Flush Mount Lights in Garage Ceiling

[kngelv]

I am moving in the next few weeks. The attached garage in the new house has a drywall ceiling 8.5' above the floor. Has anyone used can or other flush mount lights in such an application? My current garage has open storage so I have numerous two tube T8 fixtures hanging throughout. Thanks.

James

 

[bry@n]

I did this with my garage. I had two tear drop lights that I tied into, ran pipe to three flush mounted shop lights. This way my light switch would also control them. I don't use anything else on the circuit, so I wasn't to concerned with overloading it.

 

[ddawg16]

I did recessed cans. 16 Of them to be exact. One of the advantages....lots of flexibility on where I put them and what kind of light I used.

Yes, tubes are cheaper...but my method has more 'upgrade' potential as bulbs change.

As of now, I have CFL's in there. Some are PAR lamps, others just the bare CFL bulb. Going on 6-7 years and have yet to replace a bulb. An I have yet to break one while swinging a 2x4 around.

 

[PCMusicGuy]

I did recessed cans. 16 Of them to be exact. One of the advantages....lots of flexibility on where I put them and what kind of light I used.

Yes, tubes are cheaper...but my method has more 'upgrade' potential as bulbs change.

As of now, I have CFL's in there. Some are PAR lamps, others just the bare CFL bulb. Going on 6-7 years and have yet to replace a bulb. An I have yet to break one while swinging a 2x4 around.

How tall are your ceilings? The OP says he has an 8.5 ft ceiling and if he would use can lights, he may end up with a lot of shadows. Depends on a lot of things though.

 

[LX-Markham]

No drywall yet, but I used 4' T8 troffers in my vaulted ceiling. Plenty of light.

 

[ddawg16]

How tall are your ceilings? The OP says he has an 8.5 ft ceiling and if he would use can lights, he may end up with a lot of shadows. Depends on a lot of things though.

8'. No issues with shadows.

 

[kngelv]

I did recessed cans. 16 Of them to be exact. One of the advantages....lots of flexibility on where I put them and what kind of light I used.

Yes, tubes are cheaper...but my method has more 'upgrade' potential as bulbs change.

As of now, I have CFL's in there. Some are PAR lamps, others just the bare CFL bulb. Going on 6-7 years and have yet to replace a bulb. An I have yet to break one while swinging a 2x4 around.

Do the cans give off enough light? is there a shadow concern with these?

 

[Speed4Life]

I did cans in mine when I finished out the walls and ceiling. I've got 7 750 Lumen Cree Led lights and they light up all 400 sq. ft. with no issues.

 

[Joe Reed]

Cheaper and easier. Fixtures - $20 for 2 at Lowes. Blubs - 100 or 120 watt equivalent CFLs (2 per fixture).

 

[NewShockerGuy]

Cheaper and easier. Fixtures - $20 for 2 at Lowes. Blubs - 100 or 120 watt equivalent CFLs (2 per fixture).

Those look good, what are they? link it up.

-Nigel

 

[V_Twin]

I run four 96" T12 CFL 2 bulb fixtures. Plenty of light for my garage and I haven't noticed any shadows. My garage is 37'Wx25'D and the third bay is close to a tandem with 11 extra ft. My ceilings are 11'. Pardon the mess in the pic, I have a few projects in the works.

 

[MushCreek]

I put four 6" cans with LED retrofits in the wife's garage, which is 16 X24. Plenty of light for walking around and light work; nowhere enough for serious shop work. Still, they're only burning a total of 38 watts when she leaves them on all night.....

 

[workhurts]

If you have a living space above the garage, then the use of recessed cans becomes an issue. You'd likely have to build a drywall box around them or get some very special cans.

On one of my walls, I went with a pretty flush/recessed light that fit in your typical plastic work box. About $30 LEDs ... they don't work too bad for where I have them.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_86477-3-75094_0__?productId=50397762

 

[SLYDIT]

i recommend LED fixtures. i have 5 foot led fittings above the bench and for the moment a couple of CFL's but these will be changed to recessed LED fittings of around 14 watt. many of the new LEDs are rated for complete cover by insulation so its an easy way to go for that. and because they are used in new house builds they are CHEAP. i can get 8-10 recessed 14W leds for the price of 2x5 foot led fittings

 

[ddawg16]

If you have a living space above the garage, then the use of recessed cans becomes an issue. You'd likely have to build a drywall box around them or get some very special cans.

On one of my walls, I went with a pretty flush/recessed light that fit in your typical plastic work box. About $30 LEDs ... they don't work too bad for where I have them.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_86477-3-75094_0__?productId=50397762

Why? If you are running CLF's or LED's, the heat output is a fraction of an incandescent....hence, you don't need and IC rated can.

As an FYI....you can get an air tight trim for around $6 that work will with both types of lamps.

 

[black00lightning]

I'm setting up to run 36 6" recessed cans in my 30' x 32' x 12' shop. I plan on using 45w (200watt eqivalent) 3800 lumens that should give me close to 150 lumens/sqrt. Fixtures were $60 for 6 cans and trim and bulbs are $24 for 4 bulbs. My main concern, besides light output, was to have a nice clean looking ceiling.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Why? If you are running CLF's or LED's, the heat output is a fraction of an incandescent....hence, you don't need and IC rated can.

As an FYI....you can get an air tight trim for around $6 that work will with both types of lamps.

The issue is you need a fire barrier between the garage and the house, so you need to seal any holes cut into the garage ceiling.

 

[bedn0009]

I'm setting up to run 36 6" recessed cans in my 30' x 32' x 12' shop. I plan on using 45w (200watt eqivalent) 3800 lumens that should give me close to 150 lumens/sqrt. Fixtures were $60 for 6 cans and trim and bulbs are $24 for 4 bulbs. My main concern, besides light output, was to have a nice clean looking ceiling.

This sounds very interesting. I'm building a 28 x 32 right now. Do you have any pics or drawings?

 

[ddawg16]

The issue is you need a fire barrier between the garage and the house, so you need to seal any holes cut into the garage ceiling.

Good point....

My garage is detached so that is not an issue. Though it is 2-story...but upstairs is not a living space.

Thanks for pointing that out for the others.

 

[fourjeepin]

Re: Home Depot Clearance Thread 2015

No drywall yet, but I used 4' T8 troffers in my vaulted ceiling. Plenty of light.

I put in a couple of these at my old place and they were like $50 a pop.

 

[black00lightning]

Here's a sketch of the layout. My shop lighting project is ongoing.
The cans are installed, light buls are on order and wiring is still being done. I'm hoping it will be very bright when completed.

 

[ddawg16]

Here's a sketch of the layout. My shop lighting project is ongoing.
The cans are installed, light buls are on order and wiring is still being done. I'm hoping it will be very bright when completed.

You are going to be just fine.

If I may suggest....set it up in banks.

One switch for just 'walking' lighting. Like, every 4th light....just enough so you can get around.

And/Or....in sections.

I have 16 lights in 3 sections. Front of garage, back left and back right. It's rare I turn on all sections.

 

[Norcal]

Can lights are about as inefficient as you can get, you need a lot more then if strip/industrial/wraparounds were used at a higher operating cost,IMHO can lights in a garage must have been chosen by a limp wristed decorator.

 

[black00lightning]

My plan is to switch lights in quadrants. 9 lights per quadrant.

 

[LX-Markham]

Yeah, that's going to be 1.6 kW
By comparison, 8 pairs of 4' T8's is only 512 W

I put in a couple of these at my old place and they were like $50 a pop.

They weren't cheap, but going to look great when finished

 

[Platonic Solid]

I'm setting up to run 36 6" recessed cans in my 30' x 32' x 12' shop. I plan on using 45w (200watt eqivalent) 3800 lumens that should give me close to 150 lumens/sqrt. Fixtures were $60 for 6 cans and trim and bulbs are $24 for 4 bulbs. My main concern, besides light output, was to have a nice clean looking ceiling.

You'll be lucky to achieve 65lm at 30" workplane. Please link to bulb.

 

[black00lightning]

You'll be lucky to achieve 65lm at 30" workplane. Please link to bulb.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0089Q1FWE/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[Jackfre]

I used 16 of the 4' twin tube LED fixtures from Costco. $35 per fixture. I have it switched in quadrants. I'm happy with them. I have 4 & 6" LED cans in the remodeled house and they have been excellent as well.

 

[Platonic Solid]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0089Q1FWE/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Oh, I thought you were going LED. That changes things (for the worse).

This is an astoundingly bad idea! I honestly think you’re creating a fire hazard. You’re going to take a budget brand 7” long 45W CFL (note: wattage disputed by some amazon reviewers) which is intended for photography (thus intended to be installed in a completely open air fixture) and stuff it into a 7” deep recessed can. I strongly recommend you do a bench top temperature test before going full tilt on this.

The 3800 lumens you mentioned would mean this lamp is capable of 84 lumens per watt. On their best day, in an open air installation, a quality name brand CFL might achieve 70L/W, thus 45W x 70Lm = 3150Lm max. (Again: in open air installation and if their wattage claim is accurate). Keep in mind that this is bare lamp lumens. At least 50% of the usable light will be lost in the can, plus an estimated 15% loss due to excessive heat leaves you with ~1100 usable lumens out of the fixture.

If the bulb survives the heat build-up of the recessed can and it turns out not to be a fire hazard, you’ll be lucky is it lasts 1 year (or 1000 hrs.) before the ballast fries.

Photometrically speaking, the end result is annoying glare from 36 locations and insufficient lumen output at workplane.

 

[Shiftless]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0089Q1FWE/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Might be a better idea to scratch those twisty CFL's and screw in directional LED flood light or spot light bulbs. Their built in reflectors will get all those lumens pointed in the direction they are needed (downward) instead of wasted bouncing around in the can.
Time for a test drive.
If you install just one bulb as a trial run in one of your cans you can see that you can get more light at bench height with the directional led's than the CFL's and use less power.

 

[tonycastec]

I am using Flat Panel LEDs.Amazingly thin. need to get the cool white and the highest wattage.Cost almost nothing to run,never(?) need replacement.Best of all, NO heat issues. Ideal to replace old 8' T12s
Find the LED flat panels on EBay.Prices are still falling so are a reasonable cost vs alternatives

 

[black00lightning]

I'll run some tests on temperature of 75 watt incandescent (max for fixture) and a 45 watt cfl. Logic says that 75 watts will produce more heat than a more efficient 45 watt bulb. We'll see.

As a sidenote, there is no ceiling in the shop and I have 3 - 60" fans on when I'm in the shop.

 

[Platonic Solid]

A 75W incandescent will run hotter than a 45W fluorescent. The problem is the CFL has a built-in ballast that can over heat. Think of it this way: you can put an incandescent in an oven without issue, unlike the CFL.

I had to look it up, but did find that UL Listed CFL lamps are required to have thermal shut-off (aka: UL Class P). I was unable to find a UL file for your Limostudio CFL, so who knows.

 

[ddawg16]

I'll run some tests on temperature of 75 watt incandescent (max for fixture) and a 45 watt cfl. Logic says that 75 watts will produce more heat than a more efficient 45 watt bulb. We'll see.

As a sidenote, there is no ceiling in the shop and I have 3 - 60" fans on when I'm in the shop.

Your 75 incandescent bulb will put out 75w of heat energy

Your 45w CFL will also generate 45w of heat energy. The big difference is your 45w CFL will generate about 3x more lite than your incandescent.

Heat is an issue for CFL's. The ballasts are solid state....and solid state electronics do not like heat.

If you are going to run that large of a bulb, make sure you use an open trim if it's in a recessed can.