UV Suppliment Lighting

I just wish I understood the diagram, which numbers correlate to either Line or Neutral. Anyone know?

@Randomblame so I have done a bit of reading and it sounds like I could run 2 of the 36X2 ballasts for 144 watts to a 3bulb 4' t5Ho 54w fixture running it all in series so each bulb got 48 watts just a bit under driven. If this is possible, its definitely the way I should go. As far as the single bulb UV fixtures for the tent, 3' Arcadia's are better sized for 4X4s anyways and match close at 39watt bulbs.
But could this all be done?
I know for certain that t8 ballasts can work on t5 bulbs now. Just need to match wattage and obviously shorten the length between sockets as they're all shorter bulbs.

After doing some more math, I could even better utilize these ballasts for 4ft T5 bulbs, by running 3 36X2 ballasts for 4 bulbs at 54w ec. I just need someone who's smart to tell me how I'd do it.

Even more ideal would be to ask if it's possible to only use half of the outputs on one of a 2 ballast setup to run 3X36w(108 )to run just 2 4ft 54w(108 ) bulbs?
From the wiring diagram it looks possible for sure.

I found a thread for reef tank lighting that was very interesting. So I really think I just wire the 2 ballasts in series, one using both outputs, the other using one, and connect the pos and neg to two t5 in series. That's what I'd wanna do for the 4' uvs.
The other 3 ballasts I'd hook all together for 2- 2lamp fixtures.
If someone could explain how I'd wire this I'd appreciate it.

To be honest, I've no clue how to wire them this way. I only had a 4 x 18w 2x2' 4000°k fixture for seedlings back then and it was a ready to use fixture. I've only changed the bulbs every year but its laying somewhere in the basement since many years.
I've not used T5's other than UV bulbs and I would not try to safe a few bucks this way.
T5's want electronic ballasts and T8 often use the older less efficient magnetic ballasts. "Instant on" could not work properly and you could see the same flickering and pling-pling-pling known from T8 in the worst case.
At least you'll lose some efficiency even if you get it working.
I've found my 1-10v dimmable 2x 24w T5 ballast for 15 bucks and the 4x 24w ballast costs only a few bucks more. The non dimmable version cost only a tenner.

The wiring diagrams are pretty easy to read and it sounds like you only need to connect two smaller bulbs in series and as long as it fits with the ballast power it should work. I would search youtube and the internet to find wiring examples. In the worst case you can create an account in the forum you have mentioned above and ask for help/picures of the wiring.

Airwalker16 said:

I just wish I understood the diagram, which numbers correlate to either Line or Neutral. Anyone know?

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For the bulbs it doesn't matters! As you know you can turn the bulbs inside the sockets by 360° and they get contact with every 180°. They run with AC/50-60Hz this means L and N doesn't matter.
Do it exactly like you see in in the diagram and push the wires in the corresponding sides of the bulb sockets. You have such a socket with 2 poke in connectors on each end of the bulbs.

Randomblame said:

For the bulbs it doesn't matters! As you know you can turn the bulbs inside the sockets by 360° and they get contact with every 180°. They run with AC/50-60Hz this means L and N doesn't matter.
Do it exactly like you see in in the diagram and push the wires in the corresponding sides of the bulb sockets. You have such a socket with 2 poke in connectors on each end of the bulbs.

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Ya, but how can I hook the outputs of two on one ballast to only one of a second ballast to get 108w?
Would I wire the bulbs parallel then to split that wattage 54/54 to each 4' t5 right?

Wtf

TEKNIK said:

Wtf

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WTF?

Airwalker16 said:

WTF?

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Stop fucking around with high voltage that you have no understanding of, you are going to hurt yourself. Go speak to an electrician and let them sort it out. A fluro ballast is nothing like an LED driver. Don't try and make them do something they are not supposed to do.

TEKNIK said:

Stop fucking around with high voltage that you have no understanding of, you are going to hurt yourself. Go speak to an electrician and let them sort it out. A fluro ballast is nothing like an LED driver. Don't try and make them do something they are not supposed to do.

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I didn't ask for a lecture.

I'm barely changing anything at all.... Just trying to utilize t5 bulbs with these t8 ballasts. It can be done and with how perfect these wattages match up, it wouldn't even be over powering them.

Airwalker16 said:

I didn't ask for a lecture.

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Don't bother about him. He makes a habbit of being rude to people.
He also makes some ridiculous claims (about fake eggs in China and that 500 companies in China copied his designs. Telling that he will show with pics when he is less busy. blablabla)
Perhaps he knows a lot about led, but he is speaking so much nonsense as well that it is hard to tell truth from lies.

Keesje said:

Don't bother about him. He makes a habbit of being rude to people.
He also makes some ridiculous claims (about fake eggs in China and that 500 companies in China copied his designs. Telling that he will show with pics when he is less busy. blablabla)
Perhaps he knows a lot about led, but he is speaking so much nonsense as well that it is hard to tell truth from lies.

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Thanks keesje. I just wish I knew a definitive answer or maybe someone who has done it before.

I would try a forum that is not about this hobby, but some forum for people who also use these lights. Reptiles and such.

I'm not sure if I'm comprehending correctly, but just some thoughts:

I think the fluoros are fired with a voltage surge. Are you certain the t8 ballast operates at the same voltage and current after the initial fire up as what the t5 requires? What about firing voltage of the t8 ballast and what the t5 requires?

LED use DC, and most fluoro use AC, so I'm still confused how these ballasts are interchangeable and how it knows whether what type of bulb it has in it. I guess maybe the LED tubes have on board rectifiers and drivers??

In the pic of your LED tube with only 1 wire, I'm assuming the other end has another wire in the other receptacle end allowing the current to circulate.

If using LED tubes driven by a fluoro ballast, I actually think you're wasting energy, or is less effecient. I think you are powering a ballast ontop of your LED tube rectifier/driver.

If you wire your fluoros in series your firing and running voltage is divided and not sure how that will effect the turn or continual running. Not sure if I understood that part correctly.

So @Randomblame you'd say a 14% reptisun or a UV200 from exoterra, 1 4ft lamp is enough for a 4X4 running like 8 of 12 hrs?

ChiefRunningPhist said:

I think the fluoros are fired with a voltage surge. Are you certain the t8 ballast operates at the same voltage and current after the initial fire up as what the t5 requires? What about firing voltage of the t8 ballast and what the t5 requires?

LED use DC, and most fluoro use AC, so I'm still confused how these ballasts are interchangeable and how it knows whether what type of bulb it has in it. I guess maybe the LED tubes have on board rectifiers and drivers??

In the pic of your LED tube with only 1 wire, I'm assuming the other end has another wire in the other receptacle end allowing the current to circulate.

If using LED tubes driven by a fluoro ballast, I actually think you're wasting energy, or is less effecient. I think you are powering a ballast ontop of your LED tube rectifier/driver.

If you wire your fluoros in series your firing voltage is divided and not sure how that will effect the turn on.

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Ya eevblog reccomends to not do it. But shit, 5 2lamp t8 ballasts for $14 ain't a bad deal and I think I will just use them to build 2 4 bulb fixtures and use 2 normal t8 fluoros, 1 led that I have, and a 5.0reptisun in each fu tire for veg.
I'll just buy a t5 ballast so I can use the more powerful bulbs in flower and build 2 single lamp fixtures using one 2lamp ballast

I use (4) UVB150s in a 4× 4, I'd opt for the UVB200s but 3× the money isn't worth the small bumb in intensity for me personally.

ChiefRunningPhist said:

I use (4) UVB150s in a 4× 4, I'd opt for the UVB200s but 3× the money isn't worth the small bumb in intensity for me personally.

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Dafuq pricing you looking at?

http://www.reptilesupplyco.com/t8-uvb-bulbs/3416-reptile-uvb-200-linear-bulb-48-exo-terra.html

Those are quite affordable in t8.