Warehouse Build Plans

[Onetwothree]

One more question...for now...this is going to be a grow in a rec state. I know banks are loathe to store money from grows due to the feds, but will they loan money? Or do we need 100% of the start up funds? That will obviously change everything immensely.

Also, @FooDoo my wife (the consummate business professional that she is) has crunched the numbers again and depending on our number of investors we are thinking you are 100% right and we're going to cut the operation in half. Meaning 2 flower rooms with 10k each instead of 20k each. In all actuality that is probably what we will have to make happen as I think you are right, going too big too fast will be a huge mistake, and is the downfall of many a business...cannabis related or not. We can always expand if things go well, as all the warehouses we are looking at have more than enough room for expansion.

 

[hiboy]

@hiboy how are you spacing your lamps lengthwise? Gavita recommended about 3.5 feet from the center of one lamp to the center of the next lamp. That seems a lot closer than I had expected. I guess that's to get overlap? Just wondering if you (or anyone else) went that close or if you went a bit farther apart. Also, what's the distance from light to wall...or does that not really matter, as long as you have space to get in there and work?

Yes I am turning them sideways so the ends of the bulb are towards the 3 foot dimension

 

[Onetwothree]

Yes I am turning them sideways so the ends of the bulb are towards the 3 foot dimension

What's your crew size (including yourself) for the 20 lamps? We've got three full time (including myself) and I'm wondering if that's gonna be enough hands on deck for 20 lights.

Also, does anybody have solid info on how much trim goes for? I've never sold it for processing, and with our license we won't be able to process it ourselves.

 

[hiboy]

What's your crew size (including yourself) for the 20 lamps? We've got three full time (including myself) and I'm wondering if that's gonna be enough hands on deck for 20 lights.

Also, does anybody have solid info on how much trim goes for? I've never sold it for processing, and with our license we won't be able to process it ourselves.

The funny thing is I almost so all the work myself since I have an auto water system it's very easy to take care of that part
I have a partner who will help me when I need it but typically it's a simple thing of course there are days when you have to spend time couple hours but the way I build my stuff it almost runs itself
Hb

 

[LI grows]

With 2 back to back flower rooms and alternating lights on, you can run every 2 light s off of 1 ballast and pump hot air from one room to the other instead of heating each separately.
Instead of sheetrock, tape, paint you can get matte finish masonite screwed directly to metal studs and re-use the material when youre ready to expand.

 

[Onetwothree]

The funny thing is I almost so all the work myself since I have an auto water system it's very easy to take care of that part
I have a partner who will help me when I need it but typically it's a simple thing of course there are days when you have to spend time couple hours but the way I build my stuff it almost runs itself
Hb

That's quite impressive sir, good stuff.

 

[Onetwothree]

With 2 back to back flower rooms and alternating lights on, you can run every 2 light s off of 1 ballast and pump hot air from one room to the other instead of heating each separately.
Instead of sheetrock, tape, paint you can get matte finish masonite screwed directly to metal studs and re-use the material when youre ready to expand.

That's a good call on the matte masonite, I'm gonna pass that idea on. Thanks man.

 

[Cali clouds]

Build a greenhouse instead. Lol. Prices are dropping horribly. I could build 10,000sf of greenhouse for the cost of your 20 light project easy. Free power and nearly no overhead. Product can come out better honestly if done properly. I've been a indoor guy for 10 years. We have 25 running and I'm considering shutting it all down and investing my time into greenhouseing. Investors are the worst thing ever. That just means you are growing all that weed for other people. Why worry about 20 lights with 4 people, build yourself your own 6 or 8 lights in the back shed and you will see far more profit with way less work. Our place costs 6-8k per month to stay open. Then pay out everyone's cut and you might as well get a job. Also you can be way more greedy when you only have to hustle 5# but when you got 25 sitting and another 25 coming down you have to make it move, and then give it all away. Anyhow good luck. Oh and I do like my partners, just a sad reality

 

[Onetwothree]

Build a greenhouse instead. Lol. Prices are dropping horribly. I could build 10,000sf of greenhouse for the cost of your 20 light project easy. Free power and nearly no overhead. Product can come out better honestly if done properly. I've been a indoor guy for 10 years. We have 25 running and I'm considering shutting it all down and investing my time into greenhouseing. Investors are the worst thing ever. That just means you are growing all that weed for other people. Why worry about 20 lights with 4 people, build yourself your own 6 or 8 lights in the back shed and you will see far more profit with way less work. Our place costs 6-8k per month to stay open. Then pay out everyone's cut and you might as well get a job. Also you can be way more greedy when you only have to hustle 5# but when you got 25 sitting and another 25 coming down you have to make it move, and then give it all away. Anyhow good luck. Oh and I do like my partners, just a sad reality

Yea dude. The prices scare me quite honestly...And I don't see them going back up anytime soon. But who knows, this will be in a new rec state, and they're keeping the # of licenses to a minimum, so hopefully those who get them will be able to see pretty decent market demand.

I appreciate all your words of wisdom and warning though my friend, and believe me I'm doing a lot of soul searching, as it will be a big commitment, and we'd all have to move. I'm very tempted to build out my garage and fly solo...but I don't want to live in fear of the law. I don't know that I have the stomach for it.

 

[CannabisJohn]

Hey guys -

So a few buddies and I are looking to get a business plan together and I thought I'd start a thread to get some help from anyone with some experience. Namely in construction/electrical/HVAC...growing is the easy part.

We've got some money and investors, but of course we want to spend money where we need to, and save money where we can. I'm all about spending a few extra bucks to get things done properly, I hate corner cutting and penny pinching...but we're not rich either, and we need to be smart about our spending...this is where my farm fam comes in!!

Now, with all that being said, my main concern is with cooling. We will have two flower rooms. Both are 16x62 with 20 1k DE lights each (we haven't settled on brand yet...probably leaning toward Gavita since they seem to be the standard, but we're open to suggestions and still doing our due dilligence.) We're planning on putting up drywall and insulating, and my buddy is all good with that, luckily he's pretty handy. However, none of us are electricians and our knowledge of HVAC isn't what it should be. So I'm wondering how we go about cooling the flower rooms? From what I understand a good rule of thumb is 1/2 ton of AC per 1K light. Would we be better off going with a 20 ton central air unit, or going the mini split route? I know those are pretty popular these days, but I have no clue how big we should go with a minisplit. Would minisplit save on installation and ducting cost but be more expensive in the long run, or is it the other way around?

Also, on another note, is it worth it to put up drywall and insulate? Or would we be better off just figuring out a super cheap route to block off the rooms? Figuring on the drywall and insulation to be around 8k...not a huge expense, especially if it cuts down on electric cost month to month...but just wondering as I've seen dudes on here putting up plastic sheets for their walls.

As always, thanks in advance for any and all advice.

Im a HVAC contractor. I would not do multiple mini splits but would do multiple conventional split systems. 1/2 ton per light is a great number. Do at least 2-4 units. This way if a unit goes down you don't have to shut off all the lights. Do split systems not package units because it is easier to control smell that way. Also if your indoor air handlers are placed properly and you have proper air circulation in room you may not need ducts at all. I have done rooms like that many times without ill effects. Insulate properly.

 

[Onetwothree]

Im a HVAC contractor. I would not do multiple mini splits but would do multiple conventional split systems. 1/2 ton per light is a great number. Do at least 2-4 units. This way if a unit goes down you don't have to shut off all the lights. Do split systems not package units because it is easier to control smell that way. Also if your indoor air handlers are placed properly and you have proper air circulation in room you may not need ducts at all. I have done rooms like that many times without ill effects. Insulate properly.

Thanks for the feedback my friend. That's a good call on multiple units in case of failure. hadn't thought of that.

 

[CannabisJohn]

Thanks for the feedback my friend. That's a good call on multiple units in case of failure. hadn't thought of that.

Plenty of experience is why I thought of it. I've done about 100 rooms or more. Plus been doing HVAC for about 25 years

 

[StandingRock]

Prices are only going to drop. I'd plan on $50 an ounce wholesale or less. Also, currently banks won't touch you to lend money. That's working on getting changed but most people want to see how these legal states pan out first.

 

[Onetwothree]

Prices are only going to drop. I'd plan on $50 an ounce wholesale or less. Also, currently banks won't touch you to lend money. That's working on getting changed but most people want to see how these legal states pan out first.

Right now we're basing projections on $1750/lb which is a little less than $4/gram. I'm pretty sure prices will start out well above that, but drop well below that in 5 years. We're on the east coast where the market is nowhere near as saturated as out west. Also, if we are lucky enough to get a license (which is a total shot in the dark) the state we're looking at is awarding less than 100 cultivation licenses...so prices should be up around $2500/lb at the very least for a few years. Still, not counting on that at all. We're working on keeping our overhead as low as possible.

 

[Bulldog420]

Build a greenhouse instead. Lol. Prices are dropping horribly. I could build 10,000sf of greenhouse for the cost of your 20 light project easy. Free power and nearly no overhead. Product can come out better honestly if done properly. I've been a indoor guy for 10 years. We have 25 running and I'm considering shutting it all down and investing my time into greenhouseing. Investors are the worst thing ever. That just means you are growing all that weed for other people. Why worry about 20 lights with 4 people, build yourself your own 6 or 8 lights in the back shed and you will see far more profit with way less work. Our place costs 6-8k per month to stay open. Then pay out everyone's cut and you might as well get a job. Also you can be way more greedy when you only have to hustle 5# but when you got 25 sitting and another 25 coming down you have to make it move, and then give it all away. Anyhow good luck. Oh and I do like my partners, just a sad reality

I have a 10,000 sq ft greenhouse in the works, and the price tag will be very close to a million dollars when done. Not sure where you shop, but greenhouses are expensive. That doesn't include the power drop from PG&E and county taxes.

 

[icanfarm]

I've used orca film in the past and I'm building orca again in the winter it has dropped to the high 30 here and I've kept the room in the high 60 with a quartz heater my room is 20x 24 with 12 ceilings and 11 x 24 veg room that will become another bloom room some day we are still building so only plants are my super glue moms hi boy has helped me a lot for sure

 

[Onetwothree]

I have a 10,000 sq ft greenhouse in the works, and the price tag will be very close to a million dollars when done. Not sure where you shop, but greenhouses are expensive. That doesn't include the power drop from PG&E and county taxes.

Cheers man. Good luck with everything.

I've used orca film in the past and I'm building orca again in the winter it has dropped to the high 30 here and I've kept the room in the high 60 with a quartz heater my room is 20x 24 with 12 ceilings and 11 x 24 veg room that will become another bloom room some day we are still building so only plants are my super glue moms hi boy has helped me a lot for sure

Thanks for stopping in boss I've been following along on your progress. Looking good!

 

[icanfarm]

Right now we're basing projections on $1750/lb which is a little less than $4/gram. I'm pretty sure prices will start out well above that, but drop well below that in 5 years. We're on the east coast where the market is nowhere near as saturated as out west. Also, if we are lucky enough to get a license (which is a total shot in the dark) the state we're looking at is awarding less than 100 cultivation licenses...so prices should be up around $2500/lb at the very least for a few years. Still, not counting on that at all. We're working on keeping our overhead as low as possible.

Brother get ready to work your ass off the only way to keep the build out cost low is do everything you can yourself and I'm counting on the fact that sooner or later people are going to get tired of run of the mill I'm hopping the fact I'm chem and pesticides free and focused on quality is going to mean something lol( I know dreamer right ) but it worked for coffee why not us

 

[icanfarm]

Cheers man. Good luck with everything.



Thanks for stopping in boss I've been following along on your progress. Looking good!

Thanks for posting another farmers perspective sir the more info the better there is never one way and there is always new and better methods I'm herelike most seeking knowledge

 

[StandingRock]

ICanfarm, I have to disagree with part of that. I've owned and operated a few businesses and I've found the less you do yourself the more you make. I've always focused on working on my business, not in my business. If that makes sense.

That being said I don't see a lot of these bigger cannabis companies surviving. The quality will suffer and people won't want it. But who knows people still love Budweiser and people still love microbreweries. To each their own I guess