led vs t8

[124ci]

I am building a 28x36 shop with 2 10 ft wide bays and a 12 ft wide work area, 28 deep. After looking and reading on here, as there were lots of shops comparable, I decided on 13 8ft 4 bulb fixtures only from home depot, as they appear just as cheap as ordering them online. As far as placement goes, My 2 10ft wide by 9ft tall garage doors are 3.5 inches from ceiling when open. Shop has 10 ft ceilings all painted white. So I just put a triangle around the bays with no light in the center rear at the doors. It would take 52 bulbs total. Will I notice a huge difference in the led vs fluorescent? I was planning on bypassing the ballast, but after pricing the tubes, it got me to thinking. It is a hobby shop, so I know I will never save enough on my electric bill to make up for the cost. The proposed fixtures are Metalux 32 watt 4 light 8 ft., as I have not bought them yet. Thanks

 

[124ci]

I was also wondering if my layout was close to right.

 

[metlmunchr]

The lighting experts here can give you a professional opinion, but my own seat of the pants guess is that you'll have gross overkill with that much light in that space.

My home shop is divided into 2 sections, and the part where I do most work is 26 x 32. In that space I have four 4ft 2 tube fixtures and 16 4ft single tube fixtures, all using 5000K bypass led tubes with 2400 lumens each. Those 24 tubes light the space up like an operating room. At 68 yrs old, I'm firmly in the "ain't no such thing as too much light" camp, but I really do think 52 tubes in a space only slightly larger than mine might require sunglasses.

All my fixtures are old T12 fluorescents I've had for years and modified for use with bypass LEDs. Having experienced the difference in lighting first hand, I'd still use the LEDs even if their operating cost was twice that of fluorescents rather than half as much.

 

[AntonLargiader]

That's roughly the fixture density I have in my work bay with 12' ceilings. It's not overkill for older eyes and you will like it as long as the light quality is good.

EDIT: This is with bright fluorescent T8s, some with polished reflectors, which I chose after comparing them to LEDs from the same supplier.

 

[Showkey]

4 years ago this was the hot topic of the electrical forum. There were literally several 1000 posts on the topic. Search will lead you back there........

One quote from 2015:
“Depending on the bulb choice LED vs T8 can be :
44% less power and 30 % more LUX output with LED ..........when the price drops this might be a no brainier ....IF ......life span is what they say ???????”

So yes, you should be a difference in light output and cost to run.

The landscape has changed dramatically in 4-5 years. The LED has dropped to a point where pay back is easy to see and achieve. People were hoarding 100 watt bulbs thinking LED were too expensive $4-10 and crappy quality ..........Now LED bulbs are less than a $1, incandescent are almost gone from the market.

Along with price, Quality of the bulbs ( drop in) or fixtures is all over the board. So choose wisely on price, quality of the light, quantity lumen output and power used.

There’s no way I would invest in new T8 bulbs or fixtures.

 

[124ci]

Thanks for the replies. I had planned on using the bulbs that platronic had posted. Greentek Energy Systems GT-T8-18W1200 BIXX(5000K). It just looks like alot of lights for that area to me.

 

[acer66]

4 years ago this was the hot topic of the electrical forum. There were literally several 1000 posts on the topic. Search will lead you back there........

One quote from 2015:
“Depending on the bulb choice LED vs T8 can be :
44% less power and 30 % more LUX output with LED ..........when the price drops this might be a no brainier ....IF ......life span is what they say ???????”

So yes, you should be a difference in light output and cost to run.

The landscape has changed dramatically in 4-5 years. The LED has dropped to a point where pay back is easy to see and achieve. People were hoarding 100 watt bulbs thinking LED were too expensive $4-10 and crappy quality ..........Now LED bulbs are less than a $1, incandescent are almost gone from the market.

Along with price, Quality of the bulbs ( drop in) or fixtures is all over the board. So choose wisely on price, quality of the light, quantity lumen output and power used.

There’s no way I would invest in new T8 bulbs or fixtures.