whats the 'best' T8 bulb?

[mrb]

what is the 'best' T8 bulb in terms of color temperature, etc?

 

[Wow]

That's like asking who makes the best pickup truck. Myself and a lot of others seem to prefer the 5100k (or so) color. The 6500k they call "daylight" seems blue to me and if it looked like that outside I would think something is very, very wrong...

 

[Nostraquedeo]

I think the application plays a big part in answering that question.

 

[D KRAGER]

I think the application plays a big part in answering that question.

And your budget.......

4100 - 5000 k
Look for a high CRI Rating (the closer to 100 the number= natural colors)
Lumen output
Bulb life


Better CRI and high lumen output are going to cost you sometimes double or more what the standard cheaper bulb will cost.


We need more details on the application.........

 

[Gary S]

I agree with Wow. Pick what you like.

 

[Cryptic1911]

I went through this when I bought mine, and I ordered 5000k, 3100 lumen, 85CRI 36000hr life bulbs by Litetronics.. the l-337 models from http://www.1000bulbs.com/F32T8-5000-Kelvin/32009/ Those seem to have about the best overall specs for the price

 

[larryv]

I use the Phillips 4100K, CRI 85, Light output 2950, Life 40,000 hrs. They put out a lot of bright white light. $39.00 Bucks for 10 at Home Depot. Good Luck

 

[Aceman]

This 841 is the one we use when I have a choice or if the customer wants good light:

http://www.servicelighting.com/Sylv...ECO-T8-Straight-Linear-Fluorescent-Light-Bulb

Our price is nowhere near that price though, more along the lines of ~2 dollars a lamp.

When they want cheap, they get the 735.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I recently converted the kitchen lights to T8. There are two 4 light fixtures recessed between the hand hewn floor beams and I figured with all the wood (floor, walls and ceiling) that the 6500K 85 CRI Phillips Alto bulbs would work OK. I was way off. Indeed, they had a strong bluish cast to them, but after using them for a while, much of the blue hue has gone away. They are just way too bright, but at this point, I'm too cheap to swap them out. Possibly, in a shop, with high ceilings, it might just be workable, but I think some of the above recommendations are best. Get some 5000K and try them. The 4100K bulbs are to me, way too soft of a light for shop work.

Charles

 

[jvitez]

The sun at twilight is ~2000K. A candle is ~ 2200K. Incandescent bulbs are 2700K. Halogen bulbs are 2900-3000K. Incandescents have a CRI of 100, as does, by definition, sunlight. Northern sky at noon in mid winter is 6500K.

My wife disliked the bluish appearance of the 5000K CF's in our pantry, so I tried 2700K T8's for our walk in closet: yuk! Everything looked like it had jaundice. It gave a gastly un-natural yellowish hue. These were Phillips from Home Depot, CRI 85. I went to a lighting store and got Standard brand , made in Germany, 3500K CRI 85 T8's: perfect. They look bright white, appear to give more lumens to my eyes despite similar lumen output ratings, and I can now tell my black socks from navy blue. I couldn't with the 2700K T8's. Most of the house has low voltage halogen pot lights. These 3500K bulbs look whiter to me, without looking blue.

I had 6500K high CRI T12's in my old house's workshop: definitely bluish. I found an article on line a while ago that explained why despite CRI and deg K ratings being the same, our eye sees fluorescent light differently than sunlight, so a 6500K fluorescent looks bluer to us than 6500K northern sky.

I plan on either 4100K or 5000K T8's for my garage and basement workshop. I think I'll try some of both and pick which I like better.

 

[Falcon67]

I like the round ones, about 4' long.

OK, I'll behave - I use the 6500K's in the shop. They give off a bit of a blue light, but I want lots of light.