Hi all,
Some pics of my DIY T5 setup. I bought a roll of solid-core wire and went nuts. I use only 2 plugs which lead up to the back of the canopy - I run the "dusk/dawn effect" lights off the one, and the rest off the second. In this way there aren't scores of power cables running up to the ballasts, and I need only one plug per timer to run the 6 T5's (on 5 ballasts - one is a double).
I haven't got the correct globe combination yet, but I'm getting some globes any day now, to add some more actinics.
The solid-core wires were run across the back of the canopy too, and everything is tied together using cable ties (making sure the "correct" wires are tied together, and leaving some space for the "cable stretching" that would ensue if you made everything as short as possible and then tried to lift the canopy
)
It seems to work well, and is very tidy - previously I had two "big bulky units", which hung at the back of the canopy but was still very visible - now you only see them if you look for them - they don't stick out from behind the canopy at all.
The end-caps are tied with cable ties to screws turned in at the correct places. Also, the ballasts have been raised slightly off the wood of the canopy to ensure some air flow and cooling.
Some pics of my DIY T5 setup. I bought a roll of solid-core wire and went nuts. I use only 2 plugs which lead up to the back of the canopy - I run the "dusk/dawn effect" lights off the one, and the rest off the second. In this way there aren't scores of power cables running up to the ballasts, and I need only one plug per timer to run the 6 T5's (on 5 ballasts - one is a double).
I haven't got the correct globe combination yet, but I'm getting some globes any day now, to add some more actinics.
The solid-core wires were run across the back of the canopy too, and everything is tied together using cable ties (making sure the "correct" wires are tied together, and leaving some space for the "cable stretching" that would ensue if you made everything as short as possible and then tried to lift the canopy
)It seems to work well, and is very tidy - previously I had two "big bulky units", which hung at the back of the canopy but was still very visible - now you only see them if you look for them - they don't stick out from behind the canopy at all.
The end-caps are tied with cable ties to screws turned in at the correct places. Also, the ballasts have been raised slightly off the wood of the canopy to ensure some air flow and cooling.
