italianstallion24
Member
what the hell is a turkey basting pan? lol
Need help designing a cfl fixture
- Thread starter italianstallion24
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Fultono
Member
Lmao. It's a big ass pan you cook a turkey in at thanks giving and since its almost time for turkey I wouldn't be stealing your mothers! Grab a sheet of HVAC metal it's comes as like a 1 foot piece and cut it. It's like $2 and it would work like a hood above your lights to reflect the CFL's. look at that link I sent you yesterday and you'll understand. Let me no what you think about moving ALL the wires out back and tucked underneath!
italianstallion24
Member
haha this i did not know. and yea it seems like it would be to much trouble to do that cause my mom would be pissed! if i took her shit for my grow lol.. she helped me build my box that i have now lol. and where do you get that hvac metal? and yea i will let you know about the wires...
what do you mean tucked underneath? like under my box? or did you mean tucked behind? im confused about that part lol
italianstallion24
Member
Fultono
Member
Tuck the wires behind and then underneath. Usually there is space underneath but since you made it yourself is assume you didn't put any legs on it to keep it a couple inches off the ground. None the less tuck them behind and ill be home this afternoon and ill post you a pic. Any luck with your lights yet?
ExileOnMainStreet
Well-Known Member
Or ask for "roll flashing" at any hardware store - it's for making custom flashing when available shapes won't work. It comes as a roll of painted aluminum (brown one side, flat white on the other) up to 24" wide and you can buy it by the foot. If you make your hood out of cardboard first, you can tweak it and get it right, then use the cardboard as a pattern to cut the aluminum. I made mine for 5 lampholders/10 bulbs. BTW, there's a Y splitter in one of the lampholders. For tooling, I used a pair of shears, a pop riveter, a drill, a tape, square and Sharpie. Materials cost me about $20 or so for one lampholder, the aluminum, and a box of rivets.
Something like that will let you get the most out of your little space and will give you a thermal break between the lights and the underside of the dresser, especially if you vent the headspace out the back of the dresser. Good luck !
Looking forward to seeing the pics once the admins get this morning's image issue fixed...
italianstallion24
Member
Do you have a pics with your lights in it yet?Or ask for "roll flashing" at any hardware store - it's for making custom flashing when available shapes won't work. It comes as a roll of painted
aluminum (brown one side, flat white on the other) up to 24" wide and you can buy it by the foot. If you make your hood out of cardboard first, you can tweak it and get it right, then use the cardboard as a pattern to cut the aluminum. I made mine for 5 lampholders/10 bulbs. BTW, there's a Y splitter in one of the lampholders. For tooling, I used a pair of shears, a pop riveter, a drill, a tape, square and Sharpie. Materials cost me about $20 or so for one lampholder, the aluminum, and a box of rivets.
Something like that will let you get the most out of your little space and will give you a thermal break between the lights and the underside of the dresser, especially if you vent the headspace out the back of the dresser. Good luck !
italianstallion24
Member
No i didnt make any legs. i didnt think a grow box needed one. and yea that will be great i wanna see yours. and no luck with the lights yet.. that site you posted looked good and im probably going to try to do something like that. i just dont know how im going to fit 6 or eight bulbs in it. but im going to try. i want the most light for plant. i dont really plant on putting the plants in the box until flower. casue i want them to get bigger now. and where they are is working until i can figure out a way to build the fixture. but that one with the HVAC looks really good.
Only problem about building anything is... i have to have a list. and all of what i need to get.. the nearest town with any hardware stores is about an hour away and i dont like to make alot of trips with the price of gas getting higher. so when i go to town i make sure i have wrote down all that i need so i dont forget anything... cause i trip back is kind of out of the way for something little that i missed. and i only go to town maybe once a week or less
Fultono
Member
Pull apart a computer chair for legs or rig some up with 2 inch pieces of wood. Also in doing that you could make some holes in the bottom to draw in the cooler air below the dresser which is always helpful since heats going to play a huge role in maintaining a decent temp in your box. The link I sent shows exactly all the materials you need and don't be afraid to make a shelf that you can raise and lower because if you can get a couple lights at the bottom that can be moved in and out it only helps keep the bottoms of the pots nice and warm for the first few weeks. And the shelf can be constantly moved down as your girl gets bigger since you want to keep her as close to the lights as possible all the time!
italianstallion24
Member
I honestly dont have any extra computer chairs for legs. and i have two 120 mm fans the intake witha 7 volt charger hooked up and the other exhaust with a 9 volt hooked up. i have some lights strung up in there right now just to see how temps run... the lights in there now arent very hot cause its just two cfls. but they are stayin at aound 80... and seeing hows its only high 70's in my room i think that is pretty good. and as winter comes along i like my room to be really cold so i dont think heat will play as an issue because of how cold my room will be... low 60's and with such good air circulation i think that it will be plenty cool in my box. i put a plant in for a demo in one of my little pots and the little (hopefully girl) started waying around everywhere because of the air flow which to me i think that is good. but who knows.
and what do you mean about a shelf that can lower? like for my plant? to put the pot onto?
and what do you mean about a shelf that can lower? like for my plant? to put the pot onto?
Fultono
Member
Yup, exactly!
If you make a shelf and hang hooks in the top corner, you can lower your shelf as your plant grows that way you don't have to stack pots or bricks up to the light or you won't have to try lowering your light to get it closer to the plant.
simply lower the string/ chain (which ever you have handy) an inch away from the light, every time your plant grows ... Which will be frequently!
If you make a shelf and hang hooks in the top corner, you can lower your shelf as your plant grows that way you don't have to stack pots or bricks up to the light or you won't have to try lowering your light to get it closer to the plant.
simply lower the string/ chain (which ever you have handy) an inch away from the light, every time your plant grows ... Which will be frequently!
italianstallion24
Member
that would be nice... that way i wouldnt have to move the light and just make the light fixture perminant... the only thing is tho... my box is already built... how am i gonna be able to move everything easily with the door i have?
italianstallion24
Member
i just took everything outta my box to see how it would work with it outside thebox... and i dont know if it is going to.. the only outlet that is close was right behind thebox and with all the stuff that i need hooked up to it it doesnt seem like ill be able to have it behind the box with out it being noicable.. but i will try
italianstallion24
Member
It will probably work.... im just going to have to do alot more work now. because i have to reattach wires and stuff and have to make them longer lol alot more work for a little bit of room lol but oh well it will probably be worth it in the end.. who knows
italianstallion24
Member
The more i look at it the more it makes me wonder if i can even do a light set up like you showed me Fultono cause there just doesnt seem to be enough room in my box to make something that big. i have to have a way to move the lights. it would be to hard to move the plant up and down. so im just going to have to move thel ights or something...the more i think about it the more discouraged i get from how to fix the lights and even if i should be doing this!!
Fultono
Member
These are all the small steps you have to take when doing this. Trust me, make it so good that you're impressed with yourself and the work you put into this. If your happy with the way it is rate now then leave it. If you can improve it with everyone's suggestions and even though it creates much more work... Do it. It will pay off in the end. 1 hour work now = 10 less work when your plant is too big 
italianstallion24
Member
good thinkin! lol i drilled some holes in the back of the box and am rewiring the pc fans to the outside of the box.. well the fan are actually already re wired.. now just to find a way to set up a cfl light fixture then my box will be complete... for now anyway lol