First time grower. Also growing on a budget.

Well the best place to start is by looking at the Grow FAQ at the top of the page. That will answer a lot of your questions if you decide to read it thoroughly.

I'm on my first grow and I am only using 1- 4ft Florescent Fixture which holds 2 bulbs. and two Compact Florescent's on the sides. And they are coming along GREAT!

If you go with the cheaper set up like me, you wont spend more than 50 on lights.. but if you have that money you were talking about. Go with a High Pressure Sodium for sure.

Originally Posted by JD886

Hi all!

Obviously, I am a first timer to all this, so naturally my knowledge on a few things are lacking. I have gone over this site for the past couple of days, so I know more than I did before, but still no experience. Obviously.

Anyway, we just planted seeds yesterday. We currently have them under a fluorescent light in a dark area (our grow set up might be the most ghetto thing ever), and as I read more, I am becoming aware this is quite the investment.

So, my question is this: Where could I go about obtaining the most basic things I need (lights, meters, nutrients, etc)., and for a decent price? I prefer buying them in person, as I would like to avoid charges on my card from growing shops online. My budget is between 300 to 500 dollars for now. I also live in a rather conservative state, so certain shops aren't in abundance here.

Sorry for being a complete newbie guys. Any help will be appreciated!

p.s. I know a lot of forums have certain etiquette to follow. So let me know if I am being a total dumbass here.

Most of the stuff you need can be found at a Home Depot, Walmart stores like that. I just picked up a cheap shop light anf flouro grow bulbs at walmart for under $20. You can even get your soil. pots, nutes there too. If you want to do a stealthy grow, you can convert a cabinet with items found in this store too. Good luck

Well, if your area has no hydroponic/horticulture shops, you're gonna have to buy it online, you can go to HTGsupply.com, BGHydo.com, elights.com, wormsway.com, etc. You'll just want a low wattage HPS for now. 180-250$$
As for nutrients, meters, timers, fans...all that can be bought in your local Kmart/Walmart store. or any store with a Gardening section. maybe not the timers and fans in the gardening section...but you'll be able to find it Nutrients - gardening section - 10-20$$, meters - not sure what section, probably home comfort - just get a hygrometer(I think that's what they're called) but it tests humidity and temp. only 20$$ at most. PH meter - gardening section - 5$, timers - electricity/lighting section - 5-20$$ fans - most likely home comfort, computer fans are cheaper if you can find them - 10-40$$

I saw they had both mH bulbs and hps bulbs at lowes. They were reasonably priced too, which made me curious. Seeing as though they were MUCH more expensive online, I had to wonder if they were charging a premium, or if the bulbs were more efficient.

Or first big buy will be a mh bulb. Looking at 400-600 watts.