Please help a fellow out!

[313dread]

OK I'm trying to figure this out. I'm trying to start a grow and I'm going to start with 12 plants. After the first grow, I want to move to 24 and stick around there for a while. Gonna do them in 5 gallon buckets. Is that a good choice in size of the pots? I was thinking about building a room to try to keep my budget very low. I was told by Blue that I should just buy a tent. Not working with a whole lot of $$$ though. Only $1800 to $2000 give or take and that's to cover all that is needed for the entire grow. Tent, light, intake, buckets, beans, soil etc. I'm being long winded lol but I need the help. Should I only get a tent that holds 12 plants or should I get one that can hold 24 even though I'm only going to start with 12 for the first grow? Exactly what size tent would I need to purchase? Can't afford a top of the line tent but I don't want a horrible one either. Thanks for your help!!!

 

[313dread]

For the 12 plants, Blue also said 2 600w lamps would work fine. I know I'll need more when I get to 24. Any links that deliver to the U.S. with reasonable prices to work with my budget?

 

[Son of Hobbes]

Hey bro, could I offer some critical advice? And I mean this with the best intentions and your intentions in mind.

Have you ever grown before? Photos? Autos? It doesn't sound like it based on your inquiries.

My suggestion to you, as someone who himself tends to bite off more than he can chew, as someone who RUNS as fast he can before learning to crawl, you might want to dial back your expectations a little and be more realistic.

I would highly recommend learning the basics before trying to open up shop on a TON of plants. Do you know what 12 marijuana plants smells like in bloom? How about 24 plants? How about 4 plants? I'm not trying to scare you, but based on your experience level here that I'm picking up, you NEED to know what you're getting yourself into. No sugar coat. You're talking a LOT of work with that amount of plants. You start talking deficiencies, or infestations, or etc etc?

I'm not saying that to dissuade or discourage you in the slightest; but as someone looking out for your vested interest (especially when you want to plop down two G's.)

It's my opinion; but I think you'd enjoy the growing process much more if you started with a couple plants (heck, throw them in 5 gallon pots) and learned some of the process before starting with 12 or 24 plants and hoping that you can play catch-up with all the snags that can (and sometimes will) pop up in a grow.

$1800 to $2000 is WAY more than enough to get going; you have a budget that a lot of growers DREAM about. You could get an entire setup and THEN some with that kind of coin. If you're in the US; there's Amazon, ebay, google shopping, etc etc.

Whichever way you want to go; whether it's a few plants or you just want to roll the dice and go big or go home; we'll help you out bro! I'm not here to tell you what to do; just to offer advice and perspective

Regardless:

• What kind of space are you working with? How big of a tent could you fit if you went that route?

• What are the average ambient temperatures and humidity in the area you are looking at growing in?

• 5 gallon buckets generally grow BIG plants. 12 or 24 plants in 5 gallon buckets is going to be an EPIC undertaking. The size of the pot is part of what can dictate the size of plant.

Do you have any ideas at all fleshed out? What are your thoughts on what you've got going on?

We'll get you on the path of the grower soon enough! :Sharing One:

 

[313dread]

Well thanks very much Hobbes for your in site. Well I've messed with photos a little bit. I kinda get the idea of growing. Man I've been reading on this for about a little over a year now. Just never really had the money to do what I wanted to do. I don't work so those babies would be my job! No, I don't know what they smell like in flower but I was doing pretty good with the photos that I had. I got rid of them because I didn't have room for them. Even planted one outside that got about 6' 5". It came up missing though lol. I'm gonna see if I can add a couple of pics I had of them growing in my closet. They were regular beans I got out of a few bags that I was smoking and said what the heck. I went and bought fox farm ocean for them. I ph'd the water. I bought bytes and all. I think I'm ready to go for the gusto "I think." Lil. I learned how to top them, super crop them and a few other things. I know you can't do any of those to autos though. I'm working with a basement so I have enough space to do whatever needs to be done. I don't know the temps and all of that yet but I'm going to find that out pretty soon. Because I'm going about this the legal way so to speak. Where I'm going to be growing is at a persons house that is a caregiver where I'm from. She just doesn't know anything about anything when it comes to all these other steps. All she knows is where to go buy it ready made and sell to her patients. I mean, I know a person that grows and I call myself challenging him by asking him different kinds of questions to see if he knows and he rarely is able to answer correctly lol. I only want to do a run with 12 first and put my all into it but after a good turn out I want to move up to 24. I know I can do it. I just need some guidance on the way. Should I get a tent that can hold 24 ultimately and start with the 12? How should I go about that? I mean I'm in this for a profit but I also love science and watching plants grow from seed. Looking at them thinking "look at what I did." Lol I'm just so ready to get to going. I've already started buying things like pH meter, temp and humidity digi, a couple of fans. I saw a post on here where I can order some beans from. Now I need help on which tent I should go for size wise and something that's not crap but not to expensive either. Just now thinking. Out of the $1800-$2000 I do have. I need a radiator for my car and a water pump lol. So that knocks back about another $200-$350. Man it just seems like I'm not working with enough money at all lol.

 

[313dread]

How do I post a pic here? I want you to see the photos that I was playing with so you can let me know what you think about them.

 

[313dread]

Hey Hobbes these are the photos I messed around with.

 

[313dread]

 

[Panic]

Try 2x autopounder This would be a good warm up for you to get it dialed in. You wont get 2lbs, but you will deal with a lot of plant. Also you need to get used to the weights of a pot in terms of water lvl. Going through 24 of em would take along time if you were guessing, over or under watering becomes a ever present problem by itself. But in a go big go home world, Go big.

 

[Son of Hobbes]

313dread,

Here's the link to the AFN guide on uploading pics:

Sticky: How to uppload pics!

Also, I just noticed this is down in the Reference/Links section of the forum; would you like me to have an admin move it up to the New Growers Forum? I know you said you have a little growing experience, but since this is newer territory for you I think it would be prudent to get a lot of very watchful and knowledgeable eyes on your grow project here; I really think you'd have a lot of luck and better responses from gentleman and ladies far more knowledgeable than I on some of this stuff. You could even have this be the start of your grow journal; many members start their journals before beans ever germinate; it's a great way to get a lot of feedback on your start up.

Let me know if you still have problems getting the pictures posted; and doubly let me know if you'd like the thread moved up to the New Growers Forum.

Thanks bro! :karma Cloud: Hop digity

 

[pop22]

Well thanks very much Hobbes for your in site. Well I've messed with photos a little bit. I kinda get the idea of growing. Man I've been reading on this for about a little over a year now. Just never really had the money to do what I wanted to do. I don't work so those babies would be my job! No, I don't know what they smell like in flower but I was doing pretty good with the photos that I had. I got rid of them because I didn't have room for them. Even planted one outside that got about 6' 5". It came up missing though lol. I'm gonna see if I can add a couple of pics I had of them growing in my closet. They were regular beans I got out of a few bags that I was smoking and said what the heck. I went and bought fox farm ocean for them. I ph'd the water. I bought bytes and all. I think I'm ready to go for the gusto "I think." Lil. I learned how to top them, super crop them and a few other things. I know you can't do any of those to autos though. I'm working with a basement so I have enough space to do whatever needs to be done. I don't know the temps and all of that yet but I'm going to find that out pretty soon. Because I'm going about this the legal way so to speak. Where I'm going to be growing is at a persons house that is a caregiver where I'm from. She just doesn't know anything about anything when it comes to all these other steps. All she knows is where to go buy it ready made and sell to her patients. I mean, I know a person that grows and I call myself challenging him by asking him different kinds of questions to see if he knows and he rarely is able to answer correctly lol. I only want to do a run with 12 first and put my all into it but after a good turn out I want to move up to 24. I know I can do it. I just need some guidance on the way. Should I get a tent that can hold 24 ultimately and start with the 12? How should I go about that? I mean I'm in this for a profit but I also love science and watching plants grow from seed. Looking at them thinking "look at what I did." Lol I'm just so ready to get to going. I've already started buying things like pH meter, temp and humidity digi, a couple of fans. I saw a post on here where I can order some beans from. Now I need help on which tent I should go for size wise and something that's not crap but not to expensive either. Just now thinking. Out of the $1800-$2000 I do have. I need a radiator for my car and a water pump lol. So that knocks back about another $200-$350. Man it just seems like I'm not working with enough money at all lol.

I'm new to this myself, but I did a lot of homework first. I'm using DWC as a method for growing. It takes a bit to setup, but once its going its easy. I bought the most needed equipment first, my budget was much tighter than your. At this point I'm up and running for some time now. however, the room itself is only now about to be finish. I'm walling ogg a section og a room using 4x8x1 foil faced foam insulation mounted to a 1,2 framework. it makes it easy to work with and easy to take down if I ever need to. I only need to build 2 walls this way. so less than $90 including a roll og Panda Poly for the walls. My lights, One MH 600 watt and a good hood, a 105 watt CFL for seedlings and cloning cost me about $300. 2 18 gallon DWC reservoirs made from totes and an 24 gallon tote to pre-process my water cost about another $150 with three airpumps and the needed tubing and rairstones, plus a 500 GPH submersible pump, just for convience. All total I'll have maybe $850 into a room thats 7'6"x42" so just shy of 4x8. I currently have 7 plants growing with the current capacity being 9. I could change that to 12 if I felt the need, with just a new lid for the resevior that has a single 10" net pot. So if you went this route, you'd be under $1000. if that worked for you. IMO you'll need as much space as I have if you really feel the need for 12 plants. If you do go whith that many, do as I've done, go in stages. Plant some autos, then in ab out 5-6 weeks, start some photo strain. that way, the autos will be done before your photos are ready to go to 12/12. At least this can give you something more to think about. Personally, I wouldn't do 12 plants, unless doing DWC because with soil, you have 12 individual environments to deal with and it will be a lot of work for some one new. Thats my opinion only however.

Good luck, what ever course you choose!

:Sharing One: