a step beyond T5's .....I found T4's

[stefpix]

How do you assemble the bulb with the ballast? was the ballast the cheapest option? any ideas on the spectrum? Have you noticed the leaves getting mor purple or light green since you have been using it?
seems good. Although for 130 / 150 you can get some hydrofarm T5 fixture. 4 ft / 4 bulbs. Now I use 6 T12 full spectrum on a shelf. generic Home Depot. SO i want to check the options... And I am still wondering if soemone is using a 90 W UFO LED lamp - which goes around $130 on Amazon...

[silken]

Originally Posted by camille1585

Silken, these types of bulbs are quite popular here in Europe for terrariums and such, although it's usually bulbs with 1 fold, instead of 3. I use them, and am very pleased. How long they last doesn't really matter, since they still should be changed regularily like with regular fluorescent tubes, if you want maximum light output.

Thanks Camille. My thought on how long they last was do they even last a year. While fluorescent tubes (T5, T8, T12 etc.) usually don't burn out fast, our CFL's (curly lightbulbs to replace incandescents) don't last more than a few months quite often. They are very expensive and supposed to last long but often they don't.

[camille1585]

Originally Posted by silken

Thanks Camille. My thought on how long they last was do they even last a year. While fluorescent tubes (T5, T8, T12 etc.) usually don't burn out fast, our CFL's (curly lightbulbs to replace incandescents) don't last more than a few months quite often. They are very expensive and supposed to last long but often they don't.

I'm surprised that what John has is called T4, if it is the same as the lights of same shape here, then these types of lights are called PL lights or turbo neons. Basically flat CFLs. The advantage of the fold in them is that they pack twice as many lumens as an equivalent length T5, and the bulb hardly takes up more space, so you can fit more of them. That's why they're very popular for terrariums, especially tall ones. They are more expensive to buy than T5, but I think it's worth it because my shelves are not big enough to put in the same wattage worth of T5. I run mine 15 hours a day and the bulbs are well over a year old and running strong. Mine look like this: www.vivaria.nl

[calbunn]

Originally Posted by johnblagg

lol lets just do the math indeed ..... $65 for 130 watts and hmmm 18 inches x 2 is 3 feet long x 2 feet wide at least ..... now if I want to add 2 more lights and make it 260 watts in the same area I have $130 invested if I add yet again 2 more I have 390 watts and $195 invested .....? but I also have lights I can fit anywhere I want and I can buy them at home depo off the shelf ....plus I can put that light where I want it not where they will fit.
I would almost bet 65 watts in 18 x 18 inches is a bit more than 81 watts in a 12 x 24 area

Have you seen the lamps spectral distribution graph? I'd be interested in the wavelengths these lamps emit as well any lumen depreciation data so we know how often they'll need to be replaced?

Any chance they are dimmable?

Thanks

[johnblagg]

I have nothing more than the fact that they are 65 watt bulbs and 6500k color ...my mesurements were off though because they are actualy 4 inches wide by 8 inches long ,the reason I said 18 inches is because when I assemble them to use I fasten two together end to end to make a 18 inch by 4 inch wide light of 135 watts so actually I pack a lot more power in that 18 x 4 inch setup

[johnblagg]

actually Camille the pakage says triple tube compact flourescent and at the bottom t4....

4,300 lumens 10,000 hour life 65 watts
color rendering rating is 80 6500k

[johnblagg]

Originally Posted by calbunn

Have you seen the lamps spectral distribution graph? I'd be interested in the wavelengths these lamps emit as well any lumen depreciation data so we know how often they'll need to be replaced?

Any chance they are dimmable?

Thanks

to be dimmable you have to have a ballast that supports that I think and I dont have any need to dim grow lights ...lol if I need less light I turn some off or use smaller wattage lights

[johnblagg]

Originally Posted by stefpix

How do you assemble the bulb with the ballast? was the ballast the cheapest option? any ideas on the spectrum? Have you noticed the leaves getting mor purple or light green since you have been using it?
seems good. Although for 130 / 150 you can get some hydrofarm T5 fixture. 4 ft / 4 bulbs. Now I use 6 T12 full spectrum on a shelf. generic Home Depot. SO i want to check the options... And I am still wondering if soemone is using a 90 W UFO LED lamp - which goes around $130 on Amazon...

the bulbs have 4 pins on the base 2 go to the yellow wires and 2 go to either the red wires or the blue wires

THe yellow wires are ran to both bulbs ....and the red to one ---blue to the other

The ballast has a diagram on it

[johnblagg]

Ok this is how I built the first sets and mounted them ...no reflectors at all since its a dedicated room and flat white walls.

I think the orchids are happy under them .....

Simple pvc pipe fittings and pure silicone caulk to glue every thing together

I remove the plastic base of the lights that have the pins and solder new wire leads to which I run the wireing from the ballast not that hard to do ...I did run the wires through the pvc on the top arms

There is 130 watts on each arm...and they are 12 inches above the plants

[silken]

Originally Posted by camille1585

I run mine 15 hours a day and the bulbs are well over a year old and running strong. Mine look like this: www.vivaria.nl

So you don't replace them after 12 months? I thought these ones too should be replaced even if they aren't burnt out.