Need help on estimating shop lighting requirements

[pinetree10]

I bought all of my 8-footers from a local commercial electrical supply business and I haven't had any problems with them. I've never really looked into it but I wonder if the product they stock is typically of a higher quality than what's often found at the big box stores. I'm sure some things are identical but I would imagine that's not always the case.

 

[Willie B]

Commonly box store fixtures will look identical to electrical supply fixtures. In fluorescent fixtures, the difference is often the ballast. My experience is mostly Home Depot, the part number may be the same as wholesaler, or an extra digit, the ballast is typically smaller, fussier, less efficient, with short life span. In my living room,(cathedral ceiling), I have on the vertical wall at 9' a 12" wide shelf, a model tractor collection is displayed, a 3" wide board on edge is parallel to the wall 3" away from the wall. Concealed behind it are fluorescent strip lights facing up, indirect, it uses the ceiling as a reflector. I bought 14 4' strip lights from Home Depot. They were Lithonia, the same model# as I have used for years. One by one they failed. Using bigger, appropriate replacement ballasts the light got brighter. This random difference bothered me. I ended up replacing them all. So much for the savings.

A tool rep. for one of the major brand name power tool companies had a similar story. Quality control weeds them out. Flawless tools go one way, the others go to box stores.

 

[ETpilot]

I purchased a 65W CFL light just to check it out. I was not impressed with the light. I wanted bright daylight type light. The T5 54W HO light was the answer. Yes, more watts used. But, by comparing to my old fixture the difference was night and day . My old fixture was a 2 bulb fluorescent 27,000 lumens at 428W. This was really bright for me. With the new T5 I get 20,000 lumen at 216W. With 2 fixtures I will have 40,000 lumen at 432W. Long term I am saving in this deal for more light. I don' turn them on all the time as I have 2 overhead doors opposite each other. It will be interesting to see what 40,000 lumens looks like when I get the second fixture and add the reflectors.

If you want daylight type light, look at the T5 HO. Just my opinion. The ceiling height issue is a non-issue for me.

 

[Willie B]

I purchased a 65W CFL light just to check it out. I was not impressed with the light. I wanted bright daylight type light. The T5 54W HO light was the answer. Yes, more watts used. But, by comparing to my old fixture the difference was night and day . My old fixture was a 2 bulb fluorescent 27,000 lumens at 428W. This was really bright for me. With the new T5 I get 20,000 lumen at 216W. With 2 fixtures I will have 40,000 lumen at 432W. Long term I am saving in this deal for more light. I don' turn them on all the time as I have 2 overhead doors opposite each other. It will be interesting to see what 40,000 lumens looks like when I get the second fixture and add the reflectors.

If you want daylight type light, look at the T5 HO. Just my opinion. The ceiling height issue is a non-issue for me.

Don't forget ballast wattage in your numbers. I love them too. I get them wholesale, but can't afford them, In my garage, color temperature, and color rendering is secondary to even light distribution. The best lighting is two lights, one over each shoulder. If I could predict where my shoulders will be, two lights is all I would need. Having multiple lights each with pull strings, controlled by a master switch gives me the ability to turn on lights I need.The others not turned on, save energy.

 

[OldMasterTech]

Mine is almost the same size, 28 x 30. I ran 3 rows of T8s, each row on it's own switch, for a total of 36 bulbs = daytime!

 

[Steve_Miller]

I've got a little less than a watt per square foot using six 4' X 4 lamp, T8, 6500K flourescent fixtures. Happy with the light levels. Age will/does require more light in my case.

Steve

 

[robstaples]

There are programs to calculate your lumen requirement. This below link is interactive and free. You model your building (rectangular only) and pick a fixture and bulb output and the foot candles and it calculates the number and location for even distribution. You can try different fixtures and bulb ( like HO for High output) I used this in my shop and decided on 96" twin HO every 15'
Visual
You can determine your foot candles from the insert
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