Fluorescent shop lights?

[Davej]

Any recommendations for ordinary 48" overhead shop lights? I've had bad luck with the cheap ones. Thanks.

[Stormin Mormon]

I'd open the phone book yellow pages under "electrical supply" and start calling around.

[gfretwell]

These days places like Dale electric will sell you a good T-8 ballast for about $12. It is worth simply chucking the cheap ballast in your bad shop light and going with a better one. The T-8 lamps will save you some money

[J Burns]

Decades ago, I changed from incandescent to F40 T12 lights in my shop. It wasn't heated, and they were dim in winter. I put them in transparent plastic tubes that were required in kitchens. By keeping the bulbs a little warmer, the tubes made them brighter in cold weather. The tubes also provided some protection against breakage.

If I were getting lights for a shop that wasn't kept at room temperature, I'd look into their performance over my expected temperature range.

As the CW tubes aged, I replaced them with CWX. There weren't as many lumens, but I could see colors better. Depending on what you do in a shop, good color rendition can be an advantage.

I don't know the strengths and weaknesses of T12s, T8s, T5s,various CFLs, and LEDs.

[HerHusband]

Hi Dave,

I installed four fixtures in my garage/shop back in 2001. Each fixture holds two T8 bulbs and has electronic ballast.

T8 bulbs are thinner and work better in cold temperatures.

The electronic ballast eliminates flickering and lets the light turn on immediately.

I chose lights with covers in case I hit the fixture with a board or something. I've only done it once or twice, but I'm glad the bulbs weren't exposed.

Thirteen years later and I'm still on the original bulbs. I bought mine from Home Depot back in 2001. I'm pretty sure they were GE brand, but I don't see them listed on their web site anymore. I'm sure they would sell something similar today. The good fixtures will cost about $50 each.

Good luck,

Anthony Watson

[Meanie]

As you read, the gist of the fixture is the ballast. You can purchase a fairly cheap fixture from the big home stores but swapping with a good Advance, GE, Philips electronic ballast will do wonders and last for many years.

The difference between T8 and T12 is wattage, mercury, efficiency, longer lasting and light output all favoring the T8, though, light output isn't extremely noticeable.

The first thing I did with the HD fixture was replaced the ballast. That was many years ago and the lamps are still doing well.

[clare]

And make REAL SURE yiu ground the darn things. Ungrounded they don't start worth a hoot - particularly in cold and damp/

[Davej]

This makes me wonder if I should just replace the ballast in all the units that I now consider unreliable?

[J Burns]

It worked for me. IIRC, a good ballast could cost more than a whole cheap fixture, but I was pleased. Maybe good ballasts are cheaper than they used to be.

[Stormin Mormon]

That's based on price, warranty, convenience, skill set. And the condition of the old fixtures.

If you're a skilled electrician, and if the ballasts are 2/3 the price of a whole fixture, and if there is a warranty on the ballasts, and if, if, if....

- . Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

.

[Meanie]

Ballasts costs were higher years ago prior to the universal ballasts of today. Retailers and distributors had to maintain more shelf space for voltage specific magnetic ballasts. Since universal ballasts offer the voltage range 110 to 277, also enabling them to handle several configurations, it's more efficient for retailer's shelf space. Though, you can still find voltage specific ballast, they will disappear soon enough.

[N8N]

Why not, if the structure of them is sturdy and unrusted?

Really, all there is to the things functionally is the ballast, some wiring, and the keystones. If everything else is good a new ballast and possibly new tubes should fix you up for a while. Replacement keystones are also available.

nate

[Ralph Mowery]

That is what I do, just replace the ballast in my $ 10 shop lights with some $ 10 or $ 12 ballasts. Beats hanging new ones. I have also bought some inexpensive shop lights , taken the ballasts out and put them in the old ones that are already in place in places that I don't use the lights very much.

About all that can go wrong is the ballast and maybe the keystones unless you pench the wiring while puting the covers back on. .

[gfretwell]

George Washington's hatchet.

[hrhofmann]

My education must be very meager, what is a "keystone" in a shoplight?

[clare]

It is the little end of the fixture where the bi-pin connectors on the tube fit.

[Ralph Mowery]

Most often called called tombstones. They are the connectors (sockets) at the end of the light that the pins of the tubes go in.

[Qwerty Uiop]

Jay leno is switching to LED:

[hrhofmann]

Thanks, one more piece of info to try to remember.

[Scott Lurndal]

More commonly called a tombstone, due to the shape. It's the holders on either end of the bulb.