Legal apartment grow with no tent - Odor management?

Hello!

Not my first grow, but my first indoors. I'd love some feedback on my plan before I get started. I live where it is legal for me to grow, but I'm in an apartment. I don't mind if my neighbors notice the smell a bit, but I don't want them to hate me. Worst case, they complain to the police and I have to kill the grow.

For context - one neighbor was growing recently (I could smell it in the whole stairwell, so I assume they weren't filtering), but it wasn't super overwhelming, and I didn't hear of anyone complaining about it. The ones (I assume) had a grow keep a very formal distance when I run into them, so I've not asked about their experience.

Grow Plan:​

• Strain: One plant - Jack Herer Automatic (from Sensi Seeds)
• Light: Spider Farmer SF1000D
• Container: 5-gallon canvas pot
• Medium: Biobizz light mix + Biobizz nutrients

Budget is tight, so I can't easily afford a grow tent + carbon filter. I'll be growing in the corner of my living room.

Flowering would happen during July / early August, which can get warm here (spikes into the upper 80s F). Because of the heat, I'll probably run my lights 18/6 overnight, so that the lights are off during peak heat times during the day.

Odor + Air Management plans:​

• Coway Airmega AP-1512HH in the entryway near the outer door. It has HEPA + carbon filter (I don't expect it to function like a dedicated carbon filter)
• ONA gel placed in the hallway near main door
• Essential oil diffuser with orange oil (mainly for masking in hallway)
• I plan to ventilate the grow space 2–3 times a day (morning, evening, night), using fans and cross-breeze to move air through the whole apartment.
• Add / repair weather stripping on both the outer door and the living (grow) room door.

I'm guessing leaving the grow window cracked overnight would be a bad idea - lots of people have open windows in summer and I don't want to bomb someone all night long. I've been assuming it might be best to crack a window on each side of the apartment, set fans, and let it swap out slowly over an hour, rather than opening all the windows at once and blasting it out in one go. Otherwise, I plan on keeping the grow room door closed as much as possible when not venting. The main goal is to minimize leak into the stairwell.

Does this sound feasible? Or maybe this is just impossible to do without pissing off a few neighbors without a tent/filter?

I know the heat in Augest is probably not ideal (no AC), but I have visitors in October and want it all cleared out by then, and it's been impossible to access the right strains for me with any regularity.

One small grow like this sets me up with medicine for a good year, so I'll probably invest in a tent / filter and rosin press setup at some point. I'm already stretching the budget at the moment, but in the long run, growing my own saves me quite a bit.

I'd love to hear any feedback, opinions, or suggestions (on any aspect of the grow) from experienced growers here.

It sounds to me like you’ve thought this out quite a bit. If the worst case is you pull the plant and start over, you’ve got nothing to loose other than a seed, so I say go for it and see what happens. Neighbors can be a real pain in the ass when they decide, esp if they group together, so if someone complains it might be good to just stop then and save for a tent and filter. My ex grew several plants on her apartment balcony with no issues, so some neighbors just won’t care or say anything.

Start some photos and keep them in veg while you deal hunt. Sure you can find a 2x4 for like $35 and exhaust kit for like $60. Can't come u with a $100 over 2 months then how do you afford to be a stoner?

You can buy used tents and grow equipment for pretty cheap on second hand sites like Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. Fans last a while, and so do tents - if the fan works and the tent zippers work, go for it. Depending on the plant, some will smell like high hill and give you a lot of issues. A small tent is like $50, and a cheap fan/filter setup is less than $100. Try to find a way. It’s a huge difference.