T8 LED Upgrade Question

[Shopsweeper]

Some time ago (2016?) I stumbled on to some cheap (at the time) LED T8 bulbs in a Fastenal clearance rack that some stores have by the door.

These were Cree branded bulbs 18w, 4000 temp. Kind of oval shaped. I only got 2 of them. Then I found an AMZ warehouse deal on some other brand of a 5000k temp and I bought 4 of these.

Both sets of these are the type were you Remove the ballast and power only one end of the bulb with power and neutral. So, this necessitates non-shunted tombstones.

I used these lights to upgrade 3 of my shops 2-bulb T8 fixtures to LED. Using the 4000k and the 5000k in the same fixture side-by-side gives me a nice color balance.

Now that these LED upgrade bulbs have become much cheaper ($5 a light and not $15) I am thinking about doing the rest of my shop.

Question: Should I keep down the path of replacing my tombstones and disconnecting my ballasts (like Hyperikon for example) OR should I opt for some of the no-change bulbs that let you leave the ballast in place (like a Phillips brand)?

In other words do you think its important to keep my shop fixtures "The same" wiring wise for the sake of some poor soul down the road?

 

[Nogoingback]

I've replaced all the tubes in my garage and most of them in my shop with LED's, and all of them have the ballasts removed.
I think somebody posted the fact that with ballasts in, you don't gain as much energy efficiency as with them out, but I can't
swear to it. In part I did it that way because if the ballast fails down the road it might be necessary to change the bulb or
add a new ballast. In any case, if they last as long as they say, I probably won't be around to care.

 

[Shopsweeper]

I think not being around is the key to my question! Having closed down the shops of both my father and grandfather in the last decade I am keenly aware that my shop may outlive me.

I might make some "explanation" labels for the fixtures I have modified and keeping going with the modified fixtures. Those bulbs seems to be cheaper on the whole, and the ballast drawing current for no reason makes perfect sense - better to take it out.

 

[Nogoingback]

I've been buying mine from Home Depot, and they come with an "explanation" label.

I started replacing mine a few years ago when ballasts started to fail in my garage. The LED's
were cheaper than the replacement ballasts.

 

[silence dogood]

Disconnect the old ballasts. Better yet, just remove them. Why? Because the old reactance and cheap electronic ones have been known to get hot and cause a fire. I first went to T8s and now slowly converting to LEDs. I like the old fixtures because they are made out of nice heavy sheet metal instead of this thin foil garbage. Also added a plug-in so I can I can daisy chain them since the LEDs use so little current.

 

[pdentrem]

We are having 275 2x4 hi bays replaced this week coming. Going to take a few weeks to complete! The electrician is replacing the ballast with something new that entails keeping the tombstones. I asked why not replace without and he stated that there was a concern of replacing the bulbs later with possibly 120 volt coming to contact with the sheet metal. I hope to revisit this topic with him Monday or Tuesday, as I will likely have to maintain them.

 

[Shopsweeper]

Thank you all, I will plan on removing the ballasts on the rest like I did on the first 3 fixtures.
I mocked up a label in Publisher and I will glue (3M 77) and tape this on the fixtures as I upgrade them.

I ordered some LED bulbs from AMZ, if the unrest calms down enough for shipping I should get this project done evenings next week.

 

[middle.road]

Have you got a part number to go with the Cree's?
I looked through amazon today because the 16w Toggled I picked up at home depot does not seem any brighter than my GE T8's.
I didn't see any Cree's at all.

Some time ago (2016?) I stumbled on to some cheap (at the time) LED T8 bulbs in a Fastenal clearance rack that some stores have by the door.

These were Cree branded bulbs 18w, 4000 temp. Kind of oval shaped. I only got 2 of them. Then I found an AMZ warehouse deal on some other brand of a 5000k temp and I bought 4 of these.

Both sets of these are the type were you Remove the ballast and power only one end of the bulb with power and neutral. So, this necessitates non-shunted tombstones.

I used these lights to upgrade 3 of my shops 2-bulb T8 fixtures to LED. Using the 4000k and the 5000k in the same fixture side-by-side gives me a nice color balance.

Now that these LED upgrade bulbs have become much cheaper ($5 a light and not $15) I am thinking about doing the rest of my shop.

Question: Should I keep down the path of replacing my tombstones and disconnecting my ballasts (like Hyperikon for example) OR should I opt for some of the no-change bulbs that let you leave the ballast in place (like a Phillips brand)?

In other words do you think its important to keep my shop fixtures "The same" wiring wise for the sake of some poor soul down the road?

 

[Shopsweeper]

I can pull one down tomrrow and look, but I can't them see in in my Fastenal order history.

 

[westerner]

I might make some "explanation" labels for the fixtures

As stated above by Nogoingback, the bulbs I bought came with labels.
Hyperikon 6000k. At first, they were TOO white. As time went on, I came to appreciate the color.
Going forward, I feel sure that I will need all the white and bright I can get. Flourescents in my Buddy's shop are dingy yellow now.