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-   -   Hangar/Shop Flourescents - 4' or 8 ' ? (https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?t=106460)

Ironflight 11-11-2013 01:07 PM

Thanks for all the quick responses team - as anyone who has had a place built knows, everything is always wait, wait wait....and the HURRY UP, I NEED THE LIGHTS TODAY!!! :;

Consensus seems to be towards the 4' lamps due to cost and overall ease of use, and some off-line discussions with a lighting consultant got us what we needed. We'll put more science into the shop lighting when we build that - this is just general bay lighting for now.

Paul

Brantel 11-11-2013 01:15 PM

Whatever you get make sure they have true electronic ballast in em...

The electronic ballast are the bomb. They start great even when cold, the bulbs seem to burn brighter and last much longer and you don't have that annoying hum or weird flickers! At least that has been my experience.

When you get around to the real deal, our plant has been switching to LED technology over the past few years. Some of those fixtures are amazing! Be sure to ask an expert in the field such as JonJay.

RV7Guy 11-11-2013 01:59 PM

4 Footers
 
Hi Paul,

I swapped my 4' 2 bulb units for 4' 4 bulb type. HUGE difference. The 8' were too expensive in both acquisition and bulb cost.

Lowe's has a contractor pricing if you buy 6 or more.

JonJay 11-11-2013 02:08 PM

Let me know if you need any help Paul.
There is a lot of misinformation out there, some of it in these responses. Ha!

David Paule 11-11-2013 02:31 PM

Worth checking on this, but I remember that the higher the T number, the more lumens per watt they develop. In other words, they're more efficient.

The last time I shopped for them, I bought a case of 48" Sylvania T8, with a color temp of 4100K. I'm satisfied with them.

One other advantage of the shorter fixtures is that they're easier to rearrange in the shop if you need to for a particular job.

Dave

diamond 11-11-2013 02:50 PM

One thing I read about in the literature is that the higher the color temperature of the bulb, the more fixtures you will need to "perceive" an equivalent degree of illumination. I experienced this first hand when I tried "daylight" bulbs (6000+) in my fixtures and thought they seemed too dim for detailed work on the bench. I removed the bulbs and replaced them with something in the 4500 range and then felt I had plenty of light.

JonJay 11-11-2013 03:15 PM

T - is the diameter of the bulb in 1/8's of an inch. Has nothing to do with the lumen output.
Color Temperature is measured in Kelvin, has little to do with how well color is actually rendered.
Color Rendering, CRI, is the index used to gage the afore mentioned. (and in my opinion the most important)

There is a reason why I am able to make a living in the business of lighting. Same reason why others are making a living doing whatever you may do. It is very obvious it isn't selling lighting ;)

As with many threads that get off the basic subject of building airplanes, this one has very little fact contained in it I am afraid.

humptybump 11-11-2013 04:22 PM

Paul - You've probably already pulld the trigger. My shop has 8 units, each holds 6 4' tubes.

az_gila 11-11-2013 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Master Designs (Post 825045)
The trend seems to be going to 4' bulbs, even if it's an 8' fixture (which uses four 4' bulbs). Maybe it's because they are easier to transport and only one size to stock at the big box store?

I just changed the 8 ft ones in my workshop and it was a pain in the butt.

The options for 8 ft fixtures wired end-to-end (less labor) but with 4x 4ft bulbs would have been much more convenient.

Something like these -

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia-...k#.UoF7jJ3n-Uk

rockwoodrv9 11-11-2013 07:26 PM

4' lights are easy to pick at the store and install when you are on top of a ladder.


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