The most efficient grow rooms

bigbudheadshrimp

bigbudheadshrimp

Well-Known Member
Average cost per pound = $200

Yearly Cost:
$ 6,000 - Warehouse - 20' x 40' - San Diego California - 100 amp 220v 3 phase electric service
$13,000 - Electric - 10 x 1,000w lights - 5 ton air conditioning - 100 pint dehumidifier
$ 40 - 20 pounds nutrients
$ 60 - Tap water
$ 1,000 - Insurance
$10,000 - Misc. or unexpected

GRAND TOTAL COST FOR A WHOLE YEAR? ONLY $30,100!

Can you compete? Currently getting compensated $2,800-3,200 pound in Southern California.
 
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jijiandfarmgang

jijiandfarmgang

Well-Known Member
I think a lot more people can compete and beat that.......albeit on a smaller scale

No warehouse.....home
12 cents kilowatt hour electric
dry mix your own nutrients from greenhouse supply
well water
no air-conditioner necessary, cold climate

- Jiji
 
bigbudheadshrimp

bigbudheadshrimp

Well-Known Member
So anyways, soon I will start flooding SoCal with $1 a gram top/ultra/homegrown. So watch out for profit competitors, this is a true non-profit. My cost is only $.50 a gram. Coming October 2014!!!
 
GroErr

GroErr

Well-Known Member
bigbudheadshrimp said:
Average cost per pound = $200

Yearly Cost:
$ 6,000 - Warehouse - 20' x 40' - San Diego California - 100 amp 220v 3 phase electric service
$13,000 - Electric - 10 x 1,000w lights - 5 ton air conditioning - 100 pint dehumidifier
$ 40 - 20 pounds nutrients
$ 60 - Tap water
$ 1,000 - Insurance
$10,000 - Misc. or unexpected

GRAND TOTAL COST FOR A WHOLE YEAR? ONLY $30,100!

Can you compete? Currently getting compensated $2,800-3,200 pound in Southern California.
Click to expand...
Don't want to burst your bubble, good for you if you think you can do it but I think you've missed a few things in your business plan/costs, some examples, I'm sure I've missed some:

Medium: based on your nute/water costs, doesn't look like you'd be doing hydro, soil/medium, containers, labour to maintain them, disposal if you're not recycling the medium?
Labour: 10x 1000's, say 1.5 lbs per light = 15 lbs per run, drying/trimming, packaging? You doing it all yourself, for free? Typically you'd pay yourself a salary and factor that in, even if you plant to do it all yourself.
Environmental control costs: Fans, Carbon filters/scrubbers etc, all these need power, was that factored into your hydro costs?
Lights: Cost of replacement bulbs? (see depreciation for ballasts)
Pest control, crop loss: These are intangibles, may or may not happen, kind of like insurance, you should factor something in, usually a percentage, say 3 - 5%. In other words, nothing rarely goes 100% according to plan, shit happens.
Depreciation: Besides expense items like the above, replacement bulbs etc., you'll need to depreciate your capital/equipment to allow for replacing dead ballasts, cooling/dehumidification equipment/filters/fans. Running 365/24/7 your equipment won't last forever. Some can be longer term like 3 years depreciation, some shorter. Take your total cost of equipment for the initial setup, pick a depreciation cycle for each major item, divide by the time by an appropriate/realistic life cycle for that component, then factor that into your monthly/yearly costs.

I run a pretty efficient small/personal op, supplying myself, some friends and typically 2-3 med customers at cost or free depending on whether they can pay. I use LED's for veg, CMH for flowering (much more efficient than hps), and only pay 7.5 cents/KWhr. Even then I estimate my total costs to be close to $1/gram when including all factors.
 
ficklejester

ficklejester

Well-Known Member
GroErr said:
Don't want to burst your bubble, good for you if you think you can do it but I think you've missed a few things in your business plan/costs, some examples, I'm sure I've missed some:

Medium: based on your nute/water costs, doesn't look like you'd be doing hydro, soil/medium, containers, labour to maintain them, disposal if you're not recycling the medium?
Labour: 10x 1000's, say 1.5 lbs per light = 15 lbs per run, drying/trimming, packaging? You doing it all yourself, for free? Typically you'd pay yourself a salary and factor that in, even if you plant to do it all yourself.
Environmental control costs: Fans, Carbon filters/scrubbers etc, all these need power, was that factored into your hydro costs?
Lights: Cost of replacement bulbs? (see depreciation for ballasts)
Pest control, crop loss: These are intangibles, may or may not happen, kind of like insurance, you should factor something in, usually a percentage, say 3 - 5%. In other words, nothing rarely goes 100% according to plan, shit happens.
Depreciation: Besides expense items like the above, replacement bulbs etc., you'll need to depreciate your capital/equipment to allow for replacing dead ballasts, cooling/dehumidification equipment/filters/fans. Running 365/24/7 your equipment won't last forever. Some can be longer term like 3 years depreciation, some shorter. Take your total cost of equipment for the initial setup, pick a depreciation cycle for each major item, divide by the time by an appropriate/realistic life cycle for that component, then factor that into your monthly/yearly costs.

I run a pretty efficient small/personal op, supplying myself, some friends and typically 2-3 med customers at cost or free depending on whether they can pay. I use LED's for veg, CMH for flowering (much more efficient than hps), and only pay 7.5 cents/KWhr. Even then I estimate my total costs to be close to $1/gram when including all factors.
Click to expand...
Just curious, off topic, does that $.075/kWh include delivery?
 
GroErr

GroErr

Well-Known Member
ficklejester said:
Just curious, off topic, does that $.075/kWh include delivery?
Click to expand...
Good point, not off topic at all, that's the base rate. I take the total when costing out mine and divide it by the actual consumption, including all charges/taxes and discounts my last bill worked out to $0.144/KWhr.
 
ficklejester

ficklejester

Well-Known Member
Yeah that seemed really low. Ohio is about the same. Rates kinda drive me nuts- I have to pay $30/month flat rate just for gas delivery even though it's only used for water heater during warm months. From what I've read, the electric water heaters come out to about the same cost, though.
 
GroErr

GroErr

Well-Known Member
Yeah, on a small bill all those extra charges can drive the cost/KWhr way up. I meter every piece of equipment I add/replace to make sure it's as efficient as possible. I spent quite a bit of time/effort insulating and bringing my central heat/air into my room to reduce my ops cost. First winter I tried and metered a small space heater for a couple of days and metered it, that's when I took on the furnace vent mods, those space heaters draw ridiculous amounts of power.
 
bigbudheadshrimp

bigbudheadshrimp

Well-Known Member
GroErr said:
Don't want to burst your bubble, good for you if you think you can do it but I think you've missed a few things in your business plan/costs, some examples, I'm sure I've missed some:

Medium: based on your nute/water costs, doesn't look like you'd be doing hydro, soil/medium, containers, labour to maintain them, disposal if you're not recycling the medium?
Labour: 10x 1000's, say 1.5 lbs per light = 15 lbs per run, drying/trimming, packaging? You doing it all yourself, for free? Typically you'd pay yourself a salary and factor that in, even if you plant to do it all yourself.
Environmental control costs: Fans, Carbon filters/scrubbers etc, all these need power, was that factored into your hydro costs?
Lights: Cost of replacement bulbs? (see depreciation for ballasts)
Pest control, crop loss: These are intangibles, may or may not happen, kind of like insurance, you should factor something in, usually a percentage, say 3 - 5%. In other words, nothing rarely goes 100% according to plan, shit happens.
Depreciation: Besides expense items like the above, replacement bulbs etc., you'll need to depreciate your capital/equipment to allow for replacing dead ballasts, cooling/dehumidification equipment/filters/fans. Running 365/24/7 your equipment won't last forever. Some can be longer term like 3 years depreciation, some shorter. Take your total cost of equipment for the initial setup, pick a depreciation cycle for each major item, divide by the time by an appropriate/realistic life cycle for that component, then factor that into your monthly/yearly costs.

I run a pretty efficient small/personal op, supplying myself, some friends and typically 2-3 med customers at cost or free depending on whether they can pay. I use LED's for veg, CMH for flowering (much more efficient than hps), and only pay 7.5 cents/KWhr. Even then I estimate my total costs to be close to $1/gram when including all factors.
Click to expand...
Me and a few others have already been running this method for a few harvests and similar methods for about a year. We have averaged between $0.50-.60 per gram final operating cost over a year. If you look at the breakdown of my budget I even added $10,000/yr in unknowns. As far as cost to run it, it's not theory it has been done already in multiple locations via various methods.

As far as labor lol not much. I'm only in the room for probably a week out of a whole 20 week cycle ( 1 week clone, 9 week veg, 10 week flower ). The beauty of having a 1,000 gallon reservoir filled with greenhouse bulk nutrients, 10 gallon coco, and blumat maxis.

I do not train or trim or prune. I let the plants grow all by themselves. They know what to do. I believe Heath Robinson takes the same approach.

And before anyone says anything about the reservoir going bad... POOL SHOCK! I never have to clean... ever... I have a 6kw flip ebb flow system I've been running for 7 months now non stop on a 1,000 gallon res and theres still like 300 gallons in there.

As for trimming among us we purchased 3 Twister t2 trimmers and installed them at a slope with conveyors inside a trailer thats hauled to the location. Capable of about 20kg/hr wet trimmed.

And bulbs. I run them till they give out. I have a small 4kw grow that's been on the same eye hortilux bulbs for a little over 8 months. Still hits 2.2-2.5 lb per light with my Chemdawg cut.

As far as carbon filters, we buy carbon by the pallet and make custom filters installed at exhaust ducts. The positive pressure from the 5 ton ac pushes the air through the filter and out.

And bugs hahaha never, first of all incoming air is filtered and then uv'd ( we use 5 ton Coolerado solar powered A/C, very hot, dry, and sunny in SD, probably pay like $800/yr electric and $120 in water). Second positive pressure. Third, custom bucket covers with holes cut out for stem, then just tanglefoot the hole and the stem. FUCK YOU APHIDS, and anyother bug that likes anything in the buckets.

Simple, cheap, creative ideas and innovations that just plain work it's all it has taken. Think outside the box.

Anymore questions?
 
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bigbudheadshrimp

bigbudheadshrimp

Well-Known Member
Almost forgot as for foliar bugs, I've only had to use mighty wash and spinosad. Only use it on outside clones/cuts. So cheap I don't even count it lol
 
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jijiandfarmgang

jijiandfarmgang

Well-Known Member
So you completed your first real grow a couple months ago,
and now you say you solved all the efficiency problems of every ones setup,
and your going to undercut everyone's price.

If you could do it for that cheap and be non-profit, hey more power to you.

But you can't and your not.

You have a lot to learn.

- Jiji
 
bigbudheadshrimp

bigbudheadshrimp

Well-Known Member
jijiandfarmgang said:
So you completed your first real grow a couple months ago,
and now you say you solved all the efficiency problems of every ones setup,
and your going to undercut everyone's price.

If you could do it for that cheap and be non-profit, hey more power to you.

But you can't and your not.

You have a lot to learn.

- Jiji
Click to expand...
What? First real grow? I started 8/2013 and had my first completed grow by 12/2013. My first grow ever was 2 x 600w bare bulb horizontal veg for 8 weeks and two 3kw bare bulb vert rooms flowered 9 weeks. This was a mix of 707 Headband, Blackberry Kush, Deep Sleep, and Chemdawg D. Produced a little over 10 pounds my first ever.

It was too easy. And now its 100x easier. I only have to fill a rez once for the whole run, no pHing, no adjusting nutes, just 5.8ph and 1.4-1.5 ec whole run, heck like I said I have some grows still running the same nutes (1000 gal for a 6kw grow since 2/2014). All I do is fill a res with tap water, mix nutes, and then i either set a reservoir of pool shock or add it manually every 5 days. thats all the physical labor i do. No need to pH now that I run drain to waste with blumats from a large reservoir set up high so gravity does the work. Honestly I think the only electric we use is the lights. Some of our grows have the solar powered A/C but honestly max ive seen the 5-ton cost is like $80/mo at $0.30-35 kw/h.

Since then I've probaly had over 20+ 5kw+ grows under my belt. And also the fact that I have way more $ then when I began kind of pretty much proved my concepts long ago.

The beauty of starting of with a good plan and $100k.
 
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