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T8 Shop light or T5 HO?

djdestructo

djdestructo

I am looking into getting some lights to grow my seedlings before I get to put them outside in May.
Would a 4 bulb T8 Shop light fixture be enough, or should I invest more and go for a 2 bulb T5HO?
 
both are good I use t-8's myself they were cheap - this year I may buy a bathroom fixture and use flouro bulbs AJ had that setup in one thread and I really liked it for ease of set up
 
Lowe's right now has a 4 bulb 4 foot T8 light fixture no bulbs for $89 and then they also have a 4 bulb 4 foot T5 light fixture for $89... You have to buy T5 HO bulbs at almost $10 a piece (which lowes carries at 6500K) but it is a really great deal right now compared to purchasing a 4 foot t5 HO grow light
 
4 bulb T8 would be plenty to get them ready to go outside. Hell it would be plenty to grow to fruit but thats another thread. Save the money if only for transplants.

Island_Dan said:
Lowe's right now has a 4 bulb 4 foot T8 light fixture no bulbs for $89 and then they also have a 4 bulb 4 foot T5 light fixture for $89... You have to buy T5 HO bulbs at almost $10 a piece (which lowes carries at 6500K) but it is a really great deal right now compared to purchasing a 4 foot t5 HO grow light
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Mine has those 4 bulb 4 footer T8s at 49 bucks a pop.
 
Sorry I am speaking from a standpoint of growing plants full time indoors. I should have answered more appropriately for the question.
 
The T-8 work well for the few months they are under and as MWM mentioned the can go to fruit under them - I have had cucumbers start under them one year
 
Island_Dan said:
Lowe's right now has a 4 bulb 4 foot T8 light fixture no bulbs for $89 and then they also have a 4 bulb 4 foot T5 light fixture for $89... You have to buy T5 HO bulbs at almost $10 a piece (which lowes carries at 6500K) but it is a really great deal right now compared to purchasing a 4 foot t5 HO grow light
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If you are going to pay the freight for the HO bulbs, make extra sure the fixture is also HO. The HO bulb will not output at its rated level if put in a non-HO fixture. T5 is about the same light output as same size T8, but is a little more power efficient. T5HO is almost double the light output per length.

More info here: http://www.lightingtaxdeduction.org/technologies/t5.html
 
djdestructo said:
4 lights or double bulb?
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I had two fixtures that had 2 bulbs a piece in them I guess a four bulb fixture would work just as well - you really dont need a timer either peppers are not photosensitive but definitely 6500 lumens - I would get chains to hang them with or attach to plywood with pulleys or chains. You want to lower the lights till they almost touch the seedling and raise the lights when they start touching. Flouros arent that hot so you wont burn them at all -
 
In the great white north you can grab a 2 Bulb, 4ft T8 Fixture from Home Depot for about $14. I run two of them for my seedlings/transplants and they worth enough for my guys to start budding last year.
 
Island_Dan said:
The T5 fixture is HO PepperWhisperer.

LuckyDog, you are saying that peppers do no require a night cycle at all?
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Correct. Peppers are day-neutral and do not require a night cycle. But after the first few weeks there is not much more return based on the extra amount of money/light bills spent. After I think 4-6 weeks they grow the same with 16hrs as they do 24.
 
$ for $ the T8's are the better bang for the buck. Bulbs are 1/5 of the price compared to the T5's . I don't see the advantage if the plants are going to be transplanted outdoors in the sun (the real light deal). But if one intends to keep a plant or two indoors full spectrum then the HO/T5 or HPS lighting would make more sense......or as some look at it, more dollars.
 
KiNGDeNNiZ said:
Please share with model of T8 housing :). So $50 for both incl bulbs or each ?
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You can score 4' dual bulb t8 fixtures at lowes or home depot for 12-14 each. Bulbs are 3-4 a piece and a timer is anywhere from 8-a lot)but lets say 15. So like 44-60 or so before taxes... Also if you look hard and find ELECTRONIC ballasted T12s you can run T8s on those fixtures. You will be pumping 40watts or so into a 34watt bulb so it will be brighter but not last as long as you expect. I still get 2 years out of the T8s though.
 
it should be noted that t5HO is basically the same power efficiency in terms of lumen s per watt as a generic t8. only the non over driven t5's achieve the much touted power efficiency gains that seem to be brandied about with t5's

if i remember correctly a regular non driven 28w 48" t5 gets around 100lumen/watt where as a t8 typically gets between 80 and 90.
t5HO is similar somewhere inside 80 to 90.

t5's however achieve much higher watt densities than t8. so you can put roughly 2x more light into the same area.
 
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