Replacing Fluorescent Tube Lights with LED Retrofits

Replacing Fluorescent Tube Lights with LED Retrofits

Advantages of LED tubes over fluorescent tubes
The many advantages of LED tubes over fluorescents are covered quite extensively, so we won't go into depth, but the three primary advantages are:
1. Higher efficiency, energy savings (up to 30-50%)

2. Longer lifetimes (typically 50k hours)

3. No mercury

Fluorescent tubes sizes and LED tube light retrofitting

Because fluorescent fixtures are often mounted into ceilings and connected directly to main electricity, they are relatively expensive and difficult to replace completely.
As a result, it often makes the most economical sense to simply use the same fluorescent fixture, but replace the fluorescent tube with an LED tube light.
Therefore, it is important to understand the types of fluorescent tubes that were developed, so that the correct LED tube light can be retrofitted in place.
Over the years, fluorescent tube manufacturers developed many varieties of sizes and types.

• T8 4-ft: Four-foot T8 fluorescent lamps are the most commonly used type today. They are 48 inches in length, and have a 1 inch lamp diameter.

• T12 4-ft: Four-foot T12 fluorescent lamps are less efficient compared to T8 lamps. They are the same length as T8 lamps, but have a larger 1.5 inch lamp diameter.

• T5 4-ft: Four-foot T5 fluorescent lamps are typically the most efficient. They are slightly shorter than four feet (45.8 inches). T5 lamps come in a variety of lengths such as 1-ft, 2-ft and 3-ft versions and are commonly used in non-ceiling fixtures such as table lamps.