Looking to replace several 8ft fluorescent lights in my garage and workshop. Workshop currently has four fixtures wired in and the garage has three of them. Looks like majority of the LED fixtures are 4ft and need to be linked together. I plan to surface mount these to the ceiling like the current fixtures as opposed to hanging them and will be hard wired in. What's the best bang for the buck out there? Are the all the same or are there certain brands from Amazon or such that are better than those purchased from Lowes or HD?

I just finished hanging 18 4' shop lights linked together to form 3 circuits for a 20x26 wood shop. Yes, before I get flamed, it is overkill for the space but I'm tired of gooseneck lamps and not seeing details that are hidden by shadows.

I did a lot of research on lamp output, temperature and cost. Amazon was a great resource and where I actually made my purchase from.

When I flip the switches I get a huge amount of light at a very economical price per kw and no shadows. I have one task light on my bandsaw to light the blade, safety trumps all.

Be careful of the Kelvin color temperature scale on LED. A few months ago I replace the all the lights in my shop with LED. Found the LED lights really bothered my eyes after a short time in the shop. Had to go down on the power and down on the Kelvin color temperature scale.

Another option is to retrofit your existing 8’ fixtures to use 8’ led bulbs.

Anyone have experience with these - https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod...ref=ask_ql_qh_dp_hza

Would be in the 4000K temp range so that should work well for a garage. Are these things so bright that I would only need 2 fixtures to replace the 4 - 8ft fixtures I currently have in the work shop?

Had to go down on the power and down on the Kelvin color temperature scale.[/QUOTE]

what color did you end up with? (degrees kelvin)
Regards, Jack

Timely thread as I am just in the early stages of figuring out which lights to get for my garage.

quote:

Originally posted by Copefree:
Timely thread as I am just in the early stages of figuring out which lights to get for my garage.

Same here.

I got these https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod...00_s03?ie=UTF8&psc=1 off of Amazon and retrofitted them into my existing 8ft fluorescent fixtures. I was able to reduce the number of fixtures I had by about 40%, plus I no longer have the fluorescent ballast hummmmm. Cost a little, but hopefully will pay off in the long run.

I installed a few of these and they have been working great:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod..._title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

FWIW, Costco has some 4' lights on sale for $20 right now.

Got to a local open house at a supplier and talked to the Sylvania rep. He gave me two 4’ 5000 brightness LED bulbs (LEDescent?). They work by removing the ballasts and direct wiring 110v to both pins on each end of the bulbs (black wire to one end, white wire to other). The 5k aren’t too bright over my lathe, but I could use the 4K just as easily.

Easy to rewire the fixtures.

No more hum, no flicker, quick start and 50,000 hour expected life. About $10/bulb.

Have done both 2 bulb and 4 bulb fixtures, both easy. Have done several for my church (10?) all done without removing fixtures from the ceiling.

Looking to do the same in my workshop with 8-12 used 4’ fixtures.

I had 4 two-bulb fixtures of florescent fixtures in my garage.
I replaced them all with LED's.
Retrofit is not difficult.
They are GREAT, no ballasts anymore.
Note: you do have to pay attention to single or dual end connection type and the bulbs even came with tombstones (end connections)if you need them.
I used Hyperikon T-8 bulbs from Amazon - 4K color.

https://www.amazon.com/Hyperik...rescent%2Btubes&th=1

quote:

Originally posted by Jack830:
Had to go down on the power and down on the Kelvin color temperature scale.

what color did you end up with? (degrees kelvin)
Regards, Jack[/QUOTE]

Ended up with 3500K.

Let me say this when I changed over to LED in my shop I soon relized there is something very different with LED in a shop. My shop has a combination of different fixtures. I started out with some at 4100K and some at 5000K.

You might want to read this link.

http://theconversation.com/the...ay-to-fix-them-81639

"Most lighting is electric and powered by an alternating current supply, which makes the bulbs continually dim and then brighten again at a very fast rate. Unlike filament lamps and to a lesser extent fluorescent lamps, LEDs don’t just dim but effectively turn on and off completely (unless the current is maintained in some way)."

Also

https://gunnar.com/do-environm...hts-cause-blindness/

Do some google under "LED bothers eyes"

I keep being tempted by this project, but haven't yet pulled the trigger. The variety of ways you seem to have to covert the existing fixture keeps putting me off, coupled with thinking I need an entirely new fixture instead of just bulbs to maximize effect (i.e. without the 8 year old covers on the current ones).

eta - I despise the 5K LEDs, and make an effort to only use <4K, preferably in the <3K range. I've replaced all outside and many regularly used inside lights with these at 2700, and that's another hurdle with the LED shop light selection.

I suspect dropping down that low in garage is going to negate much of the upside.

quote:

Originally posted by Jelly:
Ended up with 3500K.

Let me say this when I changed over to LED in my shop I soon relized there is something very different with LED in a shop. My shop has a combination of different fixtures. I started out with some at 4100K and some at 5000K.



Do some google under "LED bothers eyes"

^^^^

I was careful to have consistent color temp in my shop throughout and while the higher/whiter temp is brighter it can be annoying and tiresome (to me) and why I carefully opted for 4K.

I prefer 5000k in my shop to 4000k, perceived brightness is greater. These bulbs are ballast bypass and high lumen to watt. They also come in 4000k.

I am using a 'Big Ass' LED garage light fixture. Its so bright they send you a pair of sunglasses with the box.



https://store.bigassfans.com/the-garage-light

For interior lighting I have to have the 2700k-2800k warm white. I just can’t deal with the white light inside.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:
FWIW, Costco has some 4' lights on sale for $20 right now.

These are a great deal and I think made by Feit.