4 foot LED tubes

[peakbagger]

I have a variety of cheap 4' 2 tube fluorescent fixtures around the house. Mostly Lights of America brand. They have some sort of bare bones ballast and I swear they chew up bulbs. I bought a few "drop in" Phillips brand tubes and have had mixed results with them. They apparently have a some sort of solid state circuitry in the bulb to deal with voltage received from the ballast so the efficiency is bit lower than a replacement tube that requires removing the ballast. Generally the drop in LED bulbs will light but after some period of time the fixture will shut off and wont restart until I turn it off for a few minutes. I don't think its the bulb as much as a crappy ballast.

My preference would be to remove the ballasts and go with standard LED tubes but when I check the pricing of drop in versus non drop in tubes, there is a big price difference. The local Home Depot has a 10 pack of drop ins for $40 (on sale) while non drops in go for a lot more usually close to three or four hundred dollars for the case. Anyone know why the difference?

The only thing I can think of is an state energy efficiency program is subsidizing the drop ins?

 

[Bioburner]

I will be making a venture to local Home Depot soon to check out the selection they now have. Bought several fixtures and couple others that have good tubes but have enough fixtures to go with a case. I've read the reviews and seems a mixed bag of if they will work or not. They may be like the early led replacement bulbs for vehicles in that they are not well proven as most are made in China. Looking at Philips

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I bought the LED 4 Ft shoplights from sams and they have been working great for over a year,daily use. Are only a few dollars more than buying T8 fixtures plus bulbs. T8 is bright but bulbs get black on the ends very fast. I wont ever buy another florescent shop light.

 

[Bioburner]

I too bought a couple of the tube and fixture units early this summer for $18 from Menards
But I with the OP are looking for the LED tube replacements

 

[WoodyIsGoody]

But I with the OP are looking for the LED tube replacements

My thoughts and observations:

Before LED lighting was practical, I always paid the extra $$ for electronic fluorescent ballasts (vs. ferro-mag). Better quality of light, less heat produced, higher efficiency, longer bulb life. Well worth it.

Lights of America have low priced cheap chit. Don't waste your money. Bad experience after bad experience. Not worth the (very little) money they cost. And the transition to LED lights did not reverse this pattern:

http://www.ledsmagazine.com/article...rica-over-deceptive-claims-for-led-lamps.html

Nothing wrong with "Made in China". Just make sure you're getting well engineered/well made stuff. Some is cheap chit just like Lights of America. Some excellent.

If upgrading to LED there is no reason to retain the fluorescent style fixture. You might be better off buying new fixtures.

 

[Bioburner]

Their CFLs were on the same par too. Bad. Had two outdoor fixtures and both did not survive a year.

 

[georgepds]

Not sure of the power draw, but I've got a fluorescent tube in the kitchen and bedroom closet that have operated without fail since 1990 when i renovated the house.

Hard to beat that for longevity

 

[begreen]

We had a 30w circuline fluorescent in the kitchen that got a lot of usage. The tubes lasted about 5-7 yrs.. Last year I replaced it with an LED light. Only 9 watts and it puts out much more light. We'll see how long this one lasts.

 

[peakbagger]

I too bought a couple of the tube and fixture units early this summer for $18 from Menards
But I with the OP are looking for the LED tube replacements

Thanks for reminding folks. More than few folks have 4 foot fixtures, some are low quality junk and some are high quality fixtures that unfortunately have become somewhat obsolete. In many cases the fixtures are incorporated in ceiling grids and wholesale replacement with different LED fixtures doesn't not make a lot of sense as the light pattern of LEDS is decidedly different than that of a fluorescent tube.

 

[Bioburner]

I have a pair of tube lights in the kitchen that get a lot of use and have been on the same set of tubes now since late 2005

 

[sportbikerider78]

I have been loving these fixtures that I picked up at HD for $40. Bought a ton of them for work.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-4-ft-White-LED-Linkable-Shop-Light-54103161/205331022

 

[jebatty]

Look at Earthled.com for direct wire LED tubes.

 

[mooselake]

Look at Earthled.com for direct wire LED tubes.

Amazon has several different brands of tubes that will work both with and without a ballast. We got a dozen to relamp a classroom for about $5 each in 6 packs. Needed 10, had one DOA so ended up with one spare. Bypassed a dead ballast and just installed them in the other fixture. Look good, don't know about longevity yet. Don't remember the brand but should be easy to find from the price.