I can't figure this out..

So I have about $500 bucks and I want to start growing. I live in an apartment, and yes.. its illegal here (lol who cares? )

Here's what I don't get.. I've been looking around and from what I can tell, $500 should be more than enough to start off. however whenever I start to look into supplies/accessories I end up with a sum of $600+ (yikes)

This is the setup I want (to grow 6 plants, more or less):
- HPS (600w) & MH conversion (400w).
- digital ballast for the MH & HPS bulbs.
- Maxwing reflector
- Grow tent (4'x4'x8')
- Fan+filter & ducting (about 8ft of it should be enough)
- 4-10inch fan (for air circulation)
- outlet timer (for the lights)
- thermometer (one that shows humidity too)
etc.. etc.. etc..

I'm coming up with $600+ just on the grow room itself. not to mention I need to get my hydro stuff (growing medium, nutes, ph tester etc...

I know it's possible to do this with with some CFLs, some pots & some miracle grow.. but I REALLY need a tent with the fan+filter. smell is a SERIOUS problem where i live.

Can you guys help a noob out? $500 is the budget.. maybe I can add an extra 50. but that's it. I need a tent, fan+filter, ducting & accessories; thermometer, outlet timer, ph testing/up-down etc.

I'm thinking I should get everything except the hps & mh+ballast and go with CFLs for the first grow. get that after my first yield? maybe they pay for the lights? I'm so lost

(farming can be overwhelming for a noob lol)

if smell is a problem you should find another place. when some of these plants flower, idc what kind of ventilation system you have, your grow will be discovered. make ventilation and carbon filtration a priority. and forget your budget. with the kind of odor control you will need your budget is not realistic. or dive in and find out for yourself. you will learn the hard way but soometimes thats the best way.

Amazon is amazing I got my whole set up for about 450

Im running a setup that would support around 6 plants well and it set me back well over $1000....massive pain in the ass, I'm not exactly rolling in money! I smoke an Oscar a week though which is ~$300 in my area, so the initial investment was well worth it I suppose.

@Dannyboy I'm going with a 6inch fan+carbon filter in a 4x4x8 tent. think it's enough for 6 plants? anyway I guess I'll find out soon enough lol.

@melloyellofello What did you buy?

@Elder1 $1000?! god damn! what's the lowest you managed to harvest off 6 healthy plants?

I decided to go with everything except the hps & mh lights (they're expensive) instead I'll go with 4 2ft T5's (2 grow bulbs & 2 flowering bulbs) this + growing medium, pots etc.. all came up to around $530. so far I have everything* I need and it seems to be on budget.
Can I expect healthy plants from T5's?

*everything for the tent & growing medium. I'll upgrade the lights to hps & mh when I get more cash.

Haven't done 6, prefer doing two big girls each cycle with two more vegging half way through the flowering cycle....this is due to law in the area mostly. I went over board on the ventilation system, never want to have to upgrade it again. You would probably be horrified by the fact that I'm only running a 400w hps and two 150w MH for flowering haha....

Ill be expecting around about 12oz this run, growing two Arjans Haze #3 into a big Scrog with a fairly long veg time. Ill be upset if I get under 10oz! I know I could do more with the setup but stealth is very high on my priority list...

You'll get decent plants off of t5s. Flowering might be questionable. It sounds to me that cfls would fit your situation pretty well. A solid amount of 26w bulbs placed all over the plants would turn out nice. I just don't feel like the t5s, the amount you have anyways, would get you where you want.

On that subject, and not that I encourage this type of thinking, but how much are you looking to get off these plants?

@Trevronious I'll look into buying some cfls. cheap extra lights are always welcomed
and I'm hoping to get "enough" and by that I mean enough to buy at least one hps & one mh (after selling) so in dollars.. like 200 bucks off my first/second grow. I think with the prices around here its like 1-2 1/2 ounce(s). I'll be sticking with 4 plants in the 4x4x8 until I get hps & mh's.

think I can do it? even if I fail on my first try, I would already have the equipment. so it's just a matter of time & caring for the plants (I think)

Find the cheapest places for each of your parts. Some digging around will save you quite a lot of money.

Buy a few 3 gallon pots, some good soil and a TRUE 125-watt CFL light (about $125 and the highest on this list). Buy a couple of fans and seeds. Go to it. Instead of spending $600 outright, do like I suggest to get started. Then buy parts monthly. You won't need that tent or filters for a couple months, brother. You wish they would sprout and skunk your house out right then but . . . ..

@hotrodharley I wish I could bro. but I don't have a monthly income (as in I don't have a job). I added 3-5 gallon pots and foxfarm's ocean forest mix to my list.

I'll do as ManWithTheHex suggested and look around to get the most bang for my buck. I know I won't be needing the fan and filter until flowering, but if I don't get the filter+fan and my plants start to flower, I'm fucked. I'll lose my apartment in a matter of minutes. I can't take the risk. I was told the smell can get pretty bad sometimes.

and the 125w cfls for $125, that's just one light? or for both? (both spectrums I mean)

edit:
by the way, what are the chances of me not growing anything. I mean.. honestly I don't have high expectations for the first 3 grows, if anything I'm expecting my first 3 grows to be just educational. if I get anything off those grows, thats just icing on the cake.

I'm surprised no one mentioned craigslist... Ass loads of grow lights on craigslist.. .light should be the easiest and one of the cheaper problems. Like mentioned, you need to worry more about concealment and odor control. Unless you live in a third world ass apartment complex, if thats the case all you will smell in complex is kimchi and curry.

I got a pretty decent sized tent a 150 watt HPS 3 clip on fans an exhaust fan an I have two t8 aquarium lights that I picked up at a pawnshop for 6 bucks also a 42w cfl I got from wallmart everything else listed I got from amazon I think my order total was like 408

I bought my two 400-watt HPS fixtures, with used bulbs of course, for $20 a piece. These things are all over the USA used. Generally if the seller has more than one they have a shitload. Mine were replaced inside an airframe manufacturing plant by the local general aviation field here. They were on craigslist along with a ton from other sellers. Prices ranged from $20 to $ for probably the same fixture. HEAVY as hell with a cast aluminum hook that holds the ballast box and socket. Undo the socket, run the 3 wires out and solder new leads to the old ones and mount the socket high and leave the ballast low. No way would I hang one from a lag screw in a ceiling joist. Already lost my 2 best plants in June when a fixture fell from a 4.6 earthquake. Just enough to swing that sucker and down it went and it was a CFL! Light compared to this.

Also when I lived in Missoula, Montana there was a building supply of nothing but USED. Home ReSource. All used, old, recycled with prices to reflect it. Now I find the same type of gig going down in Anchorage. Check your area for one.

A good MH and HPS bulb and ballast for each is about 400 all by itself minimum. This doesn't include the reflector.

Unless you are building your own tent that's at least another 150.

Exhaust fan with carbon filter for that size of room should be about 175-225.

Include a intake fan, osculating fan, timers, ducting, ect, ect.... another 200.

That's about 800+. So if you can get all that for 600 you are getting a deal.

I'd say invest in just the veg bulb/ballast and veg a good 2 months and hopefully by then you can afford another bulb and ballast or just use a single digital ballast and switch bulbs when you are ready to flower.

I honestly think patience is your best bet here. Save and get everything you need before you begin. Don't forget you need an area to dry all that weed, in an apartment that requires a fan/filter combo as well in a separate room unless you also plan to dry in the grow room.

YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST INVEST IN A GOOD EXHAUST FAN/CARBON FILTER.

I hate cfl's. That's just me. I use T5's in early veg and nothing but HID after. You also have to worry about sound, visitors, and where you will be not only exhausting safely but where your fresh intake will be coming from. If you just plan to use a passive intake or intake room air into grow room you then have to cool/heat the apartment.

Slow down and get what you need. Don't go in half-assed. I waited an entire year saving up to get what I had when I first started up.

Patience is a virtue.

8bit OS said:

@hotrodharley I wish I could bro. but I don't have a monthly income (as in I don't have a job). I added 3-5 gallon pots and foxfarm's ocean forest mix to my list.

I'll do as ManWithTheHex suggested and look around to get the most bang for my buck. I know I won't be needing the fan and filter until flowering, but if I don't get the filter+fan and my plants start to flower, I'm fucked. I'll lose my apartment in a matter of minutes. I can't take the risk. I was told the smell can get pretty bad sometimes.

and the 125w cfls for $125, that's just one light? or for both? (both spectrums I mean)

edit:
by the way, what are the chances of me not growing anything. I mean.. honestly I don't have high expectations for the first 3 grows, if anything I'm expecting my first 3 grows to be just educational. if I get anything off those grows, thats just icing on the cake.

Click to expand...

Dude, you care enough. You'll grow something out I promise. It ain't rocket science despite some of the high tech whoopdedoos I read about here. A bag of good soil, a few containers and a light source. The rest can be done on the fly. Remember - KISS! Are you around SA, TX?

So much awesome feedback, Thanks guys

I'll be window shopping for a while before I decide on what to get and how my final setup will look like. I'll take Thehole's advice and won't rush it. So next month (september) I'll be saving whatever money I can and add/remove items from my list. Thanks again

oh and I'm in NY ^^

8bit OS said:

edit:
by the way, what are the chances of me not growing anything. I mean.. honestly I don't have high expectations for the first 3 grows, if anything I'm expecting my first 3 grows to be just educational. if I get anything off those grows, thats just icing on the cake.

Click to expand...

A very real possibility it dont grow as easy as people make it out to be inside. Stay away from craigslist In your area its like calling the police and telling them you are growing. The police screen craigslist daily to recover stolen items and catch people like you. Examine what you get from CFLs. 4 23w will deliver more lumin than most 125w cfl. But 1 125w cfl will creat less heat than 4 23w bulbs. 4 23w should cost less than $10 for bulbs so examine what you get for what you pay. If you use 23w you will need about 8 to grow anything and 8 produce a lot of heat.

for low budget with less heat issues look at T12s 3 2 bulb fixtures with cool whites will get you 18,000 lumen that will grow 3 fair plants. Any home depot less than $100 for bulbs and fixtures.

eaby works wonders 3x3 tent .... 89 http://www.ebay.com/itm/36-x-36-x-78-3-x-3-Ft-100-Reflective-Mylar-Hydroponic-Indoor-Grow-Room-Tent-/320966173758?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4abb13243e

600 watt mh setup ....152 http://www.ebay.com/itm/600w-600-watt-HPS-MH-Grow-Light-System-Set-Premium-Kit-/160643087402?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item256712fc2a

fliter and fan 220 cfm filter/fan....120 http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-4-inch-CARBON-FILTER-FAN-COMBO-inline-odor-scrubber-200CFM-FAN-24HR-SHIPPING-/160867590318?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item257474a0ae