Are Plans for Lighting Overkill

[nxs450]

I am almost ready to wire my 20 x 28 garage that I'm building. It has 10ft ceilings and I am planning on 6 of the Metalux 8293 lumens. I want it very bright are these overkill or not enough.
I was Planning on running 2 rows of 3 lights.

 

[Toolfool]

hi-hyperlite.com . They will do a lighting design for your building.

 

[cybrdyke]

6 of them sounds about right for your space. I only say that from experience.
Lighting's kinda weird sometimes. Saying "I want it bright" is like saying "I want my car to go fast".
OK, How fast? 100? 200? 250?
So, from experience, 6 x 8' fixtures in your space will be "pretty bright". I think you'll be happy.
Good luck,
CD

 

[dcg9381]

We have high bay UFO lights. They're great, but they put out a LOT of light. If I was going to do it again, I'd have them on dimmers. Lots of light is great if you're working in the garage, but chilling in the garage, it can get to be way too much.

 

[Metal-Marc]

Have the lights on 2 or 3 switches so you can have less light if need be.

 

[RichieP_MechE]

That should be decently bright, works out to about 89 lumen/sq ft. My garage is 40' x 26' foot interior and had six old 4 foot fluorescent fixtures that sucked. I replaced them with 90,000 lumens of cheap LED strip lights as a temporary fix while I work on insulating the garage and adding new electric service. My fixtures are about 8' off the floor. This is what ~87 lumen/sq ft looks like, with the caveat that photo exposure on the phone isn't always exact to real life.



Having worked in this space for a few months now, I want it to be brighter. I am probably going to shoot for somewhere around 120,000 lumens of total lighting ~(115 lumen/sq ft).

 

[cybrdyke]

Lumens per square foot is not a legitimate measurement of resultant light on a target, so it's not a metric that useful in the lighting industry. Also, total lumens is not an indication of anything, really, so it's also not a metric that's used in the lighting industry.
I only point this out, not to dismiss the effort to be helpful, but only to make sure that others aren't led down the wrong path. Lots of effort has been put forth in this forum to educate the members about lighting and how to do it well, and also to dispel information that's not accurate. Too often, folks go to sites like YouTube, only to be misinformed and misled by folks that dont know the first thing that they're talking about. "I put a MILLION LUMENS in my Garage!!!" is the thumbnail clickbait. It's silly and it means nothing. They're just pandering to the uneducated for clicks.
CD

 

[jmiller_2308]

I agree with @dcg9381 and @Mtl-Marc with regard to including dimmers and zoning the lighting with multiple switches. Doing so will really help tone things down when you don't need the most light.

The other thing to consider is how shadows are cast. Look at the shadows in @RichieP_MechE post; adding more light would help reduce the shadows but not as much as using more distributed light sources would.

Consider how you plan to use the space. Is there a workbench that needs more light some/all the time vs. other areas that may be storage, used when working with power equipment, used when working on vehicles, or just general lighting all around? Thinking about that might help identify zoning and dimmer use as well as help to ensure that you will have the light you need where you need it.

 

[nxs450]

I have looked at the UFO style of lights but my thinking is that the 8' strip lights
Will distribute the light more evenly then 4 lights pointing straight down. Anyone know if this is a fact.

 

[TobeyA]

I have a 30x50x14 shop. I have proportionally about the same amount of lights on 2 switches. It's perfect for most things I do. But no matter what you do, there will be a dark or shadowed area that needs its own light.

Be prepared to add another light over the workbench against the wall or in the corner. I have 3 such lights just plugged into an outlet and operated with a pull string.

 

[nxs450]

I have a 30x50x14 shop. I have proportionally about the same amount of lights on 2 switches. It's perfect for most things I do. But no matter what you do, there will be a dark or shadowed area that needs its own light.

Be prepared to add another light over the workbench against the wall or in the corner. I have 3 such lights just plugged into an outlet and operated with a pull string.

Yes have wired for under cabinet lighting for work bench

 

[Mzungu]

I have looked at the UFO style of lights but my thinking is that the 8' strip lights
Will distribute the light more evenly then 4 lights pointing straight down. Anyone know if this is a fact.

Yep, should have 12 foot ceilings even with low bay ufos . The beam spread is too narrow for 10 foot ceilings. You're better off with 8 foots.