LED Lighting Shootout - test results and what you need to know
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Improving my lighting has been the best money that I've spent on my shop to date, and I've made a LOT of changes to my shop. I tested 5 different types of lights and compared the results. In this article you will learn all you need to know to choose the right workshop LED lighting for your shop.
Improving my lighting has been the best money that I've spent on my shop to date, and I've made a LOT of changes to my shop. I tested 5 different types of lights and compared the results. In this article you will learn all you need to know to choose the right workshop LED lighting for your shop.
In this article you will learn...
- Terminology - making sense of LED lighting lingo
- Save $$$ by switching to LED lighting.
- How much light do you need and where?
- Recommendations - Overview of several types of LED fixtures and the best ones for each type of shop.
- How to avoid getting ripped off by fake deals.
- Are LED lights safe?
- Test results - light output, light distribution, power consumption and temperature tests.
Summary of Results
DOWNLOAD THE FILE BELOW FOR ALL OF THE TEST RESULTS IN ONE PLACE ALONG WITH HYPERLINKED RECOMMENDATIONS
| PDF - Workshop LED Lighting Test Results |
Terminology - making sense of LED lighting lingo
If you aren't familiar with LED lighting terminology and options you might feel a very lost when you look hundreds of options available. I'll break it down so you can choose the right light for your workshop without having to guess which is best. There are a few key specs to understand... Initial cost, ongoing costs, Lumens, Power, Temperature and CRI.
Lumens - the total amount of the light energy that a fixture continuously puts out. Think of this as the flow rate of a hose - how much water comes out over a given amount of time. Example: the Barrina 8' integrated LED light fixture tested puts out 8,500 lumens per fixture.
Lux - the intensity of the light at a given point. Think of this as the force of the water coming out of the hose. The more you spread out the water the less force it exerts. The further you get away from a light source the lower the light intensity.
Lumens and lux are related by a simple formula... 1 Lumen per square meter = 1 Lux or 1 lumen = 1 lux per square meter.
Lux is measured at a point in space using a meter. Lumens are measured by averaging the lux values over an area then dividing the average lux over that area by the area. As you move away from a light the lux value decreases but the overall lumens that the light puts out is always the same.
Power - The amount of electrical energy the light draws over a given period of time. It is usually measured in Watts.
Sometimes light specifications will note how many watts an equivalent incandescent bulb draws for the same light output... I.E. 100W equivalent. LED lights use less than one tenth the energy of an incandescent bulb with the same light output. In other words, a 100W equivalent LED bulb may only draw 10 watts of power. LEDs use much less power for the same amount of light as incandescent or fluorescent lights so, in most cases, you won't need to worry about power if you use the same electrical circuits. However, I recommend using a LOT of light in your shop and most shops are grossly underlit, so you need to make sure the circuit that you wire your lights to is rated for the amps they will draw.
Color Temperature - The color of the LED light is rated by "color temperature" which is in units of Kelvin (K). Most LED lights emit in the 2700K to 6500K range. 2700 K lights have a soft, yellowish glow which works well for areas where you want to relax, such as a den or living room. 6500 K lights give off a much harsher but crisper light with a blue tint. They work well for very fine detail work such as electronics inspection tables. 5000K is closest to natural sunlight and is the most popular color temperature used in work areas such as workshops, kitchens, laundry rooms, etc... I use 5000K lights in my shop and they are perfect for me.
Ultimately, the preferred light color temperature will vary from person to person.
If you are a very extroverted person and like crowds and a lot of stimulation, you will likely want to use lights in the 5000K to 6500K range. If you are introverted and are easily overstimulated, you will likely find 6500K lighting irritating and may prefer something 5000K or lower.
The chart below will help, but take a trip to your local big box hardware store to see a live display of the different color temperatures to see which one is right for you.
If you want to buy lights for your shop without going to see a live demo then I recommend that you pick the 5000K color temperature. It is the closest to natural light.
Lumens - the total amount of the light energy that a fixture continuously puts out. Think of this as the flow rate of a hose - how much water comes out over a given amount of time. Example: the Barrina 8' integrated LED light fixture tested puts out 8,500 lumens per fixture.
Lux - the intensity of the light at a given point. Think of this as the force of the water coming out of the hose. The more you spread out the water the less force it exerts. The further you get away from a light source the lower the light intensity.
Lumens and lux are related by a simple formula... 1 Lumen per square meter = 1 Lux or 1 lumen = 1 lux per square meter.
Lux is measured at a point in space using a meter. Lumens are measured by averaging the lux values over an area then dividing the average lux over that area by the area. As you move away from a light the lux value decreases but the overall lumens that the light puts out is always the same.
Power - The amount of electrical energy the light draws over a given period of time. It is usually measured in Watts.
Sometimes light specifications will note how many watts an equivalent incandescent bulb draws for the same light output... I.E. 100W equivalent. LED lights use less than one tenth the energy of an incandescent bulb with the same light output. In other words, a 100W equivalent LED bulb may only draw 10 watts of power. LEDs use much less power for the same amount of light as incandescent or fluorescent lights so, in most cases, you won't need to worry about power if you use the same electrical circuits. However, I recommend using a LOT of light in your shop and most shops are grossly underlit, so you need to make sure the circuit that you wire your lights to is rated for the amps they will draw.
Color Temperature - The color of the LED light is rated by "color temperature" which is in units of Kelvin (K). Most LED lights emit in the 2700K to 6500K range. 2700 K lights have a soft, yellowish glow which works well for areas where you want to relax, such as a den or living room. 6500 K lights give off a much harsher but crisper light with a blue tint. They work well for very fine detail work such as electronics inspection tables. 5000K is closest to natural sunlight and is the most popular color temperature used in work areas such as workshops, kitchens, laundry rooms, etc... I use 5000K lights in my shop and they are perfect for me.
Ultimately, the preferred light color temperature will vary from person to person.
If you are a very extroverted person and like crowds and a lot of stimulation, you will likely want to use lights in the 5000K to 6500K range. If you are introverted and are easily overstimulated, you will likely find 6500K lighting irritating and may prefer something 5000K or lower.
The chart below will help, but take a trip to your local big box hardware store to see a live display of the different color temperatures to see which one is right for you.
If you want to buy lights for your shop without going to see a live demo then I recommend that you pick the 5000K color temperature. It is the closest to natural light.
CRI - Color Rendering Index - The CRI value represents how close it comes to rendering colors the same as natural sunlight. If you plan to take photos or make videos in your shop then try to get lights that have a CRI > 90. Studio lighting can have CRI values over 98 but you have to balance cost vs. quality for your particular situation because very high CRI rated lights can cost more than 2x as much.
It may cost you $$$ to NOT switch to LED lighting
LED lights use much less energy for the same light output as incandescent or fluorescent lights. Depending on how much you use your lights, LED lighting can pay for the initial cost of the fixtures within three years in electricity cost that savings alone. After that, you save a hundred dollars or so every year which adds up to thousands of dollars over a lifetime. You might as well buy a new tool when you buy your LED lights since they are going to pay for the tool ;-).
The table below illustrates the energy cost savings for a well lit 2 1/2 car garage with the lights on 15 hours per week and electricity cost of 13.5 cents per kW-hr.
NOTES:
The table below illustrates the energy cost savings for a well lit 2 1/2 car garage with the lights on 15 hours per week and electricity cost of 13.5 cents per kW-hr.
NOTES:
- LED lights typically put out about 1.4x more light for the same amount of energy as fluorescent bulbs. However, I used a factor of 2 in the table because LED focus all of their light downward. Fluorescent bulbs emit light up, down and sideways which means much of the light output is wasted and converted to heat.
- You can't get close to LED lighting levels using incandescent bulbs unless you put them on multiple breakers. In most cases, shops using incandescent bulbs are simply very poorly lit. In this example I used a conservative estimation that an incandescent bulb puts out 1/10th as much light per Watt of energy input. During my tests the best LED light put out 20x more light per watt of energy compared to an incandescent bulb.
Other advantages of LED lighting...
- They last 2.5x as long as fluorescent lights and 25x longer than incandescent bulbs. Chances are you will never have to replace any of your LED lights. There are some exceptions. LED lights that run at high temperatures may not last very long at all. Often, LED lights can not be used in enclosed fixtures such as can ceiling fixtures that do not allow adequate natural air flow . Heat will lead to your LED light going out in a short amount of time.
- LED lights don't have a delay when you turn them on like fluorescent lights do and they won't flicker in cold temperatures.
- LED light fixtures are a fraction of the size of fluorescent fixtures and are much easier to mount.
- Many types of LED fixtures can be "daisy chained" so you only have to wire one fixture to power up to 4 fixtures. This saves a lot of time and it looks great too.
How much light do you need and where should you mount your lights?
The table below lists suggested lux levels for various work environments. lux is light intensity at a given point, such as your workbench).
The evolution of my workshop lighting...
<300 lux at my main work bench when I was using fluorescent lights.
1300 lux after switching to LED lighting.
2000 lux after adding 6 more 8' Barrina LED fixtures when testing for this article. I thought I had great lighting until I added more. 2000 lux which is a dramatic improvement over 1300 lux. 2000 lux is perfect for me but it may be too much for some.
Something to keep in mind is that your eyes may have a higher or lower sensitivity to light than mine. While researching this article I found that as we age it can take up to 3x as much light to read comfortably. I'm in my 50's now so if you are in your 20's, 1,000 lux may look as good to you as 2,000 lux does to me. I've also found that extroverted people prefer a LOT more light than introverted people. In any case, I'm pretty sure that the 1,000 lux will work for most people and 2,000 lux will not be too much for many.
The figure below shows how where I mounted my 8' integrated LED fixtures (8' LED light fixtures are in yellow below).
<300 lux at my main work bench when I was using fluorescent lights.
1300 lux after switching to LED lighting.
2000 lux after adding 6 more 8' Barrina LED fixtures when testing for this article. I thought I had great lighting until I added more. 2000 lux which is a dramatic improvement over 1300 lux. 2000 lux is perfect for me but it may be too much for some.
Something to keep in mind is that your eyes may have a higher or lower sensitivity to light than mine. While researching this article I found that as we age it can take up to 3x as much light to read comfortably. I'm in my 50's now so if you are in your 20's, 1,000 lux may look as good to you as 2,000 lux does to me. I've also found that extroverted people prefer a LOT more light than introverted people. In any case, I'm pretty sure that the 1,000 lux will work for most people and 2,000 lux will not be too much for many.
The figure below shows how where I mounted my 8' integrated LED fixtures (8' LED light fixtures are in yellow below).
Even after all of the upgrades the lux levels in my shop vary from around 150 to 2,100 at 39" above the floor, which is the height of all my work surfaces. My lights are mounted 8' from the floor. This is fine since I have made sure to have over 1000 lux in all work areas.
A note about how light intensity varies with distance from the source... The further the fixture is from your work surface the lower the lux level will be. As a rule of thumb, each time you double the distance away the lux level will drop 4x so distance matters a lot. All of the tests performed for this article were under these conditions.
The color of your walls , floor and ceiling make a significant difference. Many years ago I painted the walls in my shop white and it felt like I doubled the light level. The less reflective the surfaces the more lights you will have to install to get the same light level.
Rules of thumb to estimate how many lights you need to buy
My shop is 24x32 and I'm using 12 LED fixtures @ 8500 lumens. That's an average of 133 lumens per square foot if the advertised light output is correct. Every shop will be different but I recommend aiming for at least 100 lumens per square foot and then add more lights if you need them. Concentrate the light over areas where you work the most. Some areas of your shop will be well under 100 lumens per square foot and concentrate the fixtures over your work areas to obtain around 200 lumens per square foot. As a reference, the lights I'm using claim 8500 lumens per fixture but the light actually getting to my workbench is closer to 4300 lumens per fixture. I placed 6 @ 8500 lumen fixtures in a 8' x 16' area of the ceiling. See the previous figure.
A note about how light intensity varies with distance from the source... The further the fixture is from your work surface the lower the lux level will be. As a rule of thumb, each time you double the distance away the lux level will drop 4x so distance matters a lot. All of the tests performed for this article were under these conditions.
The color of your walls , floor and ceiling make a significant difference. Many years ago I painted the walls in my shop white and it felt like I doubled the light level. The less reflective the surfaces the more lights you will have to install to get the same light level.
Rules of thumb to estimate how many lights you need to buy
My shop is 24x32 and I'm using 12 LED fixtures @ 8500 lumens. That's an average of 133 lumens per square foot if the advertised light output is correct. Every shop will be different but I recommend aiming for at least 100 lumens per square foot and then add more lights if you need them. Concentrate the light over areas where you work the most. Some areas of your shop will be well under 100 lumens per square foot and concentrate the fixtures over your work areas to obtain around 200 lumens per square foot. As a reference, the lights I'm using claim 8500 lumens per fixture but the light actually getting to my workbench is closer to 4300 lumens per fixture. I placed 6 @ 8500 lumen fixtures in a 8' x 16' area of the ceiling. See the previous figure.
Recommendations - Overview of the type of LED fixtures and and the best ones for your shop
The types and variations of LED fixtures available are overwhelming. It took me a long time to wrap my head around the different types, all the variations within each type and which ones were good for which situations. Even after I thought I understood them, the tests I ran revealed more insights I never would have guessed. I'll give you a quick rundown of the various types and what each type is best for.
You will never know how much like you will really like until you have it.
I thought my 30 year old fluorescent fixtures put out a lot of light and I was happy with them for years. I bought some cheap 4' LED light fixtures to add light where I needed it and I thought that was great. Later I added eight more 8' LED fixtures and I was amazed how much better my shop felt great. It was a total transformation and I loved it. I bought all of the lights you see in this article and decided to see if adding more light would be better or worse. I was amazed to find that it wasn't too much and when I switched the extra lights off, the old setup seemed dim. So, don't worry about buying too many lights. My guess is that you most likely will not have too much light even if you double what you think you need.
You will never know how much like you will really like until you have it.
I thought my 30 year old fluorescent fixtures put out a lot of light and I was happy with them for years. I bought some cheap 4' LED light fixtures to add light where I needed it and I thought that was great. Later I added eight more 8' LED fixtures and I was amazed how much better my shop felt great. It was a total transformation and I loved it. I bought all of the lights you see in this article and decided to see if adding more light would be better or worse. I was amazed to find that it wasn't too much and when I switched the extra lights off, the old setup seemed dim. So, don't worry about buying too many lights. My guess is that you most likely will not have too much light even if you double what you think you need.
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If your shop has 10' or lower ceilings then I recommend the Barrina 8', 5000K fixtures. In the testing performed for this shootout, these lights produced the most light in my tests per dollar spent. Per the manufacturer's specs, they produce 405 lumens per dollar for this $210 pack of 10. ALWAYS calculate the lumens per dollar to determine if a light set is a good deal or not. Since you can't measure the light output of lights you don't have, just use the manufacturer's rating and divide the number of lumens by the cost. For these lights that is 8500 lumens per light x 10 lights /$210 = 405 lumens/dollar.
Many people by many 4' fixtures because they get more fixtures for the same amount of money. However, the 8' integrated lights will provide more light for each dollar you spend, they are much easier to install, and they look much cleaner. |
Unless you can find a great deal with more than 400 lumens/dollar, don't buy the 4' fixtures unless you need a specific area lit where an 8' fixture won't fit. Why pay more when you don't have to? These lights can be daisy chained up to 4 lights on one power cord. They come with 6 @ 59" cords with switches and plugs, 6 open ended cords 6" long to wire directly into a box, 4@48" double end plugged cords to daisy chain the lights if you want to separate them, 6 butt connectors to daisy chain them end to end. They also come with the mounting clips and screws. Mounting them is as simple as screwing 3 clips per light into the ceiling, a joist, or a board and then simply snap the light in place. It only takes about 2 minutes to mount each light.
During testing, these lights operated at a maximum temperature of 105 F at the hottest spot, which is very good. With that low of an operating temperature, they should last a long time.
During testing, these lights operated at a maximum temperature of 105 F at the hottest spot, which is very good. With that low of an operating temperature, they should last a long time.
The most power efficient lights tested and best for shops with ceilings over 10 ft
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The LZ Home Adjustable Garage Lights test results were a surprise. When I first turned the fixture on I didn't think it was very bright . However, you really can't tell how well a light will work until you have the entire shop populated. This light was the most power efficient of the test coming in at 101 lumens per watt as tested. Per the manufacturer's specs, this light puts out 200 lumens per dollar. Test results showed that the Barrina 8' integrated LED fixture puts out about 30% more light per dollar than this light but less light per Watt.
The 3 lights on this fixture can be pointed straight down, all they way up to 90 degrees (vertical) or anywhere in between. This provides great flexibility to direct the light where you want it. For shops with tall ceilings this fixture allows directing the light downward or outward as needed which will bring more light where you need it than an integrated tube fixture. |
The manufacturer's spec for this fixture is 9,000 lumens. That's enough to cover a 90 square foot area for general lighting but double use twice as many over work areas. Each light comes with a fixture to mount it or you can screw it into any standard screw in light receptacle. If you don't already have a receptacle you will have to run power to the fixture provided and attach it to the ceiling.
During testing, these lights operated at a maximum temperature of 103 F at the hottest spot, which is very good. With that low of an operating temperature, they should last a long time.
During testing, these lights operated at a maximum temperature of 103 F at the hottest spot, which is very good. With that low of an operating temperature, they should last a long time.
Fluorescent to LED conversion tubes
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I couldn't find any fluorescent conversion LED tubes that put out nearly as much light as the integrated LED fixtures when I ordered lights for this test so I didn't include them in the testing. However, I later found some that claim 500 lumens/dollar so they may be available. These are extremely popular because they don't require any upgrades to the your electrical service so I include them here for your convenience. Click the photo to go to the sales page.
You can buy versions of these that will work without bypassing the ballasts in your fluorescent fixtures. I recommend against doing so because you lose energy efficiency that makes LED lighting pay for itself over time. In the long run it's cheaper to pay more up front and buy an integrated LED fixture, or buy this type that works after you bypass the ballast in your fluorescent fixture. This video that shows how to bypass your ballast. The vast majority of T8 and T12 fluorescent fixtures use 2-pin and single pin bulbs. These 2-pin LED tubes advertise a very high 500 lumens per dollar output. Be careful as you search for a good deal and, like with any LED retrofit, calculate the lumens per dollar to determine if you are getting a decent deal. Avoid any lights under 300 lumens per dollar. Over 400 lumens per dollar is great.. |
The easiest to integrate LED lighting solution for screw -in fixtures
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These five Phillips 100W equivalent LED bulbs mounted in a 5 in one light socket splitter performed surprisingly well. They screw into a standard incandescent bulb fixture. Per manufacturer's specs. these produce 380 lumens/dollar including the cost of the bulbs and the fixture.
Three of the eight lights in the package were defective in the first shipment I received. Amazon sent another set and they were all good. However, if you drop them they will fail. The internal components are not supported well so these lights are not a good choice for rough applications where they may see shock or vibration. During testing, these lights ran at around 165 F at the hottest point which means that they probably won't last nearly as long as any of the other lights tested. However, using the splitter fixture you can get a lot of light from each fixture without having to do any wiring. |
How to avoid getting ripped off with deceptive LED lighting "deals"
Don't buy LED lights from big box stores unless they are on sale and offer more than 300 lumens per dollar! The best deal at Home Depot was 190 lumens per dollar which means you pay twice as much for the same amount of light as the Barrina's listed earlier. Some of their LED light fixtures offered less than 50 lumens per dollar... I.E. almost 10x more expensive per lumen than the Barrina's! The lights I found at Walmart were not good deals at all either. Do the math and don't buy anything that puts out less than 300 lumens per dollar!
Don't judge a deal by the number of lights you get per dollar but how many lumens you get per dollar!
Always calculate the lumens/dollar for any light that you want to buy. Simply divide the manufacturer's claimed lumen output for all the fixtures in the package by the cost. Anything over 400 lumens per dollar is a great deal. Anything under 300 lumens per dollar is not a good deal.
I see people posting about "great deals" on 20 sets of four foot LED light fixtures. When I check it out I find that they are basing the "deal" on how many lights they get for the price and NOT how many lumens they get per dollar. In most cases, 4 foot fixtures cost significantly more per lumen than 8' fixtures because they require the same number of components as 8' fixtures but only put out half as much light.
Also, check to see which accessories are included. Some lights don't come with the wires you need to install them which raises the price and lowers the overall lumens/dollar. For instance, the Barrina 8' integrated lights listed earlier come with 6 @ 59" cords with switches and plugs, 6 open ended cords 6" long to wire directly into a box, 4@48" double end plugged cords to daisy chain the lights if you want to separate them, 6 butt connectors to daisy chain them end to end. They also come with the mounting clips and screws. All of the integrated light fixtures come with some type of power cords and clips but not all come with enough to complete your lighting job.
Not all manufacturer's are honest with their specifications. I tested a set of the Best LED brand 8' integrated LED's. They have twice as many LED's per fixture and claim a whopping 14,400 lumens per fixture but put out about the same amount of light as the Barrina brand lights listed earlier. They claim to be 120 Watt lights but only consumed around 70 Watts which is the same as the Barrinas. This manufacturer obviously lies in their claims and can't be trusted. Beware of who you buy from.
Keep in mind the cost of installing any electrical service needed. If you are able to install the electrical outlets yourself or if you can use existing outlets then this won't cost much. If you have to hire an electrician to install them you will likely have to pay more for the electrical work than for the lights.
Issues and how to avoid them
Interference with remote controlled systems: LED lights have power drivers that operate at very high frequencies. I know of at least one case where lights were mounted next to a garage door opener and the remote for the opener stopped working. He simply moved the lights a few feet away from the garage door opener and the remote started working again. In one case moving the lights 5' away and adding ferrite beads to the power cords wasn't enough to prevent significant reduction in the door opener remote range. In the rare case this happens to you, you might want to try adding a secure channel remote system like this... https://amzn.to/2vclwLI.
Picture banding: In some instances I get vertical bands in photos taken with my cell phone. This happens with three different types of LED lights that I've tried. If you need to take high quality pictures or video in your workshop using a cell phone you may want to test the lights you purchase before you install all of them. I don't have any issues when I use my DSLR camera.
Don't judge a deal by the number of lights you get per dollar but how many lumens you get per dollar!
Always calculate the lumens/dollar for any light that you want to buy. Simply divide the manufacturer's claimed lumen output for all the fixtures in the package by the cost. Anything over 400 lumens per dollar is a great deal. Anything under 300 lumens per dollar is not a good deal.
I see people posting about "great deals" on 20 sets of four foot LED light fixtures. When I check it out I find that they are basing the "deal" on how many lights they get for the price and NOT how many lumens they get per dollar. In most cases, 4 foot fixtures cost significantly more per lumen than 8' fixtures because they require the same number of components as 8' fixtures but only put out half as much light.
Also, check to see which accessories are included. Some lights don't come with the wires you need to install them which raises the price and lowers the overall lumens/dollar. For instance, the Barrina 8' integrated lights listed earlier come with 6 @ 59" cords with switches and plugs, 6 open ended cords 6" long to wire directly into a box, 4@48" double end plugged cords to daisy chain the lights if you want to separate them, 6 butt connectors to daisy chain them end to end. They also come with the mounting clips and screws. All of the integrated light fixtures come with some type of power cords and clips but not all come with enough to complete your lighting job.
Not all manufacturer's are honest with their specifications. I tested a set of the Best LED brand 8' integrated LED's. They have twice as many LED's per fixture and claim a whopping 14,400 lumens per fixture but put out about the same amount of light as the Barrina brand lights listed earlier. They claim to be 120 Watt lights but only consumed around 70 Watts which is the same as the Barrinas. This manufacturer obviously lies in their claims and can't be trusted. Beware of who you buy from.
Keep in mind the cost of installing any electrical service needed. If you are able to install the electrical outlets yourself or if you can use existing outlets then this won't cost much. If you have to hire an electrician to install them you will likely have to pay more for the electrical work than for the lights.
Issues and how to avoid them
Interference with remote controlled systems: LED lights have power drivers that operate at very high frequencies. I know of at least one case where lights were mounted next to a garage door opener and the remote for the opener stopped working. He simply moved the lights a few feet away from the garage door opener and the remote started working again. In one case moving the lights 5' away and adding ferrite beads to the power cords wasn't enough to prevent significant reduction in the door opener remote range. In the rare case this happens to you, you might want to try adding a secure channel remote system like this... https://amzn.to/2vclwLI.
Picture banding: In some instances I get vertical bands in photos taken with my cell phone. This happens with three different types of LED lights that I've tried. If you need to take high quality pictures or video in your workshop using a cell phone you may want to test the lights you purchase before you install all of them. I don't have any issues when I use my DSLR camera.
Are LED lights safe?
I've read through quite a few articles on this subject. Some say LED light emissions can be harmful to your retina and may cause sleep disorders. Some say the non-ionizing radiation is well under exposure limits and is not a health hazard. I can't give you a definitive answer but I can give you some information to get started with...
I measured the light intensity of various sources:
75,000 lux - Outside with the meter pointed straight up outside on a partly cloudy day. The sun was 45 degrees off vertical
10,000 lux - Outside with the meter pointed 180 degrees away from the sun on a partly cloudy day
5,000 lux - Outside in the shade with no direct sun
2,100 lux - brightest point in my shop at workbench level
1,750 lux - Main workbench near back wall
1,250 lux - Table saw top
630 lux - Storage shelves (most shops are probably at this lux level or lower)
150 lux - Darkest corner of my shop
As you can see, we are exposed to approximately 100x higher levels of light when we are outside. The blue light (415 to 455 nm wavelength range) is the most damaging to the retina. It would appear that indoor lighting levels should not be dangerous at all since they are 100x less intense than a sunny day. However, the danger isn't straight forward. The iris in your eye opens and closes to allow the correct amount of light into your retina. So, the intensity of blue light that reaches your retina is what really matters. As you can see from the graphs below, LED lights have a small spike in intensity in the 415 to 455 nm (blue) range compared to incandescent and fluorescent lights.
At the lower inside lux levels, the iris opens wider which allows more light into your eye. For this reason, it may be possible that you may receive more blue light at your retina inside at lower lighting levels than outside at higher lighting levels. I have not found any research yet that tested the level of blue light that makes it to your retina in a space that is well lit by LED lighting.
I measured the light intensity of various sources:
75,000 lux - Outside with the meter pointed straight up outside on a partly cloudy day. The sun was 45 degrees off vertical
10,000 lux - Outside with the meter pointed 180 degrees away from the sun on a partly cloudy day
5,000 lux - Outside in the shade with no direct sun
2,100 lux - brightest point in my shop at workbench level
1,750 lux - Main workbench near back wall
1,250 lux - Table saw top
630 lux - Storage shelves (most shops are probably at this lux level or lower)
150 lux - Darkest corner of my shop
As you can see, we are exposed to approximately 100x higher levels of light when we are outside. The blue light (415 to 455 nm wavelength range) is the most damaging to the retina. It would appear that indoor lighting levels should not be dangerous at all since they are 100x less intense than a sunny day. However, the danger isn't straight forward. The iris in your eye opens and closes to allow the correct amount of light into your retina. So, the intensity of blue light that reaches your retina is what really matters. As you can see from the graphs below, LED lights have a small spike in intensity in the 415 to 455 nm (blue) range compared to incandescent and fluorescent lights.
At the lower inside lux levels, the iris opens wider which allows more light into your eye. For this reason, it may be possible that you may receive more blue light at your retina inside at lower lighting levels than outside at higher lighting levels. I have not found any research yet that tested the level of blue light that makes it to your retina in a space that is well lit by LED lighting.
Source for above graph: https://www.comsol.com/blogs/calculating-the-emission-spectra-from-common-light-sources/
The graph below shows the frequency spectra of red, green and blue Cree LEDs. Cree is a leading manufacturer of LED lights.
Source for above graph: https://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/products/led/ensuring-safety-in-led-lighting-2012-11/
The small spike in the 415 to 455 nm range means that, even though the overall intensity of light is low, your iris will open wider to allow more light in. In doing so the blue light levels reaching your retina may be higher.
So, are LED lights safe or not??? I can't answer that question. I will say that you should take research studies with a grain of salt unless you actually read them. Some studies that claim that LED lighting is harmful to your eyes ran the equivalent of shining a very bright flashlight a fraction of an inch away from the eye. Of course damage occurred as it would have with any light source.
Some people use LED's that are concentrated in the blue wavelength for mood elevation purposes during the winter months. This means that the iris opens to the maximum and the intensity of the blue frequencies reaching the retina is maximized. I stopped using blue LED's to help with mood during the winter months because I believe that is one case where LED's can cause damage over time. However, I'm not concerned about the wider spectrum lights that I'm using in my shop.
Here are a few links to get you started if you are interested in researching this further:
https://www.cree.com/led-components/media/documents/XLamp_EyeSafety.pdfhttps://www.comsol.com/blogs/calculating-the-emission-spectra-from-common-light-sources/
https://www.darksky.org/ama-report-affirms-human-health-impacts-from-leds/
https://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/products/led/ensuring-safety-in-led-lighting-2012-11/
So, are LED lights safe or not??? I can't answer that question. I will say that you should take research studies with a grain of salt unless you actually read them. Some studies that claim that LED lighting is harmful to your eyes ran the equivalent of shining a very bright flashlight a fraction of an inch away from the eye. Of course damage occurred as it would have with any light source.
Some people use LED's that are concentrated in the blue wavelength for mood elevation purposes during the winter months. This means that the iris opens to the maximum and the intensity of the blue frequencies reaching the retina is maximized. I stopped using blue LED's to help with mood during the winter months because I believe that is one case where LED's can cause damage over time. However, I'm not concerned about the wider spectrum lights that I'm using in my shop.
Here are a few links to get you started if you are interested in researching this further:
https://www.cree.com/led-components/media/documents/XLamp_EyeSafety.pdfhttps://www.comsol.com/blogs/calculating-the-emission-spectra-from-common-light-sources/
https://www.darksky.org/ama-report-affirms-human-health-impacts-from-leds/
https://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/products/led/ensuring-safety-in-led-lighting-2012-11/
Test results - light output, light distribution, power consumption.
For those of you who like more technical details, the following is a summary of all the the lights I tested for this shootout. I set up a 4 meter x 5 meter measuring grid 57" below each light. I used a Lux meter to measure the light intensity at each of the 20 points in the grid. Since 1 Lumen per square meter = 1 Lux the math was easy and I calculated the lumens and light distribution patterns laterally and longitudinally for each light. This is a photo of the test setup. Each piece of blue tape is a test point. This isn't a rigorous scientific test by any means but it is a fair way to compare the various types of lights to each other.
The table below summarized all of the data tested and calculated. You may have to zoom in to read it.
| PDF - Workshop LED Lighting Test Results |
I measured the Lux reading over a 4 meter x 5 meter area with the light centered and 57" above the floor where the Lux meter was placed. I was surprised that the light distribution pattern was so similar between the very different types of lights. The LZ Home 3 Panel fixture produced a more centralized pattern but that could have easily been flattened out by pointing the 3 wings at a slight angle instead of straight down.
You may think that the LZ Home 3 Panel fixture was the best of test since it had the highest light output but remember that the key number that you should use to determine a good deal is "lumens/dollar", not total lumens. The LZ put out more lumens but it also cost more. That lumens/dollar ratio is not reflected in the graphs below.
You may think that the LZ Home 3 Panel fixture was the best of test since it had the highest light output but remember that the key number that you should use to determine a good deal is "lumens/dollar", not total lumens. The LZ put out more lumens but it also cost more. That lumens/dollar ratio is not reflected in the graphs below.
The following is a 3D plot of the light intensity for the Barrina 8' integrated LED lights. Each block in the grid is 1 meter x 1 meter (39.4" x 39.4"). As you can see, the light intensity falls off very sharply as you move away from the center to either side or past the ends of the fixture.
You can use these light distribution graphs to determine how far apart to place the lights to achieve the lux level that you want. for instance, if you look at the Barrina 8' integrated LED fixture, if you place the lights about 1 meter apart you should get a minimum lux of about 700. In reality the number will probably be a little higher than that since it will pick up light from over 2 meters away. the lux value will also be higher when the light fixtures are butted end to end since you won't have the drop off shown in the second graph until you get to the very ends of the butted fixtures.
I plan to update this article regularly as I get more information from you all, so bookmark it and check back frequently if you plan to retrofit your shop with LED lighting anytime soon.
I plan to update this article regularly as I get more information from you all, so bookmark it and check back frequently if you plan to retrofit your shop with LED lighting anytime soon.
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