Shop lights?

[rocdoc]

OK guys.......I FINALLY got my new shop built!!!  It's 30'x50' with covered porches running the entire 50' length both front and back.  I'm PUMPED!!! I still have to get it wired and plumbed before I start moving my equipment in and I'm stumped on what to do about lighting.  I want the BEST lights I can get for woodworking and I'm not getting much help from the local "experts" or from internet searches, so I thought I'd solicite some of the "gangers" for suggestions and advice?

Thanks
Doug

[Pat B]

I have 8' floresant lights in my shop ceiling and a 4' double over my work bench but I also have incandesant lights. The floresants give good overall light but the incandesants are what I like for wood bow building because they are more simular to natural light. I have drop lights with reflectors for the incandessants so I can have them right where I want and need them.   Pat

[JasonV]

Can't help you with light suggestions - but I just had to tell you I have "Shop envy".
Man, what I could do with a 30x50' shop........

[Tom Leemans]

My buddy got some high output, instant start 8' fluorescent fixtures for his pole building. They're rated for cold weather too. He got them from Grainger but I believe you need an account there. McMaster Carr has basically the same thing. They're costly but it looks like dayight in his shop. (check out page 658)
  http://www.mcmaster.com/

[Dano]

Doug, just remember you can never have too much light, less shadows the better. I'd start by painting the whole shop white walls and cieling. Then depending on how high your ceiling is, I would try and keep the lights as close to 10' from the floor and about 4-5' apart. Like Pat said you can always add incandessants where you'll need more light. 30x50' sounds great.


Oh yeah break up the lights into groups so when you don't need alot of light you can switch em off.

[John Sturtevant]

Enjoy your new shop Doug.
I’ve got a ceiling full of fluorescents along with a white ceiling.  They are OK and I have more then enough light, but I do wish they didn’t distort some colors.  
One thing I would suggest with whatever like you use is to wire them in zones so you don’t need to have all your lights on.   I’ve got mine wired in 3 different zones….and end up using just one most of the time.
You’ll end up with a target in the corner to shoot new bows…and eventually you’ll miss it and poke a hole in the wall.  (just a prediction based on experience)
Nice to be able to shoot inside in the winter.   You do have a winter down there, don’t you?

[rocdoc]

LOTS OF LIGHTS!!  Got it.  John, we had 12" of some really cold white stuff a few weeks ago.....that's close enough to winter for me!  

Like the idea of "zoning" the lights......thanks guys!  

No John......I NEVER miss!     :D

[Michigan Man]

Check out the 8' HO lights from Menards. I Think they cost about 70 bucks a fixture. They were on sales for 52.00 when I bought mine. The bulbs go on sale from time to time also. I have 3 fixtures in my 20 by 24 garage/workshop and they light it up just fine

[swampbuck]

A friend of mine just got done with his barn and he ended up putting in outlet box's from the rafters and used those screw in energysaver bulbs.I,ve used them myself outside and thought that was a great idea since they last all of 5yrs and offer alot of light with min. cost to run.The down side if it is a down side is when cold they take a couple minutes to warm up so there not full britness the first few minutes.Ya can get 4 bulbs for maybe 10 bucks and the adaptors are abour 25 cents a pc

[Dryrot]

in a 30X50 corner to corner is about 18 yards. I put a 4X4' piece of OSB behind my bag target just for that occaison when someone else is shooting. In addition to all the light fixtures you can afford don't skimp on the outlets either, in my 30X50 I'm never more than 15' from someplace to plug into.

[Stone Knife]

You can use 4' open tube fluorescents with T8 tubes(the skinny ones) Or 8' both of which will use 4' T8 tubes. They will give you plenty of light and will also light good in cold or humid conditions. And another plus is they are energy efficient and also cost effective. They can be had with or without shields. You can hang them end to end or spread them out to your liking. Give them a look see. You can put 16 two tube 4' fixtures on a 20 amp breaker using 12 awg wire.

[Chad Sivertsen]

Doug,
Congrats on your new shop, I’m sure you will enjoy it. This thread has some excellent advice and comments and I will add mine.  Around here a person’s sanity in the Winter is determined by the size of their shop.

I spent a good part of my life with my “shop” being a laundry room, walk-in closet, or utility shed so I can appreciate a nice shop.

My shop is in the same building as my business office and also has rooms for my wife’s art studio. It is nothing fancy but is warm in winter and cool in summer. The building is 54x24 and is divided into 3 rooms, with 3 rooms I can confine the dust to just my shop. My shop area is 20x24 with 10’ high ceilings. The walls are finished with sheetrock and painted white with all my cabinets and shelving painted white also. I have 8 4 foot long 2 tube fluorescent light fixtures in the ceiling. The lighting is good but not great, 4 more fixtures would have been better. As you get older you will need more light. Important note here: not all fluorescent fixtures are the same. Like everything there is cheap and there is good and not often do the two overlap. The first fixtures I bought did not work when the shop was cold and didn’t last long either. I bought better fixtures and both lighting and durability improved. I just installed light fixtures intended for paint booth use in my wife’s art studio and they are impressive with brilliant light. She wanted natural light for true color and these claim to be that. The fixture is a 4 foot 4 tube unit and I have one over my main work bench now.

Think about expected temperatures, dust levels, paint fumes, whatever and anticipate your need for lighting and ventilation.

Put in 4 times as many lights as you think you will need, 5 times as many outlets and insulate twice what you think is necessary. In the summer with outside temps of 95 my shop is in the low 70’s without AC. Some of that coolness is because the floor is concrete (and the fact that morning temps here are cool). I painted it with appropriate paint and it has lasted for years.
Dust is less a problem and cleanup easier with a painted floor I think. Good idea from John on separate circuits on the lights. Mine are 8 on or 8 off, my wife reminds me often about that oversight. I have a few windows but wish I would have put in several long narrow windows just under ceiling height to allow more natural light. Dano makes a good point about the less shadows the better.

Not a day goes by that I don’t enjoy and appreciate my shop. Have fun!

[Chortdraw]

I use 8ft. flour lights HO and they do a great job. VHO's are good if you have the money. Use a combo of flour and incandessants and it is easier on the eyes.

[rocdoc]

Wow!  Great help guys!  I knew I could count on the "gangers" to come through for me.  I'll be shopping for lights this week and will let you know what I end up with.  

I put plenty of insulation in, both walls and ceiling, and am hoping to get by with a wood stove for heat and my 3 garage type doors for ventilation/cooling in the summer.  I probably won't paint the walls at this time but I can see doing that in the near future.

I'll post pics when I get everything up and running......thanks again!!!  Doug

[Shaun]

Doug, I am also building a shop 24x64 and am almost to the lighting stage. Been reading some about flourecent lights and there is not only a range of quality for the fixtures but also the bulbs. There is a number rating system for sunlight equivelant. Sunlight is something like 10,000 on the scale and flour. lights range from 2-9,000. Spend the money and get the sunlight like bulbs, I plan to. Also plan to set a few energy hog halogen lights over some areas like work benches for extra light. Zone switching and a 5 watt flour. bulb night light are good ideas too.

[oneeye]

I have a 48' x 64' shop with 16' sidewalls that is lit by 10 "metal halide" (I think that is what they are called) lights.  They are about 24" in diameter and do a great job of lighting the entire area of the shop.  They are on 3 seperate switches.  I do not like the quality of light that is given off by fluorescent lights so I went with these.  They were spendy but well worth it to me.

[rocdoc]

Oneeye......where do you find those lights?

[varmint]

Originally posted by JasonV:
Can't help you with light suggestions - but I just had to tell you I have "Shop envy".
Man, what I could do with a 30x50' shop........

Same here....major shop envy!!

[Aeronut]

I've got shop envy too Doug.  Sounds like you have a good setup.

The Metal Halide lights are similar to a mercury vapor in that they use a ballast and take a short time to come to full brightness.  They give out a more natural light than mercury and they are very bright.  I think you should be able to find them at about any electrical supply in your area.

Dennis