How do I improve my lighting??

Wow! Thanks Charlie.

When I first got the lights I'm using, my Dad had already placed grow bulbs in them. When I went looking for new bulbs at lowes the man suggested grow lights bulbs and beyond that didn't know much else. I knew that the grow lights weren't sufficient, and are far different than the grow lights used in a greenhouse. Those bulbs can run upwards of a $100-$400 for a single bulb and look nothing like the bulbs we're discussing, and nothing like flourescent grow bulbs which are junk. I simply grabbed some paks of daylight and sunlight bulbs to try. I did notice the color temp rating but that was about it.

I'll definately be checking into those 4' T5's. I'm told that both the T8's and the T5's are much more efficient than the 12's. In fact, seems I recall someone at lowes saying they may be going to phase-out the T12's. Don't know if there's any truth to that though.

I guess I should further explain why I thought this thread was so interesting. I've got a gift card for Lowe's and was considering some portable work lights and I was wondering how all of this information would fit into that category. I'm aware that many use halogen's, but they seem to give off a yellow light and a bunch of heat, not to mention being able to hear the electric meter spin. I guess by now they're making led portable lights, but I'm not sure how they stack up. Been wanting to do some research on the subject, but I'm too busy doing research for my college papers.

Great information Charlie. :xyxthumbs:
 
In fact, seems I recall someone at lowes saying they may be going to phase-out the T12's. Don't know if there's any truth to that though.

It is true indeed. You can still find T12 ballasts and lamps pretty easily, but try to find a new fixture that is meant for T12s and you'll find they are very few and far between (regular T12s that is -- T12HO is still going strong because it is still common in a lot of industrial applications).
 
I tried this several times by mounting a 2 bulb unit to the back side of halogen stand with twistees. I have decent overhead light but with the walls full there is not as much light on the sides and once in a while I work with 2 cars in the garage so even less side light.



The better solution is to just mount it to cart or something mobile similar to what Richard (rwright) mentioned.
 
Are they making 8' T8 and/or T5 lights? Can the high output light bulbs and fixtures be bought at Lowe's/Home Depot/Menards?
 
Are they making 8' T8 and/or T5 lights? Can the high output light bulbs and fixtures be bought at Lowe's/Home Depot/Menards?

You can get HO fixtures, but not HO lamps.

For ease of transport I'd suggest going with 4' lamps -- they make 8' fixtures that use four 4' lamps.
 
I will tell you this much, you need HO fixtures to use the HO tubes. The fixtures I'm looking at run $45-$48 each and the tubes run $16 each from my local supplier. The 96 CRI tubes are made by Phillips and are the brightest fluorescents he can obtain. There are other options such as HID but that may not be cost effective for Kris. Charlie did mention that the reflective backing didn't help, but a visit to my local Home Depot was saying otherwise! They had on display a triple tube fixture with standard T8 tubes and it hurt my eyes to look at it!

Kris, a recent visit with my buddy Detail Dave down in Charlotte yielded something pretty cool, a home made portable light cart. He mounted 2 fluorescent fixtures to a rolling box shaped cart. You may want your brightest lights on something like this for corrections. Just a thought.


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I think Charlie wasn't finding much of a difference with the light backings because he has a reflective white ceiling to bounce off of. Unfortunately, I have nothing on my ceiling yet. The wiring up there is just a rats nest, and would make putting a ceiling up very difficult.

I think in my case, the back plates would definitely help keep the light aiming down, instead of all over the place. This is why I wanted the backing plates. But, in Charlies case...I can see why he doesn't really need them.

My problem is that I rent my shop. So I hate to put too much work in, cause I will outgrow it someday.

So, with taking everybody's information in so far...it seems that I'm gonna need some backplate fixtures to keep the light aimed down, some T8s (higher the CRI, the better?), paint the floor (Yes, Charlie I was speaking about the non slip textured epoxy), and the white reflective insulation on the walls.

I think all those things together would really light my shop up. I'm probably going to line the ceiling with the white insulation as well. I just think avoiding drywall is my best bet right now. Mainly because moving all the wiring is just a task I'd rather not deal with, ha.
 
Another question. Am I correct when I say I should be getting electric ballasts if my shop gets real cold in the winter? I heat it with a wood stove. So if there's a day where I have no work...it gets no heat. Would the electric ballasts help with this?

By the way, I'm really glad I started this thread. I feel like people are getting a lot out of this. This was certainly an area I never discussed this deeply. Sure am glad I did though! lol
 
Another question. Am I correct when I say I should be getting electric ballasts if my shop gets real cold in the winter? I heat it with a wood stove. So if there's a day where I have no work...it gets no heat. Would the electric ballasts help with this?

You absolutely want electronic ballasts. Not only are they better at starting in cold temps (I've got some under my carport and in my barn that can see temps as far down as below zero at times and they still fire up with no problems -- though those are all T12HOs) but they are more energy efficient to run year-round as well.

I don't even think they make any new magnetic ballasts these days; if you find them somewhere they'd probably be considered NOS parts.
 
You absolutely want electronic ballasts. Not only are they better at starting in cold temps (I've got some under my carport and in my barn that can see temps as far down as below zero at times and they still fire up with no problems) but they are more energy efficient to run year-round as well.

I don't even think they make any new magnetic ballasts these days; if you find them somewhere they'd probably be considered NOS parts.

Ok good. I was gonna say that too...cause I haven't seen any new fixtures without electronic ballasts. So I'm good to go. Yet another reason to replace my fixtures! I'm getting excited now! So sad, ha.
 
Alright. This is absolutely ridiculous to me...but I counted how many bulbs I have in my shop today. I have 44 bulbs in my shop! Yeah...44! This was a shock to me.

You would think that a shop with 44 bulbs would have great light...but my light is horrible!

I also found out that my current tubes are 32 watt T8 bulbs. I also believe they are the Indoor light tubes. Do you think I would get better light if I replaced them all with Sunshine tubes?

I feel like the tubes I have just don't provide the correct light. I don't know how else to explain it. I feel like changing to Sunshine would help me.
 
I also found out that my current tubes are 32 watt T8 bulbs. I also believe they are the Indoor light tubes. Do you think I would get better light if I replaced them all with Sunshine tubes?

So you DO already have T8s... that's even better! This way you shouldn't have to change fixtures or ballasts at all, instead you'll just have to come up with a solution to put some reflectors on what you've got -- which if you have access to a sheet metal brake and a shear, you can probably make your own on the cheap.

I feel like the tubes I have just don't provide the correct light. I don't know how else to explain it. I feel like changing to Sunshine would help me.

I think that's a definite yes. :props:

Depending on how old the lamps you've got now are and how many hours they've been in service, they may not be delivering the maximum output they did when new (fluorescents do fade and wear out over time).
 
So you DO already have T8s... that's even better! This way you shouldn't have to change fixtures or ballasts at all, instead you'll just have to come up with a solution to put some reflectors on what you've got -- which if you have access to a sheet metal brake and a shear, you can probably make your own on the cheap.



I think that's a definite yes. :props:

Depending on how old the lamps you've got now are and how many hours they've been in service, they may not be delivering the maximum output they did when new (fluorescents do fade and wear out over time).

Thanks man...I appreciate you chiming in this many times.

I was kinda taken back when I saw T8s, ha. I was like...well what the hell is the problem?! But these bulbs are AT LEAST probably 8 years old. I've never changed them, and I've had the shop for 5 years. Plus, I found the extra bulbs against the wall...and the package looks old. They're probably 10 years old. The package says they're daylight tubes.

I really have no way of making my own backplates. Maybe I was dreaming when I thought that maybe they sell backplates that you can add on??

Looks like a trip to Lowes is in order here. I'm definitely going to pick up some Sunshine bulbs and put them in one of the fixtures. I'll be able to tell easily which ones are brighter. :xyxthumbs:
 
I really have no way of making my own backplates. Maybe I was dreaming when I thought that maybe they sell backplates that you can add on??

I haven't seen them at any of the box stores, but doesn't mean you can't get them through an electrical contractor maybe....

Of course the other option could be to barter a deal with a local heating/air conditioning company that does duct work -- have them make you up some reflector plates in exchange for detailing one of their work vans or something.

Good luck!

Looks like a trip to Lowes is in order here. I'm definitely going to pick up some Sunshine bulbs and put them in one of the fixtures. I'll be able to tell easily which ones are brighter. :xyxthumbs:[/QUOTE]
 
Sounds like you're in the same position as me, I'm about a fortnight away from installing new lights (2 warehouse style units & few more fluro's) in my workshop. Lining the walls the week after for a fresher, cleaner & more brighter look.

Keen to see your results.
 
Spectra? 5500 48" F32-T8 MB-HO

check that link out. roam around the site and you find alot of info. also look at the top of that page and see the comparison between the before picture when the office used cool white versus the after when the Blue Max bulbs were installed. huge difference. and plus this could save you some money. if you order 25-99 bulbs you pay $6 each which will save you some money.

or if you really want some defect showing light use GU10 base MR16 bulbs. same bulb used in 3M Sun Gun and i believe they use the 35 watt bulb. there is still 50watt and 75 watt bulb you can choose from. i am sure some one can figure a way of mounting 4-6 of these bulbs on something portable so you can move it where you need it
Buy GU10, GU7 Halogen Bulbs | 1000Bulbs.com
 
Charlie,

These are the brightest 4' T8 bulbs I've found and I use them
Shop GE 2-Pack 32-Watt T8 48" Fluorescent Light Bulb at Lowes.com to grow tomatoes and peppers in my garage each spring. I grow them to sell for spare cash. I usually grow about 2000 plants in a 4X4 area, until they reach 2 inches tall. Of course, as they get bigger they go to another section of the garage. These bulbs have been the absolute brightest of what I could find a Lowe's. Perhaps there are others that offer more light but I haven't been able to locate them.

The second brightest I've found at Lowe's are these Shop GE 2-Pack 32-Watt T8 48" Fluorescent Light Bulb at Lowes.com.

That said, I tried each of them side-by-side with grow lights. All I can say is don't waste the money on the grow lights as they are a gimmick. They supposed to produce light of a different spectrum, but I can tell you after growing plants under the daylight bulbs above the plants much prefer the daylight over the sunshine or the grow bulbs. I've even bought high dollar grow bulbs from plant catalogs and they don't compare.

That said, the numbers of my daylight bulbs don't compare to the numbers of the bulb you mentioned. If I can find them I'd like to do a side-by-side comparison of the HO you mentioned to the daylight bulbs I'm using. The daylight is a much brighter and more white light than the sunshine bulb, and the plants seem to like it better by alot...becuase they're almost like real daylight. They burn cool as well. I love them.

Good info, Bill! Just for sake of comparison here's the specs on the Phillips lamps I use:

IMG_0045.JPG


I thought we already determined that the daylight bulbs were brighter than the sunshine?

I have 3 types of bulbs (T8's) in my garage...my Daylight bulbs are brighter than the sunshine by far, and the numbers are super close to that of the Phillips bulb pictured above (see the word daylight just above the measurement numbers). With the exception of finding T8HO bulbs, of course. Again, my bulb numbers are similiar to the Phillips pictured above. So why are you off to buy sunshine? You've confused me.

Been the sunshine route...get the daylight bulbs because the light they give off is very similar to being outside in the sun. It's a clean crisp light.

The bulbs in the top link of this post are $6 and change for a 2-pak...for that kind of money the light they give off can't be beat IMO, HO or not.

Charlie, if you want to try the sunshine's that bad I've got a two pak of new ones you're welcome to. Just trying to save you guys some money here.
 
or if you really want some defect showing light use GU10 base MR16 bulbs. same bulb used in 3M Sun Gun and i believe they use the 35 watt bulb. there is still 50watt and 75 watt bulb you can choose from. i am sure some one can figure a way of mounting 4-6 of these bulbs on something portable so you can move it where you need it
Buy GU10, GU7 Halogen Bulbs | 1000Bulbs.com


i made a mistake here it is not a GU10 bulb it is a GU5.3. there is a write up on another board about someone making a cheaper "sun gun" some of you may have seen it already and if it is ok with AG staff i will post link
 
I replaced my flourescent bulbs with some 6500K bulbs. I also added a few 4 ft ballasts around the garage. When they are all on it is like the middle of the day with the sun shining. If it is dark out and I have them all on my garage is lit up like an xmas tree :lol:
 
Charlie, if you want to try the sunshine's that bad I've got a two pak of new ones you're welcome to. Just trying to save you guys some money here.

Looks like part of Kris' post made it into my response to him without the quote tags... I wasn't saying I wanted to try the sunshine bulbs, I'm happy with the Daylight bulbs I've got. I was intending to quote/respond to Kris. :props:
 
Looks like part of Kris' post made it into my response to him without the quote tags... I wasn't saying I wanted to try the sunshine bulbs, I'm happy with the Daylight bulbs I've got. I was intending to quote/respond to Kris. :props:

Yeah, I just noticed that in post 33...weird. I just got confused a bit...sounded like the guy was going to go buy sunlight bulbs. Hopefully he understood we were saying the daylight bulbs were better.

Just trying to save him a little money and/or frustration.
 
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