The benefits of LED lead many facility managers to consider swapping their linear fluorescent fixtures to LED fixture. With the menu of energy efficient upgrades solutions, building owners and facilities managers have an amazing opportunity to improve their energy efficiency. There are three basic options for upgrading the fluorescent fixture to LED: lamp replacement, LED retrofit kits, and entirely new integrated LED fixtures. There is no straightforward answer as to which solution is superior because each option has pros and cons.
Understanding the available options and compromises is vital to managing expectations and achieving desired goals. The best choice will depend on project-specific conditions and the goals of your upgrade—let’s compare the advantages and disadvantages of all three.
Option #1: Lamp Replacement
This solution simply replace the fluorescent tube with LED tube light by using the existing fluorescent fixture. LED tubes are designed to fit into the fluorescent sockets, effectively converting the light fixtures that originally accommodate fluorescent tubes into more energy efficient, longer life LED systems. As a product developed to address the needs of retrofitting existing fixtures, LED tubes have greatly simplified the job of lighting upgrade, whether the installation involves recessed troffers, wraparound fixtures, linear high bay lights, shop lights, or vapor tight fixtures
UL Type A tube lamp works with an existing fluorescent ballast. Low efficiency, compatibility issues even burn hazard issue may be raised between the new lamp and the existing ballast;
UL Type B lamps bypass the existing ballast and are wired directly to main voltage. These lamps require re-wiring of the fixture and will most-likely require changing lamp holders. Such lamps exists potential shock hazard issues and some heavy fire accidents have been reported due to lamp mis-application;
UL Type C is similar to Type A lamps, but utilize a dedicated new driver, rather than a ballast. Type C TLEDs offer highest system efficacy, the longest lifespan, best dimming capabilities, guaranteed system compatibility and greatest overall performance, but also have the higher price than Type A and Type B tubes;
Option #2: LED Retrofit Kits
An LED retrofit kit replaces all the components of the existing troffer except the “shell” above the ceiling. The new components fit inside the shell of the old troffer and make it look like a brand new fixture.
LED retrofit kits are similar in simplicity to Lamp Replacement options, but provide more performance opportunities particularly regarding lighting controls. This is a popular option because they’re less expensive upfront than entirely new integrated fixtures. It is mainly used in troffer but using in fixtures like as strip, vapor and high bay are rather limited
Option #3: New LED-Integrated Fixtures
This solution involves completely removing the existing fluorescent fixture and replacing it with an entirely new LED fixture. The LED fixtures are built with integrated array of LED chips mounted on a circuit board instead of the traditional lamp concept. One distinct feature of such fixture is that its output lumen, color temperatures and CRI levels could be customized for needs.
The prices vary depending on output lumen, brand, aesthetics, lighting controls/dimming needs, and a host of other factors. So, depending on your performance and aesthetic requirements, you could find that the cost difference is significant and much higher than Lamp Replacement option
Which is the best one?
A lighting upgrade involves considerations on the financial aspect as well as the installation, operations, and maintenance implications. Whether to connect or bypass the existing fluorescent ballasts is not just about saving the installation cost or not, but also affects the energy efficiency, electrical safety, operational features, and maintenance cycle of the LED retrofit tubes.
Like many investment decisions, choosing the right upgrade option comes down to cost and benefits. That said, every project and budget is different, and each option has a list of pros and cons. Sometimes the goal of a lighting project is optimal performance, sometimes it’s about a cost-effective solution, and sometimes there’s room for both.
Below is the menu of C&I lighting upgrade solutions for you reference. It can be seen that Lamp Replacement – Type C Tube presents overall best cost performance.
