Just starting a grow - Will PG&E give me up?

Hey there RIU, I'm down here in SoCal planning on starting a grow in my garage with around 10,000-15,000W in lights, AC, etc... my question is, will PG&E report me to the cops?

Definitely going to be growing under 99 plants, probably around ~50-60 at the most.

Anything I should worry about?

Also going to be starting a delivery service style dispensary and try to incorporate as a collective. Anyone been down this road before? I'd appreciate any feedback, thanks!

Well as long as you stay under your limit you will be good. PG&E needs your money, they went bankruptcy not to long ago.. So no they will not tell on you. If you get a visit just be under your limit. =)

I dont know if they will report you. But, you can probably expect a visit from them. Going from almost no watts to 15k is a big jump.

azzbla said:

Hey there RIU, I'm down here in SoCal planning on starting a grow in my garage with around 10,000-15,000W in lights, AC, etc... my question is, will PG&E report me to the cops?

Definitely going to be growing under 99 plants, probably around ~50-60 at the most.

Anything I should worry about?

Also going to be starting a delivery service style dispensary and try to incorporate as a collective. Anyone been down this road before? I'd appreciate any feedback, thanks!

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As long as you're never late paying your bill PG&E will not mess with you. Pay on time and you've got nothing to worry about.

adower said:

I dont know if they will report you. But, you can probably expect a visit from them. Going from almost no watts to 15k is a big jump.

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They don't care. They want your money. They used to turn people in and the result was people just stole power. So they don't do that anymore.

Just to be clear, when you guys talk about the limit, is it the amount we're legally able to have as a dispensary growing for x amount of patients /w 6 per patient or is it the 99 federal limit or something else?

No, like everyone said they want your money! If you become under the polecia's radar, and they want to pull a warrant, they will just request ur PG&E bill to show a judge your usage spike. This judge will likely give them a warrant needed to check you out.

But, like you said your plan to stay prop SB420 compliant. So don't worry grow it up!

Cali law in all most all places says, 100 SQF of grow space indoor max, no more then 1200 watts of lights, no co2, and maintains one bathroom with out grow equipment,
Any other questions feel free to ask.

azzbla said:

Just to be clear, when you guys talk about the limit, is it the amount we're legally able to have as a dispensary growing for x amount of patients /w 6 per patient or is it the 99 federal limit or something else?

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The federal 99 limit. Exact plant limits in Cali are unclear these days. And now the federal limit is not even a sure thing. According to Eric Holder they will no longer be prosecuting by plant limit anymore. But I'd still stay under 99 just to be safe. If you look into it you can get a doctors rec for #5 99 plants pretty easily for ~$200. It's not a guarantee but it is defensible in court thanks to the Kelly Decision (California supreme court). It's a lot more defensible than a collective grow. Stacking recs holds up if all the recs are from people who live at the house but that doesn't always work when you're talking about growing for people who don't live there.

To do a grow like this you should consult a LOCAL 215 lawyer who will give you a plan and tell you what you can or can't get away with. It varies from county to county so get a lawyer that lives in your county. The laws aren't clear, it's all grey area, so it's less about what the law actually says and more about what local prosecutions have been successful or unsuccessful. A local marijuana lawyer will have that info.

HTP said:

Cali law in all most all places says, 100 SQF of grow space indoor max, no more then 1200 watts of lights, no co2, and maintains one bathroom with out grow equipment,
Any other questions feel free to ask.

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That's actually only in Humboldt. It's the only place I know of with a wattage limit.

azzbla said:

starting a grow in my garage with around 10,000-15,000W in lights, AC, etc...
Anything I should worry about?

Also going to be starting a delivery service style dispensary and try to incorporate as a collective. Anyone been down this road before? I'd appreciate any feedback, thanks!

Click to expand...

Please be careful around your power...

15,000 watts is upwards of 60 amps…

Personally, I’d run a #6 /3 w-ground from your panel [60 amp breaker add to existing panel.] new breaker in panel only uses two slots, if your panel is full, move some ’load’ around … to make room…

Then I’d put a new [100 amp sub panel-100 amps is the ‘bus’ rating]…

Lowes has them for under $60 with breakers included, get one with at least 6-8 20 amp breakers…

I’d then put this new 36-42 space full size panel in your grow area…

Then just run every light/fan/etc/AC on a dedicated circuit, right to my new sub panel…. Never double up your lights on same circuit, even though two 400 watt lights would be fine, and to code, think ahead, and at times [in future] you might need to do service on one light, and if they were all on dedicated circuits, then you could kill one light at a time…lamps burn…no touch the glass of the lamp with your bare hands, oil from your fingertips will kill the life of lamp…


Good Luck!

Heres another bit of information which I hope it does not get adopted in other areas in Calif. In Arcata they just passed an ordinance called the whatever electric tax. If your wattage exceeds 300% of the normal household you are subject to taxation and I believe the number is around 45% if its a residential zoned area. That was a joint effort with the Arcata City Council and PG & E. That gets implemented this fall. So prolly all those big commercial growers in residential areas will or have been moving out to other adjacent towns like Eureka, Mckinleyville, and Blue lake. Those aforementioned city councils will probably model something after Arcata to drive huge commercial growers out of residential areas.

Dan Kone said:

That's actually only in Humboldt. It's the only place I know of with a wattage limit.

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Sac, Placer, Yuba, Sutter, Bute, El Dorado ..
The list goes on.

They made it that low to try to prevent people from burning there houses down.

HTP said:

Sac, Placer, Yuba, Sutter, Bute, El Dorado ..
The list goes on.

They made it that low to try to prevent people from burning there houses down.

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Interesting. Didn't know that. That is also being proposed in Santa Cruz county. A dispensary (Santa Cruz Mountain Naturals) is the one pushing for it.

I though federal cannabis is illegal and they dont think it has any medical value what so ever? the 99 limit is the state limit not a federal limit

here is the state laws i look at http://www.canorml.org/medical-marijuana/local-growing-limits-in-California

hexthat said:

I though federal cannabis is illegal and they dont think it has any medical value what so ever?

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Correct. However it seems like they are re-prioritizing what laws they are choosing to enforce. It's not just about what the laws say, it's about how they are implemented. Colorado and Washington will be the test.

the 99 limit is the state limit not a federal limit

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That state limit is based on the federal limit. The feds have had a long standing policy of not getting involved unless it's more than 99 plants, that's where the state limit comes from.

It's also because at 100 plants the federal mandatory minimum sentence kicks in.

Sand4x105 said:

Please be careful around your power...

15,000 watts is upwards of 60 amps…


Good Luck!

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I was just thinking this, listen to this guy.. anyway.. dont steal power, use Solar if you can, make sure you are medical and prop 215, don`t use an apartment/condo, and don`t burn your house down. Sorry, it needs to be said. PG&E does not give a fuck if you are burning 1kwh or 15kwh. Keep in mind, every time you have 15-20kw on a timer, every time that timer bangs on, half the street browns out..

HAHAHAHA...



..prob gonna cost you $1000 or more per month too.

Dan Kone said:

The federal 99 limit. Exact plant limits in Cali are unclear these days. And now the federal limit is not even a sure thing. According to Eric Holder they will no longer be prosecuting by plant limit anymore. But I'd still stay under 99 just to be safe. If you look into it you can get a doctors rec for #5 99 plants pretty easily for ~$200. It's not a guarantee but it is defensible in court thanks to the Kelly Decision (California supreme court). It's a lot more defensible than a collective grow. Stacking recs holds up if all the recs are from people who live at the house but that doesn't always work when you're talking about growing for people who don't live there.

To do a grow like this you should consult a LOCAL 215 lawyer who will give you a plan and tell you what you can or can't get away with. It varies from county to county so get a lawyer that lives in your county. The laws aren't clear, it's all grey area, so it's less about what the law actually says and more about what local prosecutions have been successful or unsuccessful. A local marijuana lawyer will have that info.

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I disagree. The 99 rec is not as good as a stack of recs from legitimate patients that you are serving. Look at it from a police officers point of view. You have a 30lb grow. When the officer asks you if you are going to smoke all of that yourself what will you say? I'd say "is that a challenge sir, I'll get started now"
Seriously Don is on the mark about seeing a lawyer. If you have the 30k to set the house up, then you should have 2-3k to see a lawyer and get as legal as possible.