Time to upgrade to T5 HO light fixtures - bulb question

Hey It's time to move from the grow boxes , my girls have out grown them. I brought two T5 HO fixtures from Home Depot, but I think they sold me the wrong lights to go with them. When I got home and started reading the info on the lights, the are HO 54 watts Cool white I think they are 4100K. I think I read that 4100k are no good for growing. Is thiat correct. Do you think if I got 54 watt HO 6500K blue and 2700 reds will it increase my grow output over using the cfl spiral bulbs. Each T5 fixture holds 4 54/250 watts bulb. So using 2 fixtures would boost to me to 432 actual watts. Comments/suggestions/recommendations are welcome. See fixture below.



Lithonia Lighting 4-Light T5 White High Output Fluorescent High Bay

Philips 54-Watt 46 in. T5 HO High Output Cool White (4100K) Linear Fluorescent Light Bulb

be careful some t5's are fire hazard's especially the cheapo one's , (not saying that is just be careful on what you pick)

zzwasted said:

be careful some t5's are fire hazard's especially the cheapo one's , (not saying that is just be careful on what you pick)

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The bulbs or the fixtures are fire hazards? The fixture is Lithonia Lighting and the bulbs are by Philips. So are they more of a fire hazard than Hps or MH and other bulbs / fixtures?[h=1][/h]

I ordered this one http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-FLT24-2-Feet-4-Tube-Commercial/dp/B002JQBQZQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1367789661&sr=8-2&keywords=T5+HO+FLUORESCENT+24+2%27+2ft+4+LAMP+GROW+LIGHT its working good so far, just started the germination process yesterday. Have the T5 running over all my plants in a small box. Have the AC running so no problems with heat at this point. Checked it and the heat was around 78F went and checked on them today and 5 out of the nine have sprouted. Sadly no leaves yet but I highly recommend this light. Good bang for the buck.

i guess the fixture iv heard some get really hot , but i guess that's for the really cheap ones

Mine is bringing it up about 8 degrees from what I can tell.

The two I brought were $89.97 each plus tax and they didn't come with bulbs i had to buy them separate. The bulbs were $10 each. Any feedback on the specturm questions? Also do you think that the combined wattage with the right spectrum will give me a decent outpost?

Gs3000 said:

The bulbs or the fixtures are fire hazards? The fixture is Lithonia Lighting and the bulbs are by Philips. So are they more of a fire hazard than Hps or MH and other bulbs / fixtures?

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Your fixture is fine. Generally HPS is more of a fire hazzard than T5 HOs, and there have probably been more fires started from incandescent lighting. Just watch out for the really cheap no name brands.

The 4100k is day light which is ok, but you are much better off the with the 6500 and 2750k. I personally have never heard of a problem with a HO fixture and i use VHO t5 which is more intense. If you use large pots don't expect to grow more than 4 effectively. Good luck

Thanks! only 4 even with two units?