Is a generator or battery grow at all possible for good sized indoor grow?? 19 plants

[Moreindoorporfavor]

I have commercial space that i can completely sound proof and scent proof but electricity use is kind of an issue as landlord has expectations on how much is average useage and im trying to avoid red flags...I am interested in knowing if anyone has heard of an indoor grow option other than electric to power two 1000watt LED lights...Tha'ts for each phase of light cycles...36 hours a day...Money is not an issue as I have a lot of overhead saved for this endeavor and Id much more prefer to spend more upfront with energy cost and stay under radar than go standard electrical route and blow my cover....As much as I have searched though I have not thus far found a relatively simple method of doing this.,If anyone is aware of energy equipment that could enable this alternative method please do let me know!
Any advise is much appreciated..

[Potted]

Sure u can rent or lease any size gas or diesel generator u need, u just have to feed the beast,and deal with the noise and fumes. Lol

[Grinder]

Tell your landlord your mining cryptocurrency and will pay the power overages. I am no expert but a battery(ies) capable of powering your setup would be cost prohibitive. You should figure out the exact watts used by LED 's and you can calculate the cost accurately to power them.

[9fingerleafs]

DrPhoton I’m sure dan can give you a few pointers

[Grinder]

Also if you want to grow 19 plants you'll likely want more than 2x 1000W LED's. I believe it's more productive to grow 4-8 large plants than twice as many smaller ones.

[Moreindoorporfavor]

These would be smaller plants 3 ft max quick turnover
Was planning on two 1000 wat black dog LEDS one for each light cycle

[DrPhoton]

First you need to look at what options are availabile to you. If you cannot get power through residential distribution services, then your options become more difficult. In order to power electrical devices, you need generators. To drive those generators you need sources of mechanical energy. This can be things such as wind, air, combustion, nuclear fission, solar etc.

So lets look at each

Do you have a nearby utlizable waterfall (drop of at least 3m).

Do you have strong winds for wind turbines.

Do have good geographical location for solar generation.

Otherwise your only option is combustion. Although a system could be run through a battery system, you will be at will to having to charge them from another electrical source somewhere. Which would likely mean taking batteries to and from the grow area to charge them.

With gasoline generators you will have the noise and related problems to deal with. Such as power fluctuations, line noise, efficiency etc. Its doable. But has to be done right. You would be looking at setting it up how backup generators are configured for hospitals or data centers.

[Moreindoorporfavor]

Unfortunately I am restricted to indoor use! That is the catch, I have no problem constructing a totally sound proof room, however I dont see a way of constructing a ventilation system as this room is within a larger building...So I would only be ventilating into the main building (not outside) creating awareness/potential danger to other tenants...I have 24 hour access to this space and could easily bounce back and forth with batteries...Please tell me more about this battery option is there an option strong enough to power a 2000 watt grow?? One 1000 24 hour the other 12 on 12 off for each cycle...Running it back and forth really wouldnt be a problem as I have access to it..I could have multiples of these batteries and swap one out and one in each day potentially, ones charging while the others supplying... Have you ever heard of someone using this method? Just because it hasnt been done doesnt mean it couldnt be just would be comforting to know that its has been utilized successfully before...Thanks for your help

[DrPhoton]

Not practical and not cheap im afraid. You would need several of the biggest batteries and there would be so many problems to deal with. Such as charging time vs dischraging time.

Much better to go with the generator option.

[DoctorJohnson]

Interesting problem. I've thought about it myself, but just daydreaming...

You can get a nice Honda 2000 watt generator for about $1100. It would be nice to have a backup unit, though, so that takes you to $2200. You can definitely get cheaper generators, but Hondas are quiet and have a reputation for quality.

Now all you have to do is figure out ventilation (exhaust) and fueling...

[Campesino]

I'd say that the "Stealthiest" option is plugging into the wall and coming up with a cover story for the electricity use. Something like hosting a server or charging an electric vehicle. What use does the Landlord think you have rented the space for?

[D.A.A.S.69]

I really like your way Campesino, that's probably the best way to go, easiest and much less expensive, especially the charging the electric car part of it, that's good thinking.
If moreindoor, is using those Phytomax 1000watt lights, by Blackdog, they are over 1000actual watts, each, so he is going to be burning some electricity for sure.
All I can do is wish him good luck, whatever he decides. Lol

[Chefbjy]

That's what I would do campesino. Do 2 1000 watt LEDs draw that much electricity? How much will it make the bill go up a month? I didn't notice a huge difference in my monthly bill but I'm using mh/hps. I have a 1000 watt 3 fans and an inline exauhst my bill at the end of the month only went up 40$ when I was in veg.

[Moreindoorporfavor]

Thats exactly the lights i had in mind
phyto max 1000watt by black dog
Its just i know that if i could find a means of doing this without triggering electric bill i know its fool proof, as I said some more overhead is not really as big a concern..You would never be able to get a car into this space...its within a buidling

[PRIMO]

Got any nearby streetlights out back ?

[9fingerleafs]

i live in another country in the jungle, i paid around 100 bucks materials included and someone tapped me into the grid with a whole new circuit bypassing the meter straight to my roof, in spanish thats called "diablito", you only need to set your own circuit breakers to avoid accidents

[D.A.A.S.69]

@9fingers, No sh-t, I still remember all those real beauties, you grew with a few cfls, ain't that something. ?
He must have a nice size order to fill. But I believe, I could find some quite a bit cheaper,

[DrPhoton]

Actually, it probably has some of the highest efficiency in LED products today. What is not understood is that, yes LED technology is more efficient than gas discharge. But to gain this efficiency you have to run chips at very very low power. That means they will not put out a lot of light and you will have to add many chips in a array to get a desired output. This means a very expensive fixture. Most fixtures are made cheap because its more attractive to the consumer, as a result the fixtures are inferrior compared to gas discharge. As of now, i only know a few manufacturers that make products comparable to gas discharge and only a couple that are marginally superior. But these fixtures are in the early thousands of dollars. Theres no shortcutting the fixture cost to maintaining fixture performance and efficieny. If a fixture is expensive, it likely means its good.

[9fingerleafs]

if i had that kinda money to invest in my grow room i would just buy a few hps thowies at 50 a piece and get a nice and stealthy electric installation to remain hidden from the power company, i bet you can bribe someone to look the other way for a whole month pay worth of cash.

and daas i still grow with CFLs, it may not be the best but for the 2x4 closet that i have they work great, i spend a total of 50 buck DIYing my 20 bulbs 650watts light

[Moreindoorporfavor]

@DANGERDAN: But theres no indoor method to run a generator without proper ventilation correct??

[DrPhoton]

If i had more time i could look at the issue more closely, however at this stage i am tied up. This problem has to be looked at meticulously. There are many variables which could cause a problem.

First as you say, you need an air exchange system, not only for your plants but the generator itself. Fumes need to be vented and fresh air replaced for oxygen.

You will also need to find the right generator, just any old generator might cause problems. Not all generators are made to run long hours. A backup generator may not last long and could break down. Primary generators are made to run continuously.

There is also the efficiency problem, last i checked generators are not as cost effective compared to residential electricity. You would be likely spending several hundreds of dollars PER MONTH! on fuel. But exactly how much depends on your cost per gallon where you live and the efficiency of generator chosen. Have a look as some generators out there and calculate the cost based on its fuel efficiency.

The quality of the output power may be a problem as well, though if you using LED this would likely not be as they have regulators and filters that do a could job of providing clean power to the lighting fixture.

The list goes on, Oil checks, Spills, Noise, time. At the end of the day, it would very likely be cheaper to buy weed than to grow it this way.'

In the next few days if you want me to look at it more closely i can.