Do I need to spend $200 for a t5 fixture or am I wasting my money?

J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
I just went to the hydro shop and lowe's today and the hydro shop had a little t5 fixture for like $200 which I thought was a fucking rip off outta this world after I went to lowe's and saw they had (I think) a t8 fixture which would fit in my 3x3x6 secret jardin tent for about $40 + the cost of 4 bulbs.....what's the difference between the lowe's fixture and the t5 fixture as far as efficiency and efficacy goes? Seems to me like the hydro shops are just looking for easy suckers on those $200 fixtures...it is just a fluorescent fixture after all....

Advice?
 
ProfessorPotSnob

ProfessorPotSnob

New Member
Double check the Home Depot light bank for its warranty .. Many people fail to realise a good light at the Hydro store should come with a 5 year warranty and if it does not then its a cheap t-5 unit thats worthless 9 out of ten times not ..

Not all light is the same and as well with lighting fixtures , another aspect is aesthetics .. A professional grow room looks a bit funny with Industrial fixtures and many of the light banks sold at Home Depot are made to be recessed and built in a ceiling .. So what you really get is half of a light , and most have to be wired as well and these offer no settings or power switches ........

Shit if its an issue financially you could just buy lights of america T-8 48 " shop lights for under 14 a piece ... They would be mounted at an angle
 
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imchucky666

Well-Known Member
I know this doesn't help, but your avatar reminds me of the beginning of one Jackass movie........ Can you find the pic of Knoxville standing there like that?
 
Ganjapussy

Ganjapussy

New Member
T5 are better than t8. There newer they last longer, and there thinner glass, which, yes means more lumens.

Amazon has t5s I've been looked at for awhile. They got 2' 1 tubes, 2' 4 tubes, 4' 8tubes
The more light= more $$

I'm pretty sure there cheapest is like 70... But there legit. You can even view what people have to say about the lights
 
Ganjapussy

Ganjapussy

New Member
imchucky666 said:
I know this doesn't help, but your avatar reminds me of the beginning of one Jackass movie........ Can you find the pic of Knoxville standing there like that?
Click to expand...

Your right that doesn't help hahaha... Whenever my son watches the amazing ball shots he'll go "ohhhhhh" lmao.. He's 3 months old
 
brotherjericho

brotherjericho

Well-Known Member
3x3x6? The only good t5/t8 fixtures are 4' long, the 2' ones simply do not put off the lumens. You'd be better off going HPS or LED (former if cost is an issue).
 
Ganjapussy

Ganjapussy

New Member
brotherjericho said:
3x3x6? The only good t5/t8 fixtures are 4' long, the 2' ones simply do not put off the lumens. You'd be better off going HPS or LED (former if cost is an issue).
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jcdws602 said:
Are you planning to veg or do a whole grow with t5...??
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True, depending on what your gonna use them for, side light, veg light for mom or kids... Also I forgot to mention, if you buy off amazon you can request that they give you half each spectrum wise for the lights. They all come with blue unless you ask. Say you get a 4 tube blue, just ask em if they can throw two red in there and they'd do it
 
M

MassDeffect

Member
I have used t5s many times (only becaus of height problems)and have had great results. I always grow scrog so the grow takes a Lil longer to fill the screen, but I find it's the only way for fluro's to keep close to the yeald of HPS. If you decide to grow with fluro's I suggest the t5, But I would check around for a better price. a 4ft 6 bulb t5 should run no more than 175.00 US
Good luck and happy growing:bigjoint:
 
Medical420MI

Medical420MI

Well-Known Member
I have a 4 bulb 4 ft. t5 hydrofarm fixture I got off Amazon for like $130 shipped. I use it for veg and it works great until the plants get over 2 ft tall. I don't think I'd try to flower with floros unless you have no other option.
 
W

Whatstrain

Well-Known Member
I think i paid around $230 for 8 T5 HO 2". Ive heard of problems with the High Output T5 but havnt experienced any yet. They work great and are worth the cash if you're a closet grower and dont have much height to work with or for using them on clones/moms. But with a 3x3x6 tent a 400w MH/HPS works perfect, if you could keep temps in control a 600w would be perfection*. I run the T5's for side lighting and a 400w MH above and love it for vegging.





*600w in a cooltube with its own fan.
 
ProfessorPotSnob

ProfessorPotSnob

New Member
No matter if a T-5 offers more lumens they also come with a higher output of heat and with that said I know many fine growers who use 48"T-8 units with no desire to hop on the T-5 wagon .. I am old school and had nothing but T-12 s in the begining .. So I must reiterate not to argue T-8s work and are used more than most know ..

As stated before , you can put 48" bulbs in a 36" tent on an angle and it works well with the differences of height between plants ....As mentioned earlier clamp lights with domes and compact flouros work too and I like them combined with T-8 s .. I Had a 3x3 closet once and lines the walls with T-12s and that was it .. Solid 1/2 pound harvest gardens every 3 months and it was fun

A little fact for those following ..

What is the light output of T8 fluorescent lamps?

The amount of light generated by 32-watt T8 fluorescent lamps varies considerably from one lamp model to the next. Figure 1 shows the range of values for rated initial light output that are presently published for 121 lamp models by nine manufacturers for different correlated color temperatures (CCT). The number of available models for each rated initial light output is represented by the size of the bubble. For example, at a CCT of 4100 K, there are nine models rated at 2950 initial lumens

 
HeartlandHank

HeartlandHank

Well-Known Member
Using 18 dollar 2 bulb T8 fixtures for veg... The oldest fixtures are over 4 years old now. I used T12s a while back.
Our local hydro shops used section is full of T5 lights. I bought one a while back and used it for a few months. I was not impressed. The amount of light you are getting for the cost is pretty crazy.

Basically, even an off brand T5, made in China T5 fixture will cost about 6 times as much as a T8 that will cover the same space AND deliver more light...

If I was going to flower with fluoro... I would either use T8 for a larger space... or CFLs for a small cab.


Just my opinions.
 
SativaMe@420

SativaMe@420

Well-Known Member
HeartlandHank said:
Basically, even an off brand T5, made in China T5 fixture will cost about 6 times as much as a T8 that will cover the same space AND deliver more light...

If I was going to flower with fluoro... I would either use T8 for a larger space... or CFLs for a small cab.


Just my opinions.
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'

Really? I always thought T5's were brighter than T8's, I hardly ever hear of people looking for T8 fixtures but I am a newb grower so what the hell do I know, lol. I watched this video on YouTube where this guy overdrives a T8 fixture by adding another ballast, the bulbs were obviously twice as bright, brighter than a T5 for sure, ever since I saw that Ive wanted to do it but I'm worried it will just wear the bulbs out sooner, he didn't mention anything about it so maybe it doesn't, IDK, you guys check it out and tell me what you think: (-->Overdriving T8 Fixture<--)
 
jcdws602

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
I used t8 forever to veg....only reason I started with t5 is because I found some really good deals on CL.....t8s work and they are fairly inexpensive.Walmart has 2 tube t8 fixtures for a good price,but as far as flowering with them.....I wouldn't do it unless shit hit the fan..... t5 are brighter and would be better if you are thinking of using for a full grow....
 
InsaneMJ

InsaneMJ

Well-Known Member
I've bought 3 sets of t5's. And I've have 4 sets of the t8's.. When it comes to clones, I've noticed that they both work at roughly the same speed when it came to rooting and development. But once they start spitting out new sets the t5's shined over the t8's. I thought the same thing at first. Until your able to veg 50 clones and 5 mothers with a 4 bulb setup lol
 
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