Questions about "The Best Light Fixture Ever!"

[ticklechicken]

I posted this 3 days ago in the stickied thread, but I didn't get a response. Maybe that was the wrong spot. Here's my question:

I'm looking at this thread for some direction for my shop. It's a 24x45 (1080 sf) metal building. The ceiling is closed cell foam that's painted gloss white. The walls are light grey plywood, and the floor is a medium grey (Rust Bullet). The way the trusses work out, it would be nice to hang 21 lights, 3 on each of the 7 exposed trusses.

The lights in the first post of this thread (James ZY-T8-18W1200 BIXX-50K and MaxLite LSS2XT8USE4803) put out 2250 lumens/bulb. With 21 fixtures, my math shows:
(21 fixtures) x (2 bulbs/fixture) x (2250 lumens/bulb) = 94,500 lumens
(94,500 lumens) / (1080 square feet) = 87.5 lumens/sf

That's pretty close to the goal of 100 foot candles. So I think I'm good?

The next issue is trying to get 21 of these fixtures. They seem to be sold in groups of 15. What are my options for getting 21 of them? I want to stick with 5000K bulbs. I noticed that the MaxLite fixture has the options of adding two 5000K bulbs for $18. Are these LED lights? Are they as good as the James lights?

 

[thenorm]

took me a sec to realize these are LED.

why get LED retrofit bulbs for fluroecent housings when you can just get dedicated LED lights like these?

https://www.costco.com/4’-Linkable-LED-Shop-Light-with-Pull-Chain,-2-pack.product.100284402.html

is it to hardwire them?

 

[ticklechicken]

took me a sec to realize these are LED.

why get LED retrofit bulbs for fluroecent housings when you can just get dedicated LED lights like these?

https://www.costco.com/4’-Linkable-LED-Shop-Light-with-Pull-Chain,-2-pack.product.100284402.html

is it to hardwire them?

From what I've been reading here, the Costco and BJ's lights are not nearly the same quality as the ones I referenced.

 

[Rogers954]

Where are you seeing 15 fixtures? When I pull up the lights they only show being sold in cases of 30, Im interested in going with the same setup but looking for less than 30

 

[ticklechicken]

Where are you seeing 15 fixtures? When I pull up the lights they only show being sold in cases of 30, Im interested in going with the same setup but looking for less than 30

I believe the MaxLite fixtures are sold individually, and they each hold two bulbs. The James bulbs are sold in cases of 30 which would be enough to fill 15 fixtures.

 

[Rogers954]

Got ya I mis-read

 

[Twodawgs]

I don't think you will get that 87.5 lumens/sqft. Not all of your lumens will make it to the work plane. Your ceiling height makes a big difference. Try using the ies file for that fixture and bulb that I think is in the referenced thread and use the tool at http://www.visual-3d.com/tools/interior/ to get more accurate lumens/sqft. For your size with 8ft ceiling I'm getting 81 L/sqft and with a 12 ft 69 L/sqft for 21 fixtures

 

[cybrdyke]

I don't think you will get that 87.5 lumens/sqft. Not all of your lumens will make it to the work plane. Your ceiling height makes a big difference. Try using the ies file for that fixture and bulb that I think is in the referenced thread and use the tool at http://www.visual-3d.com/tools/interior/ to get more accurate lumens/sqft. For your size with 8ft ceiling I'm getting 81 L/sqft and with a 12 ft 69 L/sqft for 21 fixtures

^^^^What he said.

Welcome to the forum twodawgs. Thank you for bringing some sanity to this place. When I see folks taking fixture lumens and dividing it by square feet, I normally try to let them know the reason that it doesn't work. But, I'm only one guy and there's plenty of threads on here with incorrect info. I dont have the time or energy to try to fix them all. It seems to be rampant around here.
There used to be a forum member that would do layouts for members. But, he got so inundated with requests that he couldn't keep up. He's not here much anymore.

 

[ticklechicken]

I don't think you will get that 87.5 lumens/sqft. Not all of your lumens will make it to the work plane. Your ceiling height makes a big difference. Try using the ies file for that fixture and bulb that I think is in the referenced thread and use the tool at http://www.visual-3d.com/tools/interior/ to get more accurate lumens/sqft. For your size with 8ft ceiling I'm getting 81 L/sqft and with a 12 ft 69 L/sqft for 21 fixtures

I will have some spare time this weekend to look at that site. Thanks.

^^^^What he said.

Welcome to the forum twodawgs. Thank you for bringing some sanity to this place. When I see folks taking fixture lumens and dividing it by square feet, I normally try to let them know the reason that it doesn't work. But, I'm only one guy and there's plenty of threads on here with incorrect info. I dont have the time or energy to try to fix them all. It seems to be rampant around here.
There used to be a forum member that would do layouts for members. But, he got so inundated with requests that he couldn't keep up. He's not here much anymore.

I made my original post 4 days ago and have been reading GJ a lot since then. I've come across enough of your posts to recognize your name and respect your advice. I remember your posts about lumens/sf and foot candles not being the same thing. I'm learning...I'll get there...

 

[ticklechicken]

My main question remains unanswered:

The next issue is trying to get 21 of these fixtures. They seem to be sold in groups of 15. What are my options for getting 21 of them? I want to stick with 5000K bulbs. I noticed that the MaxLite fixture has the options of adding two 5000K bulbs for $18. Are these LED lights? Are they as good as the James lights?

 

[Twodawgs]

My main question remains unanswered:

I think you would have to call LED Wholesale to find out what the add on bulbs are and shipping options for them. You may find you need more fixtures than 21. If you need 28 than you can get your fixtures and have 4 spare bulbs I have similar issues with ordering the bulbs in groups of 30. I need 30 fixtures for my garage. 2 cases of bulbs, 30 each would give me no spares. I know they last forever, but there can be failure, and if so I would like to have about 4 extra to store away or to have if I add another fixture over a work area. I think I am going to get the Hyperikons from Amazon so I have access to smaller quantities. I also think I will go with this fixture http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...uorescent-Shop-Light-1233-SHOPLIGHT/203081577 It is $11.86 if ordered online or $12.97 in HD store where I bought just 1 to see if it will suit my needs. I plan to remove the ballast and wire for power to one end. All very easy. Saw a post someone said under 10 minutes per fixture. I plan to surface mount them, not hang from supplied chain.