Bungalow 8-Step Automation Blueprint: Room-by-Room Layout With ROI Timeline
This guide is a room-by-room build order. Follow these steps in sequence to avoid common automation failures.
Step 1: Set Up The Loading Bay (Day 1, $0)
Before hiring anyone, clear the Bungalow's ground floor. The default furniture blocks employee pathing.
- Remove all furniture from the main room (table, chairs, lamp -- store or trash them)
- The loading bay is the south entrance -- keep this area entirely clear
- Goal: Open floor plan for shelf and station placement
Step 2: Install Ingredient Shelves (Day 1, ~$200)
Place 2 Large Storage Racks near the loading bay entrance. These are your ingredient buffers.
- Shelf 1: Weed ingredients (OG Kush, Green Crack, Sour Diesel as base)
- Shelf 2: Additives (Banana, Cuke, Battery, Horse Semen, Mega Bean)
- Position: Within 2 tiles of the loading bay door
- Why: Handler route from bay to shelf must be short (max 3 tiles) or route errors spike
Step 3: Place Mixing Stations (Day 2, ~$500)
Install 2 Mixing Stations in the center of the ground floor, side by side. Daisy-chain them using the Clipboard.
- Station 1: Input from Shelf 1 (base ingredient)
- Station 2: Input from Shelf 2 (additives)
- Output: Both stations output to a single transit shelf
- Cost: $100 per station ($200) + Clipboard ($25)
- Community note: One Chemist handles both stations efficiently. The Fandom Wiki and multiple Reddit threads confirm a 1:2 Chemist-to-Mixing Station ratio.
Step 4: Hire The Chemist (Day 2-3, ~$1,500)
Hire 1 Chemist (unlocked at Hustler II). Assign them to both Mixing Stations.
- Wage: ~$200/day
- Assignment: Station 1 and Station 2
- Test: Place 2 base ingredients + 2 additives on the shelves. The Chemist should pick from Shelf 1, mix at Station 1, move product to Station 2 via the daisy-chain, mix again, and output to the transit shelf.
- Failure check: If Chemist stands idle, verify daisy-chain is set. If still idle, the shelf-to-station route may be blocked.
Step 5: Set Up Packaging (Day 3-4, ~$300)
Place 1 MK1 Packaging Station (NOT MK2) and 1 output shelf on the ground floor.
- MK1 Packaging Station: $150
- Output shelf: $100
- Why MK1 and not MK2: The Fandom Wiki and community testing confirm that Handlers on MK2 Packing Stations operate at roughly half the speed of MK1. This was reported as a bug in v0.3.4f8 and has not been fully resolved as of v0.4.5. Use MK1 for Handler-based packaging. Reserve MK2 for manual packing only.
Step 6: Hire The Packer (Day 4, ~$1,500)
Hire 1 Packer (unlocked at Hustler III). Assign them to the Packaging Station.
- Wage: ~$200/day
- Assignment: MK1 Packaging Station
- Failure check: If Packer isn't bagging, the output bin may be full or product quality settings may be wrong. Check station output quality setting -- set to "Any Quality" unless you're specifically filtering.
Step 7: Hire The Handler (Day 4-5, ~$1,500+)
Hire 1 Handler (unlocked at Hustler I). Set up exactly 4 routes:
- Loading Bay to Shelf 1 (ingredient pickup)
- Loading Bay to Shelf 2 (additive pickup)
- Mixing Station 2 output to Packaging Station input
- Packaging Station output to product shelf
- Wage: ~$200/day (hire fee: ~$1,500 + $100 per existing employee)
- Route limit: Keep at 4 routes max. Community testing shows route errors spike above 6 routes. With 4 routes, error rate is near zero.
- Bottleneck alert: The Bungalow's limited shelf space means you can only stock 2 ingredient types per shelf. Keep recipes to 2-3 ingredients max.
Step 8: Set Up Delivery Supply (Day 5+)
Use Albert Hoover's Delivery app (unlocked at max relationship) to auto-supply your shelves.
- Order sizes: 15-20 units per delivery (lasts 3-4 in-game days at 8-12 bags/day production)
- Cost: ~$200-300 per delivery
- Frequency: Order every 3 in-game days
- Dead Drop vs Delivery: Use Dead Drops for relationship building (first 8-10 orders), then switch to Delivery for regular supply.
ROI Timeline By Setup Tier
| Metric | Entry (Steps 1-4) | Mid (Steps 1-6) | Full (Steps 1-8) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property cost | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 |
| Setup cost | $2,200 | $4,000 | $5,500 |
| Total investment | $32,200 | $34,000 | $35,500 |
| Employees | 1 Chemist | 1 Chemist + 1 Packer | 1 Chemist + 1 Packer + 1 Handler |
| Daily wage bill | ~$200/day | ~$400/day | ~$600/day |
| Production rate | 4-6 bags/day | 6-8 bags/day | 8-12 bags/day |
| Revenue/day (est.) | $400-720 | $600-960 | $960-1,440 |
| Net profit/day | $200-520 | $200-560 | $360-840 |
| Break-even | ~62-160 days | ~61-170 days | ~42-99 days |
| ROI adjusted for property | 0.6-1.6%/day | 0.6-1.6%/day | 1.0-2.4%/day |
The full automation setup (Steps 1-8) breaks even in roughly half the time of the entry setup. This is because the Handler dramatically increases production volume -- from 6 to 12 bags per day. The $1,500 Handler hire fee pays for itself in about 2-3 in-game days. If you can afford the upfront cost, go straight to full automation.
Practical Example
You're at Hustler II rank with $40,000 saved. You buy the Bungalow ($30,000) and have $10,000 left.
Day 1-2: Clear furniture, install 2 shelves ($200), 2 Mixing Stations ($200) + Clipboard ($25). Hire Chemist ($1,500). Total: $1,925.
Day 3-4: Install MK1 Packaging Station ($150) + output shelf ($100). Hire Packer ($1,500). Hire Handler ($1,500 + $100 fee). Total: $3,350.
Day 5: Start Albert Hoover Dead Drop orders for regular supply ($200). Production begins at 8-12 bags/day.
Day 12-15: Break-even on setup costs. From this point, production is pure profit.
Post break-even daily profit: ~$600-800/day (net of wages).
For scaling beyond the Bungalow, see the Manual vs Automation ROI Comparison.
Related Guides
- Manual vs Automation ROI Comparison -- when to upgrade to Barn
- Schedule I Endgame Guide -- what to do after full automation
- Top 10 Community Custom Strains By Profit -- which recipes to automate first
Community Verification & Resources
Data values may shift with patches. Cross-check against community resources before building your strategy.
