Fluorescent lights for the garage

[Ovidiu]

I'm trying to add some light to my garage, and I've set my sights on some fluorescent lights. I have a 3-car garage, I figure I need about 8 of the 4ft. 2 bulb fixtures. I am thinking about getting these ones:

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...3&productId=100249370&N=10000003+90008+503051

I could swear I saw a thread where someone found some online for cheaper than this, but I can't find it anywhere, anyone know a good place to buy light fixtures online?
The above ones don't say anywhere they are IC rated, any better suggestions?
Any reason why I shouldn't do flushmount?

Thanks in advance,
Ovidiu

 

[nissan_crawler]

6ft bulbs? WHY?

I would use 4ft fixtures, and don't think 8 is nearly enough for what you're doing.

Since your link is broken, it's hard to tell what you're talking about, but be sure you CAN flush mount them. Most "shop lights" can NOT be flush mounted, some need up to a 3" air gap. I'm going with "residential" lighting with lenses for this reason.

 

[Ovidiu]

Try to copy-paste the link or click it again, it should work.
This is the description for them:
1 Ft. x 4 Ft.T8 Flngd Trof COMM/RESI Ballast
Model SP8 F 2 32 A12 120 GESB
It also says they are made for mounting in a drywalled ceiling and here's the HD image:

My bad, those are indeed 4-ft bulbs/fixtures...

You think 8 won't be enough as general lighting in the garage area? It's about 20ft x 30ft. I also plan to add some recessed lights where the work bench will be, but that's a different question.

 

[stockc5]

I installed 12 of these in my 3 car garage. A great fixture which I bought at home depot for $50.00 each. Good luck

Try to copy-paste the link or click it again, it should work.
This is the description for them:
1 Ft. x 4 Ft.T8 Flngd Trof COMM/RESI Ballast
Model SP8 F 2 32 A12 120 GESB
It also says they are made for mounting in a drywalled ceiling and here's the HD image:

My bad, those are indeed 4-ft bulbs/fixtures...

You think 8 won't be enough as general lighting in the garage area? It's about 20ft x 30ft. I also plan to add some recessed lights where the work bench will be, but that's a different question.

 

[Ovidiu]

They are not insulation contact rated though, right? I need to make a cage around them and put the insulation around the cage...

How is that looking, with 12 of them on there? too much light? just enough? I wasn't exactly budgeting almost a grand for lighting in the garage...

 

[nissan_crawler]

I'm putting 9 - 4' 2 bulb t5 fixtures in my 20x24. I'm using home depot ones, but not doing flush mount. I'm getting the $20 residential ones with lenses. I can't flush mount without replacing most of the sheetrock.

 

[tdkkart]

Personally, I think recessed fixtures or fixtures with solid sided shades are a mistake.
Recessed or solid sided shades only allow the light to go downward and not outward.
Why restrict yourself to only downward directed light when you can get much more use of your lighting energy by letting the light spread to the sides??
Plus, recessed fixtures create a hole in your insulation envelope. A solid ceiling is the most efficient insulation wise, recessed fixtures create a 2 x 4' hole in the envelope.

Other than for asthetics reasons, I see no reason to use recessed lights.

 

[nissan_crawler]

Personally, I think recessed fixtures or fixtures with solid sided shades are a mistake.
Recessed or solid sided shades only allow the light to go downward and not outward.
Why restrict yourself to only downward directed light when you can get much more use of your lighting energy by letting the light spread to the sides??
Plus, recessed fixtures create a hole in your insulation envelope. A solid ceiling is the most efficient insulation wise, recessed fixtures create a 2 x 4' hole in the envelope.

Other than for asthetics reasons, I see no reason to use recessed lights.

Ceiling height. My ceiling is quite low, I would love to do recessed lights, however, I can't get to them from above to install them, so I'm using the flushest residential fixtures I can find that allow direct mounting, and have a wrap around lens.

 

[Ovidiu]

Good point on creating a hole in the insulation, but ceiling height is indeed a concern for me as well. I have an 8ft ceiling, which is a bit low as it is. I still need to put up the drywall and insulation, so I will do my best to take care of that properly.

At this point, I think I will just get maybe 10 of these fixtures and put them in, and if I still need some, I will add them afterwards high up on the walls at the joint with the ceiling.

 

[davidtwatson]

Try Sunstar Lighting. They're in Florida. I've done my whole house over with product from them, including 12-4' fixtures, 3 rows of 4 each, butted up against each other to give 2 X 8' of light in each row. My garage is 24' X 24.' I 've been told it looks like Fenway Park at night. Get T-8 Fixtures. 1 " lamps, electronic ballasts. I'm in Boston and they come right on, no matter how cold it is. You'll have to use your company name to set up an account and do business with them, they only deal with contractors. I made a name up and as I said, bought a lot of product from them, including 27 4" cans, dimmers switches, outlets etc. Set up an account and you'll be able to see pricing. Then you can decide if it's worth it to deal with them or Home Depot. I've been told HD stuff is junk. I'm not an electrician so I can't say, but I've had zero problems with the stuff from Sunstar.

 

[franksinatra]

Hey dwatson, I have a 24'x24' garage that Im in the process of lighting as well. Would you mind showing off some pics of your garage? Im looking for some ideas for a good light setup. Thanks, G

 

[Torque1st]

A row down the outside of both bays with a row between the bays works well along with some task lighting above tools and benches. Keep the light coming from behind and over your shoulder for best results and to avoid glare.

 

[rinker1]

Try Sunstar Lighting. They're in Florida. I've done my whole house over with product from them, including 12-4' fixtures, 3 rows of 4 each, butted up against each other to give 2 X 8' of light in each row. My garage is 24' X 24.' I 've been told it looks like Fenway Park at night. Get T-8 Fixtures. 1 " lamps, electronic ballasts. I'm in Boston and they come right on, no matter how cold it is. You'll have to use your company name to set up an account and do business with them, they only deal with contractors. I made a name up and as I said, bought a lot of product from them, including 27 4" cans, dimmers switches, outlets etc. Set up an account and you'll be able to see pricing. Then you can decide if it's worth it to deal with them or Home Depot. I've been told HD stuff is junk. I'm not an electrician so I can't say, but I've had zero problems with the stuff from Sunstar.

Do they have a website or catalog? Having trouble finding them. Thanks

 

[Palmetto]

http://www.metalux-lighting.com/common/brands.cfm?pg=Detail&brand=Metalux&category=Residential%20Fluorescents&id=11646

This is what I have. 8' fixture, with four, 4' long T8 bulbs. I bought mine from lowes at a descent price.

 

[Kevin54]

I'm trying to add some light to my garage, and I've set my sights on some fluorescent lights. I have a 3-car garage, I figure I need about 8 of the 4ft. 2 bulb fixtures. I am thinking about getting these ones:

One side of my garage is 22' wide x 28' long. I recently put in 14- 4' x 2 lamp fluorescent lamp fixtures from Lowes. White walls, white textured ceilings, 8' ceilings. Depending on what you are doing....not enough light. So for a three car garage, I seriously doubt that you will have enough with 8 fixtures. I mounted mine about 1 1/2' from each wall and four fixtures down each wall. Then I have two rows of three fixtures equally spaced between those. I have light on top of the vehicle fine but anything on the side is not bright enough for me. Before I put those up I had 14 of the "contractor packs" of cheap incadescent lighting that had globes on them. No way that there was enough light. And what was there was kind of yellow looking. So when I was painting mt truck, I temporarily put in two 8' fluorescent fixtures that had 2 bulbs each, and put the fixtures end to end. That really lit it up, but it was only on one side of the garage. As a matter of fact the two 8' fixtures (16'total) put out more light than (4) 4' fixtures. But when I was switching everything around I opted for the 4 footers because they were on sale. Don't get me wrong, they do put out quite a bit of light, but one would think that with 14, that you still wouldn't have to drag out the halogen to do work on the side of a vehicle. Then again, the fixtures have to be taken into consideration. Maybe if it was a more high end fixture with larger reflectors, it would distribute the light down and over more. With the smaller reflector surface, it directs more down.

 

[Palmetto]

You should have gone with the T8's. They seem allot brighter to me than the T12's.

 

[benvila]

Try to copy-paste the link or click it again, it should work.
This is the description for them:
1 Ft. x 4 Ft.T8 Flngd Trof COMM/RESI Ballast
Model SP8 F 2 32 A12 120 GESB
It also says they are made for mounting in a drywalled ceiling and here's the HD image:

My bad, those are indeed 4-ft bulbs/fixtures...

You think 8 won't be enough as general lighting in the garage area? It's about 20ft x 30ft. I also plan to add some recessed lights where the work bench will be, but that's a different question.

lenses cut 15-20% of the light output of a fixture. plus they collect "critters".

They are not insulation contact rated though, right? I need to make a cage around them and put the insulation around the cage...

Lightolier just cam out with an IC rated linear troffer.

I'm putting 9 - 4' 2 bulb t5 fixtures in my 20x24. I'm using home depot ones, but not doing flush mount. I'm getting the $20 residential ones with lenses. I can't flush mount without replacing most of the sheetrock.

T5 lamps are about 4 times as expensive and only 50% longer life. plus they have to run hotter. light levels **** in the cold.

One side of my garage is 22' wide x 28' long. I recently put in 14- 4' x 2 lamp fluorescent lamp fixtures from Lowes. White walls, white textured ceilings, 8' ceilings. Depending on what you are doing....not enough light. So for a three car garage, I seriously doubt that you will have enough with 8 fixtures. I mounted mine about 1 1/2' from each wall and four fixtures down each wall. Then I have two rows of three fixtures equally spaced between those. I have light on top of the vehicle fine but anything on the side is not bright enough for me. Before I put those up I had 14 of the "contractor packs" of cheap incadescent lighting that had globes on them. No way that there was enough light. And what was there was kind of yellow looking. So when I was painting mt truck, I temporarily put in two 8' fluorescent fixtures that had 2 bulbs each, and put the fixtures end to end. That really lit it up, but it was only on one side of the garage. As a matter of fact the two 8' fixtures (16'total) put out more light than (4) 4' fixtures. But when I was switching everything around I opted for the 4 footers because they were on sale. Don't get me wrong, they do put out quite a bit of light, but one would think that with 14, that you still wouldn't have to drag out the halogen to do work on the side of a vehicle. Then again, the fixtures have to be taken into consideration. Maybe if it was a more high end fixture with larger reflectors, it would distribute the light down and over more. With the smaller reflector surface, it directs more down.

T8 fixtures and larger reflectors will give you more vertical footcandles, which what you are looking for to light the side of your truck. also T12 lamps and ballasts are going away...

 

[sparky1562]

Try to copy-paste the link or click it again, it should work.
This is the description for them:
1 Ft. x 4 Ft.T8 Flngd Trof COMM/RESI Ballast
Model SP8 F 2 32 A12 120 GESB
It also says they are made for mounting in a drywalled ceiling and here's the HD image:

My bad, those are indeed 4-ft bulbs/fixtures...

You think 8 won't be enough as general lighting in the garage area? It's about 20ft x 30ft. I also plan to add some recessed lights where the work bench will be, but that's a different question.

I believe that is a Lithonia fixture based on the model number. They will not come right out and tell you they are IC rated. I can tell you that I have asked my local Lithonia rep this question as an owner wanted to place insulation on top of one for sound reasons, and that particular lamp/ballast combo can be IC rated. I forget what the rep called it, but they can give you a letter. It depends on the lamp/ballast combo and heat disipation. You would be better off if you can keep the insulation 3" off of it.

T8 lamps are the way to go. The GESB is a generic electronic ballast, IE: what ever supplier the factory had on hand that day. Usually Lithonia uses Advance or one of the better competitors. It could be some no-name ballast but I doubt it.

The lens does cut the light output, but diffuses the light and makes it more uniform. A recessed light like this does not just cast light down. The reflector body is designed specifically around the T8 lamp and kicks just about as much light out at 45 degrees as it does at 0. Off course if you looking to direct the light more down, a strip fixture with a large reflector and some up light hung from chain will do a good job, and you can move it around if you don't like where it is. The recessed light is fixed once you install it!

I think 8 is enough. Especially if you are going to drywall the ceiling and walls, and paint them a light color. The closer the fixtures are to the walls, the more light scatter you will get.

As far as price, you get what you pay for. The cheaper the price the thinner the metal, the less effective the reflector is, and a ballast that performs poorly or does not last!

Good luck!

 

[sparky1562]

T5 lamps are about 4 times as expensive and only 50% longer life. plus they have to run hotter. light levels **** in the cold.

I did this comparison for a client to talk them out of T5's. They have their place, but not for general illumination.

View attachment lamp comparo.pdf

 

[nissan_crawler]

lenses cut 15-20% of the light output of a fixture. plus they collect "critters".

T5 lamps are about 4 times as expensive and only 50% longer life. plus they have to run hotter. light levels **** in the cold.



T8 fixtures and larger reflectors will give you more vertical footcandles, which what you are looking for to light the side of your truck. also T12 lamps and ballasts are going away...

I meant T8, I typo'd. I agree lenses will cut out light output, but they're an absolute necessity in my garage with 8.5' ceilings. I hit the ceilings all the time with things, I don't need a shattered bulb falling on my head.

 

[Ovidiu]

Thanks for the suggestions people! I've looked and looked but can't find any IC ones (apart from the Lightolier ones, but those are a minimum of 2ft wide, and I only have 18" between the garage trusses).

Seems like what I need to do is put the non-IC ones in and make a cage around them out of some sort of mesh and insulate around that.

 

[precisionsc54]

why not look into 8' H.O. 2 lamp units? They go for around $55 each and can be started in freezing temps

 

[sharkytm]

why not look into 8' H.O. 2 lamp units? They go for around $55 each and can be started in freezing temps

4' lamps are easier to work with, cheaper, and let you mix up the colors a bit more if you care to. I've got 4x4', and like them a lot more than my old 8' bulbs.

 

[pattenp]

lenses cut 15-20% of the light output of a fixture. plus they collect "critters".



Lightolier just cam out with an IC rated linear troffer.



T5 lamps are about 4 times as expensive and only 50% longer life. plus they have to run hotter. light levels **** in the cold.



T8 fixtures and larger reflectors will give you more vertical footcandles, which what you are looking for to light the side of your truck. also T12 lamps and ballasts are going away...

That's not totally an accurate statement. As far as I've read, only the magnetic ballast for the T12 has been banned by 2010. You can retrofit with new T12 electronic ballast as an option to meet the DOE requirements.

 

[Palmetto]

My only complaint is that I can listen to the radio with the the T-8's on. Too much RFI.

 

[Cobra4B]

Good thread... Im about to upgrade from my generic 2 4 foot fixtures (2 bulbs per) to some HO 8 footers. I guess the T8 is the high output? Can anyone else tell me more about RFI because having tunes in my garage is imperative.

 

[pattenp]

Good thread... Im about to upgrade from my generic 2 4 foot fixtures (2 bulbs per) to some HO 8 footers. I guess the T8 is the high output? Can anyone else tell me more about RFI because having tunes in my garage is imperative.

I have old magnetic ballast T12HO's so I can't speak to the RF problem with the electronic ballast on T8's. There are T8's that are HO and not HO. The T8HO have higher light output so you could use less fixtures vs. the standard T8 bulb. If you go with the 8' T8 fixture, I'd suggest getting the 8' fixture that uses four 4' bulbs.

 

[om-nc]

Couple of pictures for you. There are 13 8' T-8 lights inside. 7 in the lowbay area and 6 in the highbay. No flash was used in the pictures and the paint really brightened the entire area. I can almost work under the hood w/o a shop light. Just need it to fill the shadows.

 

[Palmetto]

Good thread... Im about to upgrade from my generic 2 4 foot fixtures (2 bulbs per) to some HO 8 footers. I guess the T8 is the high output? Can anyone else tell me more about RFI because having tunes in my garage is imperative.

I have the 8' fixtures with 4-4' bulbs. Electronic ballasts. When I flip them on, the radio goes to static. The light is excellent though. I hear allot about RFI filters, and what not, but I have no idea what size to buy, or where to buy them. I do a google search on an RFI filter, and you get all kinds. But I have no idea what kind I need. Its kind of overwhelming. I just want my radio back....

 

[franksinatra]

Sorry to threadjack but is there a 8' 4 bulb fixture that will fit in an opening 14.5"? My rafters are 16" on center and the opening between the two is 14.5 I want fluorescent but I want them recessed. I cant find anything online. Thanks, G

 

[pattenp]

Sorry to threadjack but is there a 8' 4 bulb fixture that will fit in an opening 14.5"? My rafters are 16" on center and the opening between the two is 14.5 I want fluorescent but I want them recessed. I cant find anything online. Thanks, G

Haven't seen any 8' T8 recessed fixtures but Metalux has 4' 2 blub T8 recessed fixtures. Google "Metalux AC132T8" or check it out on http://www.metalux-lighting.com/com...egory=Recessed Static: Accord Series&id=15386

 

[strnge]

Try Sunstar Lighting. They're in Florida. I've done my whole house over with product from them, including 12-4' fixtures, 3 rows of 4 each, butted up against each other to give 2 X 8' of light in each row. My garage is 24' X 24.' I 've been told it looks like Fenway Park at night. Get T-8 Fixtures. 1 " lamps, electronic ballasts. I'm in Boston and they come right on, no matter how cold it is. You'll have to use your company name to set up an account and do business with them, they only deal with contractors. I made a name up and as I said, bought a lot of product from them, including 27 4" cans, dimmers switches, outlets etc. Set up an account and you'll be able to see pricing. Then you can decide if it's worth it to deal with them or Home Depot. I've been told HD stuff is junk. I'm not an electrician so I can't say, but I've had zero problems with the stuff from Sunstar.

Pics Please!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[rocco]

T8 lamps are the way to go. The GESB is a generic electronic ballast, IE: what ever supplier the factory had on hand that day. Usually Lithonia uses Advance or one of the better competitors. It could be some no-name ballast but I doubt it.
QUOTE]


GESB is the nomenclature for the Residential grade Ballast, if you see GESB, run, run fast!

what you're looking for is the commercial grade ballasts - GEB10IS or GEB10RS.

 

[rocco]

Haven't seen any 8' T8 recessed fixtures but Metalux has 4' 2 blub T8 recessed fixtures. Google "Metalux AC132T8" or check it out on http://www.metalux-lighting.com/com...egory=Recessed Static: Accord Series&id=15386

FYI, this fixture is a poorly knocked off copy of the Lithonia RT5 series.(lithonia spend millions and 3 years developping the fixture and technology, cooper spent months making a poor copy.) poorly built and the performance is not on par either.

http://www.lithonia.com/product/comm.aspx?pt=Commercial+&+Industrial+Fluorescent&fid=1068

i've personaly sold thousands of these units without and issues and the end users absolutely love them! (universities, town halls, Mccain foods, etc.)

 

[2LTim]

Do they have a website or catalog? Having trouble finding them. Thanks

rinker1:
Ever tried a little thing called GOOGLE?