-
help please with lightbox electrics?
Hi everyone, I’m a bit of a newbie on this site, but here goes, I live in Spain and have been doing vinyl lettering for signs for about four months. at present i am making a lightbox for a local shop. well in fact the box itself has been made for me by a local aluminum fabricator and he’s done a great job. the box is 100cm x 150cm. Today i sourced my perspex so every thing is going well. this is where I’m asking for some help! I have read through a lot of posts regarding the electrics and though helpful they don’t really help me. Gear trays are not an option for me as i live in an area where, well its ghost townsville. what i can source is all the bits. but being as I’m not an electrician as such I’m not sure what to buy. i need to put in about 5 tubes i think i can get the sockets fine and the starters but my problem is to know what transformer to buy and if i nee more than one can anybody help. the tubes will be 120cm long slim prob 18 w.
cheers for any assistance
mark -
6 Replies
-
Mark, I don’t want to be rude but if you are not an electrician then I wouldn’t make these up yourself, if you can’t get gear trays at all then what about putting in complete fluorescent fittings. These are relatively cheap and you should be able to source them from any electrical factor.
-
Like Martin says – you may be a little out of your depth doing the electrics your self. (From what you’ve posted).
I’m not being rude (PLEASE don’t think I am) we just don’t want you electrocuting yourself or anybody else!!
If getting gear trays is a non-starter, you could strip the components from ENTIRE fluorescent lamp fittings used in offices / homes – that way you will have a full set of components. It WILL work out more expensive as you are discarding the casing but at least you will get all the end plugs, starters, capacitors & ballasts\and all the cabling in the correct places.
I would recommend ordering the ‘right tools for the job’ though – it makes life easier, faster & cheaper in the long run.
Dave
-
You can even fit the whole light unit inside the box. Some of them are quite slim and it’s just a case of removing the diffuser panel. I did this once when I was on site and needed an extra bit of light in a hurry.
-
I am sure that gear trays are available in Spain, it is not a third world country, it is part of the ec and conforms to al the electrical rules as far as ce reg is concerned, I have seen thousands of light boxes around Mabelle, Madrid, and Barcelona. And I’m certain they wernt imported. ask your local electrician for advice…
Peter
-
thanks for all your replies, i have taken on board your comments. it is very difficult to describe how hard it is to get supplied in Spain, especially for sign supplies, it is a four hour round trip just to get perspex. madrid is one day there and one day back! however what i have done is buy 5 strip lights 1200mm and i shall lay them back to back, the strip lights whole were cheaper to buy than what i found would be required as components. having gone and inspected the whole strip lights i was able to determine what was really needed. now i have a simple wiring job to do instead. hope you all have a great weekend and i really do apreciate your help. i shall post the results.
-
hi there, Im also in spain. where are you? I may be able to help you with pre-made lightboxes.
Log in to reply.