High Power Homes Drawing Attention

kevz

kevz

Bluelighter
Joined
Dec 29, 2005
Messages
1,472
Location
Virginia
by Martin van den Hemel, (Source:Richmond Review)
07 Oct 2006

British Columbia
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Richmond Fire Chief Jim Hancock says councillors will have a report in their hands next month on an initiative aimed at helping weed out local marijuana grow-ops.

Hoping to mirror the successes in Surrey--where a joint initiative with B.C. Hydro sees that city's firefighters check on homes that use much more than the normal amount of electricity which is often a tell-tale sign of a grow-op--city staff are studying whether it's feasible to set up something similar here.

During home inspections in Surrey, some 150 children have been found living in homes converted into marijuana grow-ops. The electrical wiring in these homes is often tampered and chemicals and moulds make for less than ideal living conditions for children.

http://www.mapinc.org/norml/v06/n1349/a08.htm
 
Firefighters find pot greenhouse

Firefighters find pot greenhouse

Published: Monday, Oct. 16, 2006

HOOKSETT (AP) – Firefighters called by neighbors to battle an electrical fire on the outside of a house made a surprise discovery – a basement full of marijuana plants.

As firefighters arrived around 4:30 p.m. Saturday, they saw a man flee the Evelyn Street house in a car, police said. After fire crews put out a blaze that started at the electric meter, they checked the house for damage and found the indoor pot farm.

State and local police and federal Drug Enforcement Administration obtained a search warrant and entered the home Saturday night. They found about 700 marijuana plants being grown in a sophisticated hydroponic greenhouse.

Local police said it was one of the largest drug seizures in state history.

No one had been arrested by early Sunday afternoon. Police were trying to locate the homeowner.

http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061016/NEWS02/110160269/-1/COMMUNITY07
 
Thought I'd post that, although it doesn't have to do with the electrical bill, it did have to do with fire fighters finding the plants :P
 
kevz said:
Richmond Fire Chief Jim Hancock says councillors will have a report in their hands next month on an initiative aimed at helping weed out local marijuana grow-ops.
Click to expand...

No pun intended I assume...
 
I wonder how many of these high-powered homes double as practice space for bands. When I used to practice with my band a few times a week at my place there was a definite spike in power usage.

I doubt increased power usage alone would constitute probably cause for a search.
 
wizekrak said:
I doubt increased power usage alone would constitute probably cause for a search.
Click to expand...
Why not? If a house is all of a sudden drawing ten times more power than it's neighbors over the course of a few months, I doubt any judge would have trouble authorizing a search warrant.
 
Nonsense. If you use five times more power than the calculated average for homes your size, there aren't many things that can be the cause of it.
 
can't they also detect the infrared signature of the plants through the walls by helicopter?
 
I heard they have a difficult time distinguishing the difference between marijuana plants and tomatoe plants, does any body know if there is any truth behind that?
 
Probably, but how many people grow tomatoes like that? Especially in an area known for indoor grow ops...
 
rocklobster said:
Nonsense. If you use five times more power than the calculated average for homes your size, there aren't many things that can be the cause of it.
Click to expand...

It doesn't say 5 times the usage it just says "significant". That could easily be double the usage for a home of a given size. A musician with his own studio, a homeowner with his own pool, or collector of exotic fish and reptiles could all reach this level of power usage. Most people who use excess power to grow marijuana will most likely splice power off another line or set up some kind of secondary supply (via solar power or generator).

In my opinion increased power consumption does not equal probably cause to search a home. Add that to mould damage on the exterior and the smell of marijuana permeating from the building and you'd have a case. IR helicopter scans are an American thing as far as I know, if marijuana is grown in the basement the attic and roof will produce the same heat signature as a standard home.
 
kevz said:
During home inspections in Surrey, some 150 children have been found living in homes converted into marijuana grow-ops. The electrical wiring in these homes is often tampered and chemicals and moulds make for less than ideal living conditions for children.
Click to expand...

But if "the children" were living in a tomato grow-op under identical conditions, it would be a "wonderful introduction to the world of botany, hydroponics, and agriculture."
 
Hehe, yeah, that's fucking infuriating. I know guys who are brain-retarded cuz they lived near potato fields since they were kids, where they used like military-grade biological warfare to keep bugs out.

Sprinkle in the word "marijuana", the world flips out. Because fuck hippies and peace and love!!! Money is where it's at, dammit
 
Its not the heat signature of the plants that is the problem, its the lights themselves. This is only really a problem for commercial growers. If you are growing for you and your buddies, or a pound every couple months, I don't think you have much to worry about.

Also, if you have central heating/air, as most modern homes do, you can scrub the grow room air coming off the lights and redirect it throught the ventilation system with high static pressure blowers and inline fans, to even out the temp of the home.

There are LOTS of ways to waste power too. If I waited until it got cold, and then kept my dwelling really toasty warm, ran my sound system and TV all the time, kept all my computers crunching, cooked with the oven instead of microwave, and used the washer and drier ineffeciently, I'd pull more power than I would with a small time grow (and I know this for a fact).

There are tons of ways to reduce your power comsumption to hide small/med grows. You can even get LED light fixtures now that go into normal bulb sockets. Things like that add up.
 
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