What kind of budget do I need for Indoor Growing?

[JohnMotayo]

So although I dug around, I didn't see a thread specifically about this. My question to you guys would be, what kind of budget do you think I would need to start a rather small area with maybe upwards of 10 to 15 plants, maybe less? I was just trying to get an idea to see if it could be potentially affordable or not, thanks for all those that share their input,

 

[evergreengardener]

 

[loftygoals]

Lol this is an unanswerable question without any specifics. What size area are we talking about? How much lighting are we talking?

You could do a 15 plant SOG in a 60x60 area under a 250w HPS using 2L coke bottles and it would cost about $200-300 for everything.

 

[JohnMotayo]

View attachment 3715409

I figure if I had that kind of money laying around, I would probably just buy a big storage area and buy it in bulk, haha!

Lol this is an unanswerable question without any specifics. What size area are we talking about? How much lighting are we talking?

You could do a 15 plant SOG in a 60x60 area under a 250w HPS using 2L coke bottles and it would cost about $200-300 for everything.

I suppose that's a good point. I was just kind of trying to get an idea more of what other people do to better get an idea of how to proceed myself. With that kind of setup though, how well would things grow? I always felt that an indoor setup would be much more costly than that!

 

[loftygoals]

Things would grow perfectly fine in that setup. 60x60cm tent, 250w HPS, 6 inch carbon filter and fan... You'd probably get around 100-200g of bud in 9-10 weeks from having the clones planted. Slightly longer if you're starting from seed. Search for 2L SOG grows to get an idea of what's possible in small spaces.

The more bud you want, the more area, lighting and money you need to devote to the grow.

 

[tstick]

For every plant, I like to devote 100 watts -and I don't care what kind of efficiency I get from the light I use because I usually only grow about 4-5 plants (I only grow for my own use -never sell) so efficiency differences come out to negligible differences in cost -something that can easily be deferred by abstaining from a couple of dine-out meals or a few six packs of beer per year.

I like to use tent to grow in because it's something that can be taken down and put away when/if I might need the space for other things at other times of the year. My 3 X 3 tent cost me about 225 dollars. A charcoal filter and fan are a must...add another 200...need some oscillating fans...add another 100...need pots, dirt, fert, misc odds and ends...200

So, the quick breakdown is approx 500-700 in lights (depending on what kind of lighting you prefer...I use COBs atm)...and another 500-700 in other 'stuff'....And that's for approx. 5 plants grown the way I grow them in dirt. If you want 10-15 plants, then you can multiply from there. If you want a hydro setup or some other style of growing, then idk anything about that stuff.

You could easily take a less expensive DIY route and get more for your money (depending on how much you charge yourself for your own time to make the stuff), but I opt for pre-fab and getting the best equipment I can afford.

For a quality 4-5 plant indoor setup, I estimate approx. 1000-1500

 

[tstick]

And I should just add that I do one grow per year and the subsequent harvest will last me throughout the year (using vacuum sealed Mason jars for storage). IF I were to buy the same amount of weed at today's recreational rate, it would amount to about $100 every couple of weeks...which would add up to over 2500 dollars, annually.

Also, I use all my sugar leaf trim and larf to make bubble hash ($50 for an 8-bag set of filter bags from Ebay)...From that process, I get a few grams of full-melt bubble hash....and some 'garbage' no-melts -that will then get turned into full-melt batches of rosin. Any leftover organic matter gets tilled into my vegetable garden....and I'm even looking into distilling the bubble hash wash water, too! If I were to buy all that extra stuff in a recreational store it would add up to a LOT more money.

Keep in mind, it can be a little nerve-racking at times if you have to go through a 'plague' (like mites)...and that can ruin an entire crop...and several wasted months/investment of time -if you don't catch them or know how to handle such situations....Always factor in a 'Murphy's Law' principle: "Anything that CAN go wrong WILL go wrong"...and budget thusly.

 

[hyroot]

depends on how big you want to go and what kinds of lights and methods. a small closet would run $700 - $1500. A room a lot more.

 

[JohnMotayo]

For every plant, I like to devote 100 watts -and I don't care what kind of efficiency I get from the light I use because I usually only grow about 4-5 plants (I only grow for my own use -never sell) so efficiency differences come out to negligible differences in cost -something that can easily be deferred by abstaining from a couple of dine-out meals or a few six packs of beer per year.

I like to use tent to grow in because it's something that can be taken down and put away when/if I might need the space for other things at other times of the year. My 3 X 3 tent cost me about 225 dollars. A charcoal filter and fan are a must...add another 200...need some oscillating fans...add another 100...need pots, dirt, fert, misc odds and ends...200

So, the quick breakdown is approx 500-700 in lights (depending on what kind of lighting you prefer...I use COBs atm)...and another 500-700 in other 'stuff'....And that's for approx. 5 plants grown the way I grow them in dirt. If you want 10-15 plants, then you can multiply from there. If you want a hydro setup or some other style of growing, then idk anything about that stuff.

You could easily take a less expensive DIY route and get more for your money (depending on how much you charge yourself for your own time to make the stuff), but I opt for pre-fab and getting the best equipment I can afford.

For a quality 4-5 plant indoor setup, I estimate approx. 1000-1500

I figure I would probably start at the lower end and gradually work my way up. Five sounds like a good starter point, and the intent would be for personal use or rather, for a family member with a variety of medical conditions. Initially I would probably keep it simple then over time kind of grow into a bit more in-depth of an operation. Thanks for sharing,

depends on how big you want to go and what kinds of lights and methods. a small closet would run $700 - $1500. A room a lot more.

Haven't quite figured out the direction that I would like to go, but I know I don't intend to go too high-end and most of it would be for personal use.

 

[innerG]

I use a 3x3 tent, 400w and sealed reflector w vent fan. Maybe $500 worth of stuff and it works great

Tent ~$120
Light and reflector ~$180
Fans and ducting ~$40
Pots, soil, nutes, etc. ~maybe $100

I'd recommend using soil instead of hydro until you know what you're doing.

 

[JohnMotayo]

I use a 3x3 tent, 400w and sealed reflector w vent fan. Maybe $500 worth of stuff and it works great

Tent ~$120
Light and reflector ~$180
Fans and ducting ~$40
Pots, soil, nutes, etc. ~maybe $100

I'd recommend using soil instead of hydro until you know what you're doing.

Well, that sounds relatively simple enough for indoor growing and yeah, I figure keeping it simple is the best way to go when initially starting out. Thanks for the recommendation,

 

[MA MED Grower]

I was at a grow store and a customer asked that question. Guy in back of me said....

Every cent you have

 

[Steve Man]

Price it out yourself. Either go to a hydro store around you or order stuff off the net. And then plan on going through at least 9 or 10 5 gallon nutes that you will need for all those plants which would be like another 5-600$ possibly more. 10 or 15 plants is a lot, if you want a high yeild spend your money on a t5 and a 1000 watt and grow 4 plants but veg them for a hot second. You flip those puppies after 3 months veg, you gonna have Christmas trees and the bulbs gonna be buds. Also that's a overwhelming number of plants to try to take care of unless you are running a rdwc or flood drain. Just my 2 cents

 

[dubekoms]

Hmmm 10-15 plants, your gonna need at least 2 4x4 tents if your growing the plants to a decent size. At least 2 600 watt hps's or whatever light your using. 2 inline fans and carbon scrubbers(you can make those yourself for cheaper.) Don't forget pots, pH and ppm measuring instruments(if using chemical nutrients). Soil and nutrients, thermometers, rh meters,ducting and light hangers, fans for air movement inside tent. Probably more I'm forgetting lol but honestly about $1000-$1500 for a decent non ghetto setup.

 

[innerG]

Well, that sounds relatively simple enough for indoor growing and yeah, I figure keeping it simple is the best way to go when initially starting out. Thanks for the recommendation,

I only do 1-3 plants though... not 15!

 

[nobodies]

I don't know where some of these crazy prices are coming from? Wtf are you buying? Diamond lined lighting rigs?

Honestly if your just starting, I would go with a similar setup to this. You can do perpetual harvest if you just buy another tent, and some cheap lighting for it. I'd say you could easily harvest 1 pound+ every month, or so.) (By rotating plants in n' out, keeping all 4 in different stages of growth, with clones always ready, and vegged plants always ready.)

Here is a reasonable estimate:

4 large plant setup:

• 5' x 5' x 8' grow Tent: 90-150$ (I'd reccomend 2, 1000watt hps in this size tent.)
  
• one 1,000 watt digital HPS/MH fixture with both bulbs ($120-$280)
• Exhaust Ducting, and Fans, Power Cables, Timers, Humidity/Temp meters + PH testing kit (40-100$)
• Pots, Soil, Nutrients - $60-$400) (quite a range you can go with, I'd recommend a super-soil full organic setup.should be around 200$ total)

Extras:

• Carbon Filters ($100-300$)
• Air conditioning + heaters + humidifier/dehumidifier (For atmosphere controlling... $alot)
• c02 system (Wide range, depending how you do it.. but probably $50-$500 you can go with simple c02 bags, or a generator, or c02 tanks that use a timed release mechanism.)

So all in all, a simple 4 plant setup can range from about $350, and advancing with more/better equipment up to 1000$.. all depending.

 

[loftygoals]

I don't know where some of these crazy prices are coming from? Wtf are you buying? Diamond lined lighting rigs?

Here is a reasonable estimate: (Scale it up for # of plants)

4 large plant setup:

• 4' x 4' x 8' grow Tent: 90-150$
• one 1,000 watt digital HPS/MH fixture with both bulbs ($120-$280)
• Exhaust Ducting, and Fans, Power Cables, Timers, Humidity/Temp meters + PH testing kit (40-100$)
• Pots, Soil, Nutrients - $60-$400) (quite a range you can go with, I'd recommend a super-soil full organic setup.should be around 200$ total)

Extras:

• Carbon Filters ($100-300$)
• Air conditioning + heaters + humidifier/dehumidifier (For atmosphere controlling... $alot)
• c02 system (Wide range, depending how you do it.. but probably $50-$500 you can go with simple c02 bags, or a generator, or c02 tanks that use a timed release mechanism.)

So all in all, a simple 4 plant setup can range from about $350, and advancing with more/better equipment up to 1000$.. all depending.

2x2x4.5 tent = £40
250w hps = £50
6 inch carbon filter = £40
6 inch fan = £45
6 inch ducting (1.5m) = £8
pH pen + EC pen = £7 (ebay cheapies)
2.2lbs GH Maxibloom dry nutes (only nutes you need if you're doing lucas formula) = £15
15 2L Coke bottles = scavenge for free
100L Perlite = £12
Total = £217 ($296 US)

You can grow 15 plants in a 2L Coke bottle perlite only hempy SOG including a carbon filter for under $300. Equally I could price up a 15 plant grow for $30k+ easily.

That's why the question can't be answered without some specific information about area, lighting and expectations. How long is a piece of string?

 

[JohnMotayo]

I only do 1-3 plants though... not 15!

Yeah, after initially posting the thread I realized that looking for upwards of 15 plants to grow at the same time may be a bit of a challenging goal, so I may start on a good bit of a smaller scale after reading up on the recommendations in this thread so my growing doesn't get too out of hand!

 

[mo841]

I have a 4x4 room with two 600w hps lights plus the exhaust fans, dirt, timers and all that shit. I would say it was about $1200. I usually run 5 plants in that size area.

In my area its about $75/mo for the electric to run it. Try to run a perpetual which can be done on a shelf the size of about 2x2 with a cheap150w hps. Clone and grow for a few months while waiting for the other plants to finish flowering. That's how I do it. harvest every 3 months or so

 

[nobodies]

2x2x4.5 tent = £40
250w hps = £50
6 inch carbon filter = £40
6 inch fan = £45
6 inch ducting (1.5m) = £8
pH pen + EC pen = £7 (ebay cheapies)
2.2lbs GH Maxibloom dry nutes (only nutes you need if you're doing lucas formula) = £15
15 2L Coke bottles = scavenge for free
100L Perlite = £12
Total = £217 ($296 US)

You can grow 15 plants in a 2L Coke bottle perlite only hempy SOG including a carbon filter for under $300. Equally I could price up a 15 plant grow for $30k+ easily.

That's why the question can't be answered without some specific information about area, lighting and expectations. How long is a piece of string?

Yea I honestly just skimmed amazon, and remember some prices from my old setup. Scouring Ebay, and Craigslist would likely drop your price substantially. I also didn't really consider doing coke bottle pots (I've never done SoG), nor auto strains. I usually do feminized clones which are vegged and LST'd to be bushy. Just a preference. Your right though.. theres a million ways to set up a grow.