New light

[Av8tor1]

cheapest price I found for them was diyreef.com... but if youre close to a Nasville/Knox...etc you should be able to find them locally... Im small town america (E. Ky)

and the fixture source also offers bulbs which would prob do fine, there is a lot of debate on the subject... I wanted something that had a proven plant growth track record though

bulb life is approx 2 yrs with about a +90% lumen maintenance..., these dont weaken with age much at all

http://geocities.com/butchtincher/t5/28345_starcoat_t5_linear.pdf

Av

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

So AV do they need to be hard wired or just a cord made with a 14 or 16 gauge extension cord or something? I am going to be looking into these when I move after school. I am going to use these and the older T8 fixtures to grow my plants in basement grow room in MN. So trying to get as much info as possible so I can start formulating a plan. Thanks!!

 

[Av8tor1]

Hey Josh,

long time no see...

I just used a cord from an old computer with a couple wire nuts.... if you want to be more professional a 1/2" romex adapter would be a nice touch, I just didnt have one handy and couldnt wait

its only 234 watts, just about any cord will handle the load... be sure to use the ground wire of course

MN ey.... you old hound dog

Av

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

Yeah AV the first semester of nursing school was a bear. Not that it was hard or anything just a lot of work.

Thanks for the info on the lights. I might be asking you where you got it again when i start setting up my grow room. My GF just got her papers filed,They waited till the first of the year for tax purposes, and is looking to buy a townhome from her dad. Has a full basement and she has alloted some space for a grow room. So I just need to finish the walls and put up some plastic over the sheet rock to water proof it and then I can start setting up racks and shipping plants there. So this info is good. I hope to find some 4 light T8 fixtures for a good price too. I can get 2 bulb fixtures for 17 bucks at lowes, but I like the 4 light fixtures so we will see when the time comes to getting it set up.

 

[Av8tor1]

have a squizz at foil covered foam panels, they are about $10 ea. at lowes for 4'x8'x1/2"

they are nice for what youre getting into, just a very few mins with a pocket knife and you have an insulated grow room with reflective walls

super easy and nice looking, here is an old pic where I am using them to box in a grow rack... in the image I still need to trim, detail and tape (aluminum furnace tape)... less then a half hour from start to finish.

(old image with T12's)

just hollar mate,
Av

 

[JB_OrchidGuy]

That looks interesting. Where did you get the racks? They look cheaper than the ones I was planning on using. Cheaper is good if they suit the same purpose. I want to utilize the whole space from floor to ceiling. As soon as I find out my space I can make better plans, but that is an idea and possibly cheaper than what I was going to do. I was thinking the 1/4 in plastic walls covering like I have in shower walls or what we have covering the walls in the OR, but that aluminum covered board looks like it will cover 2 birds with one stone. I will not have ot put up Mylar on the walls for reflection. Now if I can stack those racks to the ceiling and have lights between them we might be in business.

 

[Av8tor1]

Josh,

I got them at the local "Big Lots", they are "Mini-Greenhouses"... they came with a vinyl-ish zippered cover that I've never used

They were $18.00 ea.

Check ebay for "Mini Greenhouse", I found several on there for $9.00, but they want $17.00 for shipping....now if they will combine shipping on several units it would be a good deal

Last time I checked the local store, they were out.. wished I had bought two more

Av