4 foot LED'S

[skeets]

Question when I built my garage I installed 16 banks of T8 lights and they have been outstanding,,,,,, Until about 4 weeks ago. One bank went out, in the far end, no biggie, then 2 more and so on until this afternoon I hit the switch and only 2 T8's fired, leaving me pretty much in the dark. And I figure the ballasts went south after almost 20 years. So the prices are pretty high on ballasts around here at Lowes and HD, I thought about the 4 foot LED replacements. Did some lookie lookie on you tube and they look like they might out live me. Has any of the collective replace them or use them, any problems ect?
i

 

[dlsmith]

Last year I replaced all the bulbs in my nine 8 foot fixtures in the shop with LEDs. I pulled out the ballasts, cleaned up the fixtures and rewired the fixtures for the LED bulbs. It was a great upgrade, lots more light with 25% of the power consumption. I had a mix of single pin and rectangular pin fixtures, and replacement LEDs were available for both types.

 

[PoTreeBoy]

Question when I built my garage I installed 16 banks of T8 lights and they have been outstanding,,,,,, Until about 4 weeks ago. One bank went out, in the far end, no biggie, then 2 more and so on until this afternoon I hit the switch and only 2 T8's fired, leaving me pretty much in the dark. And I figure the ballasts went south after almost 20 years. So the prices are pretty high on ballasts around here at Lowes and HD, I thought about the 4 foot LED replacements. Did some lookie lookie on you tube and they look like they might out live me. Has any of the collective replace them or use them, any problems ect?
i

I did the 4 footers in my garage several years ago. I wanted to eliminate the ballasts, but the stores around me just had the ballast type, so I ordered online. I don't remember where, but they were reasonable.

They give much better light and none of the old problems when humid, cold, etc. I like 3000 or 3500 degK color.

 

[KKBL]

You can buy 4 ft LED shop lights for less than $10 each that give more light for less electricity.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XGBKDKZ?ref_=ppx_hzod_title_dt_b_fed_asin_title_0_0&th=1

 

[Russell King]

I suggest you think of replacing the fixtures not just the tubes with led tubes.

I replaced just the bulbs but had to remove the ballasts, Doing that is additional work and you also have to do some wire connections. It is all easy but time consuming. I recall that the led tubes did not fit well into the fluorescent tube holders and that caused some minor problems.

Research costs and time of replacement tubes vs replacement fixtures. You may find it easier to get the complete fixture than the LED tubes.

 

[Bee-Positive]

The beginning of my 30-year career as an Energy Engineer included lighting research with NYS and conducting lighting seminars training NYS building code officials. Don’t buy cheap, buy once – cry once (said many times here on OTT). Prioritize quality over price, get another 20 years from your LED lighting.

While there are great deals on Amazon and other websites, cheaply made products are not the best long-term value. Manufacturers cut corners by using substandard materials to reduce production costs. Poor quality components play a significant role in the premature failure of LED lights, resulting in early burnout and/or diminishing brightness over time.

Other issues that affect LEDs;

• Exposure to extreme cold, the lifespan of the LEDs will be reduced, become fragile and fail early.
• LEDs need a steadier, higher voltage power supply than incandescent bulbs. If the power supply fluctuates or isn’t strong enough, it can damage them.
• LEDs are susceptible to power surges, a spike in electricity could cause the light to fail. Use a surge protector in the breaker box.
• LEDs are sensitive to moisture and can be damaged by high humidity levels.
• While not as hot as incandescent bulbs they can overheat causing early failures (especially base-up screw-in units or totally enclosed units).
• LEDs fail faster where they are constantly switched on and off.
• LEDs generate harmonics that may be an issue in very large installations.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

As per normal, good advice above.

Lighting has always been a problem for me, and especially as I get older….I need more light.

Ballast lights “suck" (especially in the colder areas), and older “curly Q” florescent ones seems to be too “soft” and they seem to fade out quickly.


A few years ago, in my “pole barn”, I installed some “high bay” lights that work very well. I went to their website and typed in some information, and they gave me recommendations on placement and numbers needed.

(placement and number, depending on square footage, and height above ground.)





It worked out well, except for the fact that they draw so much current, if you plug in so much as a “night light”, it pops the breaker….So I will have to revisit that part.


In the “shop”…(aka my basement) I put about 1.23 billion (hahah 25’ish ) of these little 4 footers, at about 45 bucks each now….. (10,000 lumens and 4000K light)




https://www.homedepot.com/p/Metalux..._-337086439-_-3-_-n/a-_-n/a-_-n/a-_-n/a-_-n/a




They work well and don’t pop the breaker….(yet)

In the basement, I “daisy chain” about 6 per outlet so I can turn on certain portions of the shop and leave other parts off.

I have had them for about 3’ish years and recently added some more of the same brand “Metalux” (?)

 

[Speed25]

The beginning of my 30-year career as an Energy Engineer included lighting research with NYS and conducting lighting seminars training NYS building code officials. Don’t buy cheap, buy once – cry once (said many times here on OTT). Prioritize quality over price, get another 20 years from your LED lighting.

While there are great deals on Amazon and other websites, cheaply made products are not the best long-term value. Manufacturers cut corners by using substandard materials to reduce production costs. Poor quality components play a significant role in the premature failure of LED lights, resulting in early burnout and/or diminishing brightness over time.

Other issues that affect LEDs;

• Exposure to extreme cold, the lifespan of the LEDs will be reduced, become fragile and fail early.
• LEDs need a steadier, higher voltage power supply than incandescent bulbs. If the power supply fluctuates or isn’t strong enough, it can damage them.
• LEDs are susceptible to power surges, a spike in electricity could cause the light to fail. Use a surge protector in the breaker box.
• LEDs are sensitive to moisture and can be damaged by high humidity levels.
• While not as hot as incandescent bulbs they can overheat causing early failures (especially base-up screw-in units or totally enclosed units).
• LEDs fail faster where they are constantly switched on and off.
• LEDs generate harmonics that may be an issue in very large installations.

Most LED failures that I've seen are due to poor heat management. Quality components typically have a nice heat sink backing up the chip, but so many don't and end up cooking the chips. It's definitely more of an issue on higher-wattage single chips vs lower wattage multi-chip setups that are spread farther apart.

 

[#40Fan]

Years ago, I bought a bunch of 4' LED lights from Sam's. Other than a lightning strike that took out a few, they have been awesome. I see they are $20 a piece now.

Sam's LED

 

[chim]

I have a mix of different LED fixtures. In the garage and one room in the basement there are 4' LED fixtures that have built-in motion sensors. These are about 6" wide and have snap-on plastic covers that look like they're made for damp locations. The two in the garage have been there for maybe 10 years and I love the setup. It's a two bay garage with shelves between bays. The lights are near the door operators' ceiling outlets and provide enough light 95% of the time or better. Never need to hit the switch. Just opening a door turns 'em on. There are other incandescent and fluorescent fixtures there for special needs.

The 500W quartz flood fixture on the garage end of the house was replaced with an LED wall pack that lights the area better and uses much less power.

The back half of the basement has shop light style 4' LED's that are controlled with a switch. There are shelves but there's enough light everywhere.

Tired of replacing the old T12 lamps, the 4' fluorescents in the laundry and walk-in closet were replaced with more finished looking 1" thick 4' LED's.

I think everything except the Amazon exterior wall pack was picked up at Costco when we saw them on sale.

 

[Tughill Tom]

I have 6-8ft fixtures that were gifted to me. Came with T8 bulbs and new Ballast's, after about 2 years use in Garage they started to go to pink on me. Found some 8ft LED's on Amsoom and put them in, I did remove the Ballasts and change out the Tombstones to fit the new lamps, wired in @120V. It's been 10 years now with no issues.

 

[SDT]

The beginning of my 30-year career as an Energy Engineer included lighting research with NYS and conducting lighting seminars training NYS building code officials. Don’t buy cheap, buy once – cry once (said many times here on OTT). Prioritize quality over price, get another 20 years from your LED lighting.

While there are great deals on Amazon and other websites, cheaply made products are not the best long-term value. Manufacturers cut corners by using substandard materials to reduce production costs. Poor quality components play a significant role in the premature failure of LED lights, resulting in early burnout and/or diminishing brightness over time.

Other issues that affect LEDs;

• Exposure to extreme cold, the lifespan of the LEDs will be reduced, become fragile and fail early.
• LEDs need a steadier, higher voltage power supply than incandescent bulbs. If the power supply fluctuates or isn’t strong enough, it can damage them.
• LEDs are susceptible to power surges, a spike in electricity could cause the light to fail. Use a surge protector in the breaker box.
• LEDs are sensitive to moisture and can be damaged by high humidity levels.
• While not as hot as incandescent bulbs they can overheat causing early failures (especially base-up screw-in units or totally enclosed units).
• LEDs fail faster where they are constantly switched on and off.
• LEDs generate harmonics that may be an issue in very large installations.

Well said.

 

[lynnmor]

Many old florescent fixtures are better built than most LED fixtures. For me it made sense to remove the ballasts and install LED's. Right now the scrap price for ballasts is up so you can get a bit of a bonus for the work.

 

[skeets]

Thanks guys, the fixtures are all affixed to the trusses, and I really have no desire to remove them. Hence the LED replacement bulbs, it is not a heated or temperature controlled area so they are on their own. I need solid replacements that I dont have to worry about, I am not concerned with theoretical problems or potential issues, though they may be factors to consider, at some point. I am intersted real world everyday usage and installation

 

[Bee-Positive]

Not sure about your mounting height and lumens needed but check out Sylvania LEDlescen T8 Ballast-Free Lamps. Uses the same mounts already in the fixture. Disconnect the ballast, reconnect hot and neutral to existing tombstones, plug in lamp, done. With 18 rows of fixtures it's still gonna take some time.

 

[Trustable]

At my old place, when some of the old shop lights went out, it was cheaper to replace with the all in one LED shop lights from Lowe’s or Home Depot. They seemed to perform pretty well in an uninsulated garage with bad seals. If I was to do it again, I would buy a fixture with replaceable leds just for the ease of not having to take each fixture down when it dies. My current garage has a ton of regular light fixtures filled with CFL bulbs, so I’m just gonna leave those for now until they start to go out. Definitely not as bright, but it works well enough.

 

[skeets]

Yeah all the fixtures are hard wired in already and I dont do well on ladders any more sooooo

 

[Bee-Positive]

Yeah all the fixtures are hard wired in already and I dont do well on ladders any more sooooo

 

[Mark_BX25D]

Has any of the collective replace them or use them, any problems ect?

Been there, done that, ain't never going back! Love, love, love the LED bulb replacements!

You need to know there are two+ kinds:

1. Uses the original ballast. (Why? Why? Just WHY????)
2. Does not need the ballast. Take it out. Throw it away! Uh, I mean, dispose of it responsibly.
3. Can do either way.

I am not sure I like option 3. Why? Just let the whole ballast industry DIE! Let it go the way of buggy whips!

I've done my kitchen, shop, and laundry area. Not at all difficult, and say goodbye to flickering lights and ballast replacements. In most of my fixtures, I have used only one LED bulb to replace two fluorescent bulbs. It would be too bright otherwise! It's very nice that I have that option. If I decide later I need more light, I just add bulbs to the empty slots.

I see NO need to replace any fixtures. With the ballast gone, a fixture is a very straightforward "hoid it in place and pass 120v to it" machine. There's almost nothing that can go wrong with the fixture at that point. Replace bulbs when needed, but that shouldn't be very often.


Pay attention to color as well as to lumen output when selecting your bulbs. You have a bit of research to do there.

The only problem is that now I have to figure out what to do with my lifetime supply of 4' florescent bulbs I picked up cheap a few years back!

 

[PoTreeBoy]

Been there, done that, ain't never going back! Love, love, love the LED bulb replacements!

You need to know there are two+ kinds:

1. Uses the original ballast. (Why? Why? Just WHY????)
2. Does not need the ballast. Take it out. Throw it away! Uh, I mean, dispose of it responsibly.
3. Can do either way.

I am not sure I like option 3. Why? Just let the whole ballast industry DIE! Let it go the way of buggy whips!

I've done my kitchen, shop, and laundry area. Not at all difficult, and say goodbye to flickering lights and ballast replacements. In most of my fixtures, I have used only one LED bulb to replace two fluorescent bulbs. It would be too bright otherwise! It's very nice that I have that option. If I decide later I need more light, I just add bulbs to the empty slots.

I see NO need to replace any fixtures. With the ballast gone, a fixture is a very straightforward "hoid it in place and pass 120v to it" machine. There's almost nothing that can go wrong with the fixture at that point. Replace bulbs when needed, but that shouldn't be very often.


Pay attention to color as well as to lumen output when selecting your bulbs. You have a bit of research to do there.

The only problem is that now I have to figure out what to do with my lifetime supply of 4' florescent bulbs I picked up cheap a few years back!

1. The keep-the-ballast style are a homeowner item - just change bulbs. That's probably why it's what the big box stores carry. But they only work with electronic ballasts.
2. I had older, conventional ballasts, but I wanted to do away with them anyway. Why keep an unnecessary component? Removing the ballast and rewiring is a 10 minute job.

I like being able to replace the bulb if it ever burns out, rather than having to replace the whole fixture.

I think there may be two types of terminals.
1. One wire to both terminals on each tombstone. I think my 4 footers are like this.
2. Both wires to one tombstone, one to each pin. I think my 2 foot fixture is like this.
I may be mis-remembering this, it's been several years.