A roofer set up a sophisticated cannabis growing operation at his flat to save himself £130 a week he was spending on his drug habit.
Dominic Biddlestone used his DIY skills to set up a tent inside a bedroom of his Dawlish flat where he installed lights, fans, and ventilation.
He was caught when a gas inspector working at a nearby property became suspicious of the strong smell and called in the police, Exeter Crown Court was told.
Biddlestone's growing operation in Cousens Close, Dawlish was big enough to have produced a crop worth £23,500 but he had no idea how successful it would prove and planned to smoke the entire harvest himself.
Police recovered 28 growing plants from the tent and drying leaves from an earlier crop elsewhere in the flat.
Biddlestone, aged 25, who has since moved to Burnhouse Lane, Exeter, admitted production of cannabis and was curfewed for three months and ordered to pay £400 costs by Assistant Judge Advocate Mr Alan Large.
He told him:"When I read a description of this case the operation sounded very amateurish but I have looked at the photographs and it appears to be a bit more professional. You could easily be in a whole lot more trouble than you are.
"I am not going to send you to prison because you have admitted what you have done, turned your life around and got a job. I don't think you will do it again."
Mr David Bowen, prosecuting, said Biddlestone's flat in Dawlish was raided by police after a gas inspector working at nearby premises reported the smell to the police.
They found drying plants in the flat and a two metre square tent in a bedroom with ventilation and lighting systems and sealed windows.
A drugs officer estimated the 28 plants were capable of producing a yield which would be worth between £5,500 and £23,520, depending on how it was sold.
Biddlestone told police he started the growing operation using advice from the internet because he was a heavy user who spent £130 a week on the drug and wanted to save money.
Miss Emily Cook, defending, said:"He looked it up on the internet. He is a practical man, a roofer, and capable of putting it together. He was no more than an enthusiastic amateur.
"There were no scales, no messages on his phone, and no evidence of dealing. It was for his personal use. Since his arrest he has thrown himself into his roofing work."
