Workshop Lighting

UKworkshop.co.uk

Help Support UKworkshop.co.uk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Woodythepecker

Established Member
Joined
30 Jul 2004
Messages
686
Reaction score
0
I have been fitting my sons workshop out with a few things (dust extraction system, alarm etc) before he comes back from the US, and i have now got to the lighting. Any ideas?

I have got strip lighting in my own shop but this was installed before i purchased it, so i need some advice on what type and size to use. His workshop is on 2 stories, and each floor is 26ft x 13ft, so how many units will i need for each floor? By the way there is not much daylight.

Regards

Woody
 
Woody

How high are the ceilings? I would suggest double HPF fluorescents with diffusers. I got mine from screwfix.
I have 6 doubles for a wshop that is 6.5m by 5m and I could happily put in another two doubles for winter use. I have two large veluxes which really help when its light.

I have angled spots around key areas which I can also point up to the white ceiling to bounce more light if needed.

I have thought about (but not ordered yet) daylight lamps for the winter for some of the fluorescents - not least because I get miserable in the winter. These look like some of the best prices http://www.lightbulbs-direct.com/ I have used them before for other lamps and found them reliable.

Cheers

Tim

Overcoming the jealousy factor of two floors!!
 
Woodythepecker":wx5ucpb1 said:
His workshop is on 2 stories, and each floor is 26ft x 13ft

Cor blimey Woody, that's lots of space. :shock: I'm not too old to be adopted if you need someone to help fill up all that space :lol:
 
Double tube fittings with diffusers, with if possible one tube daylight and one warm glow will give the most natural light. This system also stops the harmonizing effect ( if that is the right term :?: ) of a rotating item appearing to be stopped when it is still whizzing round.

Les
 
Cheers guys. Can anyone recommend a good place to get the fittings themselves?

Regards

Woody
 
Tim, i ordered from the link LyNx posted, or should i say that i thought that i had, because I just received an email stating that i cannot order them because "The items are extremely fragile and so consequently there is a high chance they would get damaged in transit"

Their web site does state that some of the items are too fragile, but this was not the case on the ones i ordered.

Oh well i will now try Screwfix.

Regards

Woody
 
If you are fitting up lighting perhaps it would also be time to think about heating, I've seen lighting that has heating elements tied into the system.
Any comments?
 
OK. Boredom time. I'll do this now, so nobody drops off during CSI tonight. :roll:
When I was serving my apprenticeship I did a course in lighting design. It is all very boring really, but can be useful at times.
The most common measurement of light output is the lumen. 1 lumen is equivalent to about 0.0015W
The metric unit of illuminance of a surface is the lux. 1 lux is equivalent to 1 lumen/square metre.
It then follows that 1 lux is also equivalent to about 0.0015W/square metre.
An average well illuminated office has a light intensity of around 2000 lux.
A 5 foot (1500mm) fluorescent tube is rated at 58W.
Multiply 2000 lux by 0.0015W and you get a factor of around 667.
The workshop sizes in new money equate to about 32 square metres each.
Dividing your 32 square metres by 667 means you need around 20 of these 58W units to give you the same light intensity as a well illuminated office.
To achieve this, you will need 10 twin 1500mm fluorescent fittings per workshop.
There that wasn't so bad really was it? Personally I think this may be a tad too bright, but you can guarantee there won't be any shadows in corners etc.
:-#

Tom
 
I think Tom might be a bit over the top for his luminance level requirements.

These are the criteria I have always worked to to meet HSAW requirements.

Recommended Illuminance values

Corridors, stairs, etc. 100/150 lux
Warehouses, storage bays 100/150 lux
General office work 300/500 lux
Rough bench/machine work 300/500 lux
Medium bench/machine work 500/700 lux
Drawing offices/shops 750/1000 lux
Fine bench work 1000/1500 lux
Fine inspection 1500/3000 lux
Minute work 3000/5000 lux

Checking levels in my house at the moment, 350 lux is about what you get from a domestic 36 watt tube at 1 meter, fitting a diffuser reduces this to 300 lux. (reduces to about 180 at 2 meters) but this appears adequate in both the kitchen and the computer room where checks were done.

2000-2500 lux is roughly to the level inside a domestic room 2 meters in from a window on a bright but partially overcast day.
 
Tim, cheers mate they are a fair bit cheaper. Ten tubes for £29.99 not bad at all.

Now for another few questions.

I noticed that the ones that have a diffuser fitted are a lot more expensive. Do we really need these?

They also sell weather and dust proof lights (IP65) which are a hell of a lot more expensive then the others eg £20.99 for 1 as opposed to £33.45 for 4. Do you normally get a lot of dust in the standard fitting that would make it worth while going for the dearer lights?

DW, i have never seen that type of light. Anyway he has already got the heating arrangement sorted. Thanks anyway.

Tom, 20 tubes in a 26x13 workshop i would have thought that you would have to warn the electricity board before you switch them on. :wink:

Now i am off to order some lights.

Regards

Woody
 
I have diffusers simply because I thought that they would act as a first line of defence vs a thoughtlessly swung plank etc.

re IP65 etc I have just had a look at my light fittings and there really isn't much dust up there at all - the dust filter must really help! so no I think you could be okay with normal.
I have used MDF a fair bit so if that dust was going to cause damage it would have done so by now I think and it seems okay.

Hope that helps.

BTW are you going for doubles or singles? I'd definitely go with HPF doubles.

Cheers

Tim
 
Cheers Tim, yes it does help a lot.

I am going to go for twins. double the light and they don't look much bigger ten a single.

Regards

Woody
 
Woody, If you are fitting several double fluorescent sets to a single wall switch make sure it is a good quality pattern (like an MK brand 10A rated.)

The inductive spikes can cause a lot of arcing, especially on switch off.
These are enough to erode the contacts on some of the budget switches available in the DIY stores and the local £ shop.
The results are either that the switch will not 'switch off' due to the contacts having welded together or they may get rather hot due to poor contact area.
 
Chas, thanks a lot, i will order a few 10amp switches at the same time. I don't like the idea of hot electrics and sawdust in the same shop. Thats all i need is a workshop reduced to a pile of ashes.

(Son returns from the US) "Wheres my workshop dad?" Well son its like this, you know you wanted better lighting.......


Regards

Woody
 
Back
Top