Cheap flood?

[SceneMaster]

Hi

 

I've got a studio gig for a gcse exam very soon and as well as the par56, frensels and profiles I need some floods. The school owns none (in fact they own no lights of any use but thats not the point!).

Anyway I don't have or want to spend the money of £80 1000watt floods nor do I need that power for this situation.

 

So...

I was conceplating buying these flood only about 4 of them for the gig and I was wondering what anyone thought of the idea?

Link to flood.

 

Before anyone say why not buy the 1000watt version I don't need the power.

 

Another idea was as I am currently building up a fleet of p56 these floods could complete the set until I have the money to buy the rest of the p56s. Although there is no gell frame I sure I will manage fine. P56s are 300watt and these can be 500watt or 300watt. So they will have the same power output and more over a much larger area. Anyone see why not?

 

What I am asking is this a good move for about £20 inc bulbs and vat?

If not can any one suggest a flood which is chaep £5 and lower which can be used for small studio work and as a wash light for events I run.

 

Thanks

Link to other floods by TLC.

 

(I know the flood is cheap but I brought it before for the outside of a shed and it has worked fine and was easy to install/wire :( )

 

Sorry for any spelling mistakes I'm in a rush.

[Stu]

They aren't too bad, and are quite good for getting alot of light from something cheap and small. A touring show last year used about 5 or 6 of these for this reason as they could fit into ickle gaps and be off use.

 

Only prob is their yokes only have a 45º range (roughly) and they don't like gel (altho it works slightly better if you bag it over the front) so they are best running as O/W.

 

Unless you can hire 4x Strand Coda 500/1s or similar, this probably will be the best bet for money.

 

Stu

[Guest lightnix]

Unless you can hire 4x Strand Coda 500/1s or similar...

I'd go the hire route as well, if possible; you only need them for one show at the moment. If you buy the cheap version, you will still have to buy some plugs, spend time wiring them up and ideally get them PAT tested to be legal. Not only that, but they won't last as long and are simply not designed to do gig work.

 

You could also have a look around to see if anyone is selling any Codas second hand.

[Ike]

Glass fronted floods are used a lot as work lights in a lot of venues however they do have two main disadvantages. The first has already been mentioned and is the difficulty in gelling them, the second is the fact they have glass fronts which can be quite expensive (pretty much the cost of a new flood) to replace.

[robloxley]

In addition, you don't have any barndoor capability if you ever need it, short of some Blacktak and Cinefoil. However, they are cheap enough to be pretty much disposable items!

[SceneMaster]

Hi

 

I want a quick cheap buy of floods for use in a fairly small enviroment. So won't these floods do.

 

Does anyone know where to get secondhand floods from. (ebay no!!!)

[robloxley]

So won't these floods do.

 

Well, what do you want to use them for: lighting a backdrop / lighting the actors / special effect? If your budget's really tight and you want to purchase them, then domestic floods are probably the best option. However, by the time you add a piece of cable, 15A plug, hookclamp and safety bond, it'll be cheaper to hire some Coda-500s or similar, if it's just a one-off.

 

Does anyone know where to get secondhand floods from. (ebay no!!!)

 

AC Lighting have a big second hand list.

[SceneMaster]

I need them for some studio lighting aswell as other lights. These floods are just for a bit of power and we don't have the money to hire or buy any proper stage floodlights. They may be used for some church colour washing (inside) at a gig I am doing soon. (Gaffa will tape the gells on :D )

"then domestic floods are probably the best option." What do you mean (domestic floods) and where can you get them from? :( I thought these were domestic floods if these are not domestic floods waht are they?

 

Thanks

 

PS. did anyone notice that this site seemed to crash last night (or this morning can't remember) or was that just me :P

[P. Funk]

Gaffa will tape the gells on:D

oh no it wont... really... not if you are having them in a church for extended periods of time...

 

domestic floods are what you are talking about. rob was saying that these things are the best option in those circumstances.

 

as for gelling, black tack is your friend :(

[Stu]

(Gaffa will tape the gells on :( )

Well you'll soon have a congealed mess on your floods after a while!

 

If your not fussy about exact colours, then painting the glass works apparantly. Could be worth a go.

 

Stu

[robloxley]

These floods are just for a bit of power and we don't have the money to hire or buy any proper stage floodlights.

OK, so you're talking about buying and wiring up some domestic floodlights: go and add up the cost of the unit, the cable, the 15A plug, the safety chain and the time to wire it then PAT test it, and compare that to a fiver to hire a Coda...

[Guest lightnix]

"It is better to spend too much money on something than too little, because if you spend too much money then all you will lose is some money, that's all. If you spend too little money then you stand to lose everything, because what you have bought may not be capable of doing the job you need it to do. So when you are looking at taking the cheapest option, add something (say 15-20%) to the cost to cover yourself in the event that it all goes wrong.

 

When you have done that you will find that you have the money for something better." - Anon.

 

Scenemaster, you began by saying that you need these floods for a GCSE exam, so presumably the outcome is important to your GCSE result and therefore your future. Isn't that worth investing a few quid in ?

 

As already mentioned...

1.They have a limited (45°) range of tilt / focus

2. You will have to buy plugs and wire these things up yourself.

3. You will have to buy safety bonds to go with them.

4. You will also need to buy hookclamps / floor stands / both to mount them on.

5. You will need to have them PAT tested.

6. Gaffa taping the gel on is not an effective solution. It will leave your floods covered in gunge, apart from which the gels will probably melt in minutes because they are too close to the light source.

 

I thought these were domestic floods

They are, but they are not designed for doing shows.

 

...we don't have the money to hire or buy any proper stage floodlights...

But you seem to have plenty of money to spend on a short term solution which has a big chance of letting you down on the day, when it matters most. You're talking about buying some floods, to which you have to add the cost of the bulbs, spare bulbs, a plug, a clamp/stand (maybe both), repeated gel changes, gaffa tape, a safety bond, PAT testing and the cost of your time in getting all these things together. On top of that, these lights will not stand the test of time the way professional kit will and will need to be replaced in the (comparatively) near future, with many of the above costs incurred again. Surely by the time you've factored in all the additional/repeat costs, it will be cheaper to hire kit that is designed to do the job properly; kit that you can rig, focus, program and operate with no additional grief.

 

OK, so you're talking about buying and wiring up some domestic floodlights: go and add up the cost of the unit, the cable, the 15A plug, the safety chain and the time to wire it then PAT test it, and compare that to a fiver to hire a Coda...

My point exactly.

 

With all due respect, Scenemaster, you seem to be more concerned about the cost than the end result. Please, please, please believe me when I say...

 

If you do it properly you will generally only have to do it once.

 

This is not some high-minded platitude, it's a lesson that has been learnt personally, the hard way, more than once, through blood, sweat and bitter, bitter tears. Neither me nor anyone else spends the time making these posts in order to make you look small or to make ourselves look big. We do it to try to help you avoid the mistakes that we made / had foisted upon us, so that you can have a better time and an easier gig than we did.

 

:(

[johnhuson]

P56s are 300watt and these can be 500watt or 300watt. So they will have the same power output and more over a much larger area. Anyone see why not?

 

One thing you need to understand is that the wattage of a lamp is simply the amount of power it will draw, and does not have any direct relationship with the light output of the fixture. Light output is measured in lumens and this is the figure you need to look at when comparing the light output of two different fixtures, although I think you will be hard pressed to find this information for a domestic flood.

 

There are several factors that affect the light output of a fixture, things like the efficiency of the optics. Granted the wattage of the lamp does have a bearing on the light output, but to say that a 300w PAR56 and a 300w domestic flood will have the same light output is not correct.

 

I'm not trying to put you down with this post, it's just that you said that you are doing your GCSE's and I thought you might find this sort of information useful.

 

Further to your other question as to whether the domestic floods was the best route for you to go. I'm with most of the other posters on here as I think hiring is your best option. Particularly if you are planning on gelling them up. Gel, gaffa and domestic floods don't make a happy marriage! As also pointed out here hiring will also probably be the most cost effective (not necessarily the cheapest!) solution for you.

[SceneMaster]

Firstly,

 

Hiring is not an option as one I am not spending my own money on an EXAM which is not mine (mine next year) and the people taking the exam treat me like s*** and the only reason why I am doing it is so I can talk to the examiner about next years exam which I will be hiring for. £20 inc bulb for a 4-6 completly disposible floods is not bad considering these are farily high quality as I've used them before when working as a Sparkys mate. I have plenty of cable I do not need a hook clamp and saftey chain as school has them and when and if I used them for the church colour washing event it will be for one night from stands which have bolts and the safty chain side of things only needs a zip tie "EDIT:PLEASE NOTE THESE STANDS ARE 1M HIGH AND I AM NOT SAYING THAT A ZIP TIE IS A REPLACEMENT FOR A PROPER SAFETY BOND. PLEASE READ LATER POST AS THERE HAS BEEN SOME MIS UNDERSTANDING" Plugs are no problem as I have those coming out of my ears. PAT Testing should be done as most of you agree and most of my gear is PAT tested. The only problem is the time factor with these and so probley won't be pat tested. (please don't shoot me)! Considerinbg none of the schools lighting equipment has ever been tested which I am enormously concerned about I am doing a little better and I am refusing to use some of the school gear until it has been tested. Infact school haven't had a proper extensive PAT test for 2 years now ok a fair bit has been tested like tech the computers, music and science but not other things like it should kettels fans desk lights ect.

 

On the buying proper stage floodsthat will serve me in the future I totaly agree that this is the beast way to buy gear and spend too much money on it. BUT considering I am not a great fan of the flood and I don't use it in design as it is tacky (only my view) and prefer to use profiles and frensels so there is no point me buying stuff I won't use. These floods guys are ONLY about £5 with a bulb and they will serve me with a little looking after my puposes for a few years and I won't be using them that often anyway.

 

OK wattage is not a direct indiction of light output and I know that differnet types of bulbs with the same wattage have diffrent light out puts but generaly a 1000 watt bulb will be brighter than a 20watt bulb see my point. So a 300watt haligen par bulb should be the same if not slightly more or less brighter (light output) as 300watt HALIGEN flood bulb. Please if this worng tell me but I don't want lectures about PAR bulbs history and how they completly different to a tube haligen bulb which it is.

 

Anyway after all that I understand that flood are usless and that I could do better but for a £20 buget they should be fine. And I thank your guys for your advice as it has certainly been usfull as I really know nothing about floods. What is Black Tack metioned earlyer for gelling the flood and where can I get it from?

 

Plus can anyone suggest where a could get a cheap stage flood from? (money is the issue as I would rather save up and buy expensive movers and dimmer packs.)

 

Please don't take the views over these cheap nastly floods :P I have expressed against me as if I had more time and money I would care if fact if I cared about this gig as much as a proper event to the public I would be more concerned and be using proper equipment and design to normal stage standards.

 

Could any one suggest a better solution than mine considering there is no buget and I am not hireing and need a large amount of bright light to light a small area

( the light output and quality will look naff from these things but hey)

 

Thanks

[P. Funk]

black tack u can get from any LX retailer... its basically thick alu foil with black on one side and sticky glue stuff on the other.

 

you can get cyc floods from about £90 upwards... u get what you pay for...

 

 

also.. at school dont get obsessed by having to light every event. if the drama students treat you like s*** tell them that and dont light their event. I dont have ny problems normally at school and people are very grateful when I do things for free (most of the time), and even when they do pay me, but if anyone annoys me I just refuse to light their event/show (believe it or not I do have other work to do as well as rigging)... and it looks crap. they will soon learn.