[naser]

i hear people say flat white? is this better than gloss white?

[icemark]

Depends on the bulbs.

Gloss white for PC/VHO/NO

Flat white for MH

[schrader mo]

I have a reflector out of a shoplight (polished aluminam)would it be better to line my canapy with this?

[naser]

what if your using all three. mh, pc, and vho???

[organicreefer]

Originally posted by icemark
Depends on the bulbs.

Gloss white for PC/VHO/NO

Flat white for MH

ice,can you explain?ive read(in "hydro " books) that flat white is a better reflector than glossy ,period.
fwiw naser,you probly want to use an oil based paint at minimum, so the least sheen youll get would be a satin.i used flat white ,and then a two part epoxy over that,so it ended up glossy anyway.if you can pick up an alkyd based polyurathane,that might be youre best bet.hth

[MarkS]

I would recommend using two part epoxy with white tint. This will give you the white paint and will form an almost indestructable protective coating.

Mark

[naser]

any brand name epoxy's? so i would know what im looking for?

[MarkS]

My local Home Depots sell 2-part epoxy by Bondo. It comes in two rectanglular cans connected by a plastic cap. It costs $20.99 here. You will not be able to get the white tint at Home Depot though. I was surprised to find it at my local plastic shop.

Any 2-part epoxy will do though.

Mark

[naser]

why epoxy over paint? being two parts do i have to mix it the brush it on? or apply it in two parts?

[organicreefer]

the twopart epoxy's are mixed together then applied with a brush,roller ,whatever.i used litex 100% two part epoxy floor covering(clear).it comes in a plastic bucket with two plastic buckets inside that you mix.i think the epoxy was a little over 30 bucks,but like mark said ,the inside of my hood and stand is nearly indestructable ill be finishing up this weekend so pics will be up by sunday

[naser]

great, thanks.

[organicreefer]

here is a pic of the stuff i used,i got it at HD.its clear:

[icemark]

Originally posted by organicreefer

ice,can you explain?ive read(in "hydro " books) that flat white is a better reflector than glossy ,period.

The current thought is that because of the single source of a MH bulb, the flat white is a better defuser and less likely to seem like a bulb is a single one spot over the tank. This enhances that there is more even lighting over the whole tank, rather than a spot effect.

With Florescent tubes; because the lighting is over a wide width, the shiny reflector will give more of the ripple effect (one of the things which makes MH so appealing). Basically because the bulb already defuses, you want the reflector not too.

And again with MH because the bulb doesn't defuse at all; you want your reflector to do so.

Of course for Hydroponics growth you would want the defusion, but with our hoods, we typically don't have to worry about lost light, the hood focuses the light into the tank.

[organicreefer]

thats what i kinda thought you were probly getting at....does glossy paint have the same "spectral" focusing effect of a "mirror -like" surface?

[naser]

im more worried about the screws that hold the hood together from rusting. i just want to coat t he inside with somthing thats clean-able and looks nice and will not allow the water to reach the screws.