Fluorescent Shop Light Fire Hazard

Second question. I opened up one of the fixtures to see if there was a way to attach the sockets to the frame so they would be firmly in place. I found a groove in the sockets under the "snap flaps" and the metal tabs fit securely into that groove as shown. The sockets were not at all fixed in place when resting on the "snaps" as shown in the first pic. There was enough play for bulbs to fall out in some cases, way too much wiggle room. After replacing the cover I tried the bulbs and found they fit snugly in the sockets... problem solved. I am assuming this fix is going to make my fixtures safe to use, but I have concerns about the burnt fixtures. Yes I can replace the damaged tombstones, but the question is: Should I be concerned about damage to the ballast, which must have overheated to cause the sockets to melt?

That should have nothing to do with it. The ends are molded plastic and will fit a variety of fixtures with those different grooves.

From your photos it looks like the metal clips within the socket may be too far apart and can't hold a bulb tight. I have a similar socket in hand. The spring steel holders rest at 1/2" apart, and T8 and T12 ends make contact and spread them 3/16" wider and are fairly "snug." If yours don't I'd return them for your money back. Buy a different brand.

The wires should not pull out either though mine spin freely.

Nothing wrong with replaceable bulb fixtures. When the ballast on this one goes replace the tubes with T8 LED ballast-free bulbs for $3-4 each purchased online.

Complete LED fixtures with LED chips are pricey. Though I see more use for them in their various new sizes that may fit better under our cabinets and fish tank hoods, etc.

Thanks. I looked into the plug and play bulbs and after doing the math I think that is my most economical option. The ballast on the old fixtures was rated for 50,000 hours, of which I've probably used 12,000. The LED replacement bulb that works with the ballast is rated 36,000 hours so it's a pretty good fit for the remaining life of the fixture. They are about twice the price of fluorescent bulbs. But I would also have to replace those fluorescents at least 4 times before the ballast goes broke. So the LED bulb is a best fit, half the electrical cost as well, and half the cost of bulbs over the whole fixture lifespan.

I just bought a six pack of "plug n play" bulbs. 6 for $35 delivered.

I'll report on or just after Friday.

Thanks!

Well, they did not plug and play for me.

I tried them in a very old fixture and nothing. Then went out to the shop and tried them in a new shop light. I did not un-power the light first. First time, nothing. After some removing and replacing, there was a flicker of light and then nothing. Then, a component on the board decided to self destruct with a small flash and blue smoke.

Undeterred, I bought another fixture like the one I had just killed and tried again. Unplugging before each change out. The LEDs refused to light, but fluorescent lights did.

The bulbs will be returned on Monday.

I do like the light provided by the factory LED fixture, but trying hybrids will wait for awhile.

Oh drat. I'm sorry it wasn't good news, and thanks for letting me know. The affordable plug and play LED bulbs available locally are Phillips and they do have a good reputation for quality afaik. (Sylvanias I saw at another shop were $30 each so I wouldn't buy them no matter if good or not). Your results tell me not to order anything that is being shipped in and can't be returned directly (nothing I hate worse than wasted shipping costs and/or waiting/hoping for your money to be returned). If the bulbs you tried were Phillips.. may not even be worth it to buy and try 2 bulbs for speedy return.

The comment I read from reviewers is that compatibility with different makes of ballast is variable, and that it affects the power savings which don't always manifest as expected. Which is a different question from, will parts of my fixture self destruct.

Obviously, the technology is not so mature as I hoped.

Well, I had hoped that it would be idiot proof, but this idiot couldn't make these Hyperikon 18 W T8 Ballast Compatable Lights operate. The fact that these bulbs would not operate with a "latest technology" fixture leads me to believe there are some kinks still to be worked out.

An advantage of ordering from Amazon is very fast, free delivery 2-3 days, and hassle free returns. UPS will pick the box up tomorrow, label it and the refund will be automatic.

I don't like to work with anything I can't see, so aside from a simple switch or receptacle change out and very simple wiring projects I'm electrically illiterate.

Yeah aside from replacing a plug or two I usually leave electrical chores to others. Just rereading and noted that the "ballast free" bulbs were the ones recommended. That does require disconnecting and removing the ballast but doesn't seem like it should be too complicated to tackle... The sockets remain "plug and play" but the LED friendly electronics are contained within the tube. You lose some tube length and light output as a consequence.

I don't think I've seen this type locally. A variety of them on amazon.

Hyperikon had mostly good reviews for their integrated fixtures iirc.

I guess I'll wait till they come out with ballast free fixtures and go through the entire house and replace all the 4 foot fixtures. 10 total, most recessed.

Good luck.

I just replaced my fluorescent shop lights with LED lights and fixtures.

I don't know about growing lettuce but for seeing, they are great.

Yeah I also picked up two at Costco. They are 4000K and that's fine for lettuce. Nice and bright, and the fixtures are light and easy to handle. No bulbs to replace and no hazardous waste when they do eventually wear out. I should get 20 years out of them at my maximum usage.

Even shopping for the best deal though, they are still more expensive than fluorescents plus bulbs. I paid about = T8 fluorescent fixture plus two bulb changes for each of these.

I would ditch the fluorescents in a heartbeat if I had a few hundred dollars to burn.

How did that old commercial go?

"You can pay me now,or you can pay me pater.

My goal is to have all my lighting fixtures/bulbs outlive me.

I need to learn how to configure my own LED's from strip... way cheaper and the possibilities are unlimited. I could see having a really nice setup for the winter vegs. I've already switched to LED bulbs in most of my fixtures, but whether they outlive me or not? ... I'm not making any bets. Already weary of "seven year" CFL's where seven = 1, 2, or 3.

The integrated fixtures have good warranties though, 5 years on most of them.

https://www.eledlights.com/blog/2016/07/20/6-ways-to-upgrade-your-fluorescent-fixtures-to-led/

I just took a break from welding and decided to check the power usage of old vs new light fixtures.Fluorescent. LED

I thought the difference would be more dramatic.

You need to compare lumens output...it's $$ per lumen...

No, not when I'm moving from fluor. to LED. It's brighter by far and that's good enough for me, and my shop.

One thing that decided me against replacing fluorescent tubes with LED tubes, I read that the power savings were sometimes not realized, depending on the fixture.

Option #3 is definitely moving in the right direction. But there has to be a better price... I think you're paying a lot for the strip to be magnetic. Bit of double sided duct tape would do it.. Or how about a few rivets for a classy mount.. I like the idea of re-using the metal housing (at least! ) from my previous lights. Maybe cut it up to make something lower profile.

You can buy 5 meters of LED strip that can be cut up and wired in parallel any way you like it for around $50 CAD. Connectors are more, power supply maybe a lot more. And a bit of aluminum housing helps with heat dissipation. At least that's the foggy picture of it I have so far. Need to get more details and add up all the costs.

Go for it. That's not for me. I doubt that I could even find a solder gun now.

Soldering gun? I use a toaster oven for most of my electrical soldering.

Now, just how are you going to get a 4' shop light in a toaster oven????

With a 4 foot toaster oven.

Redfred got a 4, solar got a 5, maybe I'll get a 6.

Easy, open the door an put it in . . .

Yes, I learned this about 13 or more years ago. I was amazed that now I could make circuits with surface-mount devices (SMD) using solder paste. So many of the newer devices offered samples only in SMD packaging. I controlled the temperature profile manually for a couple dozen curcuit boards but then fitted my toaster oven to perform the 3-stage temperature ramp using an Omega temperature controller.

Actually I could be wrong about this.. could be more expense AND more hassle. The power supplies being sold along with reels of LED strip are expensive and cost goes up quickly with wattage.

There are some tempting deals on amazon, packs of ten or twenty or 35 ready made with housing and all. Maybe next winter.

<...Is it correct to conclude that ANY...fixture with loose sockets or poorly fitting lamps is a potential fire hazard?...> Of course. all electrical connections need to be "Clean, tight and bright" _{- Anonymous Poster #0}

Too true........and it is not unknown that 'flashing' fluoros are also a fire hazard.

I was very annoyed to read that the lamps should be replaced before they fail. Yes, I'm a lazy consumer. I want the thing to go out when it's done, so I know it needs replacement.

I suspect the possible fire hazard concern hinges on the material used to make the tombstone insulation when an arc occurs and not if an arc occurs from a contact misalignment. The manufacturer may have gotten a counterfeit batch of resin, miscured a batch or a batch of other possibilities that may cause the insulation to ignite from an arc instead of just being scorched. Carefully examine those scorched tombstones for insulation damage.

As a consumer, you won't be able to get the manufacturer to reveal the root cause reason for the recall. You might be able to find this out from whomever discovered the hazard or who enforced these recalls but that will certainly require some kind of fee being paid.

Be careful with switching to an LED based grow light. The color spectrum temperature rating is just what our limited bandwidth eyes perceive and not across the full spectrum that plants use. There are plenty of suitable LED grow lights but not all white lights work well.

Excuse my ignorance but I don't see anything that I recognize as insulation. Here's a closeup of one of the scorched ones.

Do I understand correctly, you are indicating that poor fitting bulbs/sockets may scorch but they don't normally catch fire or pose a hazard? Unless there is something else wrong with the material?

Why not just get new sockets?

...for $.74 ea....I usually smear a little conductive grease on both the contacts on the bulb and the socket....

The white non-conducting part of the tombstone is both insulation and possible fuel to start a fire. If that darkening is a carbon sputtering over the insulation then the tombstone is not a fire hazard. If the insulation itself has started to burn then it is a fire hazard and you got lucky. It's still a good idea to replace in either case, they're cheap.

Aha, thanks. I'll take a pocket knife to it...

The material appears to be blackened through - I couldn't scratch it off the surface. I think it must be treated with fire retardant all the same, or it would've been a more unhappy ending.

"The white non-conducting part of the tombstone is both insulation and possible fuel."

I would think that these are always ceramic. In such a case, it would be good insulation, but not a fuel. If, however it is a polymer, I would need to know the exact composition before I could determine if it would be a fuel or not.

"always ceramic"

Not in about 20 years.

Especially at a price point of $0.79 USD.

My GUESS is that code would require flame retardant materials. Unless those restrictions are reversed in the future.

Code does require flame retardant material but...

Some years ago when I was teaching, (we rented offices, classrooms and the workshops that were part of a large TAFE College), the maintenance electrician asked me if I would like a visual aid.........it was a 'large' capacitor that had burnt out.......the outer plastic casing had a large bubble on it caused be the heat. Evidently in office or workshop 'fluoro' systems where many banks are fitted they use these capacitors to ensure that the power factor of fluoros operate as near as possible to unity. Saves a 'bit' of money on the power bill I believe..........it was a good vis-aid.......and it certainly had the look of being 'cooked.'

I have installed thousands of lamps in fluorescent lights large and small. Truth be told, they are ALL a bit loose by design and this allows you to insert the lamp without breaking either lamp or socket.

I have likely seen arc issues dozens if not hundreds of times. In all instances, the socket and lamp endure some damage and that's the end of it. It might sound and look unsettling and it may stink a little, but there's really not much there to sustain a fire under normal conditions....i.e., not working in a room saturated with flammable vapor.

I suggest that you replace the socket, replace the lamp, ensure your lamp is seated, and sleep peacefully!

Thanks for sharing your experience!

Why not just use screw in fluorescent bulbs ?

Home Depot has the 4' LED replacements bulbs for $6.97 each. I haven't tried them yet, but soon. I hate to throw away anything that is working. If you put in one LED with one fluorescent, will they both light up?

From what I've read, that would be a bad idea... the tubes should be matched.

That is a great price on LED replacement bulbs. I've seen them as high as $30 CAD per bulb here. But a word to the wise - the troublesome T8 fixtures also came from Home Depot at a bargain. I find it hard to trust them, and I doubt you'll get more than your money's worth..

I've been using the Home Depot LED lamps in my garage fixtures for about 6 months now, the ones I bought were also $6.97, I believe they were by Phillips. They clearly state they need rapid start ballasts, but they are much brighter than the fluorescent T8's.