Both my shops have a bunch of 400 watt metal halides that I am changing out to T6? flourecents. The new lights come on instantly, don't put out heat and give out more light while using less electricty. Out west , Pacific gas and electric has a rebate going that cuts the cost of the new lights by about 30%.

My garage is 30 by 30 with white walls and white ceiling.my lights are quick start flourescents.I have 6 of these lighting the main portion with 4 foot lights over the work bench area.works pretty good.

I have five 8' HO double tubes in my garage and love them! Got them a Home Depot. This garage is 700sf.

1 room is 30x40, it has 28 8' flouresents, flush mounted into the drywall, the "lil" room is 12x12 with 16 4' bulbs, (this is my "harley" paint room)


my new addition will be 40x50, and im not sure exactly what i am gonna do just yet...but im sure it will also be overkill. i like lotsa light.

T8's.
It's what I do.

Lights
 

Sorry, my fixtures are double bulb.

Check the auctions..
 

We once procured about 20 4-foot, 4 fixture fluorescent fixtures with bulbs for about $5/ea at a local industrial auction. They were all industrial pieces from a warehouse that was being torn down. You can sometimes find these auctions in the newspaper or other classifieds.... they have lots of cool stuff like industrial shelving, tools, etc.

I find it easier to use multiple banks of 4' floresents. The bulbs are available anywhere, easy to transport and easy to store, unlike the 10' and 8's are.


I usually put one on each side of the car, and one front and rear and it works pretty well.

If you have a large area to do, 8 foot lights will be cheaper to install then the 4 footers. Reason being is that you have to run electrical to each one, and it's quicker to run electrical to half as many.

Here is my question. Besides providing light to work in, how much "damage" do various forms of light do to the paint. If any? I changed bulbs when I got my car and took the precaution...but is it a real concern? Or is this conversation more about just seeing while you work?


Okay...that was more than one question.


Tim