I finally have some free time to get started on organizing my new garage. I went out there this evening to finally hang some pegboard. I decide to replace the dead fluorescent bulb in the fixture in front of the bench first. I'm in the mode, the ladder is out and and I have the bulbs, so why not replace the blown bulbs in the other 9 fixtures while I'm here? Well guess what? 4 out of the 10 don't work at all. I replaced one with a spare I had laying around. But I still have 3 others that don't work.

So here's the question. Are these cheap hanging fluorescent fixtures worth trying to repair? Replace the ballast, etc... Is that even done anymore? I haven't wired a fluorescent in years myself.

Orchard Supply or Home Depot; these things cost about $10 for a complete fixture.

That's what I thought too. Until I looked.

Yikes... when did these things get so expensive? The last ones I bought only cost like $10 each. That was more than 5 years ago, but still...

http://www.homedepot.ca/catalog/fluorescent-lighting/172487

+1 I've never actually tried to repair one, because the entire 'shop light' fixtures are pretty darn cheap from Home Depot etc.

Your garage is so effin huge, I'm jealous. I only have 5 fixtures

I hate throwing things away. We throw everything away these days. Id rather repair stuff if I can.

I'm watching swamp thing. What a riot. LOL

For me, it's a mentality thing. Of course I'll try and fix everything around me before replacing them. I own a 914!

Besides, the 5 year old boy keeps telling everyone that daddy can fix anything, I'm not sure how I could let him down.

Cheap POS. I took one apart. It was designed only to be put together, not taken apart. DFM at it's finest.

And I didn't get any pegboard hung either for all the dickin around.

What has typically broken on mine are the little white plastic bits that hold the bulb-ends in place, i.e., where the electrical connections are.

Mike, Is there's a LOWE's near you? I bought a 'cheapie' replacement fixture a couple of months ago for about $10. (see link)

... and believe it or not, it has a 1 year warranty

Yes you can ,buy replacement, ballest and new plastic ends, for these light fixtures.It is also very easy to repair.And on a side note, these lights do not like power from a g.f.i. circuit,it causes them to not work properly, or not at all.Jaymann

Mike,
Make sure you have the right bulbs. The reason I know is I went through this mess about 6 months ago. Make sure the numbers on the old bulb MATCH the new bulbs. The OLD fixtures(the ballast)do not like the the ENERGY saving bulbs. The ballast will not start the new bulbs. See if this works for you.

Thanks everyone.

Yeah, I've got a Lowe's (or two or eight) around here. There web sites doesn't list anything under $19 either. I realize they probably have some cheap units on sale at the store though. I have a couple of spares, but I have to find them. I may still need one or two new, so I'll look later today if so.

Of particular note: Out of the 10 fixtures I have, 4 don't work. All 4 of those are the same manufacturer. Only one of this same type/manufacturer is still working. The remaining 5 are all of some other type. And the non-functional units are uber-cheap and probably less than 5 years old. It's actually making me think twice about being more cheap crap. We;ll see...

I read the reviews on that fixture. You get what you pay for! A guarantee isn't necessarily great when you're getting your third replacement.

+1 on Marks comment. The "energy efficient" system is T8. If you have the normal T12 up there rip them out and put the T8s in. You can tell the difference by the size. T8s are skinny - 1" diameter (8/8ths of an inch) and the T12 is 1.5" (12/8ths of an inch). To go to T8 you have to replace the balast as well as the bulb. I've found that for shop lights that you can buy a fixture on sale for less than the balast - go figure.

T8s use about 20% less energy than T12. In a commercial setting where they are running 8 hours a day the payback is something like 3 years. That includes the cost of the electrician to replace them.

I got 7ea 8 footers from a remodeled steel working shop....they look like 60's vintage fixtures. Gross dirty but losto cleaning & white rattle can paint...... Course put them all in with new bulbs so the bulbs fail all about the same time....6-8 years later. If the guts go to hell, I will make every effort to fix em'.
Industriall strength is gud.
Free is a good price too.

I would agree with all this. Newer fixtures are worth the money spent on them. The payback is worth it. J.P., your free fixtures are costing money every time they are on. I am currenty working on a hospital renovation project and we are relamping or replacing all the fixtures. Some of the existing fixtures are only 10 years old but not worth keeping. The energy savings with next lamps is real money even on a small scale.

Yes, I also have no reducer in my 70s shower head and 70s toilets that actually flush away the shit in one stroke.
I use high energy bulbs in the fixtures and with the painted floors need no extra lighting when I'm under the car.

Some of ya'll may have noticed over the years that "correctness" is not high on my priority list.

BTW, I also take "Hollywood" showers.

Does that mean making out in the shower with a young hottie?

I can only wish.

I think it means he takes them with another man.

Gint, I had a similar situation. I think you discovered the crappy magnetic ballast and your reaction was correct. CPOS. On the other hand if you R&R the ballast on a better unit it will give you 10K + hr's of service. However, you are left w/ T10 system. It was at this point I realized I could buy another CPOS or buy a decent T8 unit. I wish all my lights were this T8 system, now. The quality of the light from this unit is much better and brighter than the old T10's. I am now waiting for the others to die so I can R&R w/ T8's.
Oh BTW, when you start replacing flourescent bulbs the ballast is right around the corner.

Do these new T8 fixtures perform well in 32 degrees down to about 20 below?
Biggest problem with going this route for me...unheated garage/shop.
when I work in there, I turn on heat, but it takes hours for the lights to get up to full strength...

I am considering using track lighting with either LED or Halogens.
Rich

Jeeze....ya buy em' books & all they do is lick the glue off the pages.
Some one here must know what a Hollywood shower is. I'd expect Paul not to considering he just discovered indoor plumbing last week.

I shit indoors but still take a bath in the creek once a week

OK I admit, I had to look it up:

"The United States Navy phrase Hollywood shower contrasts with navy shower, and refers to long lavish showers without limits on water usage." (Wikipedia)

The units I have are rated for cold weather starting but I'm not sure about 20 below. Can't say I've tried them that cold. I hibernate on days like that.