Shop light suggestions

shibaura_4043 · Mar 30, 2017

Finally finished my 40x60 shop and now I'm trying to decide on what to do for lighting. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I was thinking about 6 of these lights

sw99 · Mar 30, 2017

shibaura_4043 said:
Finally finished my 40x60 shop and now I'm trying to decide on what to do for lighting.

+1

My 30x54 will be done in a couple months so very interested in this.

kenr74 · Mar 30, 2017

I just built a 30x60 and went all LED. I went with a work light that I had in the truck that I picked up from Lowes. I got the one below on sale for about $15 each. Have a total of 21 in my shop and it is almost too bright. Mounted them in the rafters.

Not sure it was the cheapest route up front but at only 10 watts each they won't cost much long term.

Shop Utilitech Pro 1-Light 1-Watt LED Portable Work Light at Lowes.com

Raspy · Mar 30, 2017

I highly recommend the 4' long double LED fixtures from Costco. They are very bright, no noise, draw very little power, instant on and are only about $30. for the complete fixture, lamps and cord! I put 5 of them in a row in my shop and love them. No more fluorescents for me. As the remaining fluorescents fail I'll replace them with these LEDs.

shibaura_4043 · Mar 30, 2017

kenr74 said:
I just built a 30x60 and went all LED. I went with a work light that I had in the truck that I picked up from Lowes. I got the one below on sale for about $15 each. Have a total of 21 in my shop and it is almost too bright. Mounted them in the rafters. Not sure it was the cheapest route up front but at only 10 watts each they won't cost much long term. Shop Utilitech Pro 1-Light 1-Watt LED Portable Work Light at Lowes.com

Thanks for replying , I, leaning towards LED as well. I added a pic to my original post of a LED light I was considering. Do you have any pics of your shop lit up and how you mounted the lights?

shibaura_4043 · Mar 30, 2017

Raspy said:
I highly recommend the 4' long double LED fixtures from Costco. They are very bright, no noise, draw very little power, instant on and are only about $30. for the complete fixture, lamps and cord! I put 5 of them in a row in my shop and love them. No more fluorescents for me. As the remaining fluorescents fail I'll replace them with these LEDs.

What size shop do you have? How many do you think I'd need for my 40 x60 ? They will be hanging at approx. 18ft.

Raspy · Mar 30, 2017

I'll jump in.

I have steel trusses on 12' centers in my shop/garage. I screwed two 10' lengths of 1 1/2" IMC conduit and slipped them through two of the trusses. 12' between and about 4' overhanging beyond each truss. Then I hung the LED fixtures on the conduit, placed end to end. Five, 4' fixtures end to end. They mount up just like you might do with fluorescents, mine hang on short chains that go over the conduit. This gave me a 20' long light that does a big section of the shop. It is up at about 14' or so. These lights are about twice as bright as fluorescents.

Raspy · Mar 30, 2017

shibaura_4043 said:
What size shop do you have? How many do you think I'd need for my 40 x60 ? They will be hanging at approx. 18ft.

My overall building is 60X60, but my garage is about 900 sq ft of that. I have some older fluorescents that will be replaced when they die and the LEDs I mentioned. Plus a very bright LED spot hung over the workbench. I want to make one more row of the LEDs hung on conduit as I described to replace all other light sources except the spot. So, for a very bright shop, I'll end up with about 10 of the 4' LED lamp, in two rows about 14" up, and that will be like daylight everywhere in there. It's really more than you might need per sq ft, unless you want a very brightly lit shop, like for a machine shop or electronic fabrication, etc.

I really recommend these lights. You may want to get a few and see what they will do for you. Also, I sheet rocked and painted the whole shop and ceiling white. It makes a big difference. I have a couple of dim lights near the entry doors that I turn on at night if I just go in to get something. But I can do anything I want there, even at night, with the LEDs on.

airbiscuit · Mar 30, 2017

These look interesting.

This Upgraded 150W LED High Bay Light is an ideal lighting fixture for your warehouse, factory, workshop, plant, supermarket, basement parking or other commercial places. Its high stability current and superior LED chip will provide your working place with stable and sufficient brightness.
Features:
Superior LED chip
Long-lasting using: 60,000Hours longer life span
High Lumens, super bright: 16,000LM
Durable construction
Die-casting aluminum housing makes a smooth exterior
High efficient heat sink for extending service time
Scratch and fade resistant
Recommended Height: Within 16-3/8ft to 19-5/8ft height above ground
Specifications:
Power Input: 111V-245V,

RNeumann · Mar 31, 2017

shibaura_4043 said:
Finally finished my 40x60 shop and now I'm trying to decide on what to do for lighting. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I was thinking about 6 of these lights

View attachment 504091

Six total lights or six 5 packs of lights for a total of 30? The 10k lumen output isn't a lot for a big shop with high ceilings and a dull and or dark finish. Google lumen requirements based on task and determine what you are comfortable with.

The "UFO" style high bays are popular. Their is a post with several pages of data that occurred a few months back.