Where I've got to so far

Chia Farming & Harvesting
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I accept this might be very dull.

So I have been gradually plotting since June and have reached 2000 plots or 0.2PB.
I have 1x 24 drive Netapp LFF disk array full of mainly 8-12 TB drives all ex-data centre bought for around £8/TB and have just started to fill the second array with more repurposed drives.

I run a Dell R415 as the farmer, which also runs a VM with Flax farming on it. Flax accesses the Chia plots via network share, but it is the VMware internal network so it doesn’t cause missed challenges etc… I have a Dell R620 as a plotter with dual E5-2670 processors and 384TB ram.

I have been pooling since official pooling came out and have replaced all my previous 500 OG plots with OP plots. Started with Maxiopool then moved to FindChia.

I just hit 4 XCH today entirely farmed. I have not bought any XCH.
I have about 35 XFX entirely farmed.

I have used around 3400 kWh of electricity so far, prices are high-ish where I am and my rack is at my workplace where businesses pay VAT on electricity at 20% not 5% like domestic users. I am moving soon and plan to relocate the rack somewhere at home where the heat will be a desirable byproduct.

Obviously, at this point, the electricity is a sunk cost and I am nowhere near breaking even on that, although the server rack and other equipment (all secondhand) can be sold or retasked - I am thinking about starting a Storej node once I move and have a better internet connection.

What I have learned:

  • How rack mounted servers generally operate.
  • A fair bit about crypto currency.
  • That a huge amount of still very functional ex-data centre equipment is out there and very reasonable.
  • Buying this equipment, testing it and selling it on is quite profitable and stops it going into the waste network, at least for a few years.
  • That at this stage we cannot know whether Chia will be worth it in the longer term, we either have hope/faith or we do not.
  • That the 9-5 job whilst less interesting, is probably going to earn me more money, because making money from crypto isn’t a skill it’s just a gamble. However, its a gamble I am enjoying, which is the point.
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I just wanted to say that I’m literally right behind you. I have, within the last week, decided that I’m going to “invest” more for chia farming. I will explain the “invest” here shortly.

I’m just under 1k plots with 2 more drives arriving later today. I’m rack and shelf shopping/sourcing. I’m looking into energy costs and deciding how far I want to take this. It’s sort of turned into a hobby. I like the planning and implementation. I like the forward progression…

As far as the “investment” idea goes: Some might call the amount of money “spent” a “waste”. That’s ok. My truck, camper, off-road vehicle, and trailer are no-return cash dumpsters. Chia has a possibility for return. To date I have farmed 2XCH. I need a new hobby for 11 months out of the year. I think this will do nicely.

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I agree. If my intention was to be sure of making money, and required me to raise funds with investors, then I would fail. This is why datacentres are not farming Chia with their ample spare capacity and processing power, the rewards might be low, medium or even astronomical but they are entirely uncertain.

I am having fun and it has turned me on to IT recycling and resale of hard drives and other ex-data-centre gear which has also been fun and made me more money than Chia farming.

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