Are you still using fluorescent lights in your shop?
If yes, you are not alone. Many workshops across the country rely on fluorescent lights. That said, it’s certainly time you re-evaluate and consider switching to LED lights.
Ask yourself, are fluorescent lights any good? Are you able to work comfortably or do you need to strain the eyes? Do these lights up dark areas well? Are you fed up of flickering bulbs? How frequently you replace faulty fluorescent tubes or ballast? And, when you do, do you take extra precaution to ensure the fluorescent lights are properly disposed?
In case you are troubled by one or more of these common issues, you’d love to have LED lights installed in your workshop.
Here are six reasons why converting fluorescent shop lights to LED is the smart move.
- LED Lights Can Lower Lighting Bill By 50%
Even though fluorescents might use energy more efficiently compared to some other types of bulbs, they can’t hold a candle to LEDs in this department. That’s because switching to LED lights can help you shave 50% or even more off your monthly lighting bill.
- LED Lights Lower Maintenance Costs
On average, a fluorescent tube has a lifespan of 7,000 hours – 15,000 hours. However, not all of these hours are usable. The quality of light of fluorescent light deteriorates as you use it. Just because a fluorescent light turns on doesn’t mean the light output is effective. Generally speaking, around the midpoint of its lifespan, a fluorescent light’s output slides down remarkably. And for this reason, you need to change fluorescent light tubes relatively frequently.
In comparison, LEDs don’t experience this kind of light output deterioration. The output of LED lights is rated in terms of L70, which basically measures the amount of time an LED light bulb takes to reach 70% of initial lumens. The average LED light has an L70 time of 50,000 hours – 100,000 hours.
Even if we take the lower value (50,000 hours), it means by the time an LED light bulb reaches it L70 point, you would have used up four fluorescent lights. And in case you decide to get rid of fluorescent tubes at a point where they are not useful in place of when they stop working physically, that would mean one LED light will last as long as six fluorescents!
In short, if you want to lower maintenance costs, use LEDs.
- LED Lights Don’t Flicker
Flickering is a common problem with fluorescent lights. Since LEDs make use of a special LED driver for converting AC current to DC current, they don’t usually flicker. And when they do, the fault is rarely with the LED light. Typically, LED lights flicker because of a faulty driver or faulty wiring.
- LED Lights Don’t Contain Mercury
Did you know that fluorescent lights contain mercury? Since mercury is carcinogen, it’s important that you dispose fluorescent lights carefully. You cannot toss them into your garbage bin like other waste. Also, if a fluorescent tube breaks, that could cause problems in part because of it is made of glass and in part because of its mercury content.
LEDs, on the other hand, neither contain mercury nor are made of glass. Therefore, you can dispose them off easily and don’t have to worry about any potential harm if they break.
- LED Lights Are Dimmable
With help of dimmable lights, you can easily create a great work environment. Dimming lights sounds like the right thing if a particular work area is too bright or if you are using occupancy or motion sensors in your lights.
The majority of fluorescent lights are not dimmable. Those that are cost extra and require a special kind of ballast, which is also costly. In other words, if you want the dimming feature in fluorescent lights, you’ll have to spend considerable more money than you would on normal fluorescent lights.
On the other hand, most LED bulbs are dimmable.
- LEDs Work Seamlessly With Motion Sensors
A smart way to save on your lighting bill is to install motion or occupancy sensor. This will ensure that light is off in unoccupied areas and on in occupied areas of your workshop. However, adding occupancy sensors in fluorescent lights affects their lifespan. In contrast, that’s not the case with LED lights.
Wrapping Up
LED lights enjoy several advantages over fluorescent tubes. If you are still using the latter in your shop, switch to LED light bulbs to save on your lighting bulb, reduce maintenance costs, avoid flickering issues, and improve efficiency in your workshop.