Fish.Bum00
Active Member
I purchased some cheap LED black boxes during my build. I knew I wanted to add some T5 lights to supplement the LEDs, but the price of a hybrid fixture and those T5 retrofit kits seemed ridiculous to me.
It's funny how simple and inexpensive this was to do.
With some wood, angled aluminum, endcaps, a ballast, bulbs and reflectors I built my hybrid lighting.
And FYI I have no experience in electrical. Just watched a lot of videos and took my time to make sure everything was functioning correctly and safely.
Used 1x6s for frame, and some spare 1x2s and 1x3s for supports.
Stained the wood to match stand and cut some angled aluminum to hold LEDs.
Wired ballast and end caps.
Purchased bulbs and reflectors, and presto.
The build cost me under $70. Add the reflectors and bulbs and the total cost was under $140, which is close to the retrofit kits cost without bulbs.
Disregard the tv mount and cords. I'm still trying to figure out how I'd want to hang the canopy. For now, I'm using 1/2" black steel pipes. The entire canopy with lights only weighs 25lbs.
This project from start to finish did not take very long. The thing that took the most time was gathering all the materials.
Hope this helps someone else who may be thinking about adding T5s to supplement their LEDs.
Let me know if you want additional details. I'd be glad to assist.
It's funny how simple and inexpensive this was to do.
With some wood, angled aluminum, endcaps, a ballast, bulbs and reflectors I built my hybrid lighting.
And FYI I have no experience in electrical. Just watched a lot of videos and took my time to make sure everything was functioning correctly and safely.
Used 1x6s for frame, and some spare 1x2s and 1x3s for supports.
Stained the wood to match stand and cut some angled aluminum to hold LEDs.
Wired ballast and end caps.
Purchased bulbs and reflectors, and presto.
The build cost me under $70. Add the reflectors and bulbs and the total cost was under $140, which is close to the retrofit kits cost without bulbs.
Disregard the tv mount and cords. I'm still trying to figure out how I'd want to hang the canopy. For now, I'm using 1/2" black steel pipes. The entire canopy with lights only weighs 25lbs.
This project from start to finish did not take very long. The thing that took the most time was gathering all the materials.
Hope this helps someone else who may be thinking about adding T5s to supplement their LEDs.
Let me know if you want additional details. I'd be glad to assist.
