus about 600 if I decide to just go aero instead. Because I would be then building all of the systems. But I think I'm "diggin" the soil idea. Ha ha
if you go with soil, buy pond liner, even if your not going to use soil, buy some think pond liner and staple it up the wall a few inches, eliminates the need for water trays, and saves your butt if your hydro has an accident. how big is the house, and how many rooms you have?
they really don't care, all the care about is you paying the bill on time. 5k is the max for any home. anything above that....well...
The building is zoned commercial. It's basicly a 2500sqft shop with a 2500 sq ft house set on top of it. Total floor space is like 5500 after the apartment and office are included. Power consumption isnt really a concern. It used to be a welding shop ha ha. I am going to run one big flowering room and a large closet for mothers, cloning, and veg. Running aero would be kinda nice. 3 or 4 res. feeding 20 plants ea. or 8 res feeding 10 ea. 8 Stinkbud setups could be kinda nice? Soil is so easy and forgiving but messy messy messy!
not sure where ya live, but some commercial buildings are subject to random yearly inspections by the city you live in, health or fire department...
On the show "Weeds" in season 3, they decided to move to a "commercially" zoned building and they had to do a fire inspection. I think all commercially zoned buildings are subject to this (I could be wrong). Sounds like you're gearing up for a pretty nice grow op though. Good luck!
excellent point. and i should know this (i am a HUGE weeds fan) well im not there yet so i will take it into consideration. perhaps i would need to move the op into the "residential" part of the building to avoid inspection. or if it is a schedueled thing i could just work around it? time will tell. i still have to sell my place before i buy this new place. mine is already up for sale so its just a matter of time..... thanks for the input!!! does anyone have any suggestions for the equipment or the setup itself?
Have you really thought this through? You keep asking about equipment, and not the big picture. You have to think outside the box. Think of your commercial grow-op as a heist (armed robbery), serious crime. You keep asking about equipment, you're at the stage of the heist where you keep asking about what kind of getaway car should i steal, or what guns i'll use. You need to sit down and plan the operation from start to finish. Then start from the end of the operation, back to the beginning. You need to think of how you're going to get away and not get caught (back-up plan if busted). Don't kid yourself, thinking you won't! If you do get caught, will you loose everything (property, family, friends ect.)? How many men are you going to have in on the job, can you trust them? Can you trust the fence who you'll be selling the gear to? Once you've got your plan together, then think about your equipment.
I pretty much second John.. Crazy.. too cause my name is Jon... Think this through bro.. it's a big grow, if it's not Legal.. Maybe you ought to move to a state it is.. and if you don't want to, brainstorm a little more.. Act like counterintelligence...
I am totally confident in my abilities to assemble and run the grow with precision. I did overlook the inspection thing, or rather, I didnt get that far yet. I have to sell my house first (hopefully in the next couple of weeks) I'm not totally set on this particular property for my next grow but it seems like the nicest one so far. The inspection thing could throw it, and I wouldnt be the least bit upset. But thats the whole reason I came here, not just for the equipment but for a different perspective and insight on my next grow. And I thank all of you who have helped me! Since it's going to be at least 3x bigger than anything I have done before. I have been considering south Dak or Colorado as a possible legal move. Col already has MM established and SD lost by 2% in their 06 vote. They vote again in '10 and I have a good feeling theyll pull it off. So if i am already established in SD then I can really spearhead the (legal) market. The market from what i have read in Col is pretty saturated. On a different note I dont think 5000w is too big and will draw that much attention. Do you guys feel differently, or have first hand experience? I was running 2000+w in my old place that was like 700 some sq ft and no one batted an eyelash. So 5000w+ in a 2500-5500 sqft home doesnt seem outrageous, does it? I know it's a big step but i am taking my time and working out all the bugs beforehand.
I'm running around 5000w in one of my grow-ops, if i go much more over that i will be going into industrial usage, and it may cause suspicion come time to pay the electric bill, as industrial and home usage comes under different categorys (may differ around the world). Electric bills are made out by computer, much like a cell phone contract bill. The company won't know what your bill is, unless you miss your payment. Then it goes into human hands, who send a red bill reminder. If the person in the company sees a bill that doesn't look right, they may investigate further. That person has nothing to loose, he/she is getting a weeks wage, and it'll be nothing out of their pocket to report suspicious activity. I know this is off topic, but if a grower is thinking of stealling electricity, they will be caught. The electric company know how much electric (units) go into an area. If the electric company think they have a leak, they will send an engineer to fix the leak. When the engineer traces the leak to a premises, they will inform the police.
it's kinda off topic but excelent information for all.i would never in my life consider stealing elec. of all of the busts i have ever heard of it's either smell, tell, or thievery that got them busted. all of which are totally under the grow operators control.