Interesting, been thinking of doing the same for some time but waiting for fluorescent ones to fail,

Bill D.

I swapped all the flou's in my shop to LED tubes but found them hard on the eyes and swapped most back again. However, it transpired that I was coming down with a bad case of cataracts so that might have been a factor. Warmer tubes might have been better.

My experience with LEDs in both tubes and standard lightbulbs is that the reports of their life is greatly exaggerated.

I bought two units from Li*l. Pleased with them. These were complete lights. One replaced a flourescent strip light in the kitchen – and the domestic engineer has been most pleased. Instant illumination, brighter, lower wattage (an advantage for me). Now over twelve months and no problem with them. T’other is in the workshop and more will definitely follow if they are offered again.

I replaced all the fluorescents in my workshop with the 600mm square panels. The headroom was somewhat limited with the fluorescent fittings but the panels are very thin so I gained a couple of inches. I fitted the daylight panels and I find them ideal, not harsh at all. I've replaced all the lights in the house with daylight LED bulbs and find them far better than the warm white ones. I can actually see to read now!

John

Edited By John Baguley on 08/04/2021 19:54:30

Changed my workshop lighting to LED a couple of months ago. Replaced old 4ft fluorescents with 5ft LED. Can now see clearly that the workshop needs cleaning! Didn't bother with fittings just 3D printed end brackets and covers. Tubes only need power at one end.

Tubes from TLC Electrical delivered for about £10.50 each. Different colour temperatures available went for the warm white.

John

When I had the new garage/workshop built I chose to light it with some 48W 600mm x 600mm flat panel LED lights of the sort that you see in suspended ceilings.
I picked natural light simulation, rather than cool or warm; it's not harsh on the eyes and gives an excellent bright light over the whole place.

6 panels used to cover the 5.5×6.5m area, in 3 separate circuits of 2.

Bill

workshop lighting comes up quite frequently – a couple of years ago I described my use of LED panels (buy from a reputable outlet that supplies commercial offices) they are thin and give an excellent diffuse light, choose daylight colour for workshop use seems ideal – surface mounting boxes allow mounting within 35mm off the surface and the driver can sit on top of the panel within the mounting box

TLC data sheet says No UV

LED tubes intended to replace fluorescents of the same physical size have roughly the same output in Lumens but something else is going on that makes the LEDs seem brighter. Not sure what, maybe:

• LEDs do full power instantly whereas fluorescents take time to warm up. (One of mine about 5 minutes!) So I think LEDs are quick enough to catch the eye out and cause a dazzle, whereas fluorescents start a little dim giving the eye time to adjust as they come up to full brilliance – less dazzle.
• The colour temperature is a bit different – I generally go for daylight, and subjectively I believe daylight LEDs are a little whiter than daylight fluorescents. Neither is quite like real daylight!
• Light is projected somewhat differently by LEDs and fluorescents due to their internal structure. I think LEDs are more directional, which might help concentrate light where it's needed. My fluorescents put a fair amount of light out sideways, but the fittings aren't optically wonderful!
• There's a fair amount of invisible Ultra Violet in fluorescent light. Perhaps the iris narrows in response, reducing the amount of visible light allowed into the eye, so the tube appears dimmer than it actually is?
• Fluorescents develop minor faults as they age; apart from dimming, they flicker at the ends, and the the brain is race-tuned to detect tiny movements out of the corner of our eyes – predator sneaking up! I wonder if this reduces concentration, causing the scene in hand to look slightly dim.

I've happily used fluorescents for years, they're good! But I do think LEDs seem brighter, whatever the reason. It's not just power output, because the Lumens are so close.

Dave

I just supplied a friend with some new 5 foot fully enclosed fittings to try in his workshop. These are from the Electrical wholesalers & are not cheap. I think they were £55 each, but IP65 fully enclosed. He had the LED tubes already fitted. These are the complete fitting that do not have a tube. It is a 5 foot long LED strip. The results are the strip types are far brighter than the tube type. Without the diffuser fitted you cannot look at the light as it is quite blinding.

I changed mine in my workshop that i had not long installed. These were the 5 foot fluorescent ones. I can confirm the difference from a new fluorescent to an LED strip type is amazing.

From a retired Electrical contractor. Results for comparison.

Original 5 foot fittings with tri phosphor lamps, After 1/2 hour warm up time. With less than 40 hrs of use. At 1 metre from concrete painted floor. 440 Lux.

LED 5 foot strip type new fittings taken at 1 meter from concrete painted surface. 617 Lux.

Anyone wishing to change theirs, consider the strip type over the tubes. I say this a s some of the tube types are the old tech LED. The round bulb looking type. The strip ones are the little yellow square ones. Sorry forgot the names for them. Some say corn types etc. Hope this helps anyone deciding.

Steve.