Garage Lighting

I am moving from a large pole barn to a 3 car garage (NOT happy)...anyways, can anybody suggest the best lighting for the new garage...12ft ceilings......

I want as much light as possible...not sure if I should be looking at the commercial type fixtures 400w or 1000w halide?

 

Your ceiling is too low for halide fixtures. You will find a lot of good garage lighting info here http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

 

Call me crazy but I think cars look much better under incandescent light rather than fluorescent or other gas type lamps. I put old fashioned metal pendant lamps (like the ones pictured) in the garage in strategic places, and then supplemented that with wall sconces around the perimeter to fill in any dark spots (such as the sides of the cars). I have the sconces on a dimmer so I can set whatever lighting I'd like (watching a race vs. working on a car) and hit the pendants for a full illumination when I'm wanting some real light. 100W bulbs in each (incandescent only - not the compact fluorescent) and I think it showcases the cars and the garage beautifully. I guess I'm old school, but that's my $0.02.
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There is some discussion (and pictures) in the Showroom forum, in the "Garage Pics" thread. You should probably repost this there.

Regards,

Andres

 

Go to www.fullspectrumsolutions.com on top left of page under specials click on the Highbay with free T5 bulbs. I have the 4 tube fixtures in my garage with 13' ceilings. They are great. If I was to do it over I would go with the 6 tube.

Regards,
Terry W. Phillips

 

Thanks for the link, JCR. I didn't know that forum existed. It seems very useful.

Andres

 

I think it depends on what your looking for? For looking at the cars and hiding imperfections the cars will look better under incandescent lights. If you're working on the car or detailing it and want to see every scratch or nick I like flourescent.

 

In my past garage that was 24X48ft I had 4 skylights and 8 or 12 double 4ft fluorescent fixtures, just bare bulbs, nothing pretty. Skylights, two on each roof slope allowed good light at any time of day for basic tasks. It wasn't a showroom, it was a workshop so I didn't concern myself with what type of light would make the cars look better. The shop was also painted white on the inside for better light reflection, brightness.

 

thanks JCR...

 

Ditto that.

In my new 3-car garage with 18' ceilings I did exactly the same, but did add some flourescent lighting as well as the incandescent so that it's a mixture of both. Using both seems to do a good job of eliminating shadows and dark spots while keeping the tone of the light generally pretty warm.

 

if I may ask...
how many sq ft vs how many 4 tube fixtures?

How well might 4ea, six light fixtures work with 12ft ceilings to cover 24x35 (840 ft^2)?

Is it too large an area for just 4 fixtures?

Thanks,
Vincenzo

 

Suggested light levels for a repair garage are 100 fc, according to this if you use T5 4 lamp
luminaires you will need 8 fixtures 2 rows 4 columns.



06 qp sport
06 gs spyder
06 gs coupe
90 348 ts sold

 

my 3 car garage has a 13 ft floor to ceiling height, and all fluorescent fixtures. i really like the way its lit. even light everywhere, little shadows. with the right bulbs the light is still pretty warm and not fluorescent blue.

u can see rows of light on the ceilings and on the walls. the wall fixtures were off, as it would have been too bright for the pic.

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I have 7 fixtures in a 23 x 23 garage. 3 rows of 2 and then an extra at the back wall over a counter area. It is plenty of light, but as I get older I like more light.

Regards,
Terry W. Phillips

 

Light for working or light for viewing?

I'll be putting flourescent fixtures in the walls ala paint shop to see what the heck I'm working on. If I could figure a way to have them in the floor I'd put 'em there too.

 

Anyone here use simple screw in bulbs or brighter fog light shaped bulbs? I know it is crude, quick, and simple, but some can generate impressive light. Typically, the CFL ones are slow to start but once warm they beat the old of course.

How about the high priced LED fog lights? 40-60 bucks a pop, but instant light, very bright and good for much longer and cheaper to use (if that matters lol)

http://www.sylvania.com/BusinessProducts/Innovations/LEDLampsandRetrofits/15W_PAR38.htm
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I used 4 flourescent fixtures, each with 6 T8 32 watt lamps (four footers), in a fixture with specular reflectors (big difference). Garage is 18x30, with cathedral ceiling 16 feet to the peak. I was worried about not enough light, and the commercial lighting consultant went through the room design with me (size, wall colours, height, etc.) and then did a lumen map to show expected coverage and ideal placement of various fixtures. On my own, I would have had way too much light, being blinding (that is what one tends to do when you go from a lifetime of crappy lighting to a dream garage outcome design). I am really happy, the lighting and distribution is perfect.

Definitely no halide for your ceiling height.

The manufacturer of the commercial lighting was Canlyte (product noted below). Good web site and specifications for various choices. Pricing was really great, not much more than generic design HOme Depot type choices.




Description TRILYTE DIRECT 6T8 32W NO LN/WG 120VES
Catalogue # FH4C5DXX632120O5
Lamp Source Fluorescent
Lamp Watts 32
Aperture Size
Trim Finish
Ceiling Type
Luminaire Size 48in
Voltage 120
# of Lamps 6
Lamp Type T8

 

LED's are nice, but the lumens are just not there. And they're still trying to recoup the R&D cost making their price higher, when brighter more affordable lighting is already available. Sure, higher watt LED lights exist, but the price goes along with it.
An example of how LED lumen diminishes when compared to "mercury bulbs" ;
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Bump...

I'm looking to redo the lighting in my garage and was wondering if there are any news ideas out there. My garage is quite large (1100 sq ft) but with a standard ceiling height. I want as much white light as possible without generating too much heat.

Right now I have two circuits.

Thanks in advance.

 

Your ceiling is too low for the T5HO lamps. Go with the T8's. Don't bother with T12's as they are being phased out