Lighting Question....

[Curgan]

So a friend of mine gave me 3 ballasts with wiring and end caps... i really need to upgrade my lighting and this is a good first start if i can set these up. i have 1 ballast that will support 2 40w t-12's, on that supports 2-54w t-5s, and one that supports 2 40w PC's...

My question is.... without having a fixture... just end caps, what is a good way to attach the bulbs to my hood??? my hood is made out of 3/4inch ply??? should i add some kind of reflective material to the wood?? im on a budget so im looking for the most inexpensive but sturdy way to mount these lights....

 

[mps9506]

My question is.... without having a fixture... just end caps, what is a good way to attach the bulbs to my hood??? my hood is made out of 3/4inch ply??? should i add some kind of reflective material to the wood?? im on a budget so im looking for the most inexpensive but sturdy way to mount these lights....

Most endcaps should have some kind of mounting feet on them. If not you can buy bulb holders, but I don't like them, they never seem secure to me. If you have icecap style endcaps you can buy the feet separately and mount them directly to the plywood.
If you are running t5 ho bulbs definitely purchase some reflectors, they need them. I haven't purchased T12 bulbs in so long I'm not even sure if any brands make them with built in reflectors anymore, but if you get your hands on those, then no reflector is needed.
The PC endcaps won't support the full length of a 24" bulb so you will want to purchase bulb clips for those.