On Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 5:13:48 PM UTC-4, wrote:
I just use 4 foot fluorescent lights in my shop area. I have 37 of the two bulb 4 foot fixtures in the basement. Once in a great while the fluorescent bulbs die. But its rare. And the bulbs cost $1 each or something like that. Fixtures were about $10 each maybe. They just run and run and make lots of light. Sometimes getting high faluting and fancy dandy just does not make sense. In your case it would have made lots more sense to just put in one or two of the single bulb fixtures with a pull chain. They are $1 each and dead simple. 110% reliable. 5 hours of on time in a whole year? Why not go for simple and reliable and cheap? Why F around?

Fluorescent bulbs don't have to "die" before they need to be replaced. They tend to lose brightness
over time which can be essentially be unnoticeable because it's gradual. Eventually you say "Wow,
seems a bit dark in here." (or they start to flicker, not start, etc.)

Pop in a couple of new T8 tubes and you suddenly realize how dim the old ones had gotten. Now
that I'm all LED, even for compact fluorescents in the closets, landing lights, etc. dimming caused
by age is no longer an issue.