At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.

stryped fired this volley in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-
:

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and
low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance
guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.



Don't modify the lamps, get a step-up transformer.

HID lamps don't generate as much heat per lumen as incandescent lamps,
but probably more than fluorescents. The discharge tubes in HIDs run
bright-yellow hot, though you don't see it until they're quenched,
because the light output of the tube swamps the glow of the envelope.

LLoyd

On Aug 3, 8:54*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-
:



At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and
low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance
guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.

Don't modify the lamps, get a step-up transformer.

HID lamps don't generate as much heat per lumen as incandescent lamps,
but probably more than fluorescents. *The discharge tubes in HIDs run
bright-yellow hot, though you don't see it until they're quenched,
because the light output of the tube swamps the glow of the envelope.

LLoyd

Good or bad for a garage/shop? How many would I need for a 30x30 and
how much is a step up transformer?

stryped fired this volley in news:501a6ca7-9d41-
:

Good or bad for a garage/shop? How many would I need for a 30x30 and
how much is a step up transformer?


I have three 400W fixtures lighting an 80x100 high-bay barn. It would
be better with six, but it's adequate light to do auto repairs, as
long as I have a drop light for dark spots. (but heck, I need one even
in daylight).

I don't know how much a single transformer would cost, but it surely
would be less than replacing all the ballasts in all the lamps.

After finding out the cost of upgrading the ballast in an HPS lamp to
an HID type, it was more reasonable to pay the monster premium of
buying sodium ballast-compatible HID "conversion" lamps. I've got
over 12 years of pretty regular nightly use on them (probably
10hrs/wk), and they still strike quickly and reliably in all
temperatures.

LLoyd

On Aug 3, 9:16*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:501a6ca7-9d41-
:

Good or bad for a garage/shop? How many would I need for a 30x30 and
how much is a step up transformer?

I have three 400W fixtures lighting an 80x100 high-bay barn. *It would
be better with six, but it's adequate light to do auto repairs, as
long as I have a drop light for dark spots. (but heck, I need one even
in daylight).

I don't know how much a single transformer would cost, but it surely
would be less than replacing all the ballasts in all the lamps.

After finding out the cost of upgrading the ballast in an HPS lamp to
an HID type, it was more reasonable to pay the monster premium of
buying sodium ballast-compatible HID "conversion" lamps. *I've got
over 12 years of pretty regular nightly use on them (probably
10hrs/wk), and they still strike quickly and reliably in all
temperatures.

LLoyd

SO, maybe 3 HID's for a 30x30. I want alot of light, (But not alot of
heat.)

Can these be mounted to a wood truss/ceiling?

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-
:

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and
low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance
guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.



Don't modify the lamps, get a step-up transformer.

But be very careful, especially with grounding.
480 will kill you in a heartbeat.

HID lamps don't generate as much heat per lumen as incandescent lamps,
but probably more than fluorescents. The discharge tubes in HIDs run
bright-yellow hot, though you don't see it until they're quenched,
because the light output of the tube swamps the glow of the envelope.

LLoyd

On Aug 3, 10:27*am, Jim Stewart wrote:
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-
:

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and
low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance
guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.

Don't modify the lamps, get a step-up transformer.

But be very careful, especially with grounding.
480 will kill you in a heartbeat.



HID lamps don't generate as much heat per lumen as incandescent lamps,
but probably more than fluorescents. *The discharge tubes in HIDs run
bright-yellow hot, though you don't see it until they're quenched,
because the light output of the tube swamps the glow of the envelope.

LLoyd- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

So these are probably not good to use in a garage/shop?

So I only need a step up transformer?

stryped fired this volley in news:14e5d120-54ea-
:

So these are probably not good to use in a garage/shop?

Why? We were talking about heat per lumen. As far as I know, sodium
vapor lights are either the most efficient or nearly the most
efficient high-output lamps available, and HIDs are not far behind.

The quartz envelopes are not exposed -- they're contained in an outer
bulb. The bulb gets hot, but not that hot.

You want lots of light. You'll have to virtually cover the ceiling
with fluorescents to get the same light output.

LLoyd

On Aug 3, 10:53*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:14e5d120-54ea-
:

So these are probably not good to use in a garage/shop?

Why? *We were talking about heat per lumen. *As far as I know, sodium
vapor lights are either the most efficient or nearly the most
efficient high-output lamps available, and HIDs are not far behind.

The quartz envelopes are not exposed -- they're contained in an outer
bulb. *The bulb gets hot, but not that hot.

You want lots of light. *You'll have to virtually cover the ceiling
with fluorescents to get the same light output.

LLoyd

What is your ceiling height? It is probably too low for these. "Low
bay" lamps are for 12'+ feet. It's not that they won't work, and
generate a lot of light, just that your coverage will not be very
optimal.

I have 6 of these in a 40x50 shop, with a 16' ceiling height. I
rarely turn on more than two of them at a time. It gets very bright.

I have a bunch of 8' flourescents under the lofted area in my shop. I
think there are two tubes every 2'. They work great, and tuck up into
the trusses nice and tight so I don't have to worry about smacking
them. The HIDs hang down from the ceiling about 2'.

Restrike on the HIDs will not be great. They take a little while to
relight when hot.

JW

On Aug 3, 10:53*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:14e5d120-54ea-
:

So these are probably not good to use in a garage/shop?

Why? *We were talking about heat per lumen. *As far as I know, sodium
vapor lights are either the most efficient or nearly the most
efficient high-output lamps available, and HIDs are not far behind.

The quartz envelopes are not exposed -- they're contained in an outer
bulb. *The bulb gets hot, but not that hot.

You want lots of light. *You'll have to virtually cover the ceiling
with fluorescents to get the same light output.

LLoyd

The height from my floor to the bottom of the truss is 10 feet, 4
inches. I have no ceiling currently, so I guess I could mount them
even higher up on the truss.

I dont think these are low bay lights.

I guess I was not sure if the actual housing could be mounted on wood
or not. I was not sure how hot the housing would get.

Are these the type of lights that takes awhile to get bright when you
first turn them on or loose power? Are they expensive to operate?

I appreciate your help. I am not real familar with these.

I have a picture of the inside of my garage/shop if it helps anyone.

stryped fired this volley in news:abcc425a-ad91-
:

Are these the type of lights that takes awhile to get bright when
you
first turn them on or loose power? Are they expensive to operate?

I appreciate your help. I am not real familar with these.



Yes, they take a short while to warm up, and they re-strike more
slowly after a power failure than does an HPS lamp.

The housings are designed to be mounted on common building materials.
the lamps are less expensive per lumen to operate than anything but
HPS (including cost of maintenance).

LLoyd

stryped wrote in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-4c79-b4ae-
:

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.


I read this as the lights currently don't have low bay lenses?
Do they have high bay reflectors or none?
Your ceiling height is too low for these IMHO, even for low bays.

That high a supply voltage is against code for residential lighting here.
You might check your NEC/local codes to see if there is a similar
prohibition in the States.

I think I'd pass on these. The cost of converting the ballasts, or a
transformer and more costly 480V wiring methods makes them more trouble
than buying something more suitable for your space.

On Mon, 3 Aug 2009 06:48:05 -0700 (PDT), stryped
wrote:

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.


There is a bit of Good news - If you have an application with a 14'
to 16' plus ceiling, these lights most likely have Multi-Tap ballasts
inside. Open it and you'll find wires marked for 120 - 208- 240 -
277V.

Skip them anyway, or get them and horse trade for what you really
need. Even if they are free they are still wrong for your application
in several critical ways.

The heat isn't as much of an issue as the lens and mounting
situation is - a 10' ceiling isn't going to cut it even with Low Bay
totally enclosed luminaires.

If you mount either Low Bay or High Bay lights over the bottom chord
of the truss you will have overlapping shadows everywhere driving you
bananas. You'll have shadow lines running across what you are working
on giving you optical anomalies.

If this is a workshop running Metal Halide fixtures you HAVE TO have
the fully enclosed fixtures with bottom lenses. (Not just wire
guards.) Too many flying bits in a shop that can shatter the outer
envelope, and it isn't fun geting shattered hot glass falling on you.

And for Metal Halide with open fixtures overhead (like in a warehouse
where flying debris isn't a problem) you still have to run the
shatter-guard lamps with the extra shield tube inside the envelope,
too - when the inner arc tube ruptures at end-of-life they often break
the outer envelope at the same time - and another hot sharp glass
shower can happen.

For a10' ceiling home shop or small shop, you want good old
fashioned linear fluorescent fiixtures. Either T-5 or T-8 open strips
or "Shop Light" reflectors. Or T-8 polycarb lensed Wraps.

They should have premium high frequency electronic ballasts (20 KHz)
so you do not get 60-Hz Strobing effects, and you want to use tube
guards over the lamps on open fixtures.

-- Bruce --

On Mon, 3 Aug 2009 08:26:51 -0700 (PDT), stryped
wrote:

On Aug 3, 9:16*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:
stryped fired this volley in news:501a6ca7-9d41-
:

Good or bad for a garage/shop? How many would I need for a 30x30 and
how much is a step up transformer?

I have three 400W fixtures lighting an 80x100 high-bay barn. *It would
be better with six, but it's adequate light to do auto repairs, as
long as I have a drop light for dark spots. (but heck, I need one even
in daylight).

I don't know how much a single transformer would cost, but it surely
would be less than replacing all the ballasts in all the lamps.

After finding out the cost of upgrading the ballast in an HPS lamp to
an HID type, it was more reasonable to pay the monster premium of
buying sodium ballast-compatible HID "conversion" lamps. *I've got
over 12 years of pretty regular nightly use on them (probably
10hrs/wk), and they still strike quickly and reliably in all
temperatures.

LLoyd

SO, maybe 3 HID's for a 30x30. I want alot of light, (But not alot of
heat.)

Can these be mounted to a wood truss/ceiling?


Everyone I've ever seen was hung by a chain, never mounted directly to
anything.

Your ceiling is too, low go with Fluorescent. If your garage is
unheated watch the minimum starting temp marked on the ballast.
Thank You,
Randy

Remove 333 from email address to reply.

On Mon, 03 Aug 2009 07:04:55 -0700, stryped wrote:
On Aug 3, 8:54*am, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
stryped fired this volley in news:f67b0fb7-d78a-

At work we have several 480 volt lights HID we are giving away. SOme
of these can be converted to 110 volts with a new transformer and
low
bay dome. WOuld these be good for my garage/shop? The maintenance
guy
thought they were very bright but put off alot of heat.

Don't modify the lamps, get a step-up transformer.

HID lamps don't generate as much heat per lumen as incandescent lamps,
but probably more than fluorescents. *The discharge tubes in HIDs run
bright-yellow hot, though you don't see it until they're quenched,
because the light output of the tube swamps the glow of the envelope.

Good or bad for a garage/shop? How many would I need for a 30x30 and
how much is a step up transformer?

Just a sort of "gut feeling", but in an ordinary garage, I'd mount it
way up high, and put a generous vent in the roof.

Good Luck!
Rich