shop light recommendations

mercrazy

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building a new shop and don't know which LED lights to get.
don't want fluorescent tube style.
any recommendations?
thanks
 

lightfooted

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Got a budget limit? I watch a YouTuber called Big Clive and he has taken apart some inexpensive street lights and other such things that while I was watching made me think how useful they might be indoors as shop lighting and such. Mostly just because they weren't trying to replace fluorescent tubes or anything like that but were just large LED light sources. I don't have any particular recommendation, just more of a suggestion as to what you could look for. The big advantage is that these things are designed to hook up directly to mains power.

Just a quick search and I found one model that claims it outputs around 8k lumens for about $50USD. Was being sold by Amazon I think.
 
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mercrazy

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40' x 60' x 12' walls, cathedral ceiling, walls and ceiling lined with white metal.
i will only use LED, just want good quality at fair price.
i bought an exterior LED porch light with sensor at lowes for $80.
bought something similar on ebay for $30 and like them just as good or better.
 

mckeand13

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That's way bigger than I have experience with. I'm out.

With all all of that white you won't require as much lighting as you would otherwise.

Good luck with your search. Please post pics as you go so others can have an example.
 

idleprocess

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building a new shop and don't know which LED lights to get.
don't want fluorescent tube style.
any recommendations?
thanks

I've retrofit something like hundreds of floro fixtures with mains-current driven 48" LED tubes at the local makerspace and they've all been running like champs for more than 2 years at ~100% duty cycle. At ~$10 a tube and ~50% of the wattage of floros they don't need to last forever and the OPEX savings over floro is very real.
 

HarryN

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Hi, I am replacing some Florescent fixtures in the garage - possibly later also some in the house.

My goals are:
- CCT 4000K +/-
- CRI 90+
- 3-5K lumens
- LED fixture - not the tube bulb replacement style
- Diffused lighting for a nice smooth illumination
- Sort of resembling a fluorescent fixture shape for 4 ft bulbs.
- dimming is not required and won't be used if present, but I can deal with it.

I am fairly familiar with 4000K and high CRI fixtures because we use them all of the time in the kitchen.

I went to lowes and HD and found a shop light that is 4000 K CCT but only 80 CRI. It is what I expected and adequate for a test, but not long term.

Super bright LEDs has a similar fixture - still 80 CRI.

Open to ideas of how to find a high CRI product.

I don't really care about max efficiency but high color content is a big deal.

I guess I could build a fixture like this but I am hoping to just buy some if possible.

Thanks

Harry

edit - I did find these strip LEDs that I guess I can use if needed.

Probably would still need a diffuser of some kind.

https://store.waveformlighting.com/...a-high-95-cri-led-strip-lights-for-commercial
 
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HarryN

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Those tubes are exactly what I don't want. If I am going to switch to LEDs I want a fixture with at least a half decent thermal path from the LED to the fixture sheet metal.

It is 80% additional fixtures and 20 % replacements.

I actually really like the 4000 K high CRI fluorescents and doubt the claims of substantial energy savings of LED of them for similar light quality and quantity, but my real reasons are simply that:
- Some need replacement
- More fixtures are needed in general
- I would like lights that are more resistant to accidentally getting bumped in the garage compared to bulb types

If I have to do a DIY I will probably just go the whole way and:
- Buy some light strips
- Add in some kind of fixture as appropriate (maybe the ones they sell on that site)
- Power it with a solar panel + 24 volt battery setup since that is what I do in conversion vans already

That way the lights will work even during power outages.

My wife has encouraged me to try to just buy something like normal people do instead of building everything myself. I am attempting to accommodate.

I guess I could always just buy a cheap FL fixture, strip out the guts, bond in some LED strips (white plus RGB ), add an led dynamics DMX 4 channel controller and surprise her. Does that count as "just buying stuff like other people"? :)
 
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idleprocess

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Those tubes are exactly what I don't want. If I am going to switch to LEDs I want a fixture with at least a half decent thermal path from the LED to the fixture sheet metal.
Dallas Makerspace has been running hundreds of inexpensive retrofit LED tubes 24x7 for three-plus years without issue. We have made a point to use the Al-profile variety (which is sadly falling out of favor) rather than the glass-encased variety because of their superior thermal characteristics.
 

HarryN

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Quick update:

1) Lithonia CS contractor select
FMLWL
- wrap around lamp
- 4 ft
- 41 watts / 120 vac
- 4000K
- 2900 lumens
(info is from the box label)

- It is definitely warmer than I expected and not particularly bright.
- It is ok, but not enough for me
- fixture is typical quality of FL fixtures
- LED strip is screwed down every 120mm to the fixture top

I have one running in the garage facing toward the refrigerator and colors are acceptable

Wife input - Why did you buy that dim, dingy yellow light?

2) Lithonia
- XVML
- LED wet location vapor tight
- 5000 lumens
- 4000 K
- 120 / 277 volt
- 4 ft
- I don't see a wattage on the box

Definitely a much better built fixture inside and out

LEDs stips are mounted on a removable plate - again apparently screwed down every 120mm

Definitely more light, but still I wasn't overly impressed with the output.

Wife input - why did you buy that dim, dingy, yellow fixture instead of a FL fixture?

I looked again at the FL bulbs we are using. I thought it was 4000K but was wrong - they are:
- 4 ft
- 5000K
- 2200 lumens (each)
- 40 watts (each)
- 90 CRI
- Sylvania full spectrum F40DSGN50
- T12

Best light quality we have ever owned.

Wife said - "buy these and stop goofing around."

Guess if I want something similar I need to make it using LED strip lights.
 
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HarryN

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Thanks
- Are the ones that you are using high CRI type or 80ish?
- Are the lumens output the same ?

FL is a pretty efficient technology, but I can see how the LED are outputting light in 180 degrees vs 360.

- I really don't like the FL bi pin concept, so replacing the lights and keeping the bi pin is ok but not ideal from my perspective
- 80% of what I need are new (additional ) fixtures. I am trying to avoid buying new FL fixtures and then stripping out the guts if possible. Might not be possible.

I am open minded, but really don't want bi pin bulbs of any kind if I can avoid it.
 
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idleprocess

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Thanks
- Are the ones that you are using high CRI type or 80ish?
- Are the lumens output the same ?

FL is a pretty efficient technology, but I can see how the LED are outputting light in 180 degrees vs 360.
80ish CRI: we've got almost 40,4000ft² to illuminate.

Fewer rated lumens, but with the Al profile flavor those are all going down where they're needed - the reflector in the fixture isn't necessary to extract the back half like with floro tubes. Conversely, any reduced lumen output on the fully-wraparound plastic and/or glass will be felt.

- I really don't like the FL bi pin concept, so replacing the lights and keeping the bi pin is ok but not ideal from my perspective
- 80% of what I need are new (additional ) fixtures. I am trying to avoid buying new FL fixtures and then stripping out the guts if possible. Might not be possible.

I am open minded, but really don't want bi pin bulbs of any kind if I can avoid it.

We were looking to improve fixture uptime and save a little on electricity at the same time; forget the ROI estimate but it was well under 3 years vs re-lamping T12s and even ballast-swap + relamp to T8. We also could buy the conversion supplies (tubes, non-shunted tombstones, wire) in bulk and break up the retrofit process into steps.

Once you step away from the models found in big box stores, it's easy to locate tubes that will work with Most™ electronic ballasts and mains AC power; thus you can probably just get the T8 floro fixture you like, swap in the tubes, then deal with the ballast when it dies years down the road. Although the window on doing that may be closing as the market shifts to purpose-built fixtures and the variety of T8 fixtures thins.
 

HarryN

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Thanks for the info.

Most of our home FL fixture failures have been ballast related so I would rather take that out of the equation right away than wait.

Starting to focus in on LED strips that can right off of either 12 or 24 volt so that I can run them from solar / battery directly.

Most of the 12 volt strips that I am seeing are the type with 3 LEDs wired in series with a resistor in each segment - then repeat - vs using an LED constant current driver. Need to do more research I guess.

Toying with just using some strips on my parts wire racks with a battery instead of a fixture for those items.
 

Saqibsaeed

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For shop lights you can go for bazz recessed light or ceilings lights as well they are also fix in shops and gives a better looks rather than fluorescent tubes.
 
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