Fluorescent Replacement

[securespark]

I have a mirror cabinet in the bathroom that has two 18W fluorescent fittings in. One by one they died, so I want to swap them out.

The actual gear has died, so I'll be taking the fittings out and sourcing LED fittings of a suitable length to replace them.

But what would be the equivalent in terms of brightness?

 

[JohnW2]

I have a mirror cabinet in the bathroom that has two 18W fluorescent fittings in. One by one they died, so I want to swap them out.
The actual gear has died, so I'll be taking the fittings out and sourcing LED fittings of a suitable length to replace them.
But what would be the equivalent in terms of brightness?

Assuming that you want to stick with 'tubes' ....

.... as I often say (and despite contrary opinions expressed by others), regardless of the numbers (watts and lumens), my personal experience is that replacing a fluorescent tube with an LED of the same length near always results in illumination at least as good as the fluoro provided.

 

[flameport]

But what would be the equivalent in terms of brightness?

On lumens only it's roughly half the wattage, so LED of about 10W.

There are other considerations such as what direction(s) the light is emitted, colour temperature, tubes take several minutes to achieve full brightness and old tubes will have less output than when they were new.

 

[securespark]

Yes, I need to stick with a linear fitting. The LED fittings I've seen of the same length are designed for under-cabinet use and vary wildly in wattage. The most I've seen is 7W for a fitting 395mm in length.
The existing one is 440.

They are fitted behind glass, either side of the main cabinet, so the light goes mainly straight out, but a little goes to the left or right, depending which side the fitting is mounted on and illuminates the cabinet interior through glass windows in the cabinet.
The colour temp is cool white.

I'll get some pics of the cabinet.

 

[securespark]

Here's the outside of the cabinet with the two compartments that contain the flus at the moment.

And inside, you can see the glass windows that let light in to the interior of the cabinet.

And inside one of the compartments

 

[securespark]

Can't find anything bigger than 7W that will physically fit inside the compartment.

 

[JohnW2]

Can't find anything bigger than 7W that will physically fit inside the compartment.

How long a fitting can you accommodate?

 

[foxhole]

Osram LED Tube T8 (EM/Mains) Standard Output 5.4W 650lm - 840 Cool White | 44cm - Replaces 15W

Osram LED Tube T8 (EM/Mains) Standard Output 5.4W 650lm - 840 Cool White | 44cm - Replaces 15W starting from . Order ! Free LED-Advice: !

www.any-lamp.co.uk

 

[RF Lighting]

Hey Simon have you considered some LED strip stuck to the back of the cabinet compartments where the existing strips are mounted? It’s fairly easy to source strips rated at 5W per meter and looking at your cabinet it wouldn’t be difficult to fit 3 linear meters of strip in there running up and down so all the light is directed at the diffuser panels. It’s also easy to source your preferred colour temperature of light.

 

[ebee]

Yes, I might add that when trying to replace existing lighting (either filament or fluorescent) the converstions of equivalents in lumens and colours and spread etc can be a bit of a complicated trade off. At best a guess, then take your best guess and fit a temporary next guess accordingly and then you might find your 2nd to 4th guess might be the best compromise in practice . good luck.

 

[securespark]

Thanks everyone.

How long a fitting can you accommodate?

As I said before, 440mm. I made a booboo, though, they are not 18W tubes (otherwise they'd be 600), they are 15W.

The picture above shows extra space above and below the fitting, but the one on the right hand side has a shaver outlet immediately above it, so putting a longer fitting in is a no-no.

Osram LED Tube T8 (EM/Mains) Standard Output 5.4W 650lm - 840 Cool White | 44cm - Replaces 15W

Osram LED Tube T8 (EM/Mains) Standard Output 5.4W 650lm - 840 Cool White | 44cm - Replaces 15W starting from . Order ! Free LED-Advice: !

www.any-lamp.co.uk

I'll have to take out one of the fittings and see how it's arranged. Having looked at the reviews, a couple say it comes with a starter, but as far as I can see, these ones are HF.

Hey Simon have you considered some LED strip stuck to the back of the cabinet compartments where the existing strips are mounted? It’s fairly easy to source strips rated at 5W per meter and looking at your cabinet it wouldn’t be difficult to fit 3 linear meters of strip in there running up and down so all the light is directed at the diffuser panels. It’s also easy to source your preferred colour temperature of light.

Hi Rob, long time no talk, hope you're doing well mate!

Funnily enough, I did think about strip, but then I wondered how to attach them. It looks like there are two mounting points behind the flu fittings, but I'd probably need a strip of stainless plate or something similar to attach them to.

Not sure I'd be able to get 3 linear metres in, though. The frosted area in the side panels is 400mm tall.
Again, I'll have to do some deconstruction to see what's what.

Yes, I might add that when trying to replace existing lighting (either filament or fluorescent) the converstions of equivalents in lumens and colours and spread etc can be a bit of a complicated trade off. At best a guess, then take your best guess and fit a temporary next guess accordingly and then you might find your 2nd to 4th guess might be the best compromise in practice . good luck.

Yeah, I was fearing it might be a bit of a guessing game!
I'll post some pics when I have deconstructed things a bit.

 

[333rocky333]

Regarding fixing the strip you could fit the metal profiles that the strips fit inside.

Regarding retrofit led in your old twin fitting it likely has a series set up, older single choke and 2 starters, usually evident by a flashing when starting, or a newer single hf ballast, just a delayed start, for both methods if you twist one tube then both will go off.

Not a big fan of adapting old fittings but You would need to alter the wiring to directly feed each led one end, L and N , to run that lamp above, that starter link they supply just links one end to the other, as in a standard switch start circuit Live would be the opposite lamp end to the Neutral, wiring.
With L and N at the same end the tube does not need The starter link, the lamp works regardless

 

[JohnW2]

As I said before, 440mm. I made a booboo, though, they are not 18W tubes (otherwise they'd be 600), they are 15W.

Apologies, I missed (or forgot) that!

For what it's worth, I can but repeat what I wrote before about my personal anecdotal experiences - namely that.in practice (and regardless of Watt and lumen numbers), whenever I have a replaced a fluoro with an LED tube of the same length, I seem to have ended up with adequate illumination - if your experiences proved to be similar, then the 7W (395mm) one you've found may well 'do the job' satisfactorily - although, of course (and unfortunately) you could only find out whether that is the case by 'trying' (and I accept that other people's experiences [like Sunrays's, if I recall correctly] are rather different from mine).

 

[SUNRAY]

Apologies, I missed (or forgot) that!

For what it's worth, I can but repeat what I wrote before about my personal anecdotal experiences - namely that.in practice (and regardless of Watt and lumen numbers), whenever I have a replaced a fluoro with an LED tube of the same length, I seem to have ended up with adequate illumination - if your experiences proved to be similar, then the 7W (395mm) one you've found may well 'do the job' satisfactorily - although, of course (and unfortunately) you could only find out whether that is the case by 'trying' (and I accept that other people's experiences [like Sunrays's, if I recall correctly] are rather different from mine).

I can but quote simple examples of real life experiences and reiterate that I personally have reinstated and re-tubed dozens, it not hundreds, of flou fittings after they were replaced with 'LED equivalents' and the users complained about lack of light. That particular company still have a policy of storing the removed fittings... just in case! In fact that particular company fitted a grid ceiling in their workshop with LED panels and the original 4 & 5ft fluo fittings dumped in the metal skip, within days the old fittings were retrieved by the staff and one by one hung on the grid with loose hung cables to sockets, I understand they are still there some 5+ years later and its only ever the managers use the LED panels if entering in the dark.

This is one oft quoted example: https://www.diynot.com/diy/threads/led-tube-replacement.627013/#post-5711118 post#7 however the PCC refuse permission to make further changes and are now subsidising what was once a nicely profitable venue.

 

[securespark]

I have the Ansell Tornado Pro Twin Anti-corrosives in the garage. 2 x 6 foot twins give a great output easily comparable to the old 2 x 100W 8 foot twin fluo's.

In your church hall example, I think they'd improve matters by swapping the fittings for the Tornados and painting everywhere white.