Best grow room for $200?

[Rick Sanchez]

I've been doing a lot of research on this site for cheap grow rooms and now I'm trying to make one for just $200, It's going to go in my garage and after I grow my first couple ounces in going to sell and buy better equipment, I found a few results for $200 grow rooms but I was wondering if anyone had any more updated suggestions, I was going to get a cheap LED light on amazon but I read it's not worth it because they're Chinese and don't work well, can anyone suggest some good cheap lights?
thanks!

[Canuck147]

Go with CFL if you want cheap.

[dontknownuttin]

This one cost $25.00

[Rick Sanchez]

I hope season 11 comes out soon .-.

[dontknownuttin]

Lights are on loan from the check cashing place down the street

[Beach_Town_Brit]

$200 is a tight budget so you'll want to McGuyver as much as possible from found supplies.
Can you build your own grow closet from found supplies? A mylar "emergency blanket" pasted onto found plyboard can make a really cheap grow room wall.
Temperature/smell control is often expensive. Is the garage air conditioned? Is smell going to be an issue? If not, can you use found supplies for heat/cooling?
Do you have medium, pots, nutes, seeds/clones already ... if not that'll likely take up half of your budget depending on how many plants you grow.
(e.g. Dyna Grow & Bloom, coco, perlite, 3/5 gal smart pots, cheap ph strips, maybe CalMag, a 5 pack of feminized or auto seeds)

What types of plants do you plan to grow? Photoperiod plants will need a light-tight area for the 12/12 flowering period, autos will generally yield less but don't need the light restriction and will harvest more quickly.

I just ordered a cheap chinese brand LED to go with my much more expensive Advanced Platinum P300. These days there are lots of threads about successful grows with generic LEDs. MarsHydro/Roleandro are generally well regarded at that lower end of the market. I just brought the 300W full spectrum roleandro 2nd gen light for $70 on Amazon. It should be fine for two plants and an 18" x 18" coverage area.

I started with CFLs but now that chinese LEDs are so cheap I probably wouldn't go that route today.

Be sure to budget power costs in too. My lights and fans easily add $50 a month to my electricity bill, if I need to air condition that can add another $20-60 a month to the bill.

[Rick Sanchez]

Ok, can you give me an update on those lights? they seem pretty budget orientated and that's where I'm at. Like I said lately the temp has been getting below 50 at night so maybe I'll just turn on the lights at night. I don't have a card and I live in California in a condominium and I don't know if I'm allowed to grow weed but if it's gonna smell outside of the garage that might be a problem and obviously on my budget I can't afford a carbon scrubber :/ I built my computer over the summer and have a extra 140mm computer fan if that helps. Can I DM you for more help? this is going to be a pretty big project (at least for me) and you seem pretty knowledgeable. Like I said I'd like to grow 5 plants but if you think that's unreasonable on my budget then less is more I suppose. I like the article on this site about "training" plants by folding the stem over to help it get more light and the whole cutting the stem sounds a bit risky, but god damn she got 23 ounces with 4 plants. Thanks again!

[Beach_Town_Brit]

I'll definitely update everyone on the new light

I haven't really tried them but there are some specifically low odor strains which might be a good start for you.

We're in California so on some level your neighbors can't say anything, but I do get that keeping the HOA happy can be important. I think long term you'll want to have a proper carbon scrubber set-up and a relatively sealed grow space to use it in.

Your real challenge will be probably be temps, that's certainly my biggest challenge. How hot does it get in your garage in the summer? When I was growing photo periods I ran my lights at night in order to keep them cooler during their "day." I'm in LA close to the beach and find I have to use AC 2-4 months a years (this said, my grow in on the second storey so it's hotter than on the groundfloor).

I used computer fans for intake and outtake on my tent for my first few grows. Okay for air exchange but they really don't cut it to to cool a grow space.

You'll want about 150W of light power per plant in flowering for good yields. More plants need more light which is more electricity. Given the budget limit, and if you only have one light to start I'd aim for 2-3 plants first time around. Unless you're really lucky (or a born natural genius grower), you should be able to get a couple of ounces of each plant.

[Rick Sanchez]

I don't know what the temps are during summer but I know I used to be in there a lot during the summer and it definitely got hot, at least 90 probably 100. If that's too much then do you think a space bucket would be a good idea if I moved it in my room when it gets hot? if not maybe I should make a grow box that has wheels so I can move it easily? Like I said this is gonna be a huge project for me. I still only have $200 but I'm thinking if I make it out of the wood in that entertainment center I can cut down on the costs a lot. Again, update me on that LED light if its better then a high end CFL. Also, does that light work for both vegetative and flowering? again, can I DM you about this? I really need help .-. Do you think grapefruit is a good strain? I'm trying to get high THC (hopefully 20% plus) so tell me if you can think of a good strain. I don't know if blackjack has a ton of odor, but that strain looks awesome. Thanks

[St.buds]

I've been looking at wooden sheds online Walmart has them for around 80 bucks I just think u have to cut wood yourself and build it

[Rick Sanchez]

I have a wooden entertainment center for free that is open on two sides, I figure if I buy two pieces of ply wood I can box one side up and add hinges to the other. the thing its about 6 feet tall but it has shelves in it that go all the way across so I'd have to cut them off but I think it'd be a bit more cost-effective

[St.buds]

Yea if you alrdy have tht then thts wht I would go with and you can put the money to others things you need sounds like your on you way good luck

[Potted]

I built my veg. Room for about 100.00 including T8 lighting I found in back of a supermarket that was being discarded a space blanket and a couple of 4by8 sheets of coragated plastic,some PVC elbows and tubing the bottom is 3/4 ply that I mounted on swivel rollers its portable! Since its inception I have improved it with T5 lighting and a temp.& hum, monitor but for first grow in it used T8 blue white tubs $2.50 a piece it worked fine.put a $10.00 fan inside. Hope this gives you some ideas! Good luck

[Rick Sanchez]

Does it matter what lights you use for vegging? if I can buy some really cheap lights and use them for 2 months till I can afford some decent 600watt HPS's that'd probably work out well

[dontknownuttin]

[Rick Sanchez]

I'm in California and I've already checked craigslist, it's a bunch of used lights that are being sold for just slightly less then retail and I heard I shouldn't buy used lights due to reduced life cycle.

[Beach_Town_Brit]

I agree used lights is a risk, but a used tent could be a great find. Look for a solid brand name like Gorilla or Apollo.

[PuravidaC]

I started out building a small grow box (2X2X4) with a single sheet of plywood and CFL lights and was successful. Now after a couple of grows I am updating setup. Properly sized fan has made a hugh difference with heat and I started with a good carbon filter instead of DIY. I was on a budget in the beginning too and wasn't sure if I had a green thumb. You will learn a lot just by growing and hanging out here which will help you decide how you want to proceed with a more permanent setup. Good luck!

[PuravidaC]

I'm really not the one to discuss COB lighting. I too got confused! But others here have had cob discussions and can explain better. They say it's as good or better than LED and much cheaper.

[PuravidaC]

So far I have had very good experience with CFL but ready to upgrade.

[Beach_Town_Brit]

COB is a type of LED. They do look very cool don't they!
Check out GrowMau5 on YouTube. He gets really technical at times but I still find him the most accessible COB guru.