Home Depot 4' T32 Shop Lights

MiniOaksMocha · Mar 22, 2003

Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

I am having a odd problem with the bulbs in my new 4' T32 Shop Lights from Home Depot that I am using under my barn over the horse stalls. These are the new ones that come on down to zero degrees and that part works great, much better than the old T40 bulbs and light fixtures. The problem is the bulbs don't seem to stay connected in the socket as they keep going off, and then back on. You can just twist them a little and they come back on, but may not stay on. Anyone have this problem before??? Any ideas for solutions would be appreciated.

boustany · Mar 25, 2003

Re: Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

You might try really gently bending the pins of the tube out just tiny snitch with a pair of pliers. It seems to tighten things up and is better than messing with the socket.

Gently now...

herbenus · Mar 26, 2003

Re: Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

This is a strange coincidence. I have some of cheap home depot shop lights. I think they were less than $10 each. They've been in over a year with no problem. About two weeks ago one started flickering and it got so hot that it melted the plastic thingamagig at one end between the two tubes. I replaced it with a spare light that I had never installed. That light is now flickering and I have to jiggle the bulbs and am now afraid it may burn up too. I know moths and dust may be hurting connection. But I'm also wondering if 4 lights on one circuit is too much. I doubt it. I was going to get up there and clean contacts real good but haven't got around to it yet. Biggest fear is that it may meltdown when I leave lights on and cause a fire, so of course I don't leave lights on anymore. But my kids may not be that disciplined. I may have to replace and spend a little more next time around.

MiniOaksMocha · Mar 27, 2003

Re: Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

Thanks, I'll try that this weekend if I have time. Other than this problem, the lights work fine.

Anonymous Poster · Mar 28, 2003

Re: Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

Low cost fixtures with low cost ballasts/bases = lower reliability. As a guy that works on electrical equipment, you think I should know better, but I went and got a set of cheap shop lights ($8) a few years ago. The ballasts were so noisy on startup that one winter a couple of years ago, I turned the lights and the radio on and went to work. After a while, I heard a funny thumping noise so I shut the radio off. The noise went another second and quit. Drove me nuts wondering what was going on (power them down and the noise should stop immediately I thought).
The final conclusion????
A woodpecker thought my fixtures were a bug in the wall of the shop. Whenever I turned the lights on he lit into the T-1-11 siding on the garage trying to get to the bug, I guess. Tore up a spot in the siding pretty well. Almost shot the little critter but didn't have the heart.
Still have a couple of the cheapies but as they die I've been putting in Lithonia strips. They are a little more expensive, but they last forever and the woodpecker problems have subsided.
Some times the lowest cost is not the better choice.
DaveL

fractal · Mar 30, 2003

Re: Home Depot 4\' T32 Shop Lights

Not sure what I have to say will be much help but ..

I bought a home depot shop light the other day to prestart my brocoli with growlights. It was the middle grade and ran two 40w 4ft bulbs. Put it out in the shed and turned it on and gawd, was it terrible. Flickered, fluttered and was a real pain. Went to four electrical supply stores before found anyone who even knew that ballasts were temperature rated. Now it is not the temperature of the ballast that is critical but the temperature of the bulbs the ballast can start, but that's another topic. Anyway, paid 25 bucks for an electronic ballast to replace the one that came with my 18 dollar shop light.

Now I have a shop light that starts first time, every time, down to freezing temperatures, no flicker, no flutter, no stutter. Instant on instead of rapid start and sucker works.

That's the good news. The bad news is my brocoli is still leggi (not enough light) and the flowers I tried to save from daughter overwatering them for science fair project are dead as well even though I got the lights to work reliability, the rest of the project flopped /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif