I found a torchiere style floor lamp at home depot for $20. It comes with a 3000K '2D' style compact fluorescent bulb, and the ballast outputs 63W. It's dimmable
Pros:
competitive price
dimmable
ballast is small and already has a nice enclosure
Cons:
socket doesn't securely fit normal square pin bulbs
ballast is where the bulb goes, so it could be difficult to mount
I tested this with a 65W
actinic bulb just plugged into the top of the lamp. It works fine, and it dims when I turn the little knob on the lamp. I also tested it with the bulb connected to the socket by 4 pieces of undersized wire, with the bulb about 8 ft away. This also worked with no problems, but it should have better wiring.
To make this work as a DIY, *I* would:
mount the bulb using the normal square pin socket and clip
remote mount the ballast
run as short of wires as practical from the ballast to the socket, and use good wires
To make it really good:
replace the 'dimmer knob' with a circuit that will control the light level on a timer. Make a sunrise and sunset.
My conclusion:
if you don't really want dimming, it's just as easy/cheap to get a retro kit from ebay.
If you can easily mount a 4" X 4" X 1-2" box in your canopy or hood, this might work out well for you.
If you can't find a good deal on a retrokit this might work out for you.
If you want a cheap, *powerful* 3000K fuge light, this lamp is for you!
BTW: if anyone wants pictures of the lamp, or of how to orient the bulb in the lamp socket, I will be glad to post some.
