# DIY Lighting Using PVC Pipe



## Ozone (Sep 30, 2009)

wonderful idea nice light


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

I haven't found any 4 inch PVC pipe in my local Home Depot or Ace Hardware stores. I have wanted to try something like this for some time. I do see lots of 4 inch ABS black pipe, but it has very thick walls, so I have thought that I would want 6 inch ABS pipe, and that isn't in the stores either.

What did you line the pipe with for a reflective surface? It looks like aluminum foil.


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## wadesharp (Nov 27, 2009)

it works great i did this a few months back and its AMAZING and VERY cheap


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## rashfmnb (Jan 17, 2010)

Hoppy said:


> I haven't found any 4 inch PVC pipe in my local Home Depot or Ace Hardware stores. I have wanted to try something like this for some time. I do see lots of 4 inch ABS black pipe, but it has very thick walls, so I have thought that I would want 6 inch ABS pipe, and that isn't in the stores either.
> 
> What did you line the pipe with for a reflective surface? It looks like aluminum foil.


Yes it's Aluminum foil(here we call it sheet) for the enhancement of reflection


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## intermediate_noob (Jan 23, 2007)

What did you use to cut the pipe?



Hoppy said:


> I haven't found any 4 inch PVC pipe in my local Home Depot or Ace Hardware stores. I have wanted to try something like this for some time. I do see lots of 4 inch ABS black pipe, but it has very thick walls, so I have thought that I would want 6 inch ABS pipe, and that isn't in the stores either.


Hoppy, I have found that the "drain pipe" they sell at Home Depot or Lowe's has a thinner wall than normal PVC and is much larger in diameter. It is normally in the section with the lawn irrigation supplies. You might be able to find it there.


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## rashfmnb (Jan 17, 2010)

intermediate_noob said:


> What did you use to cut the pipe?
> 
> 
> 
> Hoppy, I have found that the "drain pipe" they sell at Home Depot or Lowe's has a thinner wall than normal PVC and is much larger in diameter. It is normally in the section with the lawn irrigation supplies. You might be able to find it there.


i use the saw to cut the pipe attached with the blade which is normally use to cut the iron pipes


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## intermediate_noob (Jan 23, 2007)

Sorry, I meant what kind of saw did you use to cut it in half?


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## rashfmnb (Jan 17, 2010)

intermediate_noob said:


> Sorry, I meant what kind of saw did you use to cut it in half?


The Saw is like this saw

ttp:/ /home-and-garden.webshots.com/photo/1373808900071330103tIrorc


another version of the same saw


ttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Ijzerzaag.jpg

use h before ttp


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## intermediate_noob (Jan 23, 2007)

Wow, I am impressed. Cutting something like that by hand must have been tough. I know I could not have made a straight cut for the full length of pipe.

Great job!


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## neonmkr (May 16, 2008)

Nice light. One option to the PVC pipe if you don't have a way to cut it in half is to use a length of gutter.


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

If I wanted to cut that pipe I would probably use a power hand jigsaw, like:
http://images.lowes.com/general/c/C100070/08838102815800.jpg 
This photo is from the Lowes website and shows one that they sell.



intermediate_noob said:


> What did you use to cut the pipe?
> Hoppy, I have found that the "drain pipe" they sell at Home Depot or Lowe's has a thinner wall than normal PVC and is much larger in diameter. It is normally in the section with the lawn irrigation supplies. You might be able to find it there.


The drain pipe I have seen has a black liner inside, so I assumed it was not PVC, but some other plastic. I wanted to be able to glue something together using standard PVC cement.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

Hoppy said:


> I haven't found any 4 inch PVC pipe in my local Home Depot or Ace Hardware stores. I have wanted to try something like this for some time. I do see lots of 4 inch ABS black pipe, but it has very thick walls, so I have thought that I would want 6 inch ABS pipe, and that isn't in the stores either.
> 
> What did you line the pipe with for a reflective surface? It looks like aluminum foil.


Go towards the back of home depot by the sprinkler stuff. Its there. At least last I checked.


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## Munna (Dec 9, 2010)

Hi rashfmnb,

could you please post some more pics of your hood. I m also trying DIY hood from PVC pipes. I just need to understand the lighting basics..


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

Here is one I did many moons ago. Worked very well and I was pleased with it for quite sometime.

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/59726-20-extremely-easy-no-wiring-diy.html#post535852


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## chrisnif (Aug 20, 2010)

I saw a project like this using 12" for 175w metal halides over a reef  Quite nice.


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## Munna (Dec 9, 2010)

@Gatekeeper - Fantastic Canopy. Quite nice.


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

The way I cut my 6" PVC was with a table saw as follows:

1. I screwed a piece of flat stock 6" pine board to the PVC pipe. By doing so, you creat a flat edge.

2. Measure and find center of pipe (account for blade thickness of saw!) and set the table fence.

3. You must have someone help you to slowly pass the pipe through. A standard wood blade will cut through PVC like butter, but go slow. Fast and it will melt the pipe or chip it.

Keep in mind that you don't have to be perfect when you screw the board to the pipe. It will be creat a flat surface no matter what you do since it will always be tangent to the surface of the arc.

A few things to remember. I only cut one side of the pipe at a time. careful when you cut the other side since it will flop around on you. 

Please wear the appropriate protective safety equipment when doing something like this.

MAKE SURE THAT THE SCREW THAT YOU SET INTO THE PIPE WILL NOT HIT THE SAW BLADE.

Plan and review, measure twice and cut once!


I did note that if I were to do this again, I would add more fans. It ran hot with the CFL light bulbs. I contemplated doing this again since I still have the sections off pipe and do it with some T5 fixtures. hmmm....


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

The black pipe from Home Depot and Lowes (and distributed by ABS) is called HDPE, High Density Polyethylene.

If its the thick wall stuff its tough as nails.

Also, when/if you paint PVC, you may need to scuff it up to let the paint adhere properly. My photo skills did not do my fixture justice. The paint job was pretty good if I do say so myself.


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## dubvstudent (Jan 10, 2009)

Nice fixture rash. It turned out really clean looking.




chrisnif said:


> I saw a project like this using 12" for 175w metal halides over a reef  Quite nice.


maybe it is just me but pvc + metal halides sounds like a fire hazard if I have ever seen one.


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## random_alias (Jun 28, 2005)

Now, you should mount them like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_pP2_L_lzI


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## spyke (Oct 14, 2010)

how much did this cost you all together? did you find all that stuf at home depot? like even the cfl fixture thing?


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

random_alias said:


> Now, you should mount them like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_pP2_L_lzI


That's a very neat way to mount the lights so access to the tank is easy. I think I would use the smaller diameter CPVC piping to make the mechanism look less obvious, but it is a great design.


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## smackpixi (Feb 14, 2009)

I did something like this as well. Cut the pipe with a standard circular saw. I clamped the pipe to three glued together 2x4s and then zoomed along to cut it. I cut like above, the pipe in half, and also in 1/3rds. I sprayed the inside with a spray adhesive and lined it with mylar sheeting in one project, and sprayed it with a shiny white spray paint in another. It was a nightmare to get the mylar to not be all crinkled. Looks like you did an awesome job getting the aluminum flat in this project. I was building reflectors for t8 flourescents. The trick to getting the maximum light out of the reflector is where the bulb sits in the reflector. Once you've cut up the pipes and lined them with a reflective surface, hold the bulb in the tube and you'll see how only at one certain distance does the bulb reflect across the entire surface. Getting the bulb to be in that place in the final construction can be quite a challenge.


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