Looking for suggestions

[rallendude]

I have a new garage going up. Well, it's a little bigger than a typical garage. It grew every time I talked with the building manufacturer.

What I have is a 54' x 60' garage with 16' eve height. The center of the building is about 22' or so. It's all open. Here is the general layout I'm looking for.

My question is, what do you guys suggest for lighting. I was thinking about using metal halide fixtures because they are free to me. I'm told the power consumption is huge. Is it enough to justify me going out and buying my own? If so, what do you suggest?

I was going to go with 9 metal halide from similar ceiling height shops at work. I would put them in, in a 3x3 pattern with one run down the center truss and them two more runs about 20' to either side in the direction of the roof line.

I plan to build motorcycle race engines here in the work areas. The camper area really won't need nearly as much lighting. I'm also planning on splitting it up into three circuits probably along the same line as the roof line so I can turn on just what I need.

I was thinking of also putting 4' T8 fixtures down the divider wall above the work benches and along the left, outside wall in the work area as well. These would be wall mounted and aimed out in the direction of the work areas.

Thoughts?

Maybe I can make a build thread one day. It's taken nearly a year to get from clearing land to having a carcass to mount doors in. BTW, it's all metal with three main structures. Insulated top and sides. One 4-0 walk through door, so the bikes don't scar the door frames, two 10x10 drum style roll up doors on the front wall, and along the back are two 14x14 drum style roll up doors for driving the camper through.

 

[slimpickins]

Welcome aboard! That's a nice size building. You should start a build thread definitely! Make sure you take lots of pics along the way!

As for the lights, I would think about it in terms of work areas. Do you really need to light the whole shop when you're working in one area?

I look forward to seeing your build!

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I have a 60x60 with 16 ft eave and 21 ft at the peak. It has 12 each 400 watt metal halide fixtures. I have lots of uplighting due to having polycarbonate or acrylic reflectors that allow about 30% uplighting, which eliminates the "cave effect". You want light, you gonna burn energy. True, fluorescent lighting, especially T5 bulbs will give you much more light for the watts consumed. A 400 watt MH is about 4 amps at 120v. A eight bulb T5 fixture like the ones installed at work, will also draw 4 amps at 120v, but they put out about twice as much light. However, you will pay hugely for those fixtures. Pay me now, or pay me later. I don't use the lighting every day, so I figured I'd take my chances with $40 MH fixtures, rather than $250 T5 fixtures.

Charles

Here is MY lighting install thread.

 

[Greatbear]

My only problem with using HID-type lighting exclusively is the warmup time. If you need to run into the garage for a minute or two you are stuck with dim purple light. MH fixtures are fantastic for large work area with high ceilings, but I would add a couple fluorescent fixtures in strategic areas for convenience.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

If you look in my pic, on the second wall girt up on the back wall, left and right sides, you see something rectangular, those are cheap 500 watt quartz flood lights. From the time I got power on the building in 2001 until the fall of '08, those two floods and two 8 ft fluorescent lights over the workbenches, was all the light I had. It is surprisingly good for general work and moving around, but left alot to be desired. These are what I use when I need to go in and out in a hurry now.

Charles

 

[rallendude]

I plan on mounting some standard incandescent lights strategically around the shop. Like I said earlier, I think I'm going with some 4' strip lights on tops of the work benches for detail work. I'm sure the odd work light will be installed too.

I guess I'll stick with the MH since they are free. Once I recover from the initial investment I'll look into going high output fluorescent or LED. I am definitely going to split up the switching. I'm thinking maybe two swithes for incandescents, probably three for MH (4 if I go with 12 MH). And then local work lighting.

Im also planning on installing an electrical strip along the first shelf on the work bench that will span 2/3s of the length of the shop with duplex outlets spaced no more than 4' on center.

I can't wait to get this place operational. We installed one drum door yesterday and I kitted out the other three today. After mounting the brackets we should be putting doors up.

 

[nehog]

My question is, what do you guys suggest for lighting. I was thinking about using metal halide fixtures because they are free to me. I'm told the power consumption is huge. Is it enough to justify me going out and buying my own? If so, what do you suggest?

I was going to go with 9 metal halide from similar ceiling height shops at work. I would put them in, in a 3x3 pattern with one run down the center truss and them two more runs about 20' to either side in the direction of the roof line.

...

Free halide lighting is hard to beat. Good light, good color.

No, not a ton of power, they are roughly as efficient as other lighting that is not energy efficient. Big factor is how much will you be using it? If only occasional use, go with the halide.

In my shop, I have 24 T-8 fixtures for quick light. Not terribly bright, but enough for general work. I have another eight halide fixtures (400 watt models), which I use when I need really good lighting for a project.

In my case I measured the power consumption of the fixtures, and each draws about 4 amps at 120 volts (2 amps at 240, which is how they are wired in my shop) so a 400 watt fixture draws around 480 watts input. Newer halide (pulse start high efficiency) draw only a bit more than 400 watts (about 420, IIRC) but it would have taken my many years to recover the additional cost.

My shop is divided (logically, no walls) into three 20 x 30 sections. One section has 4 halide lights, the other two have two lights (because of the doors, and the fact I didn't feel I needed that much lighting for the entire shop). The T-8 fixtures are arranged with 8 per section.

Added: As to startup times, some halide lights have a halogen backup light feature... This light comes on when the light is starting to give 'emergency' lighting. See if you can find some of those if you don't want to put in secondary lighting for quick trips in to find stuff...

 

[Aceman]

With your ceiling height we'd probably use a 4-6 lamp T5HO fixture.

Your best bet is to take your shop layout plan(with good marked dimensions on it!) to your local genuine electrical supply house and tell them you'd like to price and possibly purchase some fixtures for your shop. But you need them to have a lighting rep put together a lighting layout and fixture package for you. This takes ALL the guesswork out of it. You can work with the rep on trying a couple different layouts with different fixtures, T8's, whatever.

This is how we do it.

 

[sberry]

Looks like someone cobbled a couple boxes on after the fact but for temps and convenience or local light I pipe out of the switch box, a couple hangers, bend pipe and put fixture on. Still use a few of them, over drill press, solvent tank, near walk doors in couple spots. One over my pressure washer for service.
I found I don't need light everywhere all the time, got a 400 sodium in general area, bunch of 4 lamp flors in the ceilings, bunch of 2 lamps on swinging booms, some 500 qtz on stands, some 500s for paint booth, all different.
Out in my storage building I put motion, a qtz and 150 flood on, then about 10 150 floods on each switch, found outdoor fixtures with cord for 2$ at Menard's, turn those on as needed but its pretty rare, the motion does most of the work.

 

[sberry]

I leave 3 9w or 13 watt cfl's run 24/7, can find my way around easily without ever hitting a light switch. One in my office and 2 in the shop. Right now, running about 1500 watts or less and have half building lit, 3000 sq ft or so and its workable. I add qtz on stands over projects if needed.

 

[sberry]

I looked at the sketch, you wont need a lot of light, no point in making it bright over a camper or in storage. You got what you got but I would be tempted to put bike storage against the back wall and make the corner off entrance work area, put tools along walls along with some common florescent fixtures hanging overhead, wire with cords and recepts so its easy to move. No matter how well one plans work areas change, I don't build anything in and wire as needed.