A growbox is the foam box with four growing chambers on its plywood base, plus the computer, sensors, cameras, lights and heaters. There are three ways to build the electronics: the breadboard prototype as it stands today, or one of two circuit boards printed and assembled by JLCPCB. All prices in Australian dollars, estimated from typical online prices in October 2026 (US prices converted at about A$1.52 per US$1). The circuit board lines are real costs: JLCPCB's own quote for the boards, live part prices and its published assembly fees for these exact designs, on 3 October 2026. Check the rest before ordering.
Building more brings the price per growbox down, mostly because the circuit boards come in batches of five and shipping is shared.
| Build | A · Breadboard | B · Pi 5 + I/O board | C · CM5 board |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 growbox4 chambers | $668$668 per growbox | $907$907 per growbox | $1,136$1,136 per growbox |
| 6 growboxes24 chambers | $3,636$606 per growbox | $3,780$630 per growbox | $4,512$752 per growbox |
| 18 growboxes72 chambers | $9,846$547 per growbox | $9,864$548 per growbox | $11,844$658 per growbox |
Prices for building a single growbox. Most of the list is the same for every option; the boards, computer and power differ.
| Item | Qty | A | B | C |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boards and wiring | ||||
| Breadboards, T-cobbler + 40-way ribbon, jumper wire kits | – | $43 | – | – |
| TCA9548A mux module, transistors, resistors, LEDs | – | $16 | – | – |
| Breadboard power module | 1 | $5 | – | – |
| I/O board (2 layers, 2 oz copper), printed and assembled · JLCPCB prints at least 5; 2 assembled (one spare) | 1 | – | $206 | – |
| CM5 board (4 layers), printed and assembled · 5 printed, 2 assembled; Ethernet jack bought and soldered by hand | 1 | – | – | $389 |
| Chamber sensor boards · 5 printed and assembled, mostly JLCPCB's fixed fees | 4 | – | $52 | $52 |
| Boards and wiring | $64 | $258 | $441 | |
| Computer and power | ||||
| Raspberry Pi 5, 1 GB · 4 GB adds about $40 | 1 | $70 | $70 | – |
| Pi 5 active cooler, microSD card (32 GB) | 1 | $21 | $21 | – |
| Pi 5 USB-C supply (27 W) | 1 | $20 | $20 | – |
| USB charger for the breadboard and fan | 1 | $30 | – | – |
| 5 V 10 A supply for the loads | 1 | – | $30 | – |
| 40-way ribbon cable, Pi to board | 1 | – | $5 | – |
| Compute Module 5 (4 GB, 32 GB eMMC) · 2 GB / 16 GB saves about $38 | 1 | – | – | $144 |
| CM5 heatsink and fan | 1 | – | – | $15 |
| 12 V 8 A supply, runs everything | 1 | – | – | $33 |
| Computer and power | $141 | $146 | $192 | |
| Sensors and cameras | ||||
| Sensor chips: GY-302 light, TCS34725 colour, DHT22 temperature/humidity | 4 sets | $73 | $73 | $73 |
| Cables to the chambers: jumper ribbons (A) or 10-way ribbons (B, C) | 4 | $8 | $12 | $12 |
| USB cameras | 4 | $122 | $122 | $122 |
| Sensors and cameras | $203 | $207 | $207 | |
| Lights, heat and air | ||||
| LED strips (SK6812 RGBW, 30 LEDs) | 4 | $49 | $49 | $49 |
| White lights | 4 | $30 | $30 | $30 |
| PTC heat pads (5 V, 4–8 W) | 4 | $18 | $18 | $18 |
| 60 mm USB box fan | 1 | $12 | $12 | $12 |
| Lights, heat and air | $109 | $109 | $109 | |
| Box and base | ||||
| Polystyrene (XPS) board, 20 mm: box, lid, dividers, legs | 1 | $38 | $38 | $38 |
| Plywood (4 mm) and glue: base, walls, drawer | 1 | $30 | $30 | $30 |
| 3D prints: light racks and dish holders (filament) | 4 + 4 | $12 | $12 | $12 |
| Petri dishes, 60 mm | 4+ | $8 | $8 | $8 |
| Wire, Dupont plugs, screws, nuts, standoffs | – | $23 | $23 | $23 |
| Box and base | $111 | $111 | $111 | |
| Shipping | ||||
| Parts orders, plus the board order for B and C | – | $40 | $76 | $76 |
| One growbox | $668 | $907 | $1,136 | |
Cost per growbox by group. For B and C the boards drop the most: one growbox pays for a whole batch of five, while 6 or 18 share them. The breadboard build has no board batch, so it's cheapest for one growbox but saves little at volume.
| Per growbox | ×1 | ×6 | ×18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boards and wiring | $64 | $58 | $52 |
| Computer and power | $141 | $141 | $131 |
| Sensors and cameras | $203 | $191 | $177 |
| Lights, heat and air | $109 | $102 | $90 |
| Box and base | $111 | $96 | $85 |
| Shipping | $40 | $18 | $12 |
| Per growbox | $668 | $606 | $547 |
| Per growbox | ×1 | ×6 | ×18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boards and wiring | $258 | $68 | $42 |
| Computer and power | $146 | $146 | $135 |
| Sensors and cameras | $207 | $195 | $181 |
| Lights, heat and air | $109 | $102 | $90 |
| Box and base | $111 | $96 | $85 |
| Shipping | $76 | $23 | $15 |
| Per growbox | $907 | $630 | $548 |
| Per growbox | ×1 | ×6 | ×18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boards and wiring | $441 | $144 | $106 |
| Computer and power | $192 | $192 | $181 |
| Sensors and cameras | $207 | $195 | $181 |
| Lights, heat and air | $109 | $102 | $90 |
| Box and base | $111 | $96 | $85 |
| Shipping | $76 | $23 | $15 |
| Per growbox | $1,136 | $752 | $658 |