First Grow - Equipment & Budget, looking for advice

[SyKeR]

This will be my first time trying to grow, and I hope any veterans could give me some advice, suggest different equipment and tell me what I'm missing.

I have attached a picture of an excel file outlining a rough estimate of my expenses
My budget is roughly $1000 CAD, and all products listed are from amazon.ca

 

[$bkbbudz$]

With 600w of LED there is no reason to get a tent that big. In fact that is way too much space for that much light. You can get a 48x48x72 for 200.00 cheaper (and zero shipping, check ebay and amazon). If you are growing in soil PPM and TDS don't mean much if anything, save some more money and get some quality soil and food, I suggest the Fox Farms line. Do some reading and research...having nice equipment is great, having knowledge is better and more useful.

Good Luck and Great Grow.

 

[az2000]

That variable fan speed controller will make the fan hum. For twice the money you can get a variac from Amazon. Whisper quiet. Phresh makes HyperFan with a proprietary speed controller built in. It limits your options to some extent because it's proprietary, but may be less expensive. (I have the variac and a Hydrofarm 6" fan. Very quiet. I haven't used a HyperFan). Some people say the inexpensive dimmer-like controller (which causes hum) damages the fan motor. I don't know if that's true. But, it is dirty voltage. It clips the AC sine wave to reduce its amplitude. That's what causes the hum (like 60 on/off pulses every second).

The LEDs may be a false bargain. I'm not familiar with them, but typically inexpensive LED grow lights use low-quality epistar/epiled diodes which aren't much better than using CFL bulbs (in terms of light output vs. heat). It might be better to save your money to get a better LED. Use a cheap HPS system for now. (Visit the Indoor->LED forum before you make any decisions. It could turn into a long topic. For example, why do you want to use LED? In a northern climate, you might benefit from the heat of HPS. If you want something more efficient, CMH would be a better choice. I think you have to be motivated by high electricity costs or heat management problems to do LED. You either buy good LED, or none at all. HPS or CMH are better choices than cheap LED.).

Have you thought about nutrients. I like Grow More Sea Grow which is inexpensive. Jack's Classic is widely used and is inexpensive. If you can't invest in a 5lb tub, you can use MiracleGro Tomato. (You don't need the expensive, boutique "lineups" sold for cannabis.).

 

[SyKeR]

With 600w of LED there is no reason to get a tent that big. In fact that is way too much space for that much light. You can get a 48x48x72 for 200.00 cheaper (and zero shipping, check ebay and amazon). If you are growing in soil PPM and TDS don't mean much if anything, save some more money and get some quality soil and food, I suggest the Fox Farms line. Do some reading and research...having nice equipment is great, having knowledge is better and more useful.

Good Luck and Great Grow.

So are you saying that its too much light for that space, or too little? And Im not exactly sure how much space I need per plant, I was going to fit 10 plants inside and grow them as big as possible. I also plan on expanding after each crop, so having the extra space is just long term thinking. This will be a business, as I do not smoke weed.

 

[az2000]

And Im not exactly sure how much space I need per plant,

2x2 feet per plant is the rule of thumb I use. That works for full-size plants in 3gal (#3) containers. Some people do 5 gal containers in 3x3 tents. Or, 1gal containers in small, stealth grow cabinets. But, populating a tent like that, I would anticipate 2x2 per plant.

You might consider hydro trays to control your runoff. Use a wet/dry vac to suck the runoff from multiple plants out of the tray. Botanicare makes a 4x4 "ID" tray (which means it fits inside a 4x4 tent).

If you intend to do a lot of plants (big operation), you should look at hydro instead of soil. That's more conducive to economies of scale. You're going to get tired of dealing with a dozen or more saucers. The hydro tray as a "saucer" for multiple plants makes that easier. But, still, it's pointing toward an economy of scale which ultimately leads to hydro.

For LED, you need about 45-50 w/sq ft (of inefficient, epiwhatever LED). If you saved up and bought an efficient LED, you might be looking at 30-35 w/sq ft. (Keep in mind the actual wattage used is different than the rated capacity which LEDs are typically sold as. I.e., the 300w you're looking at is probably 150w to 180w actual. It is the actual wattage that is referred to as w/sq ft. So, let's say 360w actual (total) and at 50w/sq ft. Those lights would cover 7 sq ft. That's not even a 3x3 tent. ).

 

[TopDogTHC]

Pots and soil budget needs tripling.

Pots depends on type of seeds. If it's autos they want to go straight into 10L or 20L pots at least, over here in the UK they're about £4 each. If not then youll want 2 - 3 different size pots and transplant them into larger pots as they get bigger, so you could need up to 30 pots for 10 plants, could be looking at up to £50+ for the pots alone, especially if your buying them locally.

For soil depending on pot sizes you'll need 100-200 litres. Decent soil is around £10-£15 for 50L here, so do the maths. If your using perlite to mix in for drainage then you won't need as much soil. Perlite tends to be cheaper than soil but you'll have to decide on your mix to work it out.

You'll have to work it out for yourself currency wise, but I've noticed grow equipment is typically more expensive over there. Similar kit to what I've got is nearly twice as much.

 

[TopDogTHC]

http://www.amazon.ca/BioBizz-Light-Mix-Potting-Soil-50L/dp/B004OOU3TG/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1449033489&sr=8-13&keywords=Biobizz

That soil is 26.19CAD in the UK.

Will depend what's more available over where you are to what you go with, you'll have to research different types and work out what's best for your plants and budget, but it seems to be more expensive so I'd even go as far to say quadroople the pot and soil budget.

 

[SyKeR]

http://www.amazon.ca/BioBizz-Light-Mix-Potting-Soil-50L/dp/B004OOU3TG/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1449033489&sr=8-13&keywords=Biobizz

That soil is 26.19CAD in the UK.

Will depend what's more available over where you are to what you go with, you'll have to research different types and work out what's best for your plants and budget, but it seems to be more expensive so I'd even go as far to say quadroople the pot and soil budget.

That soil you linked is $165 dollars. Im just going to grab some organic miracle grow from a hardware store with some plastic pots

 

[TopDogTHC]

That soil you linked is $165 dollars. Im just going to grab some organic miracle grow from a hardware store with some plastic pots

Yes I know, I'm using it as an example to show the difference in prices for there and the UK and that's why I can't give you exact prices.

Even still no matter what soil you use it'll come to more than $30 for the amount your going to need for 10 plants. And the price I gave for pots are for cheap plastic ones. I checked on Amazon Canada and your going to be looking at $40-50 worth of pots at the cheapest. You'll pay more in a store for them but that's up to you. Plus whatever they're going to sit in. Or you'll end up with a mess at the bottom of the tent.

Just make sure you use the best soil you can get. Using the wrong soil can cause problems right from the start. If you're not sure then post the name and information up of the soil you're going with and I'm sure someone with more knowledge can tell you if it's suitable.

I think you need to do more research before spending that much on equipment.

 

[SyKeR]

Yes I know, I'm using it as an example to show the difference in prices for there and the UK and that's why I can't give you exact prices.

Even still no matter what soil you use it'll come to more than $30 for the amount your going to need for 10 plants. And the price I gave for pots are for cheap plastic ones. I checked on Amazon Canada and your going to be looking at $40-50 worth of pots at the cheapest. You'll pay more in a store for them but that's up to you. Plus whatever they're going to sit in. Or you'll end up with a mess at the bottom of the tent.

Just make sure you use the best soil you can get. Using the wrong soil can cause problems right from the start. If you're not sure then post the name and information up of the soil you're going with and I'm sure someone with more knowledge can tell you if it's suitable.

I think you need to do more research before spending that much on equipment.

This is what I was looking at. http://www.rona.ca/en/soil---organic-potting-soil
Doesnt show a price online for some reason, but all the similar products were around $10. A few bags should do it
Ten 3gallon plastic pots should be cheap, and a few of those starter solo cups.
Should only cost a few dollars for a plastic tray that I can use for runoff too

 

[az2000]

That soil you linked is $165 dollars. Im just going to grab some organic miracle grow from a hardware store with some plastic pots

What led you to MG? Usually their soils are discouraged due to the time-released nature of the nutes. They interfere with your ability to supply nutes as the plant needs them.

MG nutes are ok. But, the soils are usually the source of many new growers posting "help, my plant is dying" threads. (In case you interpreted my previous recommendation as extending to the soils.).

 

[SyKeR]

What led you to MG? Usually their soils are discouraged due to the time-released nature of the nutes. They interfere with your ability to supply nutes as the plant needs them.

MG nutes are ok. But, the soils are usually the source of many new growers posting "help, my plant is dying" threads. (In case you interpreted my previous recommendation as extending to the soils.).

Nothing in particular, I dont care what the brand is. Just any cheap organic soil that I can buy in store will do. Any recommendations from that site I linked you?
I would like to use some fox farm or whatever, but that shits expensive

 

[3N1GM4]

Mg organic is ok, comparable to happy frog. Its the mg moisture control you want to stay away from, it has liquid beads of nitrogen death that explode when watered sending bursts of pure nitrogen to the roots.

 

[az2000]

Nothing in particular, I dont care what the brand is. Just any cheap organic soil that I can buy in store will do. Any recommendations from that site I linked you?
I would like to use some fox farm or whatever, but that shits expensive

That sites down at the moment. I'll look later.

I use 60% Pro-Mix HP+Myco, 20% Kellogg Patio Plus (potting mix), 20% perlite. I add 1 to 1.5 Tbsp dolomite lime (Hy-Yield Agricultural Lime).

That will make 3 cu. ft (with a lot of Kellogg and perlite remaining). That's 23 gallons of soil. You can substitute the Pro-Mix with a generic peat product. Add 30% more dolomite and 50% more perlite. (Maybe add Xtreme Mykos if you want to have that too.).

It's a very light, airy soil. Almost soilless (which is what Pro-Mix is by itself). It works great for me.

I see someone is recommending MiracleGro's organic potting mix. I don't want to contradict anyone's experience. But, MG has a very bad reputation. The nutes are ok (because NPK is NPK). But, the soils seem to be universally disliked (except someone just proved me wrong. So, you'll need to give that careful thought. Ask around, etc.).

A lot of people use FF soils. I agree with the MG guy, my impression is that they're heavy. I haven't used them.

Just be careful. Soil can make or break what you do. It should be light, well drained. I would add a lot of perlite to whatever you use.

 

[tripleD]

Use fox farms ocean forest mix with 30% perilite...You won't regret it!
You WILL regret it if you use MG!

 

[Bbcchance]

I just ran a 4 plant run on 2 300w leds(galaxyhydro) it went quite well, but on my next run I'm gonna use a 600w hid system mh/hps, I think I could do better with the amount of par plus it seems to me that mh is superior to led for veg time at least, I will still use the leds for flower along with the hps bulb, but I didn't want to spend another 600$ when hid systems are so much cheaper and proven to have awesome results, just my 2¢

 

[mo841]

i use pro mix organic like in the pic from menards for like $6 a bag. you can mix it half n half with cow shit or use it straight, it dont matter.you can reuse it after every grow too. mix it up to get it loose again and ur good to go.

I don't know anything about LED so I won't comment on them.

you can fit 5 normal sized plants in a 4'x4' area but they will be touching each other a little bit.

buy the better $3-$5 saucers as the thin plastic ones suck unless ur real broke, then go with the thin ones. buckets are cheep and work well.

miracle grow nutes work fine if your on a budget. only thing ive had problems with useing cheep ferts is mag deficiencys but you just throw in some epsom salt and your golden.

good luck and be patient

 

[az2000]

buy the better $3-$5 saucers as the thin plastic ones suck unless ur real broke, then go with the thin ones. buckets are cheep and work well.

I agree with you about the thin/clear saucers. They flex/crack easy and you get a messy leak.

As far as heavier plastic saucers, I cut-down 5-gallon Home Depot buckets to 4" tall. (Mark around it, then apply tape to connect the marks, use the tape as a guide, and hacksaw around it to create a groove, then begin cutting deeper. Takes about 10 minutes.).

I don't like those shallow 1-2" saucers because I feed for 20-30% runoff. They don't hold that much. And, being wide/shallow, the slightest movement creates a wave (and mess). Now I use a wet/dry vac to suck the water out. I could do the same with shallow saucers, but I'd have to do it multiple times to avoid overflow. The 4" deep homemade saucers are better that way.

I also thread 6 1/2" lag bolts into the bottom of the containers to act as stand-offs so it doesn't sit in residual runoff. (But, don't forget they're there. They'll scratch a surface if you move your plant somewhere to work on it.).

 

[3N1GM4]

Ebay has good deals on LED lights, you can bid on one and get it at about half price.