Printable View
the bulbs are cheap; 1000bulbs has 92lumen/watt bulbs at less than five bucks a pop. but what about fixtures? where can i get cheap fixtures? does home depot have cheap fixtures? i'm just looking for very basic standard hanging 2 and 4 bulb 4foot fixtures. i'm hoping for something under $40
anything online? i'm striking out
btw: i'm putting this here cuz the "indoor lighting" forum is dead as all get out, if mods want to move it, fine
btw: this site has way too many forum subcategories :)
staked out home depot this morning and after searching there and online i think i have my answer: there are no cheap T5HO fixtures :) they're all expensive, and i couldn't find any at all at home depot. they have some T5 bulbs, but they're not the 54watt high output
htgsupply seems to have some of the better deals, but they're not cheap
still, 92 lumen/watt in a flourescent tube you can put right on top of your plants? come on, that kicks ass, and if you can't handle the heat of an hps for flowering, a little LST'ing and some T5HO's and you've got a very capable system.
compare this to standard cheap cfl's which get about 65lumen/watt. massive difference. still, because of the price, in a small grow it might take a little while before the T5's have payed for themselves over some cheap walmart cfl's. anyway, still good stuff
oh pps: i come home from the depot, look myself in the mirror, and say "hey, you look like a guy who wants to grow some weed"................ :) no wonder i got suspicious looks..........gotta shave and keep the beanie at home when buying soil and lights :)
you are correct sir. there are no cheap t-5's! not yet.... they really are the shiznit though!!!
I frequently receive junk mail with commercial lighting products. Hi-Bay 4' four lamp F54T5 style fixtures w/lamps cost about $215 or less at wholesale prices. Also E-bay often have a few of these. I paid $40 for a four lamp new in the box F54T451 (4100K lamps) I bought 3000K for budding and 5000K for veg at about $9 per lamp.
Shov
sorry about the #s the lamps are actually
F54(watts)
T5 (tube style)
(4100K) manufacturer's color code/temperature
Shov
yeah, you caught a steal there
I dont usually buy floros, but at Econolight, they have 6 tube set ups, but you got to buy a case of bulbs.
HO 4' Sun Blaze T5 Strip Lights are only $25 at Grow Lights, Grow Bulbs and Hydroponics - Plantlighting Hydroponics & Grow Lights.
These are chainabled and come with 6500K bulbs.
See .: Sunlight Supply - horticulture and aquarium lighting systems :. Website for specs
I just bought an 8 lamp, T5HO Sunblaze Fixture off Ebay for $250 w/ 3500k 5000 lumen bulbs....not a bad deal if a four lamp fixture is gonna cost $215 without bulbs...gotta love ebay...except for those second-hand/homemade junk sellers.
Also, while not near as hot as an HPS, T5's aren't as cool as say...T12 (not the VHO). and with 8 of those bad boys lined up next to each other, it radiates some heat, but my plants LOVE it, just gotta keep to closet door cracked a bit to let some heat out.
I was very pleased with the quality of the Sunblaze Fixture, and it came with bulbs! 40,000 Lumens means I lose 10,000 to a 400w HPS, but I can easily make that up with a little side lighting...when heat is an issue, T5's are a GREAT choice, but fixtures are not always affordable.