Replacing fluorescents with LEDS 6500k

xboxhaxorz

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May 30, 2012
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I have a electronic repair shop where we work where lighting is helpful especially 6500k light. I have a 22ft high ceiling in the shop with about 6 fluorescent light fixtures with 2 very long bulbs i would say 6 ft in each fixture. Right now only 4 of them work.

Anyways i wanted to stop using them and switch to leds. I purchased 2 led strips 5m the latest being a 5050 300 led version which definitely looks very cool and provides a decent amount of light if close to it. I put a string about 8 ft in the air and have them tapes to it as well i have them going along the wall at about 8 ft high. I also purchased a 20 watt LED floodlight which again up close providesalot of light but i was planning on mounting them high to provide well a flood of light at our tech area.

Well with the fluorescents off there and just using the LEDs there is not enough light to keep them off. I was looking to find a way to keep them off, i was told LEDs do not spread well from a better distance.
 

LEDninja

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Linear fluorescent is about the most efficient white light sources. Going LED won't cut your electricity bill with the presently available commercial products.

2 fixtures * 2x6' tubes should give you 17,800 lumens.

A 300*5050 LED strip about 3000 lumens or less depending on what is inside the LED case.
(You need 6-24 strips to match the light output of the fluorescent. (2 fixtures*2 tubes))

A 20W LED flood gives <1000 lumens.
(You need 18-20 floods to match the light output of the fluorescent. (2 fixtures * 2 tubes))

1 do not trust 5050 LEDs to last.
So
20*20W floods = 400W. (~40-50 LPW)
2 fixtures * 2*6. tubes = 224W. (~80 LPW)
or
5*Cree CR LE 40L HE (1x4) 38W 4000 lumens 105 LPW (40K) = 190W for 20,000 lumens.
4*Cree CR LE 40L HE (1x4) 38W 4000 lumens 105 LPW (40K) = 152W for 16,000 lumens.
You need SMK-LE-L - Surface Mount Kit with SMK-LE-EC - End Caps (2 pack)-Must be ordered separately and maybe SMK-LE-JP - Joiner Plate (for continuous row)
4000°K neutral is the highest colour temperature for the CR LE. No 6500°K cool white.
Go to Cree's website. Click on the where to buy button. The dealer can probably explain things better. Its a big initial investment though.
 

blasterman

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I would consider replacing the 6-8' tubes with 4x48 T8 or T5 fixtures, and call it a day. Shoplights in this size are cheap and efficient. The majority of LED fixtures in this category are either junk, or seriously over-priced, and most struggle to match the efficiency of tubes because it's more profitable to sell crappy LED fixtures than good ones.
 

Optical Inferno

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Niagara Falls ON. Canada
Definitely agree with blasterman on this one. We just replaced our 400W metal halides with 4x48" T8 fluorescent tubes. The difference is incredible in the light distribution throughout the plant.
 

lightwater

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Sydney
Years ago well before LED lighting. I cleaned all the reflectors for fluorescent tubes in my office. There was quite a film of dirt on all the surfaces. Once cleaned we ended up removing a few tubes here & there as there was now more light than was really needed.
 

xboxhaxorz

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thanks for the tips, it seems the LEDs are not suitable for my particular application, perhaps if i were in a enclosed room it would work but for a shop it seems the suggestions you all mentioned would work better for me

i will have to save up a bit more before making the switch

thanks for the info and when i do the switch i will post back

why would you not trust the 5050 leds?

i got the 300 led strip for $20 on ebay from china
 

LEDninja

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i got the 300 led strip for $20 on ebay from china
why would you not trust the 5050 leds?
$20 - Too cheap. you get what you pay for.
ebay - Referred to as fleabay around here.
china - They do not design their own LEDs. They just make copies of other people's designs. BAD copies.

In short they do not last unless you provide good heatsinking and underdrive them.
Here is a story of light bulbs that use that kind of LEDs:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?338194-Another-LoA-dim-out

I would suggest mounting your current strip somewhere they can be useful and see if they last a year before buying more.
 
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