Not sure if anyone else has attempted this yet. I currently have three different growing techniques working. The first grow is in a commercially available 2’X2.5’ grow tent with a top brand LED and commercially available soil and nutrients in a 5gal cloth pot. The second is in a complete turn-key purchased pre-fab space bucket system from a very reputable vendor with commercially available soil and nutrients in a 3gal cloth pot. And the third is in a Grobo hydroponic setup with supplied nutrients in a coco pod. All three setups are growing automatic Purple Kush seeds for comparison. I have used all three methods separately for previous grows.
My pros/cons of all three…
Grow Tent: $100 - $1000
Gorilla tent 2X2.5, Kind K3 l300 LED
Pros - Tried and true over many years way to go from seed to harvest, can be as hands-on as a grower wants to be/satisfying being deeply involved in the grow process, not limited to one outlet for supply choices, soil is a forgiving medium for problems that may arise during a grow and can be reused if amendments are added, CO2 can easily be added to a grow tent, almost no smell during the grow process, low startup cost if a grower is thrifty and handy instead of buying a pre-fab kit. There is a wealth of info on the interwebs so a grower isn’t reinventing the wheel if this is the chosen path.
Cons - Mid-range power consumption for air circulation and lighting, regular attention is required (light/feeding/watering schedules adherence), not really stealthy, can be messy if a grower isn’t careful but can be contained within the grow tent, assembly time can take hours to be up and running depending on how OCD a grower wants to be.
Space Bucket: $50 - $750
MostlySafe Grendel space bucket
Pros - Very efficient use of space, more efficient power consumption than a grow tent, stealth factor is over the top, a grower still gets the hands-on experience similar to a tent grow, not limited to one outlet for supply choices, soil is a forgiving medium for problems that may arise during a grow and can be reused if amendments are added, lowest smell during a grow except during watering/feeding, lowest startup cost of all three systems (some build components can be had for free if building from scratch instead of going the pre-fab kit route), a burgeoning and very inventive online community that is always coming up with new tips/techniques to enhance the grow experience, 30 minute assembly time for the kit I purchased.
Cons - Regular attention is required (light/feeding/watering schedules adherence), can be messy like a grow tent but is even less forgiving in such a small footprint.
Grobo: $2000+ if not an early adopter
Pros - Small foot print, attractive casing (rivals high quality household furniture), ease of operation with built in automation/app, minimal maintenance requirements, VERY hands-off approach.
Cons - Power consumption is a little higher than a grow tent using soil just because of the the aquaponics setup, limited to one outlet for costly supplies, weekly reservoir drain/fill, bright light from the glass door can be annoying depending on where you set up your unit, more smell noticed during the grow process, hydroponics setups are not as forgiving as soil should a problem with a plant arise, drain to waste can pollute local water tables in quantity.
Every grower has their own preferred method of getting to a finished product depending on how involved in the grow process they want to be. Trying these three similar yet different methods of going from seed to harvest will hopefully help me find my preferred method. My initial observations and gut feelings lead me to think I’d be happier to lean more towards the Space Bucket method for cost, stealth, personal grow process involvement, and ease of operation. But again, everyone is different. How I feel about all three methods may change 4 months from now. Regardless, I’m sure I’ll cross the finish line with all three techniques and be happy with the results of each.
Again, and I can’t stress this enough, these are my thoughts and feelings about how I grow. Please draw your own conclusions from your own experiences and share what you learn with our community.
And as a parting thought: Don’t be put off by answering a basic question for a new grower who is just starting out. We were all new growers once…
