Setting up the lights...help

[4EyedTurd]

Finally in a house with a garage . The garage has one incandescent bulb in the center with one of those screw in outlets for the garage door opener. There is a switch just in the house to works the light/opener. Now, I've been dragging around 8 or so fluorescent lights for a few years that my dad had setup in his garage. These are probably 10+ years old now, only because I'm a cheap @ss. These lights are wired with plugs and I was thinking of either 4 or 6 if I can fit them in the normal sized 2 car garage.

In trying to have a nice looking garage, would you put outlets in the ceiling near the lights and have them plug in or run romex into the attic?...and have the lights and door opener off the switch? Would you run the old lights? I'm trying to do it once and right.

 

[Gary S]

First, are those lights the older T12 fixtures with transformers in them for ballasts, or are they the newer fixtures with electronic ballasts that take T8 lamps? You want the newer ones with electronic ballasts so you can use the T8 lamp. The electronic ballast weighs a few ounces while the transformer ballast weighs pounds.

I would put receptacles in the ceiling and plug the cords in. It doesn't look as neat, but it allows you to move the lights where you need them in the future.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

First, are those lights the older T12 fixtures with transformers in them for ballasts, or are they the newer fixtures with electronic ballasts that take T8 lamps? You want the newer ones with electronic ballasts so you can use the T8 lamp. The electronic ballast weighs a few ounces while the transformer ballast weighs pounds.

I would put receptacles in the ceiling and plug the cords in. It doesn't look as neat, but it allows you to move the lights where you need them in the future.

^^^This in spades. While going the direct wire route was allowed in my area, I elected to use switched receptacles. I have 13 4' T8 fixtures plugged into them. The older ones will be hard to light in winter if you're located where it gets cold. I've had no trouble lighting my T8s in winter, as they're supposed to be good down to 0-F. I even used switched receptacles in my old garage, though they don't want to light in winter. Cheap 5 buck shop lights from the 90s.

 

[pattenp]

If you put outlets in the ceiling for lights the NEC requires all 120V receptacles in the garage to be GFCI protected, even the ones in the ceiling. So don't forget to put a GFCI outlet at the beginning of the circuit to protect all downstream outlets.

 

[4EyedTurd]

Thanks guys, I went ahead and put up four lights with outlets. The light in the garage is a million times better but the lights I'm using are old and I'm assuming the ballast are showing their age. In the middle of the day with the lights on for a few hours they will cut off individually and come on after a while.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Thanks guys, I went ahead and put up four lights with outlets. The light in the garage is a million times better but the lights I'm using are old and I'm assuming the ballast are showing their age. In the middle of the day with the lights on for a few hours they will cut off individually and come on after a while.

Yeah, but with receptacles, you can now buy newer T8 fixtures, even one at a time, and replace them at your leisure.