In article x_b7k.231$zE6.202@trnddc02,
James Sweet writes:



T8's were designed in Europe to retrofit into T12 fittings and
provide energy savings. That doesn't work with the control gear
used on US 120V mains, where I believe you require different
control gear for the T8's and T12's of the same length.


A UK friend and I have discussed this at length and I've sent him some
4' T8 lamps to play with. As I recall, we concluded that US T8 lamps are
electrically different than the UK lamps.

Very likely -- they're different ratings too. A 4' T8 designed for
a 40W ballast on 220-240V is rated 36W. Your 4' T8 is 32W IIRC.
Likewise all the other T8 tube lengths are differently rated between
US and elsewhere.

They're 230mA and over here they all use electronic ballasts.

They're designed for switchstart operation here (known as
preheat in the US). Of course, there are electronic ballasts
available for many years, but not when they first came out.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]