New Grower Gratefully green husband

[Smowkabowl]

Okay, so I am going to start my first journal a little differently. Not from day one of a grow but from day one of ordering my first seeds for my first grow in over 30 years. I am doing this step by step, genetics first, and once I have those in hand, we will start getting the rest of what I need to get growing. I have done the research and have a plan and I will run it by y'all, get your feedback, and go from there. Hopefully, in about 4 months or so I will be harvesting my first grow in 30+ years with a lot more success.
By the way, I ordered Fast Buds Tangie'matic, Green Crack Auto and West Coast OG Auto. Yeah!
So your probably wondering, why now? Well, I have been smoking weed for the past 45 years or so. There have been very few times I have gone without. But for the last 20 or so years all I was doing was buying an ounce from the same guy without any hassle whenever I needed it. One day he offered me a vape cartridge and I bought it after he explained what it was. I hung on to it for a couple of weeks before I stopped in the local head shop and bought a battery (another new experience). Needless to say, I have been going about smoking my couple bong hits a day satisfied with my little after work relaxation not knowing about this explosion going on in the 420 universe. Not that I was totally oblivious, but I was satisfied not drawing attention and being stealth in the REAL world. Well, little did I know what I was missing. That little 500ml vape cartridge got me going and researching what was going on and the next thing I knew, I was back in college in the 1980s reading High Times and wanting to grow some KIND.
I'm all in now. I convinced my wife into allowing me to make a small investment in supporting my medicinal needs. We are both retiring soon and I need a hobby to keep me out of the house and her hair. She gets a raised bed organic garden.
My habit cost me about $2000 per year (and after vaping that hash oil my habit has increased already and I'm loving the effects). I have $2500 for my initial investment and I need to keep my yearly costs below $2000. I think the electrical costs are going to make or break this deal. A $50 a month increase, maybe as much as $70, will be okay, but if it gets to be as much as a $100 the cost may become prohibitive. That is why I need to do things as efficiently as possible and not buy top of the line right now. I just want to do a few grows and learn to control the environment and get my thumb green again. We will see how it goes from there.
I got genetics in route. What next? Where to do this? I want to be germinating by September.
I have a 18'x24' detached single car garage with a large work space. Black out the windows and buy a grow tent! BTW, we live on about 2.5 acre wooded lot. Our closest neighbor is about 200 ft away through a thin section of woods and the others are 1000s of feet away. You can't even see our house from the road, we live at the end of a dead end road, very rural, surrounded by horse farms and a 100s of acres of woods. Peace!
I have an itemized list of what I think I need and how I want to go about growing. I will be going into more detail soon. That's all for now.
If you were starting a small grow for the first time, what you do? What do you think of theseeds I ordered? Any comments would be appreciated.

 

[mcpd_refugee]

Welcome to AFN! If you have a question there’s undoubtedly someone here who can help. The collective knowledge on this forum and the willingness to share it is a big reason why I made AFN my home. I’m sure @archie gemmill will he along shortly. He is the unofficial greeter of AFN and reader of all journals. He’s also a hell of a grower...but he wouldn’t say so...he’s far too modest for that.

Make yourself at home. Post an introduction. If you have questions, you can always check out the live stoners subforum...there’s almost always someone there. Oh...and if you haven’t already, have a read around the place. There’s tons of useful information by people far smarter than me.

 

[iampepe]

Okay, so I am going to start my first journal a little differently. Not from day one of a grow but from day one of ordering my first seeds for my first grow in over 30 years. I am doing this step by step, genetics first, and once I have those in hand, we will start getting the rest of what I need to get growing. I have done the research and have a plan and I will run it by y'all, get your feedback, and go from there. Hopefully, in about 4 months or so I will be harvesting my first grow in 30+ years with a lot more success.
By the way, I ordered Fast Buds Tangie'matic, Green Crack Auto and West Coast OG Auto. Yeah!
So your probably wondering, why now? Well, I have been smoking weed for the past 45 years or so. There have been very few times I have gone without. But for the last 20 or so years all I was doing was buying an ounce from the same guy without any hassle whenever I needed it. One day he offered me a vape cartridge and I bought it after he explained what it was. I hung on to it for a couple of weeks before I stopped in the local head shop and bought a battery (another new experience). Needless to say, I have been going about smoking my couple bong hits a day satisfied with my little after work relaxation not knowing about this explosion going on in the 420 universe. Not that I was totally oblivious, but I was satisfied not drawing attention and being stealth in the REAL world. Well, little did I know what I was missing. That little 500ml vape cartridge got me going and researching what was going on and the next thing I knew, I was back in college in the 1980s reading High Times and wanting to grow some KIND.
I'm all in now. I convinced my wife into allowing me to make a small investment in supporting my medicinal needs. We are both retiring soon and I need a hobby to keep me out of the house and her hair. She gets a raised bed organic garden.
My habit cost me about $2000 per year (and after vaping that hash oil my habit has increased already and I'm loving the effects). I have $2500 for my initial investment and I need to keep my yearly costs below $2000. I think the electrical costs are going to make or break this deal. A $50 a month increase, maybe as much as $70, will be okay, but if it gets to be as much as a $100 the cost may become prohibitive. That is why I need to do things as efficiently as possible and not buy top of the line right now. I just want to do a few grows and learn to control the environment and get my thumb green again. We will see how it goes from there.
I got genetics in route. What next? Where to do this? I want to be germinating by September.
I have a 18'x24' detached single car garage with a large work space. Black out the windows and buy a grow tent! BTW, we live on about 2.5 acre wooded lot. Our closest neighbor is about 200 ft away through a thin section of woods and the others are 1000s of feet away. You can't even see our house from the road, we live at the end of a dead end road, very rural, surrounded by horse farms and a 100s of acres of woods. Peace!
I have an itemized list of what I think I need and how I want to go about growing. I will be going into more detail soon. That's all for now.
If you were starting a small grow for the first time, what you do? What do you think of theseeds I ordered? Any comments would be appreciated.

Howdy! Welcome to AFN! Your place sounds like my new one, my closest neighbor is nearly 1000 ft thru the woods. Love it
Have you thought about what type of light you want to use? You said you wanted to start cheap but with your budget you could get a nice cob or quantum board light, the most efficient grow light sources out right now. If you're into DIY you can make one and save a few. Tis what I did, I use cobs. Autocobs would be a good choice as well, check out the technology before you buy your light source.
Peace

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Howdy! Welcome to AFN! Your place sounds like my new one, my closest neighbor is nearly 1000 ft thru the woods. Love it
Have you thought about what type of light you want to use? You said you wanted to start cheap but with your budget you could get a nice cob or quantum board light, the most efficient grow light sources out right now. If you're into DIY you can make one and save a few. Tis what I did, I use cobs. Autocobs would be a good choice as well, check out the technology before you buy your light source.
Peace

Hi @Smowkabowl welcome to AFN. Tons of good advice on this board. You will be enjoying your homegrown meds soon.

What is your climate like and what will the range of conditions be in the garage?

In order to get someone's attention on the board put the atmark in front of their handle like I did for you?

 

[MickJ]

I love budgets, I have a smart meter, my grow space is 2.5'*5' and uses 2kwh per day give or take with LEDs, fans, greenhouse heater and a reptile heat mat for winter. I run my lights almost 24/0 per day depending on ambient temperatures. Winter is the most expensive in an unheated space, all my lights on and heaters going. My space is uninsulated and maintains temps when it gets to zero degrees Celsius for that money. If it gets much colder where you are then consider insulating your tent with fibreglass or make a foam board box for your tent. A lot of guys put 2" of foam under their tent to keep off cold floors. Anyway let me know if you need anything.

Sent from my comfy chair.
[emoji16][emoji41] [emoji43][emoji848]

 

[AutoWonders]

ordering my first seeds for my first grow in over 30 years.

30 years is a long time and proves that it's "never too late" for a hobby. You came to the right place. I hope your first yield "blows you away"!

 

[G.Leave]

The title has certainly sold me!!! Great to meet you guys!!

 

[bad dragon bzzz]

hi and welcome well you dont need to spend anywhere near 2k.
a min/max temp/hum like so

threw in the garage to gauge day/night temps.do you need more heat or more cooling,,,you got 3 dif seeds guess a 3 plant grow ? a 1x1m tent should do.or you thinking 2x2
there are currently far to many lights to choose from,i dont know whats what.fan/filter combo is handy if you have visitors,but if you ok with the smell no need.couple of 6" osc fans,soil,nutes,a ph pen can save the day.no need to go crazy buying this and that,a few things needed a few things are an advantage some other things are a luxury.
a first grow is about seeing through to the end and getting a few buds out of it,2nd 3rd grows is where you tweek/adjust and become a better grower.
good luck n keep er lit.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

I am pretty sure he means $2000 for the entire year to include all inputs: equipment, electricity, nutrients, everything needed for 3 or 4 grows depending on the strains he choses.

@Smowkabowl We need more information before we can offer valid advice. Climate is a biggy. How many plants at a time? what style of growing (soil, coco hydro etc.)? LEDs lights are the most economical in the long run but need the above information first. Are you a DIY kind of guy or do you need to buy ready to run? What is your power voltage and how many amps and how many circuits are available in the garage. Subtract 20% from the breakers capacity. What is your water source and quality? It may seem a little overwhelming at first but a good plan will save a lot of $$$ down the road. I started too small and spent 3 times to get to where I am now so I know how not to do it again.

 

[Smowkabowl]

@mcpd_refugee @iampepe @Mañ'O'Green @Rollin_along @AutoWonders @912GreenSkell @archie gemmill

Hey guys, thanks for the feedback and interest. Like I said, I have a plan, but nothing is set in stoner yet. Except the first couple rounds of genetics. Cost: $150.00

Now, how to go about painting a masterpiece. To begin with, I just want to harvest a few ounces every couple months or so because at the moment I burn about an ounce or less every month. But I have been vaping a lot more lately and my needs are increasing.

I live in temperate area where yearly avg highs are 71F, avg lows are 49F and yearly avg RH of 80% morning and 52% afternoon. I don't think controlling temp and RH is going to be to difficult, challenging but not impossible. So, with that being said I am going to use a grow tent inside my garage at first to limit, the amount of space that needs to be conditioned. I'm thinking a 48"x48"x80" or a 48"x96"x80" (so I can work the plants an keep the tent closed up and elevate CO2 at the same time), just a cheap one (if I have to tape some pinholes, so be it). Cost $150.00 +$2.00 for Duct tape.

I'm going to need some hardware to condition the air. A 6,000 btu auto control Air Conditioner with Dehumidifier. Cost: $189.00 (the least expensive automatic on/off I could find, set it for 75 or so and it should do the trick). Automatic Dehumidifier. Cost: $179.00. Two 8" oscillating fans. Cost: $30.00. 4" 190CFM Duct fan with carbon filter (not so much for odor control, I want to run a closed system with the AC unit providing most of the air exchange, but to put a muffler on it and keep the air inside as clean as possible). Cost: $150.00. I have also picked out and budgeted for drain hose, light hanger hardware, microscope, light timers, infrared thermometer, water quality testers, hygrometer, digital thermometer and soil meters. Cost: $150.00.

Alright then, let's talk H2O. I have two wells on my property. I will need to do some ppm and pH testing. We recently remortgaged and had the well tested and I'll dig up those results and take a look but all should be good or I would have been informed. One well is softened by salts and is the primary water source for our home and the second well is hooked up to our irrigation system. But anyhow, I am going to get a Home Master Hydrogardner Pro Remineralizing Reverse Osmosis Water Filtering System (take care of pH right away). Cost: $264.00 BAM! Air pump and air stone. Cost: $10.00.

Next up, Media and Nutes! This has probably been the area of biggest concern and after all the mind numbing info I have watched, read and listened to I have decided I am going to KISS this area. To begin with I want to go organic because taste and quality is of primary concern so I have decided to go with Nature's Living Soil Concentrate 5lbs (1lb to 10gal of soil media), Viagrow Coconut Coir 11lbs (2 blocks) and Viagrow 5 gal. breathable fabric pots 10pk and 10, 12' saucers (someone suggested 3 gallon?? because I'm growing short autos and I could get a lot in a small space). Cost (maybe enough for two, 4 or 5 or more plant grows, depends on how much you try to cut the concentrate and size of your container): $85.00.

Now for the biggie! Lighting..... the only thing you have more choices of is SEEDS! Lighting is a close second. I like the COBs and I'm leaning in that direction. I like the Electric Skies and the King COBs because they can cover a large area but because they are passive cooled and have fewer working parts you would think they would be less expensive. I am pretty much sold on Black Diamond Perfect Sun Max Yield (a true 650 watt but they are sold out @ $995.00). So, I am going to wait a little while before ordering and see if they get any in stock soon. If not, I am going with Black Diamond Perfect Sun COB, a true 675 watt @ $800.00. Cost: $800.00.

Grand Total: $2009.00. Well under $2500.00 which gives me some leeway on price changes or upgrades.

There are two areas I still need to decide. First, germination... what do I need? Heating pad? Domed chamber? Second, CO2.... should I even worry about it during my first couple of grows? A set up would run about $239.00.

Let me know what you think. All suggestions will be appreciated. Peace!