Shop light recommendations

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Joined
Apr 15, 2012
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35
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Location
Tucson, Az
Building a new shop (40' x 80') and would like some input/advice on the latest options for quality lighting.
2/3 of the shop will be fab/machine shop and 1/3 automotive with lift.
I plan on four switches (four 20' bays) to conserve energy.
Any advice would be appreciated.
firestopper

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No sky lights, I'm in Arizona and the life expectancy of the poly panels are around 10 years. The four 10' X 12' garage doors might have windows though.
 
Get some T-5's...or if your looking at long term, look at LED 4' tubes. There is also pretty nice high bay induction bulbs out there. All bulbs have made some super advancements in the last year. DO NOT buy sight unseen....bulbs come in different kelvin, and the wrong color can be as annoying as too little light.

LED is obviously more money, but from a business perspective, the least amount of time you spend on a lift or ladder, reduces your exposure to liability (i.e. employee gets hurt in a fall) Lots of start ups infiltrating the market, so buyer beware, and make sure you get a good lighting company (Cooper, RAB, etc.) Companies that have been around will continue to be around.

Check with your local power provider to see what incentives they may be offering to outfit your new shop. There's tons of incentives, so don't give up if someone says no.

Your question is kind of broad, but if you're overwhelmed, pm me and I'll get my phone number and try to get you some contacts out in your area they can get you direction.
 
XtraLED 50 Watt LED Waterproof Outdoor Security LED Floodlight 90-260 Volt AC, Super Bright White
found this on Amazon.com & installed on roof pointing at driveway. Equivalent to 250w incandescent bulb. Very satisfied!!!
Install a few of these in the ceiling .
 
T-5's seem to pop up alot. My current shop attached to the house has 4 fixtures of two 48" regular fluresents that have worked very well. I really only use them at night though as I have sky lights.
Thanks guys keep the info comming.
 
Found some pretty nice fixtures of T-5's. Six 48" fluorescents per fixture with polished stainless reflector, chain kit for $105. ea. when you buy ten or more. I calculated sixteen fixtures for 3200 square ft. They claim each fixture covers 400 square feet, so I'm going with four fixtures per bay (20X40) giving plenty of light per bay. Four circuits allowing me the flexibility of lighting bays independently.
Here's a picture of 97% of red iron up. It taken six days so far and should have all structural up tomorrow by noon. BTW, my forty broke down on my way to work. I need a new fuel solenoid, So I might need to hold off on the building until I get my baby back on the road :steer:
Thanks for the advice on the lighting!

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I have T-5s four bulbs per panel in the exact same building, you will be very happy.
 
Ok, so I helped a neighbor run power to his new shop (40'x 40' post beam shop) over the weekend. His lights came in as well, four hi-bay fixtures with six fluorescent T-6 bulbs per unit. We ran conduit and wired them in. Man these things are bright! I'm confidant these lights will work well for my application.
I can't get over how bright those skinny T5's are with the polished aluminum reflector.
 
I'd run another circuit with a light in each bay. Could be left on most of the time or to "night light" the rest of the bays that are off.
 
I use fluorescents as well, they do a good coverage area light, but have some drawbacks.
The first is they distort colors as do most light souces. But for cost, and light output they are hard to beat.
I think if I was setting up for a stuido, I would still use them , but I would have 3 or four of the lights used for photos. So that when I was working , I could have the extra work lights around the work bench and when painting they would counter the fluorescents color distortion. A good photo shop should carry them.
 
Cree has started making some commercial lighting....I haven't a clue of cost, but with over 100 lumens per watt money can be saved in the long run.....HO t-5 bulbs may not last very long, but can be had in many color ranges
 
I went with six bulb T-5 hi-bay fixtures from relightdepot.com. I ended up installing a total of 18 fixtures for a 40'x80' (3200 SF). I can't believe the amount of light comes off these bad boys. The layout was a PITA but worth the time. The color on the lights is a 5K mimicking natural light. Very happy with the results for the money spent.

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