Replacing fluorescent lamps with LED T8 lights

Our office currently runs standard fluorescent strip lights (1500mm T8 tubes) throughout, with over 60 bulbs across 3 floors. We are considering upgrading all the lights to LED bulbs, in order to save power and to make them compatible with an office automation system (to turn them on and off automatically).

Energy savings

So, how much energy will they save? Well a standard fluorescent bulb consumes about 58w, whereas the new LED bulbs consume around 20W. Therefore over the course of a year I would anticipate the energy savings to be as follows:

  Standard Fluorescent Bulb LED Bulb
Power Consumption 58 Watts 20 Watts
Hours in use 10 hours per day, 5 days a week, 52 per year
Hours per year 2,600
Kilowatt hours per year (watts / 1000 * hours) 150.80 kWh 52 kWh
Cost per year (at 10p per kWh) £15.08 £5.20

Thus the saving is about £10 per year per bulb.

We are currently asking suppliers to quote us for 60 bulbs, and the prices we have received so far range between £25 to £60 per bulb.

The bulbs are rated for about 50,000 hours of constant usage, which should mean they would last nearly 20 years at the rate of usage we have forecast.

Standard bulbs last about 5,000 hours (2 years) and cost around £2 each.

It looks like the energy saving bulbs should pay for themselves after 3 – 5 years, and return a yield of around 20% thereafter.

Things I haven’t factored in:

  • Cost of installation / replacing bulbs (slighty more difficult to initially install, but they last 10 times as long and therefore need less labour to replace).
  • Reduced heat from operation – might require less air conditioning in summer months)

129 thoughts on “Replacing fluorescent lamps with LED T8 lights”

  1. That’s a 66% saving. Very good indeed. Have you calculated the cost of installation?

    I was looking at Megaman LED bulbs the other day. The clever feature is that they don’t require new light fittings. They have a wide range of bulbs but they are very expensive and I would want more than 1 year warranty for such a pricey lightbulb. http://www.megamanuk.com/

    Earth LED is another manufacturer to consider: http://www.earthled.com/

    The Metaefficient blog has a view interesting reviews of various bulbs and technologies. Here are two:

    http://www.metaefficient.com/leds/led-motion-sensing-lights-a-review.html
    http://www.metaefficient.com/leds/office-building-lit-with-100-led-light.html

  2. In terms of installation, I think it’s pretty simple as they fit in the existing strip light fittings. However, do you do need to remove the starter and ballast, so you might need an electrician to help with this.

    I haven’t factored these costs into the equation, but if I did, I think the LED bulbs would probably still come out on top as even though they are a bit trickier to install, you would replace them a lot less often than their fluorescent equivalents… they last around 10 times as long!

    Thanks for those other links, I’ll take a look!

  3. I bought LED lights to replace my halogen MR16 bulbs the other day from a website called Eaglelight.com that I would recommend enthusiastically. They had good service (good phone and email support), great FAQs so I knew what I needed, and competitive prices; also, their shipping was fast and the LEDs were as good as advertised. http://www.Eaglelight.com. Very good online shopping site.

  4. The cost of led fluorescent lamps is high, but over time you can dependant on use save 70% in electrical energy and recover your intial cost over 1-2 years.
    That is without considering, lamp replacement costs, disposal
    HVAC Costs and assist to reduce carbon emissions. You could also see http://www.acousticlighting.co.uk which electronically switch the led fluorescent lamps OFF and ON without damage to the lamps. indcidentally you can have colours of warm white, white, brilliant white. Lamps life 70K Hours with IP65 and IK7 Protection. Hope this helps.

  5. Have you found a source for supplying your requirement? Would you be interested in having all lamps controlled by PIR interface, so the lights are only on when people are in the room, building or designated area..

  6. We have contacted a few suppliers, and are waiting for some samples to arrive – but we haven’t made a final decision yet.

    Yes, we are planning on controlling them via an office automation system which will also allow us to trigger them via time profiles, as well as PIR sensors etc..

  7. LED tube is a new product with much potential and it will must have a very promising market .we also have seen many good markets now .if you are available ,you can visit us at http://del-opto.manufacturer.globalsources.com/si/6008825988218/pdtl/LED-tube/1009101421/LED-Tube.htm or http://del-opto.en.alibaba.com/product/208979393-200036901/High_brightness_SMD_LED_tube_light.html .
    we mainly do SMD LED tubes ,not any 5mm LED tubes . in order to dissipate the heat well ,we choose aluminum alloy material .also with acrylic cover is good for lighting transimittance .especially we use PWM driver with constant current to minimize the lighting depreciation and prolong the operateing lifespan . in order to protect leds ,we designed zeners on the back of PCB board ,which is parallel with leds .if one led dead ,the other leds will go on to work .this is a very good feature of our tubes .if you are interested in it ,pls feel free to contact with me : )

  8. Hi ,
    We are a UK company called Visual Interactive Ltd based in the Midlands. We have succesfully sold our T8 LED tube products to some large companies in the UK. One of which is looking to role out accross Europe and the US. We spent over 9 months sourcing suitable, quality T8 products to offer our customers. We are electronic engineers by background and have experience in the LED lighting arena. We are happy to get involved with customers and support them with our detailed energy saving spreadheet which based on some simple information will give you the total energy saving and your ROI.
    Visual Interactive Ltd is not just a lamp supplier…we believe in understanding customers requirements and we are also working on our own bespoke LED lighting products for customers.We are also an Approved Loan Advisor for the Carbon Trust.

    Pete Bailey
    Director
    Mobile: 07734 846261
    Tel: 08700 348671
    Website: http://www.visualinteractive.co.uk

    Lighting Site: http://www.ledsgogreen.com

  9. 99% of LED Fluorescent tube replacements require that the ballast be disabled before you insert the tube, ’ if you are confident do carry out this procedure then by all means purchase one of these tubes.

    However if you would prefer to insert a true replacement tube without any additional electrical work then please look at our deluxe tubes which can be placed in an existing fitting without having to carry out any extra electrical work.

    Prices for our tubes are shown on line, there is no need to register and there is a handy calculator that you can enter the hours of use to see the savings that you can make.

    No company has UL certification for the sale of these products in the USA as of Mid March 2009, our tubes will be certified by the end on March.

    We offer a sale or return basis on our tubes, buy a sample, try for 21 days and if you are not satisfied you money will be refunded (you only pay for the postage).

    If you want any further information then please contact me on +44 07768 807569 or email [email protected]

    Alistair Roberton
    http://www.ddsukltd.com

  10. We help help automate the world… 🙂
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  11. in repose to Alistair’s post, people need to be aware of the ballast issue. A standard magnetic fitting with starter is easy to convert and so the LED lamps will work providing the starter is removed. Note however that by leaving the ballast in place, you won’t get as much energy saving due to the inefficiencies of the ballast. It is a simple task to bypass or remove altogether. If you have an electronic ballast which inveriably doesn’t have a starter, the the LED tubes will not work if its left in the circuit so these will definitely need to be bypassed. If you are planning on using a passive movement sensor then be aware that some may not work properly as most reply on a resisting load with solid state output . The input impedance of an LED tube is pretty high and you may find that if you are powering just a single tube, that it may not work unless you put 2 in.

    If you have any questions about LED tubes, lets share it so we can all help each other.

  12. Dip led tube and SMD tubes are the major products in the market. DIp ones have fatal defect, it only depens on to pins to release heat and SMD tubes are much higher price.worldportable technology international limited has studied for one year and just released new generation LED T8 tubes. Its light source is not spot light but light from panel .Its advantages are better performance in heat-controling and longer life and less light dacay.It’s the revolutionary technology in led tubes for home and commercial and industrial use.
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    WORLDPORTABLE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL LIMITED from shenzhen, china recently released new generation Led T8 tube replacement.
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  13. Actually,electric ballast will consume energy, remove ballast is more energy-saving. I know many company of UK have been in led lighting for many years,bus seems less people buy large quantity for led tube. I don’t know what the reason is. We have dealer in Australia right now. We hope to find a good parter for our led tubes in UK. Our advantage is as follows,

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  14. LED fluorescent tube
    Dear Sir/Madam,

    We are pleased to get to know that you are specialist in the field of LED
    lighting products, As a professional manufacturer and exporter
    for LED Lighting product in China, we sincerely hope to establish business
    relations with your esteemed corporation in 2009.

    LED technology is always keep fast pace in recently a few years, it has
    been replacing all traditional lighting devices at present. Our focus is to
    provide clients best LED Lighting solutions.

    Some of our items maybe are suitable for your business: such as LED
    Fluorescent lamps,LED high power spotlight,LED strips,LED rope light,LED
    Module,etc.

    We would like to recommend you our LED fluorescent tube series first.
    Since such items are our leading products, which we sell well recently.
    clients include project company and architectural designers, they have done
    many project, such as supermarket, factory,office,lighting box etc… I
    think there should also have many similar projects ongoing in your area,
    which will need quantities of LED luminaires to replace traditional
    fluorescent to achieve the purpose of energy saving effect and reduced the
    power of consumption. We are full of expectations to help you take up the
    potential market at a short time.

    Please visit our website at http://www.tx-led.com for more details about our full
    range of products, then let me know which models you are interested so that
    we can send you exact information.

    Look forward to discussing further details with you soon. Thanks!

    Best regards,
    Jason Zhou
    Sales manager
    Shenzhen Tianxia LED Lighting Co.,Ltd
    Web: http://www.tx-led.com/

    Tel: 0086 755 81920018
    Fax: 0086 755 27583461

  15. Hi, We (ArmadilloLED) have developed new LED spotlight with fitting of GU10 and MR16, on 12V, 110V and 240V Dimmable, and this is totally new, you will not find it on any far eastern manufacturers websites. Our 6W high brightness LED SPOTLIGHT with perfect aluminium housing gives more, cleaner, light than 50W standard halogen. Following this we are in stage to design proper street light which is in final stage now. ISO9001:2008 under Design and development. http://www.armadilloled.com. Send us request. some other products available as well.
    Bart

  16. Great! It is always refreshing to hear that someone is moving forward in not only saving money but also reducing their CO2 emissions. As with Pete Bailey’s company Visual Interactive Ltd we too advise on Carbon Trust loans – for this year I believe £100M is available!
    LED technology is the way forward and we love to share information so that individuals and organisations can then make an infomed decision as to whether or not to purchase LED lighting. We have seen clients achieve a pay back of less than 12 months on their investment.
    No longer are LED lights ‘those multidiode blue lights’, you can now purchase warm white to daylight, or if you want blue, red yellow etc you can have these too. I look forward to Paul enjoying the savings that our clients have enjoyed.
    John Harrison
    Redwood Power Systems Ltd
    Tel: 01603 667410
    Mobile: 07736 403654

  17. Our new Version LED Fluorenscent Tube use 5050/3528 SMD , Cover is the frosted , No spot dot lighting , The Lights emitting is well-proportioned, Max Lumen is 2400lm. If you are interested in , Pls visit http://www.siprosee.com and leave a message , we will send all the information accordingly

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  18. LED fluorescent tube
    Dear Sir/Madam,

    We are pleased to get to know that you are specialist in the field of LED
    lighting products, As a professional manufacturer and exporter
    for LED Lighting product in China, we sincerely hope to establish business
    relations with your esteemed corporation in 2009.

    LED technology is always keep fast pace in recently a few years, it has
    been replacing all traditional lighting devices at present. Our focus is to
    provide clients best LED Lighting solutions.

    Some of our items maybe are suitable for your business: such as LED
    Fluorescent lamps,LED high power spotlight,LED strips,LED rope light,LED
    Module,etc.

    We would like to recommend you our LED fluorescent tube series first.
    Since such items are our leading products, which we sell well recently.
    clients include project company and architectural designers, they have done
    many project, such as supermarket, factory,office,lighting box etc… I
    think there should also have many similar projects ongoing in your area,
    which will need quantities of LED luminaires to replace traditional
    fluorescent to achieve the purpose of energy saving effect and reduced the
    power of consumption. We are full of expectations to help you take up the
    potential market at a short time.

    Please visit our website at http://www.tx-led.com for more details about our full
    range of products, then let me know which models you are interested so that
    we can send you exact information.

    Look forward to discussing further details with you soon. Thanks!

    Best regards,
    Jason Zhou
    Sales manager
    Shenzhen Tianxia LED Lighting Co.,Ltd
    Email:[email protected]
    Web: http://www.tx-led.com/

    Tel: 0086 755 81920018 Mob: 086-13590170735
    Fax: 0086 755 27583461

  19. Hi to all we are a midlands company with 10 years lighting experience. We specialise in all types of lighting from sports to LED retrofit inc LED tubes, MR16 Spots and Gu10 spots.
    Please see our website for more details.
    Killawatt are lighting the way to a brighter future…

  20. HI, If you are looking to buy from a UK company and you want a no hassle upgrade from standard fluorescent to LED T8 lights then we have the answer…
    Many people find it tricky and more costly when having to modify the power supply ,in order for the LED T8s to work ,and LEDS work best with their own LED power supply , therefore we don’t use ballast to power up our LED T8′S , as that could lead to damage and higher running cost..
    Contact ue today for our solution and some of the best prices around
    http://uk-leds.co.uk/index.php
    [email protected]

  21. hi , i work in agriculture and was looking for help with Led usage in my business.

    i noticedled have come a long way in the last couple years so would appreciat if anyone could bring me upto speed.

    i am looking for growing lights for seed to flower.
    low cost but still need to produce quality plants and fruit.

    anyone help me out?

  22. hi, dear all,
    We are one of leading supplier in LED Lighting fields. Our main products are LED T8 fluorescent lamps( various lumina levels, wide voltage, dimmer, plant grow and so on), LED spotlamp, Flexible strips…….

    More information or need any helps, just let us know. We’ll help you out.
    Best regards,
    Merry
    Sales Representative
    Bon Bon Electronic Co.,Ltd
    Tel: 00 86 755 2734 1651
    Fax: 00 86 755 2734 1652
    Email: [email protected]
    Web: http://www.bonbonelec.com

  23. Hi, I’m limieer, and i work for a LED company. I want to introduce our company to the person who is interested in LED products.
    CINA LED LIGHTING TECH LIMITED, is a high-tech enterprise specializes in developing, manufacturing and marketing LED lighting products, including LED Tube & bulbs, LED grille light, LED spotlight, LED downlight, LED grow light and so on.. .Our products are of high quanlily and it has pass CE, ROHS certificated. The warranty period can up to 3-5 years. We will satisfy our customers with good quality, guaranteed fast delivery and excellent after service . If anybody is interested in LED Lighting products, please contact me.
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  24. professional led bulbs ,led strip,T8 LED TUBE manufacturer,
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  25. Actually, HCC LED test is just the same with you.

    We tested our LED T8 fluorescent tube, and find that it can reach 96lm/w, Color temperature is 5000K-6000K, save 68% energy.

    Also we tested Aging test for 10000hours, and find that the lumen decay is low, about 12%.

    About how to install the Led T8 tube fluorescent tube, please see our introduction on our web http://www.hccled.com/news/6

    Any question, please send email to : [email protected]

    Jeff

  26. LED tube light is our best seller in our factroy, we used super bright LED and normal bright LED for production.
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  27. Hello,Listen ! the one who would like to take the responsibility for the climate change,engaged in LED business.We are professional LED manufacturer in China, our product stands for high quality at the competitive price.

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  28. Dear All,

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  29. Specialized in designing,manufacturing,distributing LED tube light,LED panel,Dimmable LED bulbs,Dimmable LED Par lamp,LED high power spotlight,etc.LED tube light has passed ETL,which the file number is 3187436.LED high power Par30/Par38 with UL listed will be coming sooner.

  30. We have carried out tests on LED tubes we intend to import from China. Initially to fit in chicken sheds with the ability to dim the tubes over set periods. Also to retrofit existing fluorescent tubes in general. Apart from the initial cost, the benefits are substantial and we have gone for the SMD latest LED’s as we feel this is the future of industrial lighting. As this is a big step we are looking for prospective customers who would be interested in unstalling LED tubes.

  31. Dear All,

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  32. LED

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  33. After years of quick development, LEDER LIGHTING Co., Ltd have successfully researched and designed led which are widely applied for commercial and residential lumination, such as office, school, hotel, restaurant, library, display, decoration, industry, army & hospital. Our main product are led tubes, led panel light, led ceiling light, led strips, led bulb, led spotlight, led downlight etc. They feature with Energy Saving, Long Lifetime, Environment Friendly.
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  34. Not sure how many people are reading this, but I wanted to ask the question.

    I’ve heard that these LED Light technologies are new, no surprise there, and I’m also researching them for my company. A lighting specialist has told me that many of the LED bulbs are coming from China and that these companies are overstating the savings, therefor not going to save as much as quoted.

    Does anyone have any real numbers and real savings? Could Chinese companies be accidentally overstating kWh?

    Thanks

  35. Led Light Manufacturers– led lighting manufacturers in India .Gkon offers you best led light manufacturing and provide electrical switch accessories, led light, fixtures, VPIT Ballast, MCB’s, distribution. boards, AC boxes, plugs sockets, wire and cables etc.

  36. i am happy to tell you that our LED tube are TUV approval。

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  37. Dear YOU:

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  38. LED tube light professional manufacturer
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  39. Shenzhen tuocai technologicall lighting co.,ltd are specializie in design, produce and sell LED products worldwide, if you prefer T8, T10 serials tubes,please contaqct:
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