On Mon, 29 Nov 2010 02:34:08 -0500, Bill wrote:

Concerned that I was getting lazy, I went out and measured my ceiling
joists and other structure carefully and spent my evening with SketchUp!

I am concerned as to how many new 48" (10" wraparound) fixtures to add.

Are you -sure- you want wraparound covers (which are VERY good
collectors of dust) in your shop? And 9 (or 12 if you put in the
extra switching for them.)


Please see my two jpeg's:

http://web.newsguy.com/MySite/

Putting another light above my virtual bench may make good sense.
However, If I regard my bench area as 10' by 8', then my new pics at my
web site already demonstrate 80 ft^2/6 bulbs = 13.3 ft^2 per bulb!
Don't want to blast my self out. I was thinking of using 32W, 5000K or
6000K fluorescent bulbs.

The 5000K have a better CRI, but either is good in the shop. Check
the lumen output of the bulbs, too. They vary widely between brands.


I would like to try to optimize my lighting? As drawn, the distances of
the lights from the walls are 36" and 24" respectively. Assume the
walls will be white (for decent reflectivity). The floor is concrete.
I'm going to keep the light in front of the subpanel 36" away from it to
satisfy relevant codes (regarding a "free workspace").

My take on the NEC code leads me to define the workspace as the area
which extends from the top of the panel (or 6'6" min) to the floor,
and allowing a (large) person to get right up to the panel from the
front. I wouldn't build anything within a foot of either side of the
panel, but I wouldn't hesitate to roll something movable (router
station, unplugged welder?) into the access space. I don't read the
code as mentioning overhead access, but. What (as I suggested
earlier) did your local code inspector say about it? He's "god" for
all things electrical in your area and what any of us thinks has no
meaning there if he says something different.


I never did this before and I hope to do it right the first time. What
would you change?

Do yourself a favor and do temporary hangings of the lights to see for
yourself what light level you're comfortable with. _Then_ hang and
wire them permanently.

I'd hang them the other direction, 3 per column in 3 columns, 4'
between bulbs either way, centered in the room. (Lew would probably
want them every 2' for a total of 40 fixtures or so. Get checked for
cataracts, Lew! Lew's scenario would blow you out of the shop,
requiring #5 welding goggles to see through the glare.

Task lighting on each machine (where required) and over the benches
(if necessary) will fill in the gaps.

P.S: I forgot to ask if you put quad outlets everywhere. There's
always a third cord to go in whatever outlet you're near, y'know.

--
Happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy
simply, to think freely, to risk life, to be needed.
-- Storm Jameson